Day 6 - Adventure through Japan "Kyoto, Odaiba and Shibuya"

It was our last day in Kyoto, so we were trying to make the best of it.  Our Shinkansen back to Tokyo was reserved for 10:30 a.m., giving us a little more touring time before departure.  This morning we purposely began early and were out the door by 7 a.m. for our first destination.  It was the only day (half day...) of pretty weather we would see in Kyoto with temperatures rising near 50F and partly cloudy to sunny skies, it was a welcomed break.

Part I - Heian Jingu:  After a short discussion, we decided taxi's for the morning commute would be the quickest method to get where we wanted to before our departure time.  The taxi ride to Heian Jingu was rather short (maybe 10 minutes?), so we were off to a good start. We were dropped of by the taxi straight in front of the entrance, driving right under the main gate.  The reasons for going here were the large Torii (gate) at the entrance, one of the largest in Japan, and because of the great reviews for the gardens inside. 

The entire place was constructed on the 1,100th anniversary of the establishment of Heiankyō (the old name of Kyoto), so even though it was old and historical, it seemed much newer then places we had been to in previous days.  Unfortunately, once inside we learned that the gardens were actually not open until 9 a.m., so we wouldn't be able to get inside before having to leave.  After walking a bit obtaining another medallion we head back out to the main gate to get a good look.  After, we stop at the Taxi Noriba to hop a ride over to our next destination.

Part II - Kiyomizu Dera:  Once again, the taxi was much quicker then a train, however this time instead of taking us straight to the entrance, we're dropped off at the end of the street where the entrance is located.  It turns out to be another 10 to 15 minute walk (uphill) in order to reach the stairs that would eventually lead up to the entrance of the Temple.  Once at the top of the stairs, we all realize there is no way there will be enough time to make it inside and tour around, now nearing 8:30 a.m.  Instead we opt to just walk around the area before the admission gate, as there was still some sites to see, the most important being the long overlook of Kyoto.  It was much prettier then the overlooks we had been to previously, for both the cherry blossoms were almost in full bloom and that it was actually a nice rain-free morning. 

On our way out, we run into a large group of school kids that were entering the Temple.  They were all thrilled to see American's, most of them smiling and waving saying "Good Morning" and other small English words they could remember.  It was entertaining to see such a large group and, unlike the adults, they were all so thrilled to see us and speak English.  We had pretty good timing, getting there in the early morning hours, as most of the tourists (including a lot of foreigners, ugh) were on their way uphill as we were decending.

Instead of hopping a taxi back to the apartment, with a little time to spare, we decide to just walk back.  It wasn't that long of a walk, about 20 to 25 minutes, but it was mainly downhill.  You would think downhill to be a good thing, right?  Well, not when you blister your feet the day before by decending a mountain for 20+ minutes.  A little sore and ready to leave, I was glad to make it back to the apartment for our luggage and hop in a taxi to arrive at Kyoto Station, well before our 10:30 shinkansen reservation.

Part III - Shinkansen:  Once at the station, I realize that my reservation ticket had gotten away from me somewhere.  Luckily we were there around 9:45 a.m., well before the line for non-reserved cars started to form.  Brandon, myself and Jason all wait in line for a non-reserved car, since they were only able to reserve smoking seats the night before. Matt and Donnie easily hop into their reserved seats for the ride back, since they had the pair from when I also reserved my seat in a non-smoking car.  We were able to get seats without an issue and it turned out to be another smooth ride. I was able to catch up on some journal writing, postcard writing and finally have a window seat to carefully observe the scenery flying by.  Sitting with Matt, I never get a window seat, so I was happy to just sit there and stare out for awhile. 

Shortly before our arrival, after the 2 hour ride back to Tokyo, we start to gather our luggage as done on the trips before.  Being in the car behind the reserved seats Matt and Donnie were in, we decide to start the walk to the front of the car, about 15 rows back instead of the back, about 5 rows, in order to get off at the same location on the platform.  Little did Brandon and myself realize that a few people had bags sitting in middle of the aisle.  After some maneuvering to get around everybody's stuff in our path, we make it to the doors to exit... or so we thought.  Jason had made it off the train in front of us, as he did not have a rolling bag, however we made it JUST as the door shuts in Brandon's face.  With the rest of the group off the Shinkansen at the stop prior to Tokyo Station (our original plan) we were on our way to Tokyo Station itself, against our will.  Apparently my face was priceless as I realized we were stuck on the train with no way to re-open the doors, being separated from the group.  Luckily I had all the maps on me, so the situation became funnier once we realized it did not matter so much.  Brandon and myself just figured they would have to make do, we all knew what hotel and the general location it was in, so hopefully we'd meet somewhere along the way.

Once off safely at Tokyo Station, we are able to navigate to the proper train without too much hasle.  On the platform at the tranfer station to Odaiba, we are trying to figure out our fare amount before purchasing a ticket, and there they come down the escalator.  Everyone else met us right there, without more then 15 minutes of time passing.  Apparently 5 minutes of their travel time was spent on Matt and Donnie rolfing at the prior station, though Jason kept a serious and horrified look on his face.  It was pretty funny and I thought so too once the realization hit me that they would be fine, as I was never worried about getting lost myself.  We purchase tickets and proceed to talk about the experience on the short train ride to Odaiba from there.

Part IV - Odaiba:  We arrive in Odaiba somewhere around 1:30 p.m., after leaving our bags in the hotel (check-in was not until 3 p.m.) we head across the street to a large complex that resembled a business structure here.  Luckily this was Odaiba and this business structure also had a 3 story mall, of sorts, located under it complete with food courts.  On this short walk, we come to the sudden realization that we are cursed with bad weather as the winds on the bay were blustery and clouds were starting to form overhead. 

Once inside the buliding, we end up at a Japanese fast food place for lunch, which turned out to serve the best Katsudon I had ever had.  It was fast food!  Or at least what they considered fast food, so for ¥600, I am treated to the best, which is sad being that I've paid up to $20 in the States and never had pork that melted in my mouth like that, it was memorable.  After that we walked the mall for a bit to kill time, hitting up our first ¥100 store and a Kasuri-ya to buy something to help heal the blisters that had developed on my feet from the prior day.  The ¥100 store was very surprising as they had a lot of useful everyday items like winter gloves, umbrellas, T-shirts and socks, all seemingly good quality.  We purchased a few things and went back to the hotel in order to check-in and relax for a bit before going back out for the night.

Part V - Aobadai: With a little bit of relaxing done in the hotel room, we decide to venture back out for the night. With some spare time, our first place in Tokyo to visit would be Aobadai to stop by a book store I read about in my travel guide called Cow Books.  Luckily we had perfect timing to catch the Cherry Blossoms in full bloom on the basin, it was gorgeous!  This actually turned out to be our best catch of Cherry Blossoms the entire visit, so I was very glad we came.  Unfortunatly Cow Books turned out to be a very very small store that had absolutely nothing of interest in it, the atmosphere of the city was great though.  On our way back to the Subway we stop the first Book-Off we had time to go into.  Book-Off is a chain of used book stores that also deals in CD's, DVD's, Video Games and, in some of the larger stores, clothes.  Everything here, especially the books are at really great bargain prices and normally still in very good condition for being used.  We pick up a few things here (Matt finally got his Initial D video game) and then move on to the next destination.

Part VI - Shibuya:  With just a little shopping accomplished, we decide to head to Shibuya, I just had to see the famous Hachikō!  After seeing Hachi, I was once again smacked with the reality of where we were and what I was doing.  The experience of crossing the street in front of Shibuya station on a Friday night with hundreds (thousands?) of people was amazing.  With the glaring lights, huge television screens and advertisements blaring, we attempted to find dinner somewhere.  After some pacing around, we end up in a 2nd story Japanese tavern, of sorts.  We struggle with the menu, mainly to find something vegetarian for Donnie, for awhile (even with our translator) and finally end up with a good meal and plum wine (which was rather tasty).  The only down part was the smoke, which is apparently a larger issue in Tokyo then Kyoto, as I had yet to see the "smoking problem" I was warned of before our trip until this point.

Once finished with dinner, Matt, Donnie and Brandon were feeling worn down and decided to head back to Odaiba.  However, I was much too hyped to finally be in Shibuya to just turn around and go back, so myself, Jason and Sirena decide to stay out for a bit longer.  We walk the streets for awhile, which was amazing enough to entertain me, ducking into just a few shops and arcades along the way.  By this point, we were starting to get rained on again, but I didn't really care.  We stopped by another Book-Off here, at which point I had the great idea to look for art books.  I found a little bit of gold (a few that were ¥300, that go for $100+ on eBay) and was happy with my shopping experience for the day.  I was surprised at how many shops were closing up come 9 p.m., though the arcades were open until 1 a.m. or later.  It was great fun going to my first arcades of Tokyo, playing a few UFO catchers (not winning anything yet, more on this in later days) and playing games like Taiko Drum Master with nobody around (the few chances I've had in the States, there has always been a huge line).  Once tired enough and unable to find a lot of shops open, we head back to Odaiba to rest for the rest of the night.

Prices:

• ¥1,300 - 1st taxi ride.
• ¥300 - Medallion at Heian Jingu.
• ¥2,100 - 2nd taxi ride.
• ¥1,000 - Misc. subway fares.
• ¥1,600 - Lunch (for two w/ drinks)
• ¥1,200 - Misc. goods from ¥100 store.
• ¥2,000 - Bandages and antibiotic cream for blisters (pretty expensive!)
• ¥20,000 - Pasmo cards to cover remaining subway fares (for both of us).
• ¥6,000 - Video game and books from Book-Off.
• ¥3,000 - Dinner (for two w/ wine)
• ¥1,000 - Misc. arcade money.

Lessons Learned:

• Heian Jingu's gardens don't open until 9 a.m., though the rest opens at 6 a.m.
• The bad weather follows us.
• Shinkansen doors close quickly and have no mercy.
• Hotels will generally give you a non-smoking room, even though most reservation sites don't have the option.
• Shibuya is great, one of my favorite places.

Day 5 - Adventure through Japan "Arashiyama and Kyoto"

Ah, an early day once more, beginning somewhere around 6 a.m.  With Brandon and Jason out late the night before (they were in Osaka) it was just myself, Matt and Donnie off to Arashiyama.  The main goal for the day was the Monkey Park, but more on that later.  Another rainy day, with temperatures hovering around 40F, not really good "monkey weather" so it concerned us a bit, but we decided to press on anyway.

Part I - The Bamboo Forest:  We arrived in Arashiyama fairly early, I believe somewhere around 7:45 a.m., after grabbing a quick bite to eat at Starbucks (they didn't open until 7 a.m.).  With our walking maps in hand, we quickly navigated the winding streets that were filled with residential housing and just a few shops, to find our way into the Bamboo Forest.  Along our path we did come across some interesting decor at a few houses, one of which a cute kitty ornament hanging in someones potted plant, just had to get a picture of it.

After a 15 minute or so walk from the train station, we were inside the Bamboo Forest.  As promised from the online research done, it was an amazing 30 minute walk through a forest of bamboo (as the name might suggest?).  It was still considered early morning for Japan, so the only people to "disturb" our quiet walk were workers that were either harvesting bamboo or tending to graves that were located off of the walking path.  Like many area's in Japan, there were still vehicles driving down paths that would be deemed only for walking in the States. 

Getting used to vehicles in narrow places by this point, they didn't really bother us, much more captivating was the sound of the bamboo, as they clanged against each other in the morning wind.  With the thick coverage of bamboo overhead, it sheltered us from most of the rain, so it actually turned out to be a much more pleasant walk then expected.  Most of the bamboo grew to an amazing height, the width around was also much larger then bamboo I have seen in the States, two hands put together would still not fully wrap around one stalk.  In middle of the forest, we also came across what turned out to be a famous shrine,  mentioned and filmed in stories such as The Tale of Genji and The Romance of the Twelve Kingdoms, it was another nice surprise.

                                

After exploring the Shrine and taking some very nice photo's of the area, we continued our walk.  It wasn't long before we reached the end of the forest.  Once out, we started coming across signs occasionally pointing us in the direction we wished to go, towards the Togetsukyo Bridge. With some exploring we end up walking down some steep and loose rock stairs in order to walk along the river path paralleling Arashiyama Mountain and up to the bridge.  Passing by the fishing docks and tourist boats (they were just waiting for customers), if the weather had been nicer, I would have loved to take one.  The casual stroll probably took another hour on top of the walk through the Bamboo Forest.  The bridge was not nearly as cool looking as I had expected, kind of average actually, but the dam running under it and the scenery surrounding us was some of the best of the trip.  As you can see in this picture, more of the cherry blossom trees were starting to bloom.  Once across the bridge, we're nearing 10am and with all of the walking done the previous days, I was about spent and not planning on joining Donnie on the trek up the mountain in order to get to the Monkey Park.

Part II - Monkey Park:  After stopping in a few shops briefly (mainly to warm up, there was a stiff breeze crossing the bridge) we follow the signs leading us a short ways up to the monkey park entrance.  On the sign located at the base of three flight of stairs, it stated they were closed due to the bad weather.  Disappointed, Donnie still wanted to go up the stairs and see as much as we could.  Once up there (I figured I could do at least that much) there was yet another little shrine, a cool well with a dragon ornament and of course the admission gate to the monkey park.  Donnie ended up asking the lady there about the monkey's, of which she replied feeding time was at 10:30 a.m., so it seemed they were actually open!  Once again the excitement rushed over her face, quickly purchasing a ticket and attempting to drag us along.  Before I knew it, we were all climbing the mountain to get to the Monkey Park...

You literally have to climb up a mountain to reach the observatory on the peak.  It took about 20 minutes for us to make it along the mainly dirt paths leading upwards.  Along the way you had warnings such as "don't stare them in the eye", "don't stop", "don't take pictures" and "don't bend over", the last one seemed much scarier to me then the other warnings.  About half-way through the climb, we start seeing some monkey's.  Just hanging out on the sides of the trail, they blended in well so you actually wouldn't notice them unless you were looking carefully, there were others in the trees off in the distance as well.  After the difficult journey, again I was still tired from the previous days, we made it to the top.  There were many more there, as you could imagine.  We head inside the "cage" (also known as the observatory) in order to feed them a bit before the time when the keepers did the larger feeding.  During this time we became aquainted with the one being called "Chibi-chan" since we was the smallest around, along with the other monkey's waiting for food to be handed to them.  Distracting the other monkey's first, we were able to feed Chibi-chan.  Out of the things we were able to buy to feed them, he would only take the apples.  Just so cute... and I don't even like monkey's.

10:30 a.m. rolled around pretty quickly and it was feeding time.  It was hilarious watching most of the monkey's around (they hand 100 or so) come in for food.  The days weather wasn't the greatest as they were wet and cold instead of fluffy and energentic, but once again, this made for a much quieter time for us.  There were only two other people in the observatory (besides the three workers) and they both seemed like the more serious observers and not your average tourist, so that was nice.  After snapping a few more pictures and sort of taking a look at the view, it wasn't nearly as great as it should have been because of the weather, we start the climb back down.  Overall the monkey park was a surprising experience.  I don't like monkey's and thought I would hate it, but even after the hike, I look back and think it was one of the most fun times we had in Japan.  Of course, this was also because Donnie was squealing like a 6 year-old the entire time, it was pretty entertaining.

Part III - Kyoto Gosho:  Being rushed out of Arashiyama all too soon, we were only able to get in a minor amount of shopping before heading back to Kyoto.  We had an English tour through the Imperial Palace scheduled for 2 p.m. with everyone and by this time is was nearing 12 p.m., with the travel time included we were able to get through about three shops in 30 minutes before moving on to get back to Kyoto in time.  The shops in Arashiyama were very interesting and had some of the most "typical" Japanese items that we would see on the trip, all for fair prices for the most part too.  I wish we could have spent more time there.

Once back in Kyoto we were able to grab a quick bite while running through the station, thanks to the Onigiri and Bento being sold in little shops on the side that you can grab and go.  We make it to the gate indicated on our tour print-out and proceed to try and locate Brandon and Jason.  After some pacing around and waiting (turns out they went around the opposite way?) we join up and head inside to the designated start of the tour.  After a short while, we're ushered into a small building with about 100 other tourists, most of them European, and are shown a video (in English) of what we were about to get a tour of.  I still don't really know the reason for that, seemed kind of pointless.  Still raining, us and 100 others follow the tour-guide outside.  She was the polar opposite of what we had seen so far, a Japanese lady speaking through a microphone, which was muffled by the surgical mask on her face.  It seemed as though the surgical mask was to keep away all of the foreign cooties we had circling the group.  With the muffled English, we could understand less from her then the Japanese signs posted at most of the monuments in the tour, yes, it was that bad.  You see, I originally scheduled the tour since it was advertised as the only way to get into the Imperial Palace, which sounded cool.  However, you never get "inside" any building, instead you are walked around the inner palace grounds in a herd of very rude foreigners for an hour, not being able to understand what any of it is for because the tour guide is muffled while trying to keep cooties out.  That is was I got from the tour. 

After wasting an hour and totally regretting leaving Arashiyama for it, we do manage a few cool pictures. It was an art form itself trying to get a camera lens around a huge group of some of the rudest people I've ever seen.  To anyone thinking about going, I would not recommend it at all.  I do recommend going to the public part of the gardens, we were there the day prior and it was gorgeous, not to mention quiet and foreigner free in the early morning hours.  I have a better understanding of why a lot of Japanese people do not like foreigners if this is how most of them act there.  After trying to sell us some more merchandise (tourist trap anyone?) we're let free.  I would have left earlier, but the group "had to" stay together so there really wasn't an option.  She would even stop every 5 minutes or so to yell at anyone wandering off, it was lovely.

Part IV - Kinkaju-ji:  It was nearing 3:30 p.m. once we made it back to the train station.  So, in favor of time we hop in a taxi and have it take us to the temple.  This time we're determined to make it there before the normal closing time of 4:30 p.m.  I think we made it through the admission gate around 4:10 p.m., so there was a little time left to spare.  Once inside I was glad to see the grounds were not very large, starting to drag from the busy day, I was about done.  Upon entering the gate you can see the Golden Temple across the lake, with some opportune pictures snapped, we begin the short walk around the grounds. 

The temple itself was not open to tourists, so it's just for the long-range view basically.  There was some cool scenery around it and the grounds were very well maintained with little shrines and places to obtain fortunes and good luck scattered about. In the back of the temple near the edge of the lake, we were able to spot some Koi fish, something very cool was the rare blue one peaking his head up looking for food.  Armed with the luck of seeing a blue Koi fish and good fortunes (they were actually in English) from the vending machines near the exit, we decide to try and locate the kaiten-zushi, spotted the night before, for dinner.  After some fun with a Ramen vending machine at the exit of the temple, all while being laughed at and called Gaijin by some local woman watching us (we were mainly doing it for their amusement), we hop in taxi's bound for Kyoto Station.

Part V - Kyoto Station and kaiten-zushi:  Without a train station near Kinkaju-ji, we head back to Kyoto Station by taxi.  For the first time we get a taxi driver that can speak English!  Or at least English well enough to carry on a conversation with us...  He talked about the sumo tournament taking place (complete with TV broadcasting it in his taxi), the top tourist spots of Kyoto (#1 being Kinkaku-ji), number of foreign tourist (#1 Chinese, #2 Korean and #3 American) and even writes us out a postcard saying "we love America" in English.  Pointing out some places of interest as we passed by them, I only wished we had a driver like that earlier, as one thing of major interest was a huge shopping street, one road over from where we were staying!  Oh, if only we knew the day before.  It turned out to be a great break from the quiet taxi drivers we had encountered so far, instead of loathing us (or so they seemed), he actually liked us!  It was a fun ride to the station.

Once there, we head inside.  By this time we had been there so much we should have been able to get around, right?  No, not right.  The previous day we simply followed signs from the subway that say xx mall this way, with an arrow, but there was no such sign from the main entrance of the station.  We head in what we thought was the right direction, a mall called "The Cube".  After 30 minutes of walking through "The Cube" we end right back up where we started!  Tired and hungry we all start to lose our minds, lost in "The Cube" and not sure what to do.  Maps were of no use since they were all completely in Japanese, we finally wander up a set of stairs near where we started.  Wouldn't you know it?  There is was... the mall we were looking for all along!  It was one huge maze, but we eventually navigated to the kaiten-zushi.  Once inside, there appeared to be a wait, but fortunately they were very efficient so it didn't take more then 10 minutes before we were sat and eating.  After some deciphering, we're able to figure out most plates are ¥138, with a few choice plates being somewhat a bit higher, but still under ¥200 each.  We eat to our hearts content and walk out with a ¥2,500 bill, even after ordering Cokes!  I couldn't complain.  Though the unagi was a lot thinner and not as tasty as it is here, all of the sushi was fresh and still tasted good, which was more then enough for me.  I snap some video outside of the restuarant, it had a mini kaiten-zushi on display, I couldn't help it!  Before walking to the other end of the mall to show Brandon and Jason the cool waterfall on display.

The night wrapped up after the long day without much of a fight.  We were hoping to get to the Gion district or to stroll along the streets of Kyoto for the nightlife.  Maybe even to see a Geisha or two walking around, but it just wasn't meant to be.  With all of our energy spent and the thought of re-packing everything and heading out by 10 a.m. the next day, it was over.  Don't worry though, there was still a little left of Kyoto before our 10 a.m. departure the following morning.

Prices:

• ¥1,000 - misc. subway fares (that were not JR).
• ¥1,600 - breakfast and coffee from Starbucks.
• ¥100 - fortune inside first shrine.
• ¥520 - admission to monkey park (per person).
• ¥100 - per bag of monkey food.
• ¥1,500 - misc. things at monkey park, like snacks and postcards.
• ¥1,500 - necklace bought at Arashiyama shop.
• ¥2,500 - a few misc. gifts from Arashiyama.
• ¥1,200 - Two bento boxes at station (lunch)
• ¥5,000 - Taxi's to and from Kinkaju-ji.
• ¥500 - admission to Kinkaju-ji (per person).
• ¥2,000 - misc. things from Kinkaju-ji, like throwing ¥5 coins at a bowl for good luck, fortunes (in English!) and a few charms from the shops.
• ¥2,500 - dinner for two from the kaiten-zushi.

Lessons learned:

• The Monkey Park is actually fun.
• Arashiyama has some really good shops.
• English tours (especially those booked in advance) will probably suck.
• A lot of the temples, you can't actually tour the inside of.
• How to use a ramen vending machine!
• Some taxi drivers actually like Americans.
• Ask a taxi driver (if you get a nice one) about things nearby, like shopping arcades.
• No matter how many times you're in one, malls are very confusing and hard to navigate.
• Kaiten-zushi really isn't expensive (like most food in Japan)
• The waterfall actually runs different programs depending on the day.

Day 4 - Adventure through Japan "Osaka"

Once again the day began early, somewhere around 4:30 a.m., but this time I was prepared!  With clothes and a plan laid out from the night before, both myself and Matt headed out the door by 5:30 a.m.  Figured if we were going to be awake, may as well do something with that extra time.  With the meeting time set for 7:30 a.m. at the Starbucks in front of the stationin order to go to Osaka as a group, we had two hours to spend doing whatever we wanted, with the goal of getting some real relaxation in.  The weather for the day turned out to be much of the same, though the rain was getting a bit lighter.  The temperature still hovered around 40F as it had been since our arrival.

Part I - Early morning:  The streets were so quiet at this hour, luckily things like parks (most of them) are open 24 hours in Japan.  Being one of the few things to do before 9 or even 10 a.m. rolls around, it was surprising that even the train stations were nearly empty at this early hour.  After some debate on where to go and how to get there, we decide on the Imperial Garden and try to use the subway system once again.  The morning turned out to be very pleasent and productive with the subway system finally mastered, it was much easier to do with less crowding and traffic to worry about.  We did figure it out for good this time, making two transfers and ending up at the Garden within 25 minutes or so, which was much more fair then the amount of time spent walking the days before.  During the last few minutes on the subway we started to see businessmen and school kids flood in.  Some of the kids were probably around six years old, riding alone or with a few friends.  It was so far away from the States where something like that would have been crazy and dangerous.  They were so cute though, in their uniforms and all.  One little girl excitedly waved at us as we boarded, then she proceeded to try and explain a candy she saw to her friend by "writing" with her umbrella on the subways floor.  I could actually understand most of their conversation, probably because we're still in Elementary level Japanese...  the girl kept nudging her friend, trying to get her to pay attention "mitte, mitte!"

Part II - Imperial Garden:  The park grounds were very pretty and still quiet, with only a few people, most of which were using it as a short-cut to get to school or work.  There were ducks in the pond and a few interesting shrines scattered around.  Some of the cherry blossom trees were finally in bloom, just a taste of what they would be in the coming days.  Unfortunately with the travel time, we only had about an hour here, which passed by all too soon.  After taking some good pictures, we had to head back out and on to the subway once more.

Part III - Osaka Castle:  We change plans a bit and decide to meet everyone at the "Mister Donut" inside of Kyoto Station before heading to Osaka for the day.  The industrial sized walkie-talkies came into good use for the first time here.  We were hoping to get a slight taste of breakfast from home, ordering a few donuts.  Unfortunately, the donuts had a completely different taste, they weren't too bad, but not what I felt like eating.  The trip to Osaka was not very eventful, it was pretty much a straight shot to get to the station closest to the Castle.  So once again, after leaving the station, there is a castle in sight!  This one looking much different then before.  Though I was aware Osaka Castle had been re-built and that Himeji was one of only two original castles left I was further surprised at what Osaka had in store for us.  This time it is just a short 10 minute walk, however the rain starts falling harder as we progress. 

Once on the castle "grounds" we are greeted with a much different site, moreso then expected, as it is lined with shops and places to grab food/drinks.  The first thing that came to my mind was "they turned this into a tourist trap", it reminded me of your generalized tourist spot back home,  nothing like the day before spent at Himeji (where you had to go into the city just to find something to buy regarding the castle). Once inside the "castle" we are greated with nothing more then a modern museum, even inside it was lined with over-priced shops.  We don't stay for very long, as there wasn't much interesting to see other then the view from the top (which you could take an elevator to!), which wasn't even impressive between the bad weather and in comparison to the views we had already seen from Kyoto Tower and Himeji Castle.  Most of the information and exhibits inside were only in Japanese, which was also strange for a "tourist" area.  We stop by for a quick rest in the "tourist trap" shopping area once outside, picking up a few small souvenirs and more importantly, my first real Takoyaki (which Osaka is famous for).  It was soooo delicious, nothing less then what I expected of real Takoyaki!

Part VI - Umeda Sky Building:  We abandon the idea to walk the castle grounds further and to visit "Osaka Peace" due to the overwhelming bad weather.  The rain is coming down the hardest we've seen so far and we're still exhuasted from the walk we had in Himeji.  After a few subway transfers we make it over to Umeda Sky, which was about 15 minutes from the nearest train station on foot.  Luckily a lot of the walking could be done in an underground pathway, which helped shield us from the horrible weather.  Once inside it looked a lot like a normal business building, but it was also very quiet, which was surprising.  We do eventually locate an elevator that takes us to the 40th floor (I believe), which had a few restuarants.  Though a lot were closed (only open for dinner), we do manage to locate a Chinese restuarant right before they close for that time between lunch and dinner.  I somehow don't think they were too happy to have us, but at least they had an English menu so we made do with what we had and just ate as quickly as possible.  Unfortunately our view was pretty bad due to the overwhelming rain and clouds.  Lunch was alright, I had some sort of crab fried rice, once again the prices were lower then I had thought they would be for such a place.  Once we got back out in the restuarant area we are able to locate the counter in order to purchase a ticket to the top floor.  There were two escalators that brought you close to the top floor, with a seating area in between the two.  It was a cute setup as they had little "love seats" for you to sit in and enjoy the view for however long you wish.  Another nice place to visit should you live there or want to go on a date.  After relaxing for a bit and taking a few interesting pictures, we move on to the elevator that will bring us to the top.  By this time the weather had managed to get even worse then before!  Taking the quickest stroll around (it was not covered and the winds were probably 35mph) we decide to head back down.  The most entertaining part of being up at the top was watching everyone else take their "stroll".  Brandon's was by far the funniest with him briskly walking from one area to the other, holding his camera up to snap a quick picture and moving on to the next.  We hit up the shop located a few floors down from the top to pick up a few more souvenirs and a medallion (we were starting a collection by this point) and decide to part ways.  Leaving Brandon and Jason in Osaka to go to the Aquarium and elsewhere, we decide to go back to Kyoto to catch Kinkaju-ji during their special "light-up" evening opening for the cherry blossoms (or so we thought).

Part V - Some shopping:  We decide to try and do a little shopping before going to the "light-up" event at the Temple, since it was still around 4 p.m. and that did not start until 6:30 p.m.  We decide to take the easy way out and walk around the, mainly underground, malls that were contained within Kyoto Station.  Going up and down, through and out what turned out to be 3 or 4 malls along with department stores contained within the station, we didn't find much to buy.  I did come across your "average" clothing kind of place, picking up a Dragonball shirt I thought was kinda cool and some crazy Japanese-style leggings.  Also came across a book store where I found a few manga that were on my list.  At the end of one of the malls, we did come across a pretty awesome man made "waterfall" that would display pictures and messages with falling water, which was pretty awesome.  We also passed by a "kaiten-zushi" place, putting it on our list of places to return to, we finally headed out and back to the apartment for a quick rest before heading out for the evening.

Part VI - Never happened:  So we rather forget how the rest of the night went, so I'll just summarize it up.  We apparently got bad information on when the light-up was happening.  The week-long event ended a few days beforehand.  After taking a taxi out there, pacing around a bit only to find closed things, attempting to walk to a subway station, giving up and getting a taxi back, we end up with a really horrible wasted night.  Finally back at the apartment it is nearing 10 p.m., so we call it a night.

Prices: 

• ¥640 - subway fares for morning commute.
• ¥1,000 - hot chocolate and donuts .
• ¥600 - admission, per person, to Osaka Castle.
• ¥3,000 - misc. souvenirs.
• ¥1,200 - lunch, per person.
• ¥700 - admission, per person, to the top of Umeda.
• ¥3,000 - T-shirt, leggings, two books.
• ¥5,000 - Total taxi fare, getting to Kinkaju-ji and back (it was a long ride).

 Lessons learned: 

• Learn how to ride the subway early, it will help you!
• Early mornings are most pleasant.
• Parks are the only thing open before 7 a.m., "breakfast" places open at 7 a.m., most other things not until 10 a.m.
• Just because it says "castle", do research if that's what you're expecting.
• The top of a very very tall building is not the place to be in 40F, raining weather.  It will surely add wind to the mix.
• When looking for shopping, ask someone (more on this later).
• Take a train near your destination, taxi from there if needed.
• If going to a special event, double-check your sources to be sure it is still happening first.

Day 2 - Adventure through Japan "Kyoto"

Part I - Getting to Kyoto: Our day started out at 5:20 a.m., however with the huge time difference (now 13 hours ahead of EDT) I am unable to sleep a minute past 3 a.m. and end up watching Japanese television for a few hours before getting up.  Though I caught this very interesting program about re-growing body parts that was in English, subtitled in Japanese (maybe more about that another day), the early morning was not welcomed after the extremely long day that came before it.  With 6 hours or so of sleep, I am awake, completely awake.  The day officially started once Matt woke up, we had just a few minutes to take some of the scenery in before having to head down to the lobby for check-out and catching a taxi to Tokyo Station.  The picture here and the one in this blog's header came from those all-too-short minutes of what turned out to be the only sunrise we would catch during our stay.

Once joined back up with everyone in the lobby, we split up to take two separate taxi's (myself and Matt in one and the other three of our group in the second one) to the station.  The entire process was seemingly way too easy; check-out was quick and painless, the taxi's were waiting for us, the bill wasn't nearly as bad as I had thought it would be for the ride (see prices below).  Things were going smoooooothly.  We arrive at the station, quickly locating the platform and exact place (car) we needed to be in and proceeded to take a seat inside on of their heated waited areas on the platform, which was niiiice compared to anything we have in the States.  Did I mention?  The weather there was cold!  Somewhere around 35F at this point, though luckily not raining.... yet.  After a short wait, the Shinkansen arrives exactly on time and we board, bound for Kyoto.  I am once again surprised by the level of service received, it was sort of like an airplane where a "waitress" type person would walk up and down the aisles trying to sell you drinks, snacks, o-miyage (souvenirs), ect., which was helpful when you really needed a drink or were starting to starve to death (I don't think the Japanese believe in breakfast, so you'll see a pattern here).  The ride was incredibly smooth, even though were were travling something like 186mph, it didn't make me sick at all.  Along the way there wasn't a lot too see, upon observing there was just a LOT of farmland, mountains and a few "ABC" places (no, not like the ones back home), class apparently wasn't making up names!  They had an ABC store and even an ABC pachinko!  Though I didn't see an ABC Foods sadly enough...  More importantly we did get some great passes/views of Mt. Fuji, covered with snow at the top.

Part II - Arrival/Apartment:  Arriving at Kyoto Station right on time, we quickly locate the taxi noriba (taxi stand) and once again hop in two separate taxi's to head to the apartment named Ojizoya that we were going to be staying at for the next 4 days.  Without any major issues, we arrive at the apartment, quickly dropping our bags inside and having a peek around (it was small, but more on that later) before departing for Kyoto Station once more, this time by foot.  The ease of navigating the city seemed so much simpler then in the States, we were able to walk to Kyoto Station within 20 minutes by simply heading toward Kyoto Tower (which was located in front of the station).

Part III - Kyoto Station:  It really looks more like a mall then a station.  We immediately head up to the 11th floor to locate a tofu restaurant marked in my book.  We finally locate it after pacing the huge floor filled with restaurants, bakeries and some department-like stores.  Once inside we quickly learn that there are no English menu's and pictures are limited, this is much more difficult without a translator! (Sirena played the part of translator the night before)  With some struggling, we manage to order three of the specials and some other "set" (combo) they had on display within the Japanese menu and we finally end up with lunch.  By this time we are starving since there was no time for breakfast, not to mention any place to really eat breakfast at!  It was an interesting meal with tofu takes on traditional Japanese food of all sorts.  I quickly pick out the tofu yuba as being my favorite thing.  It was like a dumpling with egg, but more gooey and smooth with a better texture (from being tofu, not dumpling) and a rich taste, it was delicious!  Paying the bill in Japan is also much simpler, all you do is take the amount your food costs, no tip, no tax, no nothing else, it's already in the price!  After our stomachs were finally full we head out to the next stop.

Part IV - Kyoto Tower:  Luckily this stop was right across the street.  A few of the group were still missing the coffee/breakfast that was skipped earlier in the day, so we first head to the Starbucks located slightly down the street at the base of the tower.  Once that need was filled (it was almost exactly like an American Starbucks with better service), it was on to buying tickets and getting to the top of the tower, which from what we could figure was the 11th floor.  The view itself was cool, but nothing really stands out in my mind, it was a bit of a cloudy day so we couldn't see as far as a clear day would have provided.  After a bit of observing (and some picture taking), we start heading back down.  Picking up a souvenier "penny" (which is just copper automatically flattened in front of you with the image) for ¥100, it's back down to the entrance floor where the first of much shopping was to be had.  There was your "typical" Japanese department store here, with tons of o-miyage and many traditional and "cliché" goods located amonst many different "stalls" within the store (each seemingly run by a different person).  I wasn't too impressed with what the shops had to offer, however Matt did locate one shop selling tea and sake cups that were rather cool and unique looking.  We pick up one set of each, with the total being a bit cheaper then I think it should have been, a discount maybe?  Lucky!

Part V - Manga Museum:  After some debate on how to get there, we decide the subway is best.  This is going to be new!  It takes some time and assistance, but we do locate the station we need to get to, how to get there and fare.  One problem, getting a ticket out of the machine.  The machines had English intructions, but for some reason the ticket would not come out!  The situation became more complicated by the fact that the first machine I tried was actually out of order (the sign was not as obvious as one in the States would be), so when I try to help Donnie get one from the working machine, I miss hitting the lit-up red fare price (3rd step), so we ended up stuck.  Everyone decides to head to the nearest information counter, where nobody speaks English!  This one younger man (maybe 25 or so?) that was there for some reason, as a customer I guess, turns around and offers to help in English.  Yay!  Once back at the machine, he simply hits the red button once lit up and the ticket spits out.  Boy, did we all feel stupid!  Off to the platform...  While waiting for the green line to come, we once again see the man on the red line departing, he waves and gestures to make sure we aren't missing our train (the one he's on), probably thinking "stupid Americans".  Donnie thought he was cute, so I told her to hop on that train after him, but she wouldn't listen! 

Arrival!  Wow, just wow.  Unfortunately there aren't any pictures allowed inside of the museum, so I won't be able to share just how amazing the place was.  This is a picture from outside though, where you could grab manga from inside and go sit out on the artificial lawn to read.  The entire museum was basically one HUGE library with some exhibits and great information (most of the info was in four languages, which was also helpful).  After being educated by the information provided there, we learn there are more then 40,000 Japanese language manga books here.  They used to be part of an old rental store, which went out of business in 2002.  The owner and his wife (which put all of the dust covers on by hand) donated the stores entire collection at that time.  I was surprised by the condition of all the books here, these were all rented out at one point!  Some of the manga dated back to the 1960's, yet all of it (except for the magazines) were still available to be plucked off the shelf and read by museum customers on location for a small price of the ¥500 admission (less for children, with memberships available).  I was surprised by the lack of foreigners here (I only recall seeing one other younger couple), but this turned out to be a trend.  It seemed a lot of locals came here and used it as a library to pass the time or read manga for cheap, it was overall very busy with a few hundred people scattered through only three floors.  It didn't take us too long (maybe 45 minutes) to browse the entire collection, all of which was in Japanese except for 4 bookshelves with American, French, Italian and a few other translated books on them along with the History of Manga and a few other exhibits, of which we could actually read.  I tried to keep in mind that this was a new place, only being open since 2006, so I'm sure their collection will grow.  I would say even more impressive then the bookshelves filled with 40,000+ Japanese manga books were the magazines.  Phonebook magazines as far as the eye could see were stacked along the top of the bookshelves (standing on end with the covers facing out) to the ceiling.  There must of been an equal number to the books, if not more.  20 or so high at some points and what I could only imagine 10 or more deep, it was very impressive to see.  Some of them dated back to the beginning of phonebook printing (40+ years) and they had a few noteworthy issues, such as CLAMP's debut in a special case on display.  Again I wish we could have taken pictures here.  While in the "History of Manga" exhibit I was finally able to locate Yuu Watase's manga, it was actually under defining manga of their respective years (Fushigi Yuugi under 1991 and Ayashi no Ceres under 1996), good for her!  I thought that was very cool.  As a final highlight, Osamu Tezuka's Phoenix, a full color sculpture that "hovered" on the wall as you walked from floor two to floor three was very impressive and noteworthy. After browsing the store (and not finding anything to buy) we head out.

Part VI - Walking:  After some debate (again) and a local's advice that the street we need to return to is only a 20 minute walk (back to the apartment), we end up walking instead of riding back.  Ugh, it was over an hour of walking!  Stopping at the kombini and getting Donnie a sweater at the Nike store (so she could keep warm) were our only breaks.  We just walked and walked and walked.  Passing by a few interesting places, like a shopping arcade, GION district, some memorable Engrish signs and seeing our first Geisha (she was walking into a place from the street), there wasn't much to note during this time.  We finally get back and are D.O.A.!

Part VII - Wrap-up:  After resting for a bit at the apartment and trying to get up with the owner, we finally decide to just call him.  At this point we have given up on figuring out the heating system and it is cold!  At about 40F outside, we are all tired and getting to a breaking point.  By the time the owner gets there (everyone except myself retreating upstairs to the small space heater), Matt figures out how to turn on the wall unit.  As it flip on downstairs (by remote) I start to laugh kinda loudly, since I thought it was on a timer or something.  Wouldn't you know it?  The owner just arrived outside at this point.  Must have thought I was a crazy woman as he could hear everything through the paper thin walls.  Thoroughly embarrassed, he walks us through using things in the apartment and introduces me to a noodle shop owner on the corner of our street before leaving (which will be dinner for us the next night).  We decide to take the easy way out and head to a McDonalds a few blocks away for dinner.  I wanted a Teriyaki burger darnit....  it was good!  I was surprised once again, though it was McDonald's, the food was actually good and the service was better then it ever is in the States.  We head back after hitting the kombini up for breakfast foods, Frosted Flakes anyone?

Prices:

• ¥2,300 for both taxi's (to Tokyo Station, from Kyoto Station)
• ¥2,000 per plate for lunch
• ¥2,000 small food items, ect.
• ¥2,800 admission fee's
• ¥2,600 tea and sake cups
• ¥1,260 fast food dinner (total)
• ¥2,000 breakfast foods for three days

Lesson's learned (replacing 1st's)

• Taxi's are a huge conveience, worth some extra money.
• Look for plastic display food and/or romanji/English menu's before stopping somewhere for food.
• Compare prices, even in the same market!  Goods ranged up to ¥500 difference for the same thing, depending on the stall.
• Try everything yourself, especially when using a machine, before getting help.
• Look for signs (i.e. "out of order").
• Don't be loud (like crazy laughing), even when tired and out of your mind.
• Don't believe time estimates given by the locals, they really don't know.
• Take breaks often, unless it's impossible to do so.
• When showering in a Japanese bath, start filling tub 15 minutes beforehand, they are huge and it takes forever, plus this will warm the small cold bathroom up a little.  Turn on hot water from shower before going into the room to warm the floor.  Shower, then soak in tub.