Iga-ryu Ninja Museum

The city of Iga, in Mie Prefecture, was the center of the Iga school of ninjutsu, which, along with the Koga school, was one of the most well-known schools of ninjitsu. The ninja of Iga stalwartly defended Iga from Oda Nobunaga's son Nobukatsu, but were forced into submission by Nobunaga, who outnumbered them ten-to-one. When Tokugawa Ieyasu became the shogun, he employed Iga ninja as his guards and intelligence agents. They continued to guard the castle until Tokugawa Yoshimune dismissed them in 1716. The museum in Iga is located near the castle and tells the history of the Iga ninja. The current honorary director of the museum is also the head of Iga ninjutsu. With so much fascination by ninjas in Western culture, and with so much of it fictionalized, this museum is a great effort to separate fact from fiction and chronicle the real place of ninjutsu in Japanese history.

Site: http://iganinja.jp/en/

Iga Ueno Castle

This castle began construction in 1585 in Iga, which is currently in Mie Prefecture. It was built by Tsutsui Sadatsugu, who was relocated to the area by Toyotomi Hideyoshi. After being accused of sloppy government, Tokugawa Ieyasu abolished the Tsutsui clan, removed Sadatsugu from his position, and replaced him with Todo Takatora in 1611. Todo expanded the castle and build 30m-high walls, the highest castle wall in Japan. It was not seen as important as it was after the threat of rebellion passed, and the keep was destroyed in high winds in 1612 and was not rebuilt until 1935. Today, it serves as a museum and the center of the Ueno Castle Park.

Site: http://www.yamasa.org/japan/english/destinations/mie/ueno_castle.html

Ise Grand Shrine

This shrine is the oldest and most important shrine in Japan, commonly agreed to have been built in 4 BCE. It is dedicated to the sun goddess Amaterasu, from whom the Imperial Family is said to have descended. The legend goes that the daughter of the Emperor established the shrine after searching for 20 years for a permanent place to worship Amaterasu. Ise Grand Shrine is a shrine complex with several shrines surrounding it. There are two main shrines, the Inner Shrine and the Outer Shrine, that are six kilometers apart. Access to the public is strictly limited, and the High Priest or Priestess must be descended from the Imperial Family; it is said the Sacred Mirror, one of the three treasures given to the Imperial Family by Amaterasu, is in them. These shrines are some of the few Shinto shrines that exist today before the introduction of Buddhism, and essentially show Shinto in its purest form.

Site: http://www.isejingu.or.jp/english/