Fushimi is located in the southern part of Kyoto City, and known with a famous Merchants' guardian deity, Fushimi Inari Shrine. The number of the visitors to the shrine scores the biggest in Kyoto Prefecture. Additionally, the shrine is only 5 stations north from Chushojima Station, where we got off the Keihan Line on the 4th of January, in the New Year Week. There were relatively few people in the station. Chushojima Station is the nearest station to one of the biggest sacred areas for Bakumatsu freaks, Fushimi Port. The port was the biggest river harbor of Kyoto, where freight from Osaka was transshipped from bigger river ships to smaller canal boats to be carried on mainly via Takase-gawa canal into the inner city of Kyoto. The port was such an important one in medieval days that historically significant incidents happened both at the beginning of Tokugawa Shogunate and at the end of it. At the dawn of the shogunate, the war between Toyotomi, the West, and Tokugawa, the East, was started with Toyotomi's attack against Fushimi Castle, which was then owned by Tokugawa. Outnumbered samurais in the castle suicidally fought to encourage their main force and allies far east in Kanto. After the end of the war, the burnt-down castle was pulled down and provided some "chi-tenjo" (bloody ceilings) for temples around Kyoto. Even today, you can find some in the northern part of Kyoto, and also find some torn-down wall stones piled in Gokoh-no-miya Shrine in Fushimi. Some 3 centuries later, at the very end of Tokugawa Shogunate itself, we had another big battle around here, Toba-Fushini Battle, between the West and the East; this time the Imperialism vs. the Shogunate. After the battle, the east forces were totally swept away from Western Japan, but battles were continued in Eastern Japan, to Kanto, to today's Tohoku, and finally to Hakodate in today's Hokkaido. The East based in Fushimi Bugyosho (the public prosecutors and police office), which had been built by Tokugawa Ieyasu after pulling down Fushimi Castle, and which were actually working as a military post in place of Fushimi Castle. The West based themselves in Gokoh-no-miya Shrine, which was located on the higher ground. After the Meiji Restoration, the bugyosho area came to be used as an active military base by the Imperial Army and, after the World War II, it was, this time, occupied by the US Army. Its military character came to an end with the end of the militant character of Japan. Now it has apartment houses built by Kyoto City. Although their buildings and walls have a little bit of bugyosho-like taste, they no more remind us of the bloody history of the area than the cell phone straps with historical-figure dolls you can find in souvenir shops in the area.

It is an old shrine in Fushimi, located on the corner of Notional Route 24 and Otesuji. On its premises there are many touristic spots : a Tenmangu, springs, and even a no stage. The entrance gate of the shrine is impressive.