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This Might Look Like an Ordinary Cat. But He’s Actually a Japanese Lord

Japan's Sanjuro cat has A LOT to purr about.

It was built to repel bloodshed and chaos: a mighty hilltop fortress that for centuries was home to violent warlords. Yet somehow Japan’s only remaining mountain castle has now been conquered by a celebrity cat.

Despite its majestic appearance and extraordinary history, Bitchu Matsuyama Castle has always attracted few tourists due to its isolated location, hidden amid forested mountains in southern Japan.

Not long before the pandemic began, local tourist authorities devised an unusual strategy to attract visitors to their town of Takahashi and this castle, which looms over it. Takahashi authorities sought publicity by handing control of their castle over to an orange-and-white feline called Sanjuro.

This cat is named after Sanjuro Tani, the fearsome warrior who led the Takahashi branch of the Shinsengumi, a short-lived and mysterious Japanese police force tasked with quelling an uprising and executing dissidents in the 1860s.

As if that wasn’t a big enough honor for this cat, he’s also been named the owner of Bitchu Matsuyama Castle, which is located about 20 miles from the city of Okayama. Sanjuro is the official “Lord of the Castle.” He even has his own memorabilia. For $3, visitors to Takahashi can purchase a sheet of stamps that features both Sanjuro’s paw print and an image of him lying on his back.

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@Yoda4ever
Kitty's favorite place in the house to sleep...:tt/psykbryt_

17 Bookstore Cats Worth Road Tripping For

15 OF 17
Sinclair
WHERE: Baltimore, Maryland
Sinclair is both Official Greeter and Store Trainer at the Kelmscott Bookshop on W 25th Street. Beyond simply welcoming customers at the front door, he enjoys guiding them through the stacks, swatting them gently when he’s identified just the right book for them. He is currently training his apprentice, Pierre, who dutifully follows behind but is not yet bold enough to make his own astute recommendations. Once an abandoned boy found alone in an apartment building, Sinclair has cat-apulted to shop management in just five years.

bookstorecats-kelmscottbookstore-sinclair-975x975.jpg (133.95 KiB) Viewed 955 times

Tiredretiredlawyer wrote: ↑Wed Sep 21, 2022 11:15 pm She’s a beauty!