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Using blogger is a sort of a pain compared to Google+ - probably on purpose!  So, if you like this blog - you might want to follow me on G+ or twitter because I'll post on those services more often because its easier.

Ears and noses

Toyotomi Hideyoshi invaded Korea twice in the late 1500s. For the Japanese things went pretty well until they didn't - China sent in troops and that was the end of that.
But back in the day, decapitation was akin to getting a receipt for service. To prove you'd been brave in the field of battle Samurai dressed in outlandish colours and crazy helmets so everyone would know who had done what. They even occasionally had battle-bureaucrats record and document the action as they found that being focussed on head-collection could come at the cost of actual battle victory.
What's this got to do with Korea?
Well head collecting and returning to Japan was totally impractical : too many heads were collected and they are kind of big and heavy. So, they collected ears (and noses), put them in barrels and sent them back to Japan where they put in this huge mound called Mimitzuka - Ear Mound.
Not surprisingly, the Korean government is not thrilled about such a monument still existing is the quiet suburbs of Kyoto and has asked for the remains to be returned.

Honno-ji Incident

Honno-ji is the temple Oda Nobunaga was relaxing in when Akechi Mitsuhide, a general in Oda's service, betrayed him and sent his soldiers to burn/kill.
It is alleged that he intended to take over the nation building business that Oda Nobunaga had established. It went so badly for Akechi Mitsuhide that he is known as the Mikka Kubo - The 3 Day Shogun. He was killed by peasants following his defeat by Toyotomi Hideyoshi.

While I was sitting in the courtyard soaking in the atmosphere, a little old lady came over and struck up a conversation. She showed me the grave (not really a grave with his remains per se, more of a memorial stone) of Oda Nobunaga which was round the back and allegedly contains his sword.
Next to that, was a memorial to an artist if the Edo era known for being somewhat of a wandering epicurean - a drunk painter and poet whose skill was known to improve on alcohol. Much like my karaoke.

Fun facts

Fun fact 1
The Gifu bus company provides a TV for customers which includes your star sign predictions : "today you will go on a journey......"

Fun fact 2
Onsen usually have a sign itemizing the mineral content of the water you will bathe in.

Inuyama

Inuyama is a gorgeous town North of Nagoya. It is a Jokamachi style : Castle Town. The castle is actually one of Japanese oldest extant castles and is perched on top of the mountain by the river. This photo was taken from the onsen of my ryokan (Inuyama-kan) which was a pretty nice way to relax. The keep itself is great inside and you can explore the grounds and climb to the top level for a great view; a view that none other than Hideyoshi himself once saw when he occupied the castle during his brief campaign against Tokugawa Ieyasu. The entry ticket gets you in a few other museums near the castle.

Samurai armour

Samurai armour was much lighter than that of European knights. Large sheets of metal were not common and the panels were designed to absorb and diffuse shock rather than resist. I think Thomas Conlan did some work on the nature of injuries from 14th Century Samurai records, but I recall that facial injuries were common (you often see Samurai doing a bit of battlefield medicine by pulling arrows out of the eyes of comrades in scrolls) and that explains the decorative metal coverage of the face. They often included (like this one)  fearsome facial hair and expressions. Another feature was the helmet: specifically designed to stand out on the battlefield so that acts of bravery would be conspicuous.

3 great unifiers

Together again in Okazaki castle Tokugawa museum