It's definitely been awhile since the last post :P On the days we can't update, we write our posts each night so they can be put up later. Last night, we got lazy lol XD Yeah, we were supposed to write a post and write postcards, but we just ended up talking (and I fell asleep)... ;; so let's see how much i can remember....
the itinerary for the day was pretty full---ride on the romantic train, Kinkakuji Temple, kimono fashion show and another hot spring hotel
The morning started like most mornings--christine and i woke up early to stand in a buffet line and end up getting a little of everything that we never can finish :P perhaps we are a bit overzealous in this adventure stuff lol
we headed to the Kameoka-Sagano romantic train after that. Here in Japan, the hotel staff are so cute! Not only with their bellhop uniforms and white gloves, but every time we leave, they wave to us goodbye and don't stop waving until we're out of sight. At the Okura Kyoto, they even pulled out a "sayonara" banner :D
the romantic train was very pretty and scenic. it used to be a failing railroad before somebody smart took notice of the beautiful views from the train and turned it into a profitable tourist attraction lol and it definitely doesn't disappoint. in the summer, the river cuts through a green valley. Apparently, the company used their profits to plant more trees (maples and cherry blossoms, as an addition to the native trees -- cedars/cypresses) so that in the spring, the train goes through a field of cherry blossoms :D
Tiffy and I sat on opposite sides of the train so we could get both sides, but she got more river than me QQ
After the train ride, we walked through a bamboo forest and visited historic downtown Kyoto. All gorgeous, although it was hard to enjoy in the intense humid heat with vicious mosquitos =\ christine and some of the other members in our group gotten bitten badly. I have 4 battles wounds. Well, I guess these don't count as battle wounds, since I didn't even get a chance to fight back. One bit me through my legging -__-;
one good thing that makes everything better: ice cream (ソフトクリーム) :P definitely feel that i've eaten a lot of sweets here in japan when i normally don't, just because they're very pretty lol going back to the states is going to be terrible haha well we HAD to try tofu ice cream at this little shop called SagaPar and if you're going to get one flavor, you might as well get 5...on the same cone :D The ice cream was really good -- tofu (tasted like soy milk), green tea, apple-mango, vanilla bean, and red bean, all in a waffle cone. Very messy. Tiffy decreed that this was not a good date food; I maintain that it might make a good date food if you still like each other after seeing the other person's face covered in ice cream XD
of course, after that, we went to eat lunch lol had Japanese-Korean bbq for lunch :D we're such gluttons, christine..... What?? They feed us, so we eat it. It's rude to waste.
Kinkakuji Temple, or the Golden Pavilion was next. Yeah, just look at the pictures---all i can say is that it's beautiful (complete understatement) and I want a house with a lake view and pretty islands in it :] i can live without the gold flakes...too flashy haha
Briefly visited the Nishijin Textile Factory to watch the kimono fashion show. The Nishijin area is famous for its high quality and expensive silk and hence, awesome kimonos. I'm really sad that christine and i never managed to get one :( none of them sparkled. it's funny that that's the one thing we meant to get, and now we're leaving with tons of other random things...like chopsticks haha Well, we saw some that sparkled. They just happened to be in department store windows and likely would cost us upwards of $50, more than I think we're willing to pay... especially if you're supposed to spend even more on the obi.
intricate work
kimono and obi sash :D
One of those model ladies totally looked like she loved the spotlight, like it was her 15 minutes of fame. She had a great expression XD
views from our balcony
enjoyed the hot springs once more before another kaiseki-japanese banquet style dinner. everyone in our tour group is pretty awesome :) they've only made the trip more fun.
So we've been talking about the people in our tour group, but we actually haven't properly introduced them yet. I'd like to do that now, since we took a group picture during dinner ^w^
The two guys we saw at dinner the first day are Daniel and David, two brothers from Calgary. Daniel is about to start studying graphics design, and David is a philosophy major. They're quiet guys but really nice :) Daniel is into anime (just like us), and David likes playing games (just like us... haha). I'm glad they started talking to us more, because I think they're really interesting people.
The family of 5 consists of Mizutani-san, the grandfather, who is a 2nd generation Japanese-American; Edde and Virginia, the parents; and Anthony and Melissa, the children. They all live in Cali, really close to Jerry actually. It's too bad we didn't get to talk to them that much or get to know the kids, because they seem really cool and nice. Anthony is studying EE right now, actually (haha).
I briefly talked about Mike before; he's a history teacher and a coach, traveling on his own in Japan. He's got a summer vacation, so I think he travels a lot. He was a super nice guy and often directed us towards certain interesting things to take pictures of XD I kind of felt bad since he was often stuck with us "young people" and our otaku conversations about anime and games, haha.
Matt and Tracy are the couple on their honeymoon. They also live in Cali right now, and Tiffy might be meeting up with them later :) Matt is a really friendly and outgoing person, I think, and it was always fun to have him around. I think he made friends with everyone on the trip. I think we had a harder time getting to know Tracy well, since we were always talking about otaku stuff... eh heh ;; She seems really nice though, and I wish we got to talk with her more. I think it's really cool that she has a double piercing on one ear XD (That's kind of random, sorry~)
The last couple that we haven't talked much about are Tom and Catalina (I hope I spelled her name correctly). They are definitely interesting people, though I think that we got a better since of Catalina's personality, because she's very bubbly and talkative. She owns a spa, I think, and they have a son who is studying in the Philippines. They did a lot of shopping here and have a lot of luggage now XD Pretty cool, Tiffy and I were worried about buying much since we don't want to lug it around China.
And, of course, Maiko-san, our tour guide. She's awesome! I like her a lot. She studied communications in college and worked as an overseas sales agent before becoming a tour guide. I think she's been to a lot of countries; she said she likes to travel, so that might be why she became a guide :) She's been to the other Asian countries, some parts of Europe, and most/all of North America. I think our group collectively thought she was wonderful. Thank you, Maiko-san ^w^
went exploring after that at Aqus, a nearby (what i'd like to call) teen mall, complete with arcades, bookstore, restaurant and movie theater. not much really, but we did find a Blazblue arcade machine :D i really need to play it sometime lol
nightttttttttttttttt!
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