Mt Aso and Kumamoto castle

On sunday me and Ian decided to go see Mt Aso. We left the kids with Angel and drove 3 hours to the vulcano. We got to have a lovely relaxing car ride,and lunch with an amazing view, there is a parking area where you can pick between a few cafe/eateries.Kumamoto specialty is lotus stuffed with spicy mustard and raw horse meat.We decided to be hike around, and let's just say: I landed on my butt in mudd! My shoulder and neck aren't too happy, but me and Ian couldn't help but laugh about it.

The central cone group of Aso consists of five peaks: Mt. Neko, Mt. Taka, Mt. Naka (also called Nakadake or Naka-Dake), Mt. Eboshi, and Mt. Kishima. The highest point is the summit of Mt. Taka, at 1592 m above sea level. The crater of Mt. Naka, the west side of which is accessible by road, contains an active volcano which continuously emits smoke and has occasional eruptions. Only the northernmost crater (the first crater) has been active for the last 70 years—1974, 1979, 1984–1985, 1989–1991,[1] 2009, and 2011.[2] The present Aso caldera formed as a result of four huge caldera eruptions occurring over a range of 90,000–300,000 years ago. The caldera, one of the largest in the world, contains the city of Aso as well as Aso Takamori-cho and South Aso-mura. The somma enclosing the caldera extends about 18 km east to west and about 25 km north to south. Viewpoints from the somma overlooking the caldera are perched upon lava formed before the volcanic activity which created the present caldera. Ejecta from the huge caldera eruption 90,800 years ago covers more than 600 km³ and roughly equals the volume of Mt. Fuji; it is presumed that the pyroclastic flow plateau covered half of Kyūshū. On the way back we drove to Kumamoto castle,unfortunatly it was closed,but we got a general idea of what it looks like and will go back.

Kumamoto Castle's history dates to 1467, when fortifications were established by Ideta Hidenobu.[1] In 1496, these fortifications were expanded by Kanokogi Chikakazu.[1] In 1588, Katō Kiyomasa was transferred to the early incarnation of Kumamoto Castle.[1] From 1601 to 1607, Kiyomasa greatly expanded the castle, transforming it into a castle complex with 49 turrets, 18 turret gates, and 29 smaller gates.[1] The smaller castle tower, built sometime after the keep, had several facilities including a well and kitchen.[1] In 1610, the Honmaru Goten Palace was completed.[1] The castle complex measures roughly 1.6 km (0.99 mi) from east to west, and measures 1.2 km (0.75 mi) from north to south. The castle keep is 30.3 m (99.4 ft) tall. The castle was besieged in 1877 during the Satsuma Rebellion, and the castle keep and other parts were burned down.[1] 13 of the buildings in the castle complex were undamaged, and have been designated Important Cultural Properties. In 1960, the castle keep was reconstructed using concrete.[1] From 1998 to 2008, the castle complex underwent restoration work, during which most of the 17th century structures were rebuilt.[1] The signature curved stone walls, known as musha-gaeshi, as well as wooden overhangs, were designed to prevent attackers from penetrating the castle. Rock falls were also used as deterrents. In nearby San-no-Maru Park is the Hosokawa Gyobu-tei, the former residence of the Hosokawa clan, the daimyo of Higo Province during the Edo period. This traditional wooden mansion has a noted Japanese garden located in its grounds. In 2006, Kumamoto Castle was listed as one of the 100 Fine Castles of Japan by the Japan Castle Foundation. On December 7, 2007, a large-scale renovation of the Inner Palace was completed. A public ceremony for the restoration was held on April 20, 2008.