Fun of Good Old Japanese - 江戸・明治に学ぶ　楽しむ生き方

Hirokane mansion 、広兼邸 The view of the mansion from the carpark looks like a castle.  Hirokane family was a village head and they thrived on mining copper and manufacturing material of red iron oxide  (pigment) which is called “Japan-red” or “Bengara”.  It was built in 1810  and was the filming location of “Burn up, my sword” (Moeyo, ken) and  ” The Village of Eight Graves” (Yatsu haka mura). The building was donated to Okayama prefecture, and the descendants live in Tokyo now. 駐車場から見上げた広兼邸、城郭のような外観に圧倒されます。「八つ墓村」や「燃えよ剣」のロケにも使われました。 ベンガラの原料（ローハ）と小泉銅山で巨富を成した庄屋さんが 1810 年に建てました 。建物は岡山県に寄付され、御子孫は東京に住んでいるそうです。 I walked  to the gate . There is a door before the gate, which was an outlet of fertilizer (livestock manure). It’s a huge house but it’s also a farmhouse. 石垣に沿って登り、 門を目指します 。手前の建物では農耕用の家畜を飼っていて、落とした肥は通路に近くの扉から取り出されました。巨大ですが、農家です。 Inside the gate, a receptionist and a local had green tea while talking. It was a peaceful scene and time went by slowly; it was a same scene in the past,

Fukiya town is the birthplace of red iron oxide (pigment) which is called “Japan-red” (“Bengala” in Japanese). The town flourished around 1900 by the production of Japan-red and copper. It is a classy town in a mountainous area, but many people lived including prostitutes back then.    ベンガラ作りで巨大な富を築いた岡山県北部の吹屋 を訪ねました。“「ジャパンレッド」発祥の地　 - 弁柄（ベンガラ）と銅（あかがね）の町・備中吹屋 -” として、日本遺産に登録されています。いい感じの街ですよ。明治時代に隆盛を極め、遊女がいるほど栄えた街でした。 Roof tiles and exterior are painted in Japan-red” and are attractive. I'm afraid the blue sky is much more attractive than Japan-red roof. 瓦や格子、ベンガラ色が映える街ですね。青空が映えすぎますかね？   Fukiya Folk Museum 、郷土館 The museum was built in 1879 by the temple carpenter who came from the neighboring prefecture (Shimane). 片山家の分家。石州大工によって明治 12 年（ 1879 ）に竣工しました。 It is a long house to the back which is a typical style of a merchant one. Everyday goods are displayed in the house. 奥に長い商家の作りです。民具等が展示されています。 How do you like the wooden partitions (lower right)? Those are folded and are put away.

Most of castle towers were demolished after the feudal era, and eight towers were burned during the WW2. Only twelve towers remain until now; “Bitchu Matsuyama Castle” is one of them . By the way, many castles were rebuilt after the WW2, but most of them are concrete structure. I visited the castle and the town under it last October. It is in Okayama prefecture, western Japan. It's a pity that I couldn’t see the city museum because of the renovation work; it already reopened (https://www.city.takahashi.lg.jp/soshiki/9/kyoudo4240131.html). 雲の上の城で名高い備中松山城は、 現存 12 天守のうち、唯一の山城 です。 また、その城下の高梁を訪ねました。残念ながら、高梁市郷土資料館（ https://www.city.takahashi.lg.jp/soshiki/9/kyoudo4240131.html ）は、改修工事で休館のため訪問できませんでした。 The view of the mountain castle from Ohkubo pass. 映画「バッテリー」（ 2006 ）のロケ地・大久保峠から。 I climbed the castle . The signboard on the left says, “Welcome! Lord of the castle”. There are several signboards which cheer up climbers (visitors). 山城を登ります 。立て札が所々にあり、 城主が励ましてくれ ます。今は猫（ さんじゅーろー） が城主です。

Katsushika Ward at the eastern end of Tokyo is a flat area which is between rivers. It is a high-density residential area, but it was a rice farming area until a hundred years ago . The museum consists of a history zone and an astronomy one with an astronomical telescope. I understand meals were joy for farmers during the time of scarce entertainments. They enjoyed meal times although simple foods were served. 葛飾区は、東京都の東の端で、川に挟まれた平坦な地域です。 今や住宅密集地ですが、 100 年ほど前までは水田が広がっていました 。天体望遠鏡やプラネタリウムがある天文フロアと郷土史フロアからなる博物館です。 ここでは、娯楽が少ない時代の楽しみであった農家の食事がよく分かりました。質素な食事でも楽しい時間を過ごしていたと思います。   There is a park with an artificial stream in front of the museum.  Statues of falconers  stand there. There were many birds there, so the  shogun  (ruler in the feudal era) came to hunt with falcons. There was a lounge for him. 博物館の前の曳舟川親水公園には、鷹匠の像があります。河川や沼が多い東京都東部の葛西筋（葛飾区、墨田区、江東区、江戸川区）には 鳥が多く、将軍家の鷹場 になっていました。休憩所として御殿も置かれました。 In the  local history and folklore exhibition room , the exhibits are placed ch