Miyazaki: Unexpectedly Stumbling Upon the Obi Castle Festival! 🏯🎉

#summervacay I recently visited Miyazaki, and what an unexpected treat it was! I'd read that Obi (飫肥) is known as "Little Kyoto of Kyushu," featuring the historic Obi Castle Ruins (飫肥城跡). From JR Obi Station, it's about a 20-minute walk to the castle ruins. Since it was my first time there and I had a JR Pass, I planned to observe the area casually, aiming to see as much as possible and revisit my favorite spots later. I arrived at Obi Station just after 10 AM. Compared to the unmanned stations like Aoshima or Ibii, Obi Station felt quite substantial – it even had staff! I took a quick look around the station, hoping to find lockers for my backpack, but didn't see any. No big deal, though; I only had a small backpack, and I wasn't planning an extended stay in Obi anyway. Following my navigation app towards Obi Castle, I crossed a bridge. Not long after, I started seeing small groups of people dressed in traditional Japanese attire. As I walked a bit further, I heard announcements over a loudspeaker. To my delightful surprise, I had stumbled upon the 47th Obi Castle Festival (飫肥城祭)! It was a two-day event, and I had arrived right in the middle of it. What an incredible stroke of luck! #miyazaki #obi #obicastle #obicastlefestival #japantravel