Kids Web Japan

Teruyuki Fukushima; Teruyuki applies paint to a model castle.

I'm often told that it's strange, but my hobby is touring castles of Japan's medieval period. Of those I have seen so far, Himeji Castle, which is west of Osaka, looked the best.

I was especially taken by the stone walls. The walls of Kumamoto Castle are wonderful, too. I first got interested in castles because my father, who likes history, watches TV dramas set in the medieval age.

I like putting together plastic models of castles, and I also like playing computer games based on those times. You can tell what side soldiers are on just by looking at the family crests on the flags they raise in battle.

Teruyuki plays a computer game while his parents chat.

I also like cycling. Recently I rode all the way to the Imperial Palace, which took several hours. The Imperial Palace used to be a castle, too.