6/19
Oh right. Today. Well, today was the day before Father's Day so I decided to pretty much stay in bed all day and then drink myself to death as much as possible. No more comments.
6/20
So today was my day to go to the Forbidden City. I had to do my laundry, seriously, so I gave that to the people at the hostel and had to walk around in my dress all day. It's not actually that short- it goes almost to my knees- but since I didn't wear shorts for ten years (13-23) I still feel uncomfortable in anything shorter than capris. Anyway, it was a bit disappointing in general. I enjoyed walking under the famous portrait of Mao, and I could say the place was impressive in scale, but it seemed to lack character or much beauty.
Due to this fact, I didn't spend as much time there as expected, though I had to take some extra time to pose with random Chinese tourists who seem to love me. I had this experience a bit while on the Great Wall- because so many of the tourists in China are from within the country and don't see a lot of white people so I'm so strange oddity. This is perfectly fine, but it does start to feel weird. I'd always imagined that if I were a movie star it would be better if people took surreptitious photos of me so I wouldn't have to deal with them, but now, having been in a somewhat similar position, it isn't. Basically, it comes down to the fact that no one will pretty much ever be able to take a picture of you without your knowledge- trust me, I don't care how secret you think you're being, it's obvious, and so it becomes an imposition. Even it you have to respond only by ignoring them, some response is still required so it feels a lot better if they just ask, though of course, you'll agree.
Anyway, afterwards, I headed over to Jianshan park, which was a bit of a climb, but lovely. Some guy hung himself there.
6/21- Left for Xi'an.
Showing posts with label Palace. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Palace. Show all posts
Wednesday, July 21, 2010
Thursday, May 27, 2010
Annoying Alliterative Appetite
5/2-
The idea of doing anything seriously touristy or requiring much effort never even entered my mind today, so I looked at a map and saw that the East Imperial Palace Garden was nearby. My guidebook confirmed that I wouldn't have to do much besides walk around and told me that it was free, so I set off. They were very nice and it was a lovely bit of green. I planned on reading The Shadow of the Wind , which I'd brought with me, but after reading the prologue- or was it actually the first chapter? Who knows? Oh well- I realized that this was going to be a really good book that should be savored and that I didn't really feel like reading right then anyway. I'd save it for the flight to Taipei.
I walked over to Marunouchi Brick Square, the food area Saveur had recommended, and immediately was pulled into the La Boutique de Joel Robuchon. I bought a gorgeous "Religeuse Chocolat" a large cream puff topped with a profiterole with a very thick chocolate cream/pudding inside the cream puffs, covered in a dark chocolate ganache, topped with two discs of carmelized chopped nuts I couldn't quite identify; walnuts or pecans, and a sprinkling of gold leaf. It was a wonderful treat and quite reasonable for how good it was- around $5. I wandered around the corner and saw a long line outside one store, Echire. The plaza had a very strong Parisian influence so the name didn't surprise me, but the product did: butter.
Completely random sidenote- the square also had a strong Boston influence in the form of its fauna and masses of red brick/ architectural type. I thought this was quite strange as the Japanese have an obvious (and one sided) love affair with French culture, but nowhere else did I see a strong, particular American region/city influence.
But I'd better get back to the bountiful bevy of brunettes bartering for butter. Sorry, that was a bit much, but I couldn't stop myself. Alliteration: I am an absolute addict. There really were quite a few people waiting to go into the roped off butter store, and since I'm in Japan, they did all have dark hair. Like in Singapore when I waited because I had the time and wanted to know if it was really worth waiting for, I got in line here.
Besides selling butter, they also had a small bakery inside. Unfortunately they were all out of croissants for the day, so I got a rectangular Madeleine and a large pat (30 grams) of demi-sel butter. You may be wondering why I bought butter and what the fresh hell I thought I was going to do with it, but here's the thing: I really like butter. I don't know as much about it as I'd really like to, but I do like tasting it, using it in unholy amounts, and I've even made my own (which was good, better than the regular kind you'd get at the grocery store, but not as good as I'd expected).
So I bought it just to taste it, basically, with bread. But now I want to start alliterating again and you don't deserve that. I didn't know where I'd get the bread, but I knew I wanted good bread, not packaged white crap. And I was still sitting right next to the Robuchon cafe which had just put out a bunch more bread products, so I bought a croissant to eat my butter with. Croissants, of course, already have a devilish amount of butter layered into their soft sheets, but I always like it better with butter (stop me! It's a disease!) especially when cut open lengthwise, toasted and then with butter on top, which somehow never seems too buttery, but just buttery enough.
This croissant however, was already too buttery to put anymore on, so I just had to eat it plain. It was great, but this meant that I was just randomly carrying around a bunch of butter since I was now full, and had to bread (to butter it on, upside down or right side up).
Butter in bag, bag in hand, croissant in mouth, I got on the loop line which circles Tokyo. My guide book had suggested it as a good way to get a feel of the city as it was cheap and mostly above-ground. Part of it was quite interesting, but much of it just snaked past gray buildings. However, it also went to the station I'd decided I had the energy to go to; Harajuku, to go to Baird Brewing Co., the microbrewery bar Food & Wind recommended, as today was obviously a fine food and drink day. To see the whole city, I ended up doing a 1.5 loop around the city which took about 1.5 hours but again, why not, I had the time.
Wandering through this part of Harajuku was a bit more interesting, but still uninspiring, as most of it was the fleetingly trendy childish, typical "Japan-Harajuku" look, with lots of cartoon/ manga images. I found the bar easily, thanks to their websites excellent directions, and entered.
They didn't have a sampler (which I LOVE for drink tasting) but you could buy their beer in very small (I think less than half-pint) glasses so I could try several different beers without getting sloshed. They also had overpriced, overthought and underwhelming bar snacks, one of which I ordered (chicken and blue cheese deep friend egg rolls) since I hadn't had a proper dinner, just good food previously. They also had great T-shirts, one of which I almost bought for my Stepdad, but they were expensive for what they were, so I refrained.
I wish I could describe the beer as well as I would like to, or even tell you the names of all the different ones I tried, but I can't remember them. In anticipation of this, I had cleverly taken a photograph of the menu with all the beer descriptions. Stupidly, I hadn't written this or downloaded those pictures before I lost my camera.
What I do remember is that the beers were all excellently made and more bitter than I really like (as many well-crafted beers are). I also tried one beer that was memorably called Black Sails. While drinking, I remembered how just how much I enjoy beer and that I really do love beer tasting and microbreweries. I'd really like to learn more about them. To this goal, I flipped through a book they had at the bar, showing and describing the World's Greatest Beers. Neither Oranjeboom, one of my favorite mass produced beers, nor McMenamins Raspberry Ruby, my favorite microbrew, were listed, but I did write down the names of a few other raspberry beers that I wanted to try in the future (as much as I like beer, I like it in a very girly way, preferring very light, slightly sweet beers with fruit flavors). They also had a free magazine aptly called The Japan Beer Times, the first edition, which was all about beer, especially microbreweries, though they don't seem to like to use that term, in Japan. Obviously there's a microbrewery revolution in the U.S. but I had no idea they were also having a quiet one in Japan, so it was very interesting to read.
Slurring my way back to the hostel, I got out my netbook and started writing, as I seem most inclined to write when drunk (I also think that the readable bits are some of the most interesting and creative writings I do). I sat on the Cafe porch and started talking to the group of three French guys at another table. This turned into a very long conversation in French and I didn't do as badly as I might've expected, given my distaste for Frenchness and how long it has been since I last spoke it. One of the guys told me he wished his English was as good as my French, which I thought was quite a nice compliment.
I was working on a Cherry Blossom Suntory beer I'd bought at 7-11 (I'd bought some special pack of two beers for cheap, and very oddly, they'd given me a free orange juice with it,) when Marybeth came back. I asked her if she wanted to go out and she said no but that we should just hang out at the hostel. So we went and bought a flask of vodka and a Coke Light and just chatted with each other and two other English guys she'd met previously. It was nothing special, but a relaxing, enjoyable evening.
For the past two nights, I'd stayed at the Sakura Hotel in Jimbocho, which was were I was drinking. It was a decent place in a good area so I'd wanted to stay longer but they hadn't had any beds available that night, so I'd made up my mind to sleep in either a capsule hotel, a love motel or an internet cafe. Each of those options were very "Japanese" experiences I wanted to try and both the love motel and an internet cafe would be cheaper if I checked in after 11 at night which was why I was hanging out at the Cafe at the hostel. Marybeth went to bed at around 1 a.m. I stayed up for another hour writing and then decided that it would be dangerous and bothersome to walk around somewhere trying to find an internet cafe/love motel/capsule hotel that would take women (the large majority, like 95%+ don't).
At some point, I went downstairs where the dorm rooms and bathroom were. I had my purse and my backpack, everything I own (well, that I have on me) with me. I don't remember making this decision, but I decided to sleep in the shower. It locked from the inside and was a bit larger than a bathtub, split down the middle- half of it for the shower itself and half for a changing part outside it, separated by an accordian glass door. I locked myself inside with my belongings and slept for about seven hours. I think my body is just adapting to insane and horrible sleeping conditions because it didn't seem that bad, and, it was free.
The idea of doing anything seriously touristy or requiring much effort never even entered my mind today, so I looked at a map and saw that the East Imperial Palace Garden was nearby. My guidebook confirmed that I wouldn't have to do much besides walk around and told me that it was free, so I set off. They were very nice and it was a lovely bit of green. I planned on reading The Shadow of the Wind , which I'd brought with me, but after reading the prologue- or was it actually the first chapter? Who knows? Oh well- I realized that this was going to be a really good book that should be savored and that I didn't really feel like reading right then anyway. I'd save it for the flight to Taipei.
I walked over to Marunouchi Brick Square, the food area Saveur had recommended, and immediately was pulled into the La Boutique de Joel Robuchon. I bought a gorgeous "Religeuse Chocolat" a large cream puff topped with a profiterole with a very thick chocolate cream/pudding inside the cream puffs, covered in a dark chocolate ganache, topped with two discs of carmelized chopped nuts I couldn't quite identify; walnuts or pecans, and a sprinkling of gold leaf. It was a wonderful treat and quite reasonable for how good it was- around $5. I wandered around the corner and saw a long line outside one store, Echire. The plaza had a very strong Parisian influence so the name didn't surprise me, but the product did: butter.
Completely random sidenote- the square also had a strong Boston influence in the form of its fauna and masses of red brick/ architectural type. I thought this was quite strange as the Japanese have an obvious (and one sided) love affair with French culture, but nowhere else did I see a strong, particular American region/city influence.
But I'd better get back to the bountiful bevy of brunettes bartering for butter. Sorry, that was a bit much, but I couldn't stop myself. Alliteration: I am an absolute addict. There really were quite a few people waiting to go into the roped off butter store, and since I'm in Japan, they did all have dark hair. Like in Singapore when I waited because I had the time and wanted to know if it was really worth waiting for, I got in line here.
Besides selling butter, they also had a small bakery inside. Unfortunately they were all out of croissants for the day, so I got a rectangular Madeleine and a large pat (30 grams) of demi-sel butter. You may be wondering why I bought butter and what the fresh hell I thought I was going to do with it, but here's the thing: I really like butter. I don't know as much about it as I'd really like to, but I do like tasting it, using it in unholy amounts, and I've even made my own (which was good, better than the regular kind you'd get at the grocery store, but not as good as I'd expected).
So I bought it just to taste it, basically, with bread. But now I want to start alliterating again and you don't deserve that. I didn't know where I'd get the bread, but I knew I wanted good bread, not packaged white crap. And I was still sitting right next to the Robuchon cafe which had just put out a bunch more bread products, so I bought a croissant to eat my butter with. Croissants, of course, already have a devilish amount of butter layered into their soft sheets, but I always like it better with butter (stop me! It's a disease!) especially when cut open lengthwise, toasted and then with butter on top, which somehow never seems too buttery, but just buttery enough.
This croissant however, was already too buttery to put anymore on, so I just had to eat it plain. It was great, but this meant that I was just randomly carrying around a bunch of butter since I was now full, and had to bread (to butter it on, upside down or right side up).
Butter in bag, bag in hand, croissant in mouth, I got on the loop line which circles Tokyo. My guide book had suggested it as a good way to get a feel of the city as it was cheap and mostly above-ground. Part of it was quite interesting, but much of it just snaked past gray buildings. However, it also went to the station I'd decided I had the energy to go to; Harajuku, to go to Baird Brewing Co., the microbrewery bar Food & Wind recommended, as today was obviously a fine food and drink day. To see the whole city, I ended up doing a 1.5 loop around the city which took about 1.5 hours but again, why not, I had the time.
Wandering through this part of Harajuku was a bit more interesting, but still uninspiring, as most of it was the fleetingly trendy childish, typical "Japan-Harajuku" look, with lots of cartoon/ manga images. I found the bar easily, thanks to their websites excellent directions, and entered.
They didn't have a sampler (which I LOVE for drink tasting) but you could buy their beer in very small (I think less than half-pint) glasses so I could try several different beers without getting sloshed. They also had overpriced, overthought and underwhelming bar snacks, one of which I ordered (chicken and blue cheese deep friend egg rolls) since I hadn't had a proper dinner, just good food previously. They also had great T-shirts, one of which I almost bought for my Stepdad, but they were expensive for what they were, so I refrained.
I wish I could describe the beer as well as I would like to, or even tell you the names of all the different ones I tried, but I can't remember them. In anticipation of this, I had cleverly taken a photograph of the menu with all the beer descriptions. Stupidly, I hadn't written this or downloaded those pictures before I lost my camera.
What I do remember is that the beers were all excellently made and more bitter than I really like (as many well-crafted beers are). I also tried one beer that was memorably called Black Sails. While drinking, I remembered how just how much I enjoy beer and that I really do love beer tasting and microbreweries. I'd really like to learn more about them. To this goal, I flipped through a book they had at the bar, showing and describing the World's Greatest Beers. Neither Oranjeboom, one of my favorite mass produced beers, nor McMenamins Raspberry Ruby, my favorite microbrew, were listed, but I did write down the names of a few other raspberry beers that I wanted to try in the future (as much as I like beer, I like it in a very girly way, preferring very light, slightly sweet beers with fruit flavors). They also had a free magazine aptly called The Japan Beer Times, the first edition, which was all about beer, especially microbreweries, though they don't seem to like to use that term, in Japan. Obviously there's a microbrewery revolution in the U.S. but I had no idea they were also having a quiet one in Japan, so it was very interesting to read.
Slurring my way back to the hostel, I got out my netbook and started writing, as I seem most inclined to write when drunk (I also think that the readable bits are some of the most interesting and creative writings I do). I sat on the Cafe porch and started talking to the group of three French guys at another table. This turned into a very long conversation in French and I didn't do as badly as I might've expected, given my distaste for Frenchness and how long it has been since I last spoke it. One of the guys told me he wished his English was as good as my French, which I thought was quite a nice compliment.
I was working on a Cherry Blossom Suntory beer I'd bought at 7-11 (I'd bought some special pack of two beers for cheap, and very oddly, they'd given me a free orange juice with it,) when Marybeth came back. I asked her if she wanted to go out and she said no but that we should just hang out at the hostel. So we went and bought a flask of vodka and a Coke Light and just chatted with each other and two other English guys she'd met previously. It was nothing special, but a relaxing, enjoyable evening.
For the past two nights, I'd stayed at the Sakura Hotel in Jimbocho, which was were I was drinking. It was a decent place in a good area so I'd wanted to stay longer but they hadn't had any beds available that night, so I'd made up my mind to sleep in either a capsule hotel, a love motel or an internet cafe. Each of those options were very "Japanese" experiences I wanted to try and both the love motel and an internet cafe would be cheaper if I checked in after 11 at night which was why I was hanging out at the Cafe at the hostel. Marybeth went to bed at around 1 a.m. I stayed up for another hour writing and then decided that it would be dangerous and bothersome to walk around somewhere trying to find an internet cafe/love motel/capsule hotel that would take women (the large majority, like 95%+ don't).
At some point, I went downstairs where the dorm rooms and bathroom were. I had my purse and my backpack, everything I own (well, that I have on me) with me. I don't remember making this decision, but I decided to sleep in the shower. It locked from the inside and was a bit larger than a bathtub, split down the middle- half of it for the shower itself and half for a changing part outside it, separated by an accordian glass door. I locked myself inside with my belongings and slept for about seven hours. I think my body is just adapting to insane and horrible sleeping conditions because it didn't seem that bad, and, it was free.
Wednesday, May 12, 2010
Temples, Rock Gardens and Castles, Oh My!
4/24
As it would be my last in Kyoto, and I'd seen little of the important temples and exciting sights, today was a very busy, hardcore sightseeing day.
I started at about 10 a.m. and got a bus to Kinkaku-ji (Temple), which means Temple of the Golden Pavilion.
*Quick note here: -ji and -jo mean temple and castle, respectively, so saying Kinkaku-ji Temple is redundant and so from this point on, I won't write Temple after the name, but you'll be able to differentiate it from anything else because of the -ji ending.
From there, I walked over to Ryoan-ji, which is known for its famous Zen Rock Garden. It's supposed to inspire meditation but I just didn't get it.
Part of the gardens nearby however had some lovely cherry blossom trees though is a nice, quiet setting, though the petals were already snowing. I didn't know it at the time, but this was as close as I would come to my vision of cherry blossoms in Japan. Had the woman I'd asked at the hostel told me about it a few days earlier, I could've gone when it was perfect.
I left Ryoan-ji, bought an ice cream cone, as it was slightly warmer (maybe in the late-50s?) and caught a bus to the Kyoto Imperial Palace and Park. You can't go inside the palace itself, but you can walk around the park and see it from there, which is just what I did.
It was about two o'clock by this time and my ice cream had not been a very filling lunch, so on my way walking over to Nijo-jo, I stopped in at another Japanese fast food/diner place for a cheap meal. I was initially reluctant to go to Nijo-jo because of time constraints and the price but I'm so glad I did. The best part was inside, where you weren't allowed to take pictures, but many of the rooms had moveable panels of gorgeous, though simple, paintings of nature or animals floating in a gilded sky.
It also had lovely gardens and a foot thick iron/bronze? gate:
Inside the castle there was a wedding procession that was also interesting to see.
I took a bus to train station, where I took a picture, though I'd been there several times already, from which point I jumped on a train to Fushimi Inari Shrine, which was really impressive and different from anything I'd seen so far, and, after about half an hour, really repetitive.
I hiked up the mountain the shrine was embedded in and was quite happy to see the Japanese tourists were struggling and more out of shape than I was, even if that seems a bit mean, before coming to a clearing with a nice view of the city that looked terrible when I tried to photograph it.
I got a bit confused and was unsure if I was basically at the top or not, but decided I'd been going for long enough so headed downhill. I got lost in a maze of orange wood and pine trees. Apparently there were several different paths of shrines to traverse and I went the wrong way so somehow, I ended up lost in the woods in the middle of a fairly large city. I kept going down and checked my direction against the sun as I knew I had to go west to get back to the train station, but because of the paths available, I hiked much farther north than I'd intended. Eventually I found myself on some small residential roads and wandered west from them but still got nowhere. I saw a temple which I hoped was the base temple area of Fushimi Inari but I was on the wrong side so I just hopped a gate and walked toward the center, passing some monks on the way. I found the center of the temple, though by that time I'd realized it was not the right one, and walked out through the entrance. The English signs told me I'd been walking through Tofukuji, another of Kyoto's 200-plus. This was actually one of the famous ones I'd considered seeing and had now managed to do so without paying the entry fee! I was too tired to actually explore it, so I just snapped a few pictures and walked by to my hostel, which by this point was close enough, as I'd gone so far North.
I rested there for a long while, but had a bit more energy than expected so I went out to get some dinner, buy some supplies for the train ride the next day and see Toji, yet another temple I'd wanted to see (this one famous because it was the tallest pagoda in Japan). I couldn't go in the complex of course, as it was closed, but it happened to be quite lovely lit up at night as it was and I was very happy with my decisions for the day and the way it had turned out.
As it would be my last in Kyoto, and I'd seen little of the important temples and exciting sights, today was a very busy, hardcore sightseeing day.
I started at about 10 a.m. and got a bus to Kinkaku-ji (Temple), which means Temple of the Golden Pavilion.
*Quick note here: -ji and -jo mean temple and castle, respectively, so saying Kinkaku-ji Temple is redundant and so from this point on, I won't write Temple after the name, but you'll be able to differentiate it from anything else because of the -ji ending.
From there, I walked over to Ryoan-ji, which is known for its famous Zen Rock Garden. It's supposed to inspire meditation but I just didn't get it.
Part of the gardens nearby however had some lovely cherry blossom trees though is a nice, quiet setting, though the petals were already snowing. I didn't know it at the time, but this was as close as I would come to my vision of cherry blossoms in Japan. Had the woman I'd asked at the hostel told me about it a few days earlier, I could've gone when it was perfect.
I left Ryoan-ji, bought an ice cream cone, as it was slightly warmer (maybe in the late-50s?) and caught a bus to the Kyoto Imperial Palace and Park. You can't go inside the palace itself, but you can walk around the park and see it from there, which is just what I did.
It was about two o'clock by this time and my ice cream had not been a very filling lunch, so on my way walking over to Nijo-jo, I stopped in at another Japanese fast food/diner place for a cheap meal. I was initially reluctant to go to Nijo-jo because of time constraints and the price but I'm so glad I did. The best part was inside, where you weren't allowed to take pictures, but many of the rooms had moveable panels of gorgeous, though simple, paintings of nature or animals floating in a gilded sky.
It also had lovely gardens and a foot thick iron/bronze? gate:
Inside the castle there was a wedding procession that was also interesting to see.
I took a bus to train station, where I took a picture, though I'd been there several times already, from which point I jumped on a train to Fushimi Inari Shrine, which was really impressive and different from anything I'd seen so far, and, after about half an hour, really repetitive.
I hiked up the mountain the shrine was embedded in and was quite happy to see the Japanese tourists were struggling and more out of shape than I was, even if that seems a bit mean, before coming to a clearing with a nice view of the city that looked terrible when I tried to photograph it.
I got a bit confused and was unsure if I was basically at the top or not, but decided I'd been going for long enough so headed downhill. I got lost in a maze of orange wood and pine trees. Apparently there were several different paths of shrines to traverse and I went the wrong way so somehow, I ended up lost in the woods in the middle of a fairly large city. I kept going down and checked my direction against the sun as I knew I had to go west to get back to the train station, but because of the paths available, I hiked much farther north than I'd intended. Eventually I found myself on some small residential roads and wandered west from them but still got nowhere. I saw a temple which I hoped was the base temple area of Fushimi Inari but I was on the wrong side so I just hopped a gate and walked toward the center, passing some monks on the way. I found the center of the temple, though by that time I'd realized it was not the right one, and walked out through the entrance. The English signs told me I'd been walking through Tofukuji, another of Kyoto's 200-plus. This was actually one of the famous ones I'd considered seeing and had now managed to do so without paying the entry fee! I was too tired to actually explore it, so I just snapped a few pictures and walked by to my hostel, which by this point was close enough, as I'd gone so far North.
I rested there for a long while, but had a bit more energy than expected so I went out to get some dinner, buy some supplies for the train ride the next day and see Toji, yet another temple I'd wanted to see (this one famous because it was the tallest pagoda in Japan). I couldn't go in the complex of course, as it was closed, but it happened to be quite lovely lit up at night as it was and I was very happy with my decisions for the day and the way it had turned out.
Monday, May 10, 2010
For the Sake Bombs, We Say Domo Arigato Mr. Roboto
4/19
Woke up late and decided (I say decided as if it's something I ever seriously consider- ha!) not to rush too much, even though I had to move hostels since J-Hoppers was fully booked for that night. I was in the reception area screwing around online when Renee and Darian came down. My netbook, though I love it, has been working really, incredibly slowly lately, to the point that my Skype had stopped working. I asked Renee if she knew anything about computers and she said that she didn't but that Darian did, so he screwed around on it for a while and miraculously fixed it! After that, I Skyped my Mom to say hi and talked to her for quite a while before going out to lunch nearby with Renee, Darian and a guy they'd met, Matt.
Since he'd fixed my computer for free, in a way that I never would've been able to do, I bought Darian lunch, and then we all headed in our separate directions. I went to the train station to go to Himeji, the most celebrated and beautiful castle in Japan...that, as of April 12, was closed for about a year for renovations. I was disappointed, but fortunately I knew this ahead of time, so it wasn't a shock. I'd still decided to go out, just to see the grounds and the view of the castle from the outside.
I missed the train I wanted by about ten seconds. I totally would've made it except that the signs didn't make any sense so I had a hard time getting to the right platform. The next one wasn't for another 17 minutes so I had to go on that one.
Laura: 1, Train: 1.
Once I got to Himeji, I was really happy I'd made the effort; it was beautiful, though I do wish it had been open, but hey, that's life. It was particularly nice because, though certainly on their way out, some of the cherry blossom trees were still in almost full bloom, which made me happy.
Back in Osaka, I changed hostels then went to meet Renee, Darian, Matt, and a guy he'd met, Andrew at an Italian restaurant. I know. I KNOW. But, Renee and Darian had already been there and had described the cheesy garlic bread in such detail that I couldn't resist.
I got superlost on my way there and was really late, even by my standards. Fortunately, everyone else was superlate as well, so we all had dinner (the cheesy garlic bread that wasn't as good as promised, and shrimp scampi-like spaghetti that was quite good) together. Afterwards, we headed upstairs- the restaurant was in Hep 5, a large shopping/entertainment complex- to the two stories of video and arcade games. I played some air hockey, appallingly, given that it's the one game I'm normally good at, and giant tetris with beach ball sized joysticks. We might have stayed there all night save one thing: this arcade had no alcohol, which we all agreed was needed.
We bought some beers for the train ride there and went back to the Dotonbori area. Renee said she wanted to go to some bar with belly dancers, and since no one else really had a preference, we tried going there. Somehow we ended up trying to find another bar: Wax 69, and after quite a long time, we walked into a building next door to a love hotel (popular pay by the hour hotels, supposedly very cheesy inside) and got off on the third floor. The empty corridor looked like the inside of a depressing office building, but after turning right, we walked into a very small room, coated halfway up the wall with red velvet. It was actually a very cool little bar, and the bartender, Jonah, was extremely happy to have us there, as we were the only patrons. We played a few drinking games, including Drinks, which is like a Connect Four board with shots at the bottom that you either try to, or try not to, land your coin in. Jonah was giving us great deals, including several free drinks and we all did sake bombs together. I'm sure you know that a sake bomb is when you have a glass of red bull with parallel chopsticks on top, and a shot of sake balancing on top of them, that you topple into the glass by pounding on the table, but I just thought I'd explain it, in case you didn't.
Next, we decided to go over to the bar, Kama Sutra, that was on the same floor a few doors down the still empty corridor. Jonah told us that it was owned by the same guy, but that they had karaoke. The decorating was similar too, though with more black than red, but the bartender wasn't nearly as nice. Regardless, we got drinks and started singing, including a very special version of "Domo Arigato Mr. Roboto." I think it was around 4 a.m. when Renee started to fall asleep and Darian and Matt took her back to the hostel. Andrew and I kept drinking, along with Jonah, who'd joined us at the other bar. We went downstairs to a nearby bar called 500, because every drink is 500 yen (about $5.50). It was great fun and we stayed there for the rest of the night/morning.
Woke up late and decided (I say decided as if it's something I ever seriously consider- ha!) not to rush too much, even though I had to move hostels since J-Hoppers was fully booked for that night. I was in the reception area screwing around online when Renee and Darian came down. My netbook, though I love it, has been working really, incredibly slowly lately, to the point that my Skype had stopped working. I asked Renee if she knew anything about computers and she said that she didn't but that Darian did, so he screwed around on it for a while and miraculously fixed it! After that, I Skyped my Mom to say hi and talked to her for quite a while before going out to lunch nearby with Renee, Darian and a guy they'd met, Matt.
Since he'd fixed my computer for free, in a way that I never would've been able to do, I bought Darian lunch, and then we all headed in our separate directions. I went to the train station to go to Himeji, the most celebrated and beautiful castle in Japan...that, as of April 12, was closed for about a year for renovations. I was disappointed, but fortunately I knew this ahead of time, so it wasn't a shock. I'd still decided to go out, just to see the grounds and the view of the castle from the outside.
I missed the train I wanted by about ten seconds. I totally would've made it except that the signs didn't make any sense so I had a hard time getting to the right platform. The next one wasn't for another 17 minutes so I had to go on that one.
Laura: 1, Train: 1.
Once I got to Himeji, I was really happy I'd made the effort; it was beautiful, though I do wish it had been open, but hey, that's life. It was particularly nice because, though certainly on their way out, some of the cherry blossom trees were still in almost full bloom, which made me happy.
Back in Osaka, I changed hostels then went to meet Renee, Darian, Matt, and a guy he'd met, Andrew at an Italian restaurant. I know. I KNOW. But, Renee and Darian had already been there and had described the cheesy garlic bread in such detail that I couldn't resist.
Darian and Renee with the plastic food outside the restaurant
I got superlost on my way there and was really late, even by my standards. Fortunately, everyone else was superlate as well, so we all had dinner (the cheesy garlic bread that wasn't as good as promised, and shrimp scampi-like spaghetti that was quite good) together. Afterwards, we headed upstairs- the restaurant was in Hep 5, a large shopping/entertainment complex- to the two stories of video and arcade games. I played some air hockey, appallingly, given that it's the one game I'm normally good at, and giant tetris with beach ball sized joysticks. We might have stayed there all night save one thing: this arcade had no alcohol, which we all agreed was needed.
Hep 5 Building, complete with a red Ferris Wheel on top of it
We bought some beers for the train ride there and went back to the Dotonbori area. Renee said she wanted to go to some bar with belly dancers, and since no one else really had a preference, we tried going there. Somehow we ended up trying to find another bar: Wax 69, and after quite a long time, we walked into a building next door to a love hotel (popular pay by the hour hotels, supposedly very cheesy inside) and got off on the third floor. The empty corridor looked like the inside of a depressing office building, but after turning right, we walked into a very small room, coated halfway up the wall with red velvet. It was actually a very cool little bar, and the bartender, Jonah, was extremely happy to have us there, as we were the only patrons. We played a few drinking games, including Drinks, which is like a Connect Four board with shots at the bottom that you either try to, or try not to, land your coin in. Jonah was giving us great deals, including several free drinks and we all did sake bombs together. I'm sure you know that a sake bomb is when you have a glass of red bull with parallel chopsticks on top, and a shot of sake balancing on top of them, that you topple into the glass by pounding on the table, but I just thought I'd explain it, in case you didn't.
Next, we decided to go over to the bar, Kama Sutra, that was on the same floor a few doors down the still empty corridor. Jonah told us that it was owned by the same guy, but that they had karaoke. The decorating was similar too, though with more black than red, but the bartender wasn't nearly as nice. Regardless, we got drinks and started singing, including a very special version of "Domo Arigato Mr. Roboto." I think it was around 4 a.m. when Renee started to fall asleep and Darian and Matt took her back to the hostel. Andrew and I kept drinking, along with Jonah, who'd joined us at the other bar. We went downstairs to a nearby bar called 500, because every drink is 500 yen (about $5.50). It was great fun and we stayed there for the rest of the night/morning.
Tuesday, May 4, 2010
Secret Gardens of Cherry Blossoms
4/13
One of the very few touristy things I'd decided I wanted to do in South Korea was to see Changdeok Palace, which is a UNESCO World Hertiage site (though at the rate they designate those, I think my pinky fingernail is next, so that doesn't mean much). It was really pretty and especially since it was the first Northern Asian palace I'd seen, it felt like it was really exotic.
There was a secret garden in the back that was very nice, but I thought it was a bit overrated. I did really enjoy the cherry blossom trees though- I hadn't thought to think that there might be any in Korea, and they were lovely as they were just in bloom.
At night, I organized a bunch of stuff and solidified some plans, did my laundry and wrote at a cafe with a giant mug of hot chocolate. The cold really started to suck though, particularly on the walk back to my hostel; it was "only" 43*F but the wind was incredibly strong so the forecast said it felt like 34*F. Inside my hostel was freezing- I thought I was going to die from hypothermia and had to use two comforters and was still cold before the heater finally kicked in. It was terrible and made me remember why I want to stay in the sun always.
One of the very few touristy things I'd decided I wanted to do in South Korea was to see Changdeok Palace, which is a UNESCO World Hertiage site (though at the rate they designate those, I think my pinky fingernail is next, so that doesn't mean much). It was really pretty and especially since it was the first Northern Asian palace I'd seen, it felt like it was really exotic.
There was a secret garden in the back that was very nice, but I thought it was a bit overrated. I did really enjoy the cherry blossom trees though- I hadn't thought to think that there might be any in Korea, and they were lovely as they were just in bloom.
At night, I organized a bunch of stuff and solidified some plans, did my laundry and wrote at a cafe with a giant mug of hot chocolate. The cold really started to suck though, particularly on the walk back to my hostel; it was "only" 43*F but the wind was incredibly strong so the forecast said it felt like 34*F. Inside my hostel was freezing- I thought I was going to die from hypothermia and had to use two comforters and was still cold before the heater finally kicked in. It was terrible and made me remember why I want to stay in the sun always.
Tuesday, April 20, 2010
Disappointed by Food, Faith Renewed by a Mojito
4/4 (Sunday)
I didn't want to do anything too stenuous today and since two guidebooks I consulted both said that you could see everything in Phnom Penh in two days and I had five before my flight to Korea, I wasn't going to rush myself. The O'Russey market was close to me so I decided I'd get something to eat nearby then go look around there for a while. It was nice, but not particularly fascinating or memorable, just like my lunch.
For a while I went back to my guesthouse and wrote and planned but I got restless and remembered that I wanted to go to Romdeng, a restaurant that specialized in gourmet Cambodian food, where I could try tarantula, a Cambodian delicacy. I'd seen a special on it, as it was part of the Friends NGO, which trains the cooks and helps Cambodians learn skills and get work, and the owner of Chamkra, the vegetarian restaurant in Siem Reap, had recommended it, so I was really looking forward to it. I walked around for over thirty minutes looking for the restaurant and cursing them for not having a better sign until I finally found it and noticed that they did actually have a decent sign- I just couldn't see it because the lights were all off. A sign said it, and all the other Friends franchises- about half of the recommeneded places to eat in Phnom Penh, were closed from April 2nd through April 19th for the Khmer New Year. I was pissed, not least of all because Khmer New Year only lasts from April 13-15 and I hadn't seen anything, ANYTHING, else that was closed because of that. I know it was silly, but I'd just been really looking forward to this and so felt incredibly let down and disappointed.
I was so upset I almost went straight back to the guesthouse, but I was hungry so I decided that I'd just get some food then head back. Instead I ended up wandering over to Metro Cafe, an expensive (for Cambodia,) but very nice bar. Their menu was actually intriguing so I got peking duck roll bites, which were okay, and more excitingly, a raspberry mojito. It wasn't perfect, but it was a very acceptable version- as good as I'd expect to get in any major city. I've been craving raspberries lately so this made me feel much better about life and I pepped up.
The Night Market here was only on Friday through Sunday thus this would be my last chance to see it, so I walked up to it, bought a dragonfruit to have for breakfast and walked around. A stage was set up and four teenagers; two girls, two boys were singing. They were really bad. Their voices just couldn't seem to do anything- I've heard elementary school choirs that sounded better. I walked away pretty quickly, bought a present for my Stepdad and left the Night Market.
I strolled by the Tonle Sap lakefront to the point where it meets the Mekong River (not nearly as far as that makes it sound) on an esplanade that was halfway destroyed by constuction, and halfway a lovely, broad, well-lit boulevard with flags. I walked down that part, past the Royal Palace and bought this from a woman selling them off the street.
Several people on my bus had eaten them so I knew the right way to do so, though the seller opened it for me anyways. It's basically part of a bamboo reed halfway filled with a strange, heavy rice mixture. More than anything else, it tasted woody. I ate a few bites to make sure I didn't want it and then threw the rest away.
I didn't want to do anything too stenuous today and since two guidebooks I consulted both said that you could see everything in Phnom Penh in two days and I had five before my flight to Korea, I wasn't going to rush myself. The O'Russey market was close to me so I decided I'd get something to eat nearby then go look around there for a while. It was nice, but not particularly fascinating or memorable, just like my lunch.
For a while I went back to my guesthouse and wrote and planned but I got restless and remembered that I wanted to go to Romdeng, a restaurant that specialized in gourmet Cambodian food, where I could try tarantula, a Cambodian delicacy. I'd seen a special on it, as it was part of the Friends NGO, which trains the cooks and helps Cambodians learn skills and get work, and the owner of Chamkra, the vegetarian restaurant in Siem Reap, had recommended it, so I was really looking forward to it. I walked around for over thirty minutes looking for the restaurant and cursing them for not having a better sign until I finally found it and noticed that they did actually have a decent sign- I just couldn't see it because the lights were all off. A sign said it, and all the other Friends franchises- about half of the recommeneded places to eat in Phnom Penh, were closed from April 2nd through April 19th for the Khmer New Year. I was pissed, not least of all because Khmer New Year only lasts from April 13-15 and I hadn't seen anything, ANYTHING, else that was closed because of that. I know it was silly, but I'd just been really looking forward to this and so felt incredibly let down and disappointed.
I was so upset I almost went straight back to the guesthouse, but I was hungry so I decided that I'd just get some food then head back. Instead I ended up wandering over to Metro Cafe, an expensive (for Cambodia,) but very nice bar. Their menu was actually intriguing so I got peking duck roll bites, which were okay, and more excitingly, a raspberry mojito. It wasn't perfect, but it was a very acceptable version- as good as I'd expect to get in any major city. I've been craving raspberries lately so this made me feel much better about life and I pepped up.
The Night Market here was only on Friday through Sunday thus this would be my last chance to see it, so I walked up to it, bought a dragonfruit to have for breakfast and walked around. A stage was set up and four teenagers; two girls, two boys were singing. They were really bad. Their voices just couldn't seem to do anything- I've heard elementary school choirs that sounded better. I walked away pretty quickly, bought a present for my Stepdad and left the Night Market.
I strolled by the Tonle Sap lakefront to the point where it meets the Mekong River (not nearly as far as that makes it sound) on an esplanade that was halfway destroyed by constuction, and halfway a lovely, broad, well-lit boulevard with flags. I walked down that part, past the Royal Palace and bought this from a woman selling them off the street.
Several people on my bus had eaten them so I knew the right way to do so, though the seller opened it for me anyways. It's basically part of a bamboo reed halfway filled with a strange, heavy rice mixture. More than anything else, it tasted woody. I ate a few bites to make sure I didn't want it and then threw the rest away.
Royal Palace
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