Kyoto and Himaeji:Day 3

Today we traveled abroad from Kyoto and took a train to Himaeji. On the way there it was a local train and had to stop at EVERY single station, making the trip more than 2 hours long. When we finally got there at 12:00, we made our way through an enclosed arcade to Himaeji castle, which is a castle that was built by the first Tokugawa shogun. You can easily see why nobody dared to attack the castle-it has windows all over the walls for archers to shoot out of and holes for stones or tar to come pouring out of. We made the climb up into the top of the tower, which involved lots of climbing in weirdo slippers that you were supposed to wear inside the tower. When we got to the top, you could see everywhere! The people looked tiny and the cars not much bigger. We took lots of pictures and slowly climbed down. After amuch shorter train ride, we arrived back in Kyoto and ate at this Chinese place that had very good potstickers. Wow! What a great day!

Kyoto: Day 2

We have seen so many shrines and temples today-almost too many to count! My favorite was actually the first one that my dad and I saw as we went out to get some juice from the minimart on the corner. It was tiny, with a few flowers and a tiny candle. However, there was a shiny coffee cup in the place of a statue! After breakfast, we made our way across the river and explored the arcades and shops on the other side. We went to the Chion-in temple and saw a Jodo Buddhist ceremony. After that, we walked to the Kyoto Museum of traditional crafts-what a cool place! We learned how to make lacquer and fans (though I definitely couldn't do it myself!) and ate lunch at this small restaurant called Asakusa that was very good. During the afternoon we walked up to the Philosopher's path and over to the Silver Pavilion, which was sadly under renovation-but we went in anyway. Finally, at the end of the day, we wearily plodded back to the Keage station and took the subway to our hotel at Karasuma Oike, where we collapsed, too exhausted to think. My dad says we have probably walked 10 miles today! We saw this poster advertizing a lit up Nijo-jo castle and went there, where we saw women in kimonos playing music and some beautiful cherry trees.

Fun Fact:Jodo means "Pure Water" and is a sect of Buddhism. Chion-in temple is it's main temple.

Kyoto:Day 1

After a long plane ride, we have really arrived in Japan!!!!! Our hotel, the Hearton, is near the subway station Karasuma Oike. Yesterday after we arrived, we went out in search of food. My dad wanted to go to this place that let you pick what part of the pig you wanted and cook it yourself (do you want the tongue, the trotters, or the loins??) but my mom thought that that was a little too adventurous for our first night in Japan. We ended up going to this place across the street where you put your money into a vending machine and it gave you a ticket to buy your food with. I had a BIG bowl of miso chiru (miso soup) and a salad. My dad couldn`t decide what to get so he pressed a random button and got this weird brownish udon-fishy thing with too much spices in it. My mom had a bowl of plain udon noodles (After two days, I`m beginning to think that she`s going to live on it for our whole trip!). After the meal, we managed to stagger back to the hotel and fell asleep.
About the image: where is our stop? Hint: it`s #13

Kansai Airport and Osaka

Konichiwa! That`s how you say "hello" in Japanese! Our plane landed 24 hours ago, and already I have seen so many temples and shrines. My personal favorite was one with five pure white swans swimming in a pool filled with carp. The gardens, temples, and shrines are quiet and calm, even if they reside right next to a four-way intersection. When our plane landed, we got off and took a Haruka train over to Kyoto from Osaka/Kansai airport. From the train, I saw fields of rice and something that may have been lettuce. After the 11 hour plane trip, I was so tired, I fell asleep before we reached the outskirts of Osaka! We took the subway to our hotel and set up shop in our room. Because we needed three beds, the room was VERY crowded. After we unpacked, we went out in search of food. Since this post is only supposed to cover Osaka and the airport, that`s all for now!

Itinerary

Hi there! This blog details my trip to Japan and what I do there. My family and I desided to take a trip to Japan to visit my cousin last year and finally we are going to go!!! Sadly, the flight is very long and uncomfortable-let's hope Japan is worth it! We plan to fly into Osaka and take the train to Kyoto, spending three nights, after which we will take a train to Tokyo and spend two nights there. We will then take a train to a small town in the Chiba province (can't remember its name) and spend four nights there, ending by taking a train back to Tokyo and flying back through Narita airport. On the way we will stop at Himaeji, home of the famous Himaeji castle, and many other places. Enjoy!