#hasetsu castle

Why I went to Karatsu pt.2

(and why I really enjoyed walking around Karatsu)

Of course, I had to visit the places that were featured in the anime. It was delightful and nostalgic walking around Karatsu.

- Karatsu Station is Hasetsu Station.

- The shopping arcade is where Yurio got his tiger print shirt

- The road where Yuri jogs

- Karatsu Castle is Hasetsu Castle - where Yuri also exercises and where he spends some time with Viktor

Ahhhhhh I miss Yuri on Ice.

“We call everything on the ice ‘love’.”- Katsuki Yuri

Day 24: Anime vs. Real Life

Karatsu Castle:

Moving on to the other side of the bridge.

From the right side..

...and from the left side.

For those that are still unaware, Ice Castle Hasetsu does not exist in Karatsu. There is actually no rink in Karatsu. Instead, the building below the castle is Waseda Junior & Senior High School.

See?

But I digress. Let’s get a closer look at the Karatsu Castle grounds.

Now can I just take a moment to say that yes, I get he’s a professional athlete, so he’s already in superb shape. But after walking these stairs? Damn, Yuuri. Running up steps in general sucks. But duuuuude. These steps are all over the place.

There are gaps, they’re at slightly different heights. There were multiple times I almost face planted because I stopped looking down...and I was slowly walking! I’d kill myself if I tried to run up these steps. So my most sincere kudos to best boi for doing his exercises without tripping and dying.

Aaaand look who I found!

Did I totally take my selfie with the castle on the wrong side and the wrong hand in the shot?? You betcha I did!!!

┬┴┬┴┤( ͡° ͜ ʖ ͡°) ├┬┴┬┴

┬┴┬┴┤ ͜ʖ ͡°) ├┬┴┬┴

┬┴┬┴┤ ͡°) ├┬┴┬┴

┬┴┬┴┤├┬┴┬┴

Please forgive me for that super fail...

...

...

INTO THE CASTLE WE GO!!

And once you get near the top, you see some familiar faces.

And!

AND!!

AND!!!

TWINSIES!!

*cough* ehem

Moving all the way to the top

Unfortunately, unlike the artwork, the roof extends out past the red railing, so I was not able to get a picture of the shachihoko, even with my selfie stick.

So I cheated and took a picture of the ones on the lower roofs.

Then, when you finally make your way downstairs, you see some more familiar faces, and a whole corner where you can blow even MORE money!

bank account cries

ALSO!

I MADE FRIENDS!!!

There were 3 other girls (one from Sweden, one from Portugal, and one from Switzerland...all in Yokohama for school) that were also there for YOI adventures. It was the second trip for 2 of them, and the first trip for the 3rd. We banded together.

Apparently they saw me first, but weren’t sure if they should talk to me. Then I saw them around the corner at the top of Karatsu Castle, but I wasn’t sure if I should approach them. So I continued to walk around the top level. And they hadn’t moved, so I ran into them. So I forced myself to be a social human being and say hello. It was a very, VERY wise decision.

We bonded over YOI. They spoke Japanese. I was saved from many awkward situations where I would’ve been otherwise lost with my essentially non-existent Japanese speaking skills.

<-Previous Post - My YOI Nerd Pilgrimage pt. 29 - Day 24: Anime vs. Real Life - Maizurubashi Bridge

Next Post -> My YOI Nerd Pilgrimage pt. 29.2 - Day 24: New friend adventures!

The weather on the second day was as beautiful as the first, I allocated all the yoi check points on this day. I’m going to split the post into part 1 and 2, dedicated to the Karatsu Castle and the Karatsu Shrine respectively. 

Please check out my Day 1 post here! Day 2 part 1 under the cut :)

YOI x Saga, new collaboration. Celebrate the reopening of Karatsu Castle!

Victuri at the castle... this time in clothes. :’D