Odawara Castle

Odawara is an interesting seaside town about 1/2 an hour South West of Tokyo on the bullet train.
It has a most splendid castle and grounds with moats and beautiful gardens.









 It was a great strategic importance being a good port and on the approaches to Tokyo. The various clans that owned it were very powerful and rich due to their good agricultural practices and husbandry of their land.







We visited on a beautiful sunny late winter's day and were able to see some of the very first cherry blossoms in flower along with a lot of plum blossoms.

Next to the castle is the beautiful Ni No Miya shrine.

Temple guest house and restaurant