I Am A Celebrity!: Cruising in Japan: Kochi

AS YOU can probably see, I like to photograph the ports from the ship. Sometimes, you get some of the best views of the city from the vantage point of the top deck in a port. Other times, it may just be a small part. Either way, it always says something about the city to me. Here, you can see that the port is a very commercial/industrial port, and relatively small, but they are certainly ramping up to accept more cruise traffic. After we left Yokohama, we rarely saw a cruise ship other than our own in port, but this one was an exception. You can see the Oceania Riviera (one of Oceania's largest ships - 2X the size of the Nautica which we sailed on in 2023) in the background here.

KOCHI WAS one of our stops that was not on the main island of Honshu. It was the only city we stopped at on the island of Shikoku. During our brief time there, Kochi seemed like another small city. 10 times larger than Omaezaki, though, it really isn't. We arrived there on a rainy day, and our research didn't turn up a lot to do. There was, however, supposed to be a nice castle there. Of our group of six, 4 of us (the three ladies and I) decided to take a cab from the cruise port to the castle.

DID I mention that it was mostly rainy? Not heavy - or even steady - just rain. Just enough to be pesky. I got a reminder when I got home and started to work on the images I made in Kochi. Raindrops on the camera lens will really spoil what could otherwise be a nice image. Not something I often encounter, and this time, I just plain forgot to think about it. When you are shooting, you don't necessarily notice raindrops. When you are viewing the images on-screen later, magnified as large blobs by the lens, they stick out (note to self - make sure you have a microfiber cloth with you at all times, and make sure to check and wipe any raindrops of the camera before the shot). 😳 With the one or two that I wanted to use I did my best in photoshop to kind of "camouflage" the effect.

IN SPITE of the few spoiled images, I did get some pretty nice images - almost all either of - or from - Kochi Castle. Given the nature of the weather, we limited our shore time to a trip to and from the castle, and a couple hours on the grounds. One of the shots I made from the castle was one that I particularly liked because it was one of the only few shots that included the Japanese National Flag in the image.

AS MIGHT be expected, the castle is on high ground, and there is a pretty steep grade up to the castle grounds, and then a healthy climb up into the tower at the top. The site is now known as Mt. Kochi. Formerly Mt. Odakasa, the name Mt. Kochi was given near the completion of Kochi Castle and is said to mean "high wisdom" (as opposed to the presumably more pedestrian, Odakasa meaning: "in the middle of rivers"). The climb up was worth it, however. The view of the city of Kochi from the top is predictably panoramic. The "dirty" lighting conditions made for less than spectacular images, but the view was still exhilarating.

THE TOWER was up several flights of very steep stairs. The way to the topmost floor was almost more like a ladder. Of our group, only I continued on up. There were some nice exhibits on a couple of the lower tower floors, including small scale models of the castle, and life around it. Some who are long-time readers here (or over at my LightCentricPhotography photo blog) may recall that most castles back in their time were more or less a self-contained village of their own, with necessary things like food establishments, workshops, and farming and other tools. These, of course, in addition to munitions and weapons necessary to defend the castle. The scale models showed (some presumably Samurai) warriors as well as villagers and farmers, and the various buildings inside the castle walls.

THE ORIGINAL castle dates back to the early 17th century. Completed around 1611 - 1612, it was almost completely destroyed by fire in 1727 (only the remnants of the tower remained). During the period from 1729 - 1753, the castle was completely restored, remaining true to its original design and structure. One interesting note (in the literature they handed out at the citadel entrance) was a comment about spikes on the wall at the northeast corner of the grounds that are supposedly unique to Kochi Castle, known as "ninja repellants." Unfortunately, I didn't see this note until well later (we had returned home), so I neither identified, nor photographed them. The castle (as was probably not unusual to the period) was designed with many ingenious defensive fortifications.

LIKE EVERY nearly other castle we saw the grounds were surrounded by Japanese-style architectural gardens. Given the marginal weather conditions, we didn't have much opportunity to walk around them, or explore them. They appear to be extensive. The distinctive Japanese lanterns that adorned the property (everywhere) were a nice addition. I wondered whether they were lit at night, and how that might look. But photographically, the added interest to nearly every picture I made.

THESE STAIRS, according to my literature, were built to be purposely difficult to climb, and just around the corner, intruders were suddenly hemmed in and easy targets for arrows, rocks and other objects from above - designed to repel attackers and make taking the castle difficult.

THE LANTERNS were evident even on the city streets and the park out in front of the castle, and again, made great lead-in elements for a nice photograph.

HAVING SPENT a couple hours at the castle, flagged a cab back on the street and headed back to our ship. Even on rainy days, you can see the die-hard local citizens with their welcoming and departure ceremonies.

I Am A Celebrity!

Sunday, June 2, 2024

Cruising in Japan: Kochi

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