Embedded Files
February 1st
I'M SO EXCITED! It is 10 days before we leave and I cannot wait for February 11th. Ever since my brothers first KJ exchange student, Toshiki, I have fallen in love with Japanese and the Japanese culture. I was lucky enough to go to Japan in the summer of 2015, so I can not wait to see what Japan looks like in the winter. I cannot wait for the snow! I love snow so much, so winter in Japan seems like a dream to me. Although I am bursting with excitement, I am also getting a bit nervous about making real conversation in Japanese. In class we always know at least a little bit about the topic of our conversations, but in the real world you just start talking without a specific topic or guideline. Trying to prepare for everything has been stressful, but I am sure that once we actually get there all of my stress and nervousness will melt away.
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We are off and away to the best place in the world. I got to sit next to Taylor on the flight. It was really nice to have someone that you know to talk to on the 13 hour flight. That flight was so long. I watched 3 or 4 movies (I can't remember how many I actually watched), and a bunch of TV shows. We had lots of gross air plane food, but that was not unexpected. After 13 hours of trying to sleep but not being able too we were finally in Japan! It took 2 and a half hours to get through customs, exchange money, and get our rail passes. For dinner we stopped in a seven eleven and got some onigiri. It was amazing! After multiple train rides, we arrived at the Tokyo Central Hostel. I am running on 3 hours of sleep, and I have been up for 25 hours, so GOODNIGHT!
February 13th
I HAD SO MUCH FUN TODAY! Our magical day started off with eating breakfast at the youth hostel. It was pretty yummy! After we stuffed our tummies with rice, miso, eggs, and much more we were off and away to Setagaya plum blossom festival.
But first we stopped for some roasted potato. It was a roasted sweet potato with nothing on it. It was so good. The potato was so big that we split it between 5 people, and we still had a ton left over.
The trees were beautiful. We saw an old man panting in the park and had a conversation with him. He was really nice! All over the park smelled really sweet because of the plum blossoms. We also saw a park, and this really cute kid was swinging on a tiny swing.
After the park we headed to Harajuku. Once we go there we were allowed to explore in little groups, so Paul, Alfredo, Evan, Betsy, Taylor, and I had a ton of fun exploring. We started off by exploring kitty land. It is a 4 story store filled with everything cute. There were stuffed animals, a cat piano, and much more.
After that we explored the Meiji shrine. It was basically a big forest. It was amazing. Then we got some amazing crepes. I got a banana chocolate one, and a strawberry chocolate one. After that we went to a wig shop and convinced VK to buy a blue wig. He looks good! After we went to a 100 yen shop (one dollar shop). It was full of a lot of really cool things!
Next we went on a Ferris wheel. This it the view from the top. It was so much fun to rock out to some music while looking over Tokyo. After the ferris wheel some of us went on a roller coaster. I sat next to VK in the very front of the car. It was so much fun. It was so fast and extremely steep. I HAD SO MUCH FUN! The next part of our day was dinner at the hostel. It was very yummy.
The last part of our night was probably my favorite. We got to see a light show. It was so pretty. It looked like a bunch of Christmas trees, and nothing makes me happier than Christmas trees.
Today was pretty great.
February 14th
We started off the day strong with a breakfast at the hostel. With a belly full of rice we headed off to the National Museum in Ueno park. This museum was pretty awesome.
This museum was pretty awesome. I started with these costumes worn by the Noh acting group. It was really cool to see costumes worn by a group in the 15th century.
After the museum we headed to a flower garden in Ueno park called Ueno Toshogu Peony garden. It was BEAUTIFUL! Over all of the flowers they built little tents. It was so cute. Yokoto sensei thinks it is to keep the snow off of the flowers.
Right next to the garden was the Toshogu shrine. We bought temple books here. At every temple you can buy Goshuin. To the left is the one that I got from this shrine.
After the shrine we went to go eat lunch. I bought udon noodles with chicken tempura. It was pretty yummy. We also saw these cute bread pandas. They were so adorable and yummy!
Next we went to Sensou-ji. It was really pretty. There were girls in kimonos everywhere. They all looked so good. We also got two Goshuin here.
After Sensou-ji we went back to the hostel for dinner. It was really yummy like always. After dinner we went to the Tokyo sky tree. We went to the highest floor we could. The sight was unbelievable. The city is so beautiful at night. Also the elevator up went so fast. It took about 30 seconds to get to the top (it would be equivalent to 450 floors). We didn't get back to the hostel until 10:45. I was very tired.
February 15th
Today was our last day in Tokyo :( but on the bright side we get to stay at the shibu onsen. Today was a full day of trains and monkeys. We started off our day by packing and eating breakfast at the hostel. Then we were off to the train station. We took three different trains to get to our hotel. The first one was a regular train.
The second train was the Shinkansen (bullet train). The first picture was the view from my window. the second and third picture was my bento box that I ate. It was delicious. What surprises me most about the Shinkansen was how smooth is was. It goes so fast but yet I felt like we were sitting still. It was so cool.
Our last train was a private train. It was really pretty outside because there was a blanket of snow on the ground.
The coolest part of our day was Jigokudani monkey park. These monkeys were so cute. they were not afraid of humans at all. They would run right up next to you. One moment that I remember was when one baby monkey was taking a bath in the hot spring, and a bigger monkey got in. The bigger monkey swam up to the baby monkey and dunked his head in the water. It was really funny. Below are some pictures of some monkeys.
The last part of our day was dinner. This dinner was the best dinner I have ever had. We had so many courses that I had to readjust my yukata because my belly was so full. we had about 10 (maybe more) different dishes served to us. Jeff was the vulture of our group and finished all of the food that we couldn't. I'm so excited to have a full day of bathing tomorrow so I can digest this food.
February 16th
Today was bath day! All we did today was homework and take baths.
This was our breakfast this morning. Unlike dinner, every dish that we had to eat was on the table already.
We spent the whole day in out yukatas and wearing the geta shoes. The onsens were so nice to get into. There are 9 different baths, besides the one in the hotel, that you can go to. If you do all nine then you get a special stamp. Betsy, Hazel, and I were dedicated to getting that stamp. So, we spent the whole day going from bath to bath.
In some places in Japan with hot springs, they used some of the hot spring to make soft boiled eggs. It is amazing how trust worthy people in Japan are. There was no one outside selling these egg. All you did was throw a 50 yen coin into a little basket and take which ever eg you want. Hazel decided to buy one, and she said it was very good. During our bathing after lunch we met a Japanese mom and her daughter that seemed teenage to early 20s. It was really awesome to get to talk to them in Japanese. They were really nice even though our grammar was terrible.
For lunch we went to a soba place. I got Tsukimi soba. It is soup with raw egg, seaweed, and the soba noodles. It was very yummy. After we went and got geloato down the street. I got the Mocha flavor.
Below is a picture of almost all of the dishes that we had for dinner tonight. The last picture is my table after I devoured the meal. The only one I am missing is the salmon with cream on top. This food was really good. It was my favorite food that we have eaten so far. My favorite part was the shibu shibu dish. That is the dish that includes the metal bowl where we cooked our own food right in front of us. It was so yummy. After I ate I was so full I could not move.
February 17th
Today was our last day at shibu hotel. To give the bath one last hurrah, Hazel and woke up early and tried the outside bath. It was really nice.
Once again we had an amazing meal. It was extremely filling. We also got sensei to serve us water and rice. It was pretty awesome. After we had a long ride to Kyoto. It took all day. So. Many. Trains.
On the walk to our Ryokan we found a bakery named Paul. So of course I had to take a picture of him in front of the sign. When we first arrived they had bowls of candy waiting for us in the waiting room, and they all served us green tea. It was relaxing.
Our room is so pretty! Next to each of our beds they folded us a oragami horse with a little note next to it. Also in every room they left some sweets. I love it here.
This is the view from sensei's room. It is crazy awesome. The walls are made out of paper so that you can look out into the garden. It is beautiful. We are getting spoiled with all of this awesome stuff that sensei has planned for us. I can not even imagine what it was like to plan this. So THANK YOU SENSEI!
For dinner we headed out to Kyoto station. It has 11 floors. It was so cool. The tenth floor was only ramen restaurants, so we decided to eat at one of the many ramen places on the tenth floor. After we headed to the second floor to Mr. donut where we got these really cool donuts.
After we ate our donuts Hazel decided to order a hot chocolate, but the lady at the register thought she said hot dog. So, Hazel came back with a hot dog. It was defiantly one of the funnier parts of the evening.
February 18th
This morning we woke up 7 minutes before we had to be at breakfast. Don't worry we made it down in time in our Yukatas.
This was our meal. There was so much food I had no idea of where to begin. There were these things that Sensei called magic beans. They were black and very strong. I did not realize that you were supposed to eat them with rice, so I popped in my mouth. It was pretty strong by itself.
After breakfast we traveled to Kyoto station to take a Shinkansen and then a bus to where the villages are. Also Zinta got yogurt flavored water instead of regular water. It was pretty great.
The snow piled up was taller than me. It was crazy. This is the first village that we stopped at. It was absolutely gorgeous.
We had a little too much fun with the snow. Hazel surprise attacked me.
But don't worry I got her back.
We then got back in the bus and headed to the village with the lights. We saw a dance show and we found an igloo. It was surprisingly warm.
After the sunset they lit the candles. Tons of snow was falling down on top of the previous 5 ft of snow. It was so beautiful. When we were in line for the bathroom we met a lady, and one of the first things she asked us was if we liked trump. This really made me think about how we present ourselves because Trump is who people around the world think we are. We have to prove them that we are better, and will not obliviously ignore someone else's culture.
The last part of my day was the bus to shinkansen to subway home. We had a bento box on the train, and Hazel, Paul, Alfredo, and I played contact on the 3-4 hour trek back home. It was pretty fun. I am very happy about today.
February 19th
This morning we ate breakfast at 7 am again. We ate so much food that I could hardly move after breakfast. After changing out of our Yukata's we headed out for our day in Kyoto.
After breakfast we headed off to Pagoda. It was really pretty! My favorite part was a the huge Buddhist statues.
When we entered the building in the background of the picture on the right they made us wear out backpacks on our fronts. We looked pretty great.
There was this one lady handing out plum tea. It was really cold out so we all got excited for free tea. It had gold flakes in it, and looked really pretty. But then I tried it. It tasted like salty water. It was the opposite of what I was expecting to taste.
After we headed to Kitano Tenmangu shrine. It was so beautiful. There were around 2000 plum blossoms trees. I had never seen anything like it before. We also got to have free tea and cookies, and again it was salty. It was still very surprising because I was not expecting that taste.
After we drank the free tea we explored the shrine part of this. It was really pretty. The goshuin that we got had a little flower stamp. I know that because of that stamp I will always remember this shrine.
When we got lunch at the konbini we saw this sign outside. It says everyone is watching. I thought it was pretty funny.
Next we went to the Nijo- jinya and the Nijo castle. We couldn't take pictures :( but I still have a lot of memories from each. The Nijo- jinya is a ninja house. It is a super cool house because there are a bunch of secret places to hide, and secrets passages. The Nijo castle has super cool floors. When you step on them they sound like birds because of the way the wooden floors are nailed together.
The next part of the day was my favorite because we went to the Fushimi Inari shrine. It is so cool because of all of the tori gates. They are so pretty. I wish that I could stay in there forever.
After we went back to Kyoto station for our dinner. I got a curry pizza and Mocha ice cream. It was so delicious. Also the spelling of alcohol was very funny.
February 20th
Today we left Kyoto for Kanazawa. This means that we only have one more day after today with the rest of the trippers before the home stay. I am going to be so sad when we all split up because we have all become such a family.
This was our last breakfast at the ryokan. There was a lot of food, but it was all really good. Especially the egg on top of the rice.
Then took an express train to kanazawa. I had this little cookie thing on the train. It was really cute. I actually got work done this time on the train which was very suprising.
When we got to the hotel we dropped our stuff off and headed out to Ninja- Dera. It was raining really hard and I forgot to fill up my water bottle, so I held my water bottle outside to fill it up. It didn't really work and my arm got super wet and cold, but it was still worth it for that extra sip of water. We weren't allowed to take pictures in here either, so you're gonna have to trust me that it was pretty cool. There were more secret entrances and fun places in there.
The last thing we did before dinner was go to Omicho market. It is the biggest fresh fish market in Kanazawa. It smelled very fishy, but it was still fun to walk around.
For dinner we went back to the hotel and ate dinner at the cafe. I had fish and chips with ice cream. I wasn't very healthy, but it was so good.
February 21st
Today is our only day in Kanazawa. We had a breakfast buffet at our hotel. It was really nice to not feel forced to stuff myself. I could take the amount of food I wanted to. I had tofu, curry, some dumplings, and fruit. It was pretty amazing.
First we went to the prettiest garden called Kenrokuen. All of the trees had these structures to support the trees branches so that they don't break from the weight. I love how Japan takes care of their trees. No where else would you be able to find people who takes care of so many trees like they do here. It was amazing, AND IT WAS SNOWING. I was so happy to see the snow. The snow falling looked like big balls. It was SUPER pretty.
In the park there is the seisonkaku villa. It was really pretty and cold. we couldn't take pictures again, but it had really cool things in there. My favorite was these tiny shells with tiny paintings on the inside. It was really cold inside so we all stepped on each others feet to try to warm each other up.
We then had free time in the park. I went with some other people to this tea place. It was so good. I had green tea with a little tea cake.
I had tempura udon for lunch. What surprised me was that for eight people our lunch was less than 60 dollars. In america that would never happen if you wanted nice food.
After lunch we walked over to the 21st century art museum. I loved it. We took a picture of our reflection in a galaxy picture. In japan beauty and art is about simplicity, and I feel like this museum perfectly captured that idea.
We then went to the geisha district. On the bus ride over Alex and I were talking to three Japanese girls. There were super nice so I gave them stickers that said you are beautiful on them. They thought it was so nice and told me I was beautiful too. We then later saw them at the district and they told me I was beautiful again and wanted a picture with me. They were the cutest girls ever. At the geisha district there was this ice cream shop with a bunch of different flavors like miso soup, tofu and black bamboo charcoal. This is a picture of the bamboo one, and it was actually pretty good.
For dinner I had soba with a soft boiled egg. It was pretty yummy!
After dinner at the station we got ice cream. The senseis got Macha ice cream with gold and silver foil on it. It looked pretty but tasted like tin foil. We also saw a guy in a panda costume on a hover board. He was very strange and funny.
We are now preparing for tomorrow in the "library" at the hotel. It is really just a communal area where you can do homework. This is sensei working in a corner to avoid the flickering light. I am currently getting scared and excited for tomorrow.
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