Looking fierce at Otaki Castle.

The gorgeous green of the beginnings of the summer & Otaki Castle.

Last week, I took my first trip to Otaki Castle! I'd been to Otaki a few times before, but never had the opportunity to go to the castle itself before.

Although the castle was built in the 1500s, it was burned down in 1842 and wasn't rebuilt until 1972 to house the current Otaki Castle Museum. The castle itself was modeled off of its appearance from early 17th to mid-19th century. No records of how the original castle looked remain.

The Otaki Castle Museum, which is part of the Chiba Prefectural Museum System, houses artifacts  centered on the theme of "Boso (Chiba) Castles and Castle Towns."

(Just realized that spray was there...glad they have it on hand though!)

Of course, this trip was for work, so first we set out to complete our mission - to check out these babies! The two kimono I assume are kimono worn by noble women (we didn't bother with those though, hehe). Lined up along the right of the photo are samurai armor! There are a few more sets hiding behind the kimono as well. I didn't get any photos, but there were a couple of helmets decorated with giant antlers literally as big as my arm! They were made from wood, but I wonder how much they weigh...I can't imagine them balancing well on your head...

Anyway, Otaki Castle Museum possesses this lovely collection of olden time wear, and I believe they offer workshops once a month where you can come and try them on!

Otaki Castle Museum website: (Japanese) http://www2.chiba-muse.or.jp/?page_id=59
                                                  (English) http://www2.chiba-muse.or.jp/?page_id=362

BLING BLING.

Pictured here is the set we got to play with - it's supposed to be the Tokugawa Ieyasu model!

From left to right: suneate (shin guards), haidate (thigh guards, tied around your waist kinda like an apron), kote (arm guards, except they extend all the way to your shoulder), sword, obi waist band, do (chest armor...also has the giant sode, or shoulder guards), and kabuto helmet hanging off of the right shoulder of the chest armor.

Museum staff demonstrates putting the armor on.

We were borrowing the armor to use at an event, so our main goal was to learn how to put the armor on, take it off, and wrap it up safely. They may be replicas, but considering how detailed they are, I can't imagine them being all that cheap to replace!

Our fearless leader shows us how a real man rocks the armor. Looking good!

Meanwhile, this is my disappointing attempt at making a Kill Bill worthy look.

Eventually I gave up on trying to look fierce...then my companions immediately told me warriors back in the day didn't do the peace sign. You win some, you lose some?

On the other hand, notice I haven't taken a single step from the previous photo? That's because this whole suit of armor weights about 10kg (= about 22 lbs.) It would probably be an amazing workout if you walked around all day in this though!

After the impromptu fashion show, we carefully packed up each part of the armor, one by one.

 And now that our mission was complete, it was time to take a quick look around town before heading home to Chiba City! So I leave you with some photos:

In front of Otaki Station, which is actually officially now "Dental Support Otaki Station,"
named after the company that bought its naming rights.

Bottom arrow points to Otaki Castle.

I have this weird obsession with these kinds of signs. Whenever I see a sign like this, I have this kind of uncontrollable urge to take photos of them!

Cozy looking restaurant right near Otaki Station. I am curious about their main dish, the 猪十六丼 (Wild boar "16" bowl?) Does anyone know what the significance of the 16 is...and is it really wild boar?

These Isumi Railway vending machines were super adorable!!

Tsuchiya, a Japanese sweets shop that is possibly Otaki's hottest spots!

One thing I did know about Otaki - their monaka are insanely in demand. But if you go to Otaki - make sure you get it from here, 津知家 (Tsuchiya)! It's so popular that it's a normal stop for tourist buses, but well loved by the locals as well (which is why I'd had their monaka at least 5 times before coming here). I dare say that the monaka are a bigger sales point than the town's other tourist resources.

It's a bit pricey, but they are also gigantic compared to your normal monaka. If you are a fan of red bean sweets, this is a definite must!