Place: Nijo Castle
How to get there: It's just west of the city center. Take the bus to Nijo-jo Mae bus stop or take the subway to Oike Station.
Essential Information: First built in 1603 by order of the first Shogun, Tokugawa Ieyasu, as his Kyoto residence and defenseive position. Modifications were completed in 1626, but some of the original castle was destroyed over the years by fire. The main building, Ninomaru Palace, is open for visitors, but no photos are allowed inside. There is also a beautiful garden (like everywhere else in Kyoto, it seems).
My Take: The palace is famous for a security feature called the "nightingale floor," where nails have been placed below the floorboards in a way such that when pressure is applied to the floor, the nails scrape the wood creating a squeaking sound (like a nightingale). This was done to prevent an intruder from being able to sneak into the palace undetected. As I was walking through the palace (with a hundred or so other people) I could hear in the background what sounded like a flock of birds chirping away. So it still works today - pretty cool!
A guard tower stands above the moat and outer wall of the castle complex
The Kara Mon, or, Chinese Gate and its' ornate decorations. The Ninomaru Palace can be seen behind it.
Ninomaru Palace, the main building of the castle grounds. It is here where the Shogun and his guards stayed.
The famous Nightingale Floor. Notice how the nails stick up into the floorboards, primed to screech with the slightest pressure.
There are many beautiful gardens in Kyoto, but this one was one of my favorites
A map of the castle grounds shows a fort protected by a moat within a fort protected by another moat. I guess it's good to be extra careful sometimes. The main building at the bottom is the Ninomaru Palace. The one inside the second moat is the secondary palace, Honmaru.
A view of the extended castle grounds. The Honmaru Palace is the building on the right.
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