Hikone Castle Seeks UNESCO Cultural World Heritage Designation

(Photo from my August 2018 visit to Hikone Castle)

The Japanese government is nominating Hikone Castle in Shiga Prefecture for registration as a Cultural World Heritage site. It is one of the twelve original castles in Japan and is already designated a national treasure. Himeji Castle in Hyogo Prefecture already holds the Cultural World Heritage designation.

Information from J-Castle website:

For his participation in the Battle of Sekigahara, Ii Naomasa was awarded the lands surrounding Sawayama Castle. Due to its inconvenient location and poor condition, he soon started planning for a new castle on a new location that would become Hikone Castle.

Unfortunately, Naomasa died soon after and the castle was actually begun under his son Naotsugu. It took 20 years and was completed under Naotsugu's brother Naotaka who had become lord of the castle in 1615. The main keep of Hikone-jo is famous for having used several types of gables and construction techniques to make it well fortified. The main keep and connected yagura are designated National Treasures. The Ii family maintained their rule over Hikone Castle for over 250 years from the beginning of the Edo Period until the Meiji restoration.

First Autumn Leaf Maps for 2026

(I’m having problems posting pictures on my blog and have read others are too. If you have a solution, please let me know. Thanks!)

Every year, the Japan Meteorological Corporation prepares maps with dates for the best color show. This will get updated as the season progresses. Here are the first maps. For my area, it looks like 12/2 for maple leaves, and 11/17 for ginko leaves.

(These maps are also prepared in the spring for cherry blossom viewing.)

Summer 2026 Mt. Fuji Stories

(photo from my 2019 Mt. Fuji climb)

Today the 2026 climbing season ends for this year. There have been some sad and strange stories in the news this year.

1) 99-year-old woman rescued while attempting to climb Mt. Fuji

A 99 year old woman from Iwate, Fukushima began climbing the Fujinomiya Trail on July 15th with friends. She stumbled and hurt herself that day, then spent two nights in a mountain hut near the 7th of the 10 stations.  At 7 am on July 17th, her friend called emergency services and rescue workers evacuated her from the mountain to a nearby hospital. She received medical treatment for back pain and her life was not in danger.  

2) First death of the season  

On July 17th, a 65 year old man from Nara fell and hit his head on a hard surface on the Fujinomiya Trail. Emergency rescue and medical services were called but the man died from his injuries. 

3) Foreign hiker becomes the second fatality  

On July 21st, a 58 year old man from Switzerland was hiking on the Fujinomiya Trail with his son. They stopped for a rest at a mountain hut near the 7th station when the father fell unconscious. The son alerted the hut staff, who called Shizuoka Prefectural Police’s mountain rescue team. They were able to resuscitate the man and take him to the hospital, where he was pronounced dead. The medical investigation is ongoing.

4) German woman rescued, then went on to climb again

On August 19th, a 33 year old German woman began hiking with a companion, beginning at the fifth station on the Fujinomiya Trail. By the time she reached the eighth station, she was suffering from altitude sickness, including dizziness, fatigue, and nausea. After a medical examination at the eighth station medical center, the woman was able to secure an overnight space at a mountain hut where she slept overnight.  Before dawn the next morning, she was back on the trail and continued on to reach the top. Unfortunately, she was not able to make it down on her own and had to be rescued and taken down by Shizuoka Prefectural Police’s mountain rescue team, then taken to the hospital for treatment.

5) Father leaves 7 year old son alone on mountain

On August 20th, a 48 year old father and his two sons, age 7 and 12, started climbing the Fujinomiya Trail at the fifth station.  Around the sixth station, the 7 year old became fussy and began complaining he was tired. The father told the 7 year old to “wait here”, and continued climbing to the top with the older child. At 7:40 the next morning, when it was raining and fog was forming, a worker at a mountain hut invited the young boy inside, and contacted the police. The police learned the father’s name and were able to call him and tell him to come down now and get his 7 year old. The dad and the older child were at the eighth station. Thankfully, the 7 year old was not physically harmed.  

6) Two unconscious climbers

Two climbers were found unconscious in separate incidents at different places on the mountain on September 9th. One climber was found collapsed near the summit about 5:40 am.  The other was found at 7:00 am at the New 7th Station on the Fujinomiya Trail.

7) Landslide at Mt, Fuji Fujinomiya 5th station

Finally, yesterday, September 9th, just after midnight, a landslide occurred at the Fujinomiya 5th Station parking lot, which buried three cars. No drivers, passengers, or climbers were in or near the cars and there were no injuries. Debris blocked the roadway and heavy machinery was dispatched but continuing bad weather makes the recovery and reopening time unknown. 

And so the 2026 climbing season will end.

Work In Progress Wednesday

Sneek Sampler (small) progress

The Great Wave progress - I finished the upper right quarter and have been working on the upper left quarter.

Mechanical Pencil Museum

I love this story.  This university student has turned his passion since childhood into a museum so he can share this interest with others.

Since he was a young elementary school student, Kengo Hirose asked his father to take him to stationery stores. Kengo was fascinated by mechanical pencils. He is now 20 years old and a university student, majoring in architecture.  And, he still loves mechanical pencils. 

In June, he opened the Museum of Mechanical Pencils in Kyoto’s Nakagyo Ward. He has thousands mechanical pencils from Japan and abroad, many of them from the 1980’s, and no longer being made. Visitors are allowed to try out many of the pencils and he also has some pencils for sale. The museum is open from 1 pm to 7 pm on Sundays, with reservations in advance. Visit https://hiroseteppitudo.stores.jp/reserve/kyoto-512 

(Text in Japanese only) for reservations.

National Parks Quilt-a-Long - Block 1 Nine Patch

I read about this interesting quilt-a-long on this Piecework magazine website. This article directs participants to the Park’s website for instructions for blocks 1-6. The first block is the nine patch. There are step by step instructions, as well as diagrams, photographs, and stories. I plan to use small scrappy pieces of fabric I have to hand sew the blocks. Will you join me with this Quilt-a-Long? 

Nine Patch 12 inch block, plus quarter inch seams.

Disposing of Family Homes - Jikka-Jimai

Internet photo, not actual Jikka-jimai photo

Jikka-jimai is the process of disposing of the family home. This is a topic I read and hear about more and more often. Japan has an aging population, with elderly home owners moving to care homes or dying. Middle aged children of elderly parents are anxious about what to do about their parents’ home when the time comes.

In recent times, it is more common for children to move away and establish homes in other places. There are fewer young people in Japan, and most of those looking for a place to establish themselves, want new, energy efficient homes.

Managing an empty house from afar is difficult, but neglecting an empty home causes problems with neighbors and can become a fire hazard. Demolition is expensive. If there are several children or relatives, it can be difficult for all to agree on what to do and how to cover costs.  

Experts agree that planning ahead is the ideal situation. It would be best for the elderly parents to be involved in the decision, but many do not want to talk about death. This is a difficult problem.

The Great Wave

I went to this exhibit at the Atami Museum of Art - “Hokusai Manga, The Great Wave and the Digital”. The museum building is built into the side of the mountain, so you have to go up multiple escalators. Midway up is a ceiling with constantly changing colors and a hexagon floor.

The exhibit was very large. Here are some of my favorites.

This is one of my current cross stitch projects - The Great Wave.

One room had two walls with changing projection pictures. It was really well done.

The next area had huge wall size pictures.

This was a fantastic exhibition. I’m so glad I was able to see it!

I am really fortunate to have so many great museums nearby.

Friday Small Finishes

 

This beaded edge is very easy. I posted a tutorial here.

Japan’s Oldest Person Dies

Sad News - The Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare announced 115 year Shigeko Kagawa died late last week. She was an amazing woman who graduated from medical school in 1934 and practiced medicine into her 80’s, and was the oldest torch bearer in the Tokyo Olympics in 2021. She attributed her long life to her habit of walking so much for so many years.    

Fuyo Kishimoto, 114 year old woman living in Kyoto is now Japan’s oldest person.