#Okayama in Japan

[iloverocolin]

初夏の縦走、駒の尾山、鍋ヶ谷山、船木山、後山

[inefekt69]

Okayama, Japan

[useless-catalanfacts]

Did you know that a Japanese samurai is buried in a village in Northern Catalonia? 🏯 Here's how he ended up in the other side of the world.

Nomura Kosaburo was born in a samurai family in 19th-century Okayama (Japan). His father was a retainer of the Bizen province, serving Lord Ikeda's family. When he was 12 years old, his father died and he inherited his stipends, becoming a samurai himself.

In 1869, he started attending the Army Officers' School “heigaku-ryō” in Osaka (Japan). The school selected 10 of its students to go study in different schools in France. The young Kosaburo was one of the chosen ones, and was sent to the Lycée Louis le Grand in Paris (France). He studied mathematics and received excellent grades, and was scheduled to join a staff officer school, but his plans were cut short when he contracted Tuberculosis.

In 1878, he was advised to go to Southern France, because its dry air was recommended for the treatment of illnesses such as Tuberculosis. He chose the village of Els Banys i Palaldà (Northern Catalonia), a spa town known for its termal water since Ancient Roman times and which had recently built a new military hospital.

Nomura did not survive the illness, he died in 1876. He was buried in the local cemetery, in the tomb you can see in the photos above. The Japanese text means "Tomb of Nomura Kosaburo, Japanese Military Cadet". Below, a text in French says "Here lies Kosaburo Nomura, Japanese military student. Died in Amélie-les-Bains on June 26th 1876 at the age of 21. Perpetual concession." (Amélie-les-Bains is the French name for the village).

His tomb was almost forgotten for 130 years, but now the association Les Amis de Kosaburo - Kosaburo no tomodachi ("Friends of Kosaburo") study his history and preserve his memory in Els Banys i Palaldà and Okayama.

Photos from Vallespir Canigó. Information from Els Banys i Paladà City Council (Mairie Amélie-les-Bains-Palalda-Montalba) and Association Les Amis de Kosaburo.

[redsamuraiii]

Fun Trivia : Did you know that Osaka Castle was black?

It was built by the real Taiko, Toyotomi Hideyoshi, before it was destroyed and reconstructed into a white castle by Tokugawa Ieyasu. After the death of the "dictator" Oda Nobunaga, Hideyoshi constructed impressive castles like Osaka to herald his new position.

Castles that were built during Hideyoshi's reign like Hiroshima, Okayama and Matsumoto are black. Castles built during Tokugawa's reign like Hikone, Himeji and Nagoya are white. So when you see a castle on your next trip to Japan, you can guess who built it. 😉

The differences in color is due to the resources availability at the time, as white plastering were more expensive than black lacquered timber, so it is of no surprise that Tokugawa later used white for his castles as a symbol of wealth and power. 

You can read more from the book, Samurai Castles by Jennifer Mitchelhill which share the history of Japanese castles, from its designs, architectures, layouts, significance and legends, coupled with wonderful photos of the castles by David Green.

[livesunique]

Okayama Castle, Okayama, Japan

[webdiggerxxx]

꧁★꧂

[pangeen]

“ 津山城 “ // 𝚈𝚞𝚞𝚗𝚊

[oh-he-grows]

This yellow Cosmos sulphureus (his name is Cosmo) is only 1 foot shorter than the world record of 12' 3"

He has a few more weeks without frost to reach that last twelve inches, wish him good luck!

[sarasoj]

鶴山公園（津山城址址） やっぱりここが一番よ。

Kakuzan-park Tsuyama castle

[gregor-samsung]

ボクたちはみんな大人になれなかった [We Couldn't Become Adults] (Yoshihiro Mori, 2021)

[espumaqantica]

Tricker's. Proper Cloth. Japan Blue Jeans via Okayama Denim.

[inefekt69]

Okayama, Japan

[1979sushi]

Okayama, Japan.

[mothmiso]

Nightscape (2) (3) by maaasaaa415

Via Flickr:

(1) (2) Yokkaichi (3) Mizushima     

[redsamuraiii]

Nochi Station (野馳駅) at Okayama by sugi_photography

[potorato]