Japan Journals
Not How I Intended to
Arrive in Japan
A Bit of Time in Tokyo
Monkey-ing Around Near
Nagano
Osaka
The 'Deer' City of Nara
Miyajima and Hiroshima
Himeji
Kobe - A City With More
Than Just Beef
Returning to Kyoto
And On The Seventh Day,
There Was Rest
Not How I Intended to
Arrive in Japan
A Bit of Time in Tokyo
Monkey-ing Around Near
Nagano
Osaka
The 'Deer' City of Nara
Miyajima and Hiroshima
Himeji
Kobe - A City With More
Than Just Beef
Returning to Kyoto
And On The Seventh Day,
There Was Rest
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Photo Albums
Links relating to
my trip
my trip
Accommodations:
Dave and Masayo's in Tokyo
Hotel Raizan South (Osaka)
Other Sites:
Yudanaka Snow Monkey Park
(near Nagano)
Arashiyama Monkey Park (in
Kyoto)
Nature Spa (in Takarazuka)
Mitsukoshi - A department store
with an amazing food hall.
Japan Rail Pass - Don't leave
home without one of these if you
plan on traveling for around a week!
Dave and Masayo's in Tokyo
Hotel Raizan South (Osaka)
Other Sites:
Yudanaka Snow Monkey Park
(near Nagano)
Arashiyama Monkey Park (in
Kyoto)
Nature Spa (in Takarazuka)
Mitsukoshi - A department store
with an amazing food hall.
Japan Rail Pass - Don't leave
home without one of these if you
plan on traveling for around a week!
My Japanese Experience... Highs: Seeing Dave and Masayo; the snow monkeys in Yudanaka (near Nagano); Nara; the food; toilets and bathrooms; experiencing snow; Kobe (especially the Kitano area); the Himeji Castle covered with snow; the many toriis of the Fushimi Inari Shrine; the bamboo forest in Kyoto; the Monkey Park in Kyoto. Lows: Only having 10 days out here; not being equipped with the correct clothing. Best Moment: I can't place a 'best' moment. Every day I came back feeling so pumped about what I had seen that day. Craziest Moment: Having a Japanese clown mime directions for me in the Arashiyama area of Kyoto. Smells: The incredible aromas of food; incense. Sounds: The noises at the crosswalks; the sounds radiating from stores out onto the streets; monkeys playing/fighting/making monkey love. Sights: Video games being played on the streets; Japanese porn shops; electronic megastores; Buddhist temples; pagodas; Todaji Temple; Kofukuji Temple; deer in Nara; Peace Museum and Memorial (Hiroshima); floating torii in Miyajima; Himeji Castle; Kitano in Kobe; Akashi Kaikyo Bridge in Kobe; Arashiyama Monkey Park (Kyoto); Ginkakuji Temple (Kyoto); Fushimi Inari Taisha Shrine (Kyoto). Tastes: Bento boxes; sushi; marinated root veggies; seaweed salad with soybeans and tofu; Japanese cookies; octopus balls; rice balls wrapped in moutain potato dough; okonomiyaki (referred to as 'Japanese pizza'); momiji manju' - maple leaf-shaped cakes with a variety of fillings; oysters (on Miwajima Island); 'rice cake' skewers with an assortment of flavors that looked more like a skewer of steak pieces (in Kyoto). Purchases: Different beautifully-wrapped packages of cookies; Hello Kitty tins of mints; a purse. Street Food: Octopus balls; rice balls wrapped in mountain potato dough; roasted sweet potatoes. Fun Food Finds: Grape and apple flavored Kit Kats (the flavoring is within the wafers - I can't really bring myself to try these); green tea flavored Kit Kats; Hershey kisses filled with cheesecake flavoring (unless these are new at home now). Western Companies Out Here: Starbuck's, McDonald's, The Sports Authority; Denny's; Coco's; KFC; Seattle's Best Coffee; Wendy's; Tully's Coffee. Other General Info... Visa needed? Not for Americans. Type of currency? The yen. $1 USD is equal to a bit more than 100 yen. Things Japan Is Known For: Sushi and tuna; temples; zen gardens; torii; World War II. Religion: Buddhism. Costs: One-week rail pass was roughly $300 US. |
Japan...
February 19-29, 2008
In Nara.
Oh-so-wonderful Japanese street food.
A snow monkey near Nagano.
