Farewell Japan

I have spent fifteen months in Japan, and it all went by so quickly. It has been a learning experience living in a foreign country, and I am glad I had the opportunity to do so.

Japan is an amazing country. Their outlook is so profoundly different from America, and in some ways really nice. The hallmark of America is independence, and the basic unit of structure is the individual. To give up either would be unthinkable, and in many ways, fueled America's great economic and financial growth. On the other side of the coin, however, all this individualism makes for a very selfish society where everyone is just looking out for themselves (and their immediate family).

Japan is the opposite. This country runs on the notion that everyone will naturally do the right thing for the community as a whole. It has been refreshing to live in a place where residents will automatically act in a way that everyone's lives easier. Everything (and everyone!) is punctual, customer service is patient and accommodating, and people are nice to each other. It's also unbelievably safe here; I have left grocery items in my bicycle basket while I went into another store to get some things. No one steals! It's crazy!

Gratuitous beautiful Japanese scenery... Himeji Castle

I will, of course, miss all the food in Japan. Local cuisine is just so inexpensive, and of good quality.

Katsu-don, a fried pork chop and eggs, served over rice.

There is ramen under those veggies. 

Conveyor belt sushi joints have been a staple of mine this year, but so has
cheap supermarket sushi, which starts going on sale around 6pm. And
oh, say hello to my new little friend, Totoro! He will be joining me on my
travels the next few months.

Japanese good is heavily seasonal; this cold udon dish is only available
during the late spring/summer months.

And don't even get me STARTED on the miracle that is the 100 yen store. It seems impossible that they can offer so many useful items for such a low price. Take a look at one of my latest hauls, all for the grand total of 756 yen ($6.30 US).

Let's see, there is a screen protector for my tablet, a pair of socks, a pair
of earbuds, a canvas tote, an inflatable travel pillow, a mini-USB to
USB cord, and a neoprene sleeve for my tablet. So much stuff!

My deepest memory of Japan though, will be the children that I taught for a year. I didn't quite expect it, but they found their way into my heart, and I will miss them for a very long time. I unfortunately can't post any of their pictures here, but suffice it to say that they are all beautiful and funny and smart.

I don't know when I will return to this country. But I am grateful for the time here, and will be sad as I depart.

Spring has been sighted!

I am so happy that we had a mild winter in Osaka this year. Nevertheless, I am overjoyed to find the first cherry blossoms blooming already. It's a sure sign of warmer weather to come (and unfortunately, of allergy season!).

It was a beautiful sunny day at the park, and the few trees in bloom made for a beautiful splash of color among all the greenery.

It is lovely to be able to enjoy Hanami one more time in Japan before I leave!

Cosplay!

(Viewing, not participating in) :P

Ooops, so I just realized that months have passed since I last wrote. My time in Japan is coming to an end soon, so I promise to write and update more! I have lots of travel in my near future, but in the meantime, I will try to cram in a few more things in this crazy lovely country.

Of course I can't leave Japan without viewing one of its most notorious pastimes: cosplay! Every year in Osaka, thousands of people dress up as their favorite anime/video game character for this one day of fun. It was cool to see the details that went into all the costumes, and I was pleasantly surprised to recognize some of them!

I can't believe I actually recognized this! Trio from Cardcaptor Sakura!

No idea what this one is, but looks really cool.

A character from a really popular girls' anime series,
Pretty Cure.

Yuna, from Final Fantasy X! Not a minute later, I saw a
guy in a Tidus costume one block away. I wonder if he
was looking for Yuna? :)

This looked super familiar. I want to say a character
from Tenchi Muyo??

Can you believe that people actually drive around in cars with these decals?

Yokai yokai yokaaaaaiiii watch ee ee!

The enemy has been spotted! Where's Solid Snake?? Dressed up as this
cute little girl?

Oh, here he is. Silly Snake, you don't fit in that box!

I wonder what anime these girls are from? 

Lightning and Vanille, from Final Fantasy XIII. The
costumes look really good!

A snapshot from the other side of things; I was standing behind a
 very popular cosplay girl. Slightly creepy, no?

Cammie, from Street Fighter

So kawaii!

Awwww! It's Cloud! And Aerith! (Even though we all know that Aerith's
true love really is Zack Fair.)

Don't know what anime she is from, but she is
rocking the outfit!

Ness looks like he lost a lot of weight, maybe he's homesick?
Where is Poo??

This was a crazy event, spanning multiple blocks and consisting of huge crowds. It eventually got tiring to be fighting through the streets, but I'm sure there were even more interesting and cool costumes to be found. This was like the Halloween parade in New York, but even better because all the costumes looked to be really well-made. I'm glad I got to see all this!

Leaves change color!?

The Floridian in me never stops being amazed by seasons. While Spring always makes me happy because it's a sign of warmer weather to come, Fall foliage is a showstopper. One of my favorite things to do in the Fall in New York was to walk around looking at trees, and so I wanted to do the same in Japan.

I took a train to the northern outskirts of Osaka, to Minoo Park. It's listed on many websites as one of the most popular destinations for Fall foliage viewing. And it was REALLY popular. Apparently everyone in Osaka had the same idea as I did this weekend, and we all headed to the same darn place! I couldn't believe the crowds!

Minoo Park featured many food stalls along its nicely paved path, so it wasn't too difficult of a hike. After about 3 km, the path ended in a waterfall. It wasn't the most impressive waterfall I've seen, but it was still nice to be around nature.

If you look closely, you can see the old ladies frying up
battered maple leaves! Unfortunately the lines were about
20 people deep... I didn't get any!

Pretty Japanese maple trees

Overhead view of some of the beautiful colors

Autumn in Japan!

Getting close to the waterfall (you can kind of see
how many people are around!)

The waterfall (although it's a bad picture... my
camera is really bad!)

Not all the trees turned color... wonder why?

It's a shame that all this will disappear in a few weeks, and then it gets cold! Rats!

Into the mountains

As a sea-level type of girl, I am easily impressed by mountains. They seem so majestic and important as they rise from the ground. The views are always spectacular, and the air is clear and crisp. Taking advantage of another long weekend, I decided to make my way to Koyasan (高野山).

Koyasan is located in Wakayama prefecture, about two hours from Osaka. The name actually doesn't refer to a single mountain, but rather a basin area located between 8 different mountains. The trip there seemed to take a long time, perhaps because there were multiple steps involved. I first took a train, then switched to a cable car, and finally to a bus.

Bad picture taken from a moving train. But, oooooo. Mountains.

For the last 40 minutes of the train ride, the tracks sloped gently upward, carrying the train into higher elevation. Then at last, I transferred from the train to the cable car, which took 5 minutes and brought me to my final altitude of 867m (2,844 feet)!

View from the cable car. So steep!

I walked around town, viewing some of the many temples and sites. Dozens of temples line the streets; many of them offer guest accommodations complete with authentic buddhist meals and early morning services. But alas, they are also quite expensive so I just got to take pictures from the road.

Daimon, the original entrance to the Koyasan area.

Konpon Daito. So pretty!

I forgot what this one was called.

If only that branch would get out of the way, this would be a good picture! :P

I stopped for a snack along the way. This is a grilled/roasted mochi
filled with red beans. The grilling gave the mochi more of a chew. It
was delicious!

One great attraction of Koyasan is the Okuno-in area, Surrounded by a vast cedar forest, this cemetery/holy spot is where the Buddist Kobo Daishi Kukai is said to be in eternal meditation. The graves/shrines in this forest numbers into the hundreds of thousands, the old ones covered with moss. It was breathtakingly beautiful and haunting; just like walking into another world.

Stepping back in time...

What do these little aprons mean?!?

Little paths branched out here and there, leading to
long-forgotten shrines

This place would probably be creepy at night!

The cedar trees were enormous and amazing

I'll have to google why they put clothes on these statues, and place 1 yen
coins on them.

Deep within the forest, in an area considered very sacred, lies the Gobyo Mausoleum. No pictures were allowed, so I only got a snapshot from afar.

Crossing the bridge

With the mountain chill, chanting monks, and incense-filled air, there was a surreal feeling to this place. I took my time and browsed through; it was truly a relaxing and peaceful way to spend the afternoon!

With my spirit recharged, I headed to my accommodations for the night. I found a lovely small guest house on Koyasan, with little capsule rooms for rent. After walking around for the whole day, I was glad to get off my feet!

Koyasan Gueshouse Kokuu!

While small, the interior was surprisingly comfortable and airy. There were 8 capsules and 3 regular rooms, shared toilet/shower facilities, and a public area/kitchen.

Inside of guesthouse

My capsule. It was surprisingly cozy, and outfitted with a really soft and
comfortable mattress. Aaaahhhh! A bed! Unfortunately I didn't sleep as
well as anticipated... perhaps due to the altitude!

I had a great time at the guesthouse. The proprietress is an amazing cook, so I had dinner there instead of venturing out. A few other guests were also around; there was a lady from Montana who is a school counselor down in Okinawa, and a German guy doing the Shikoku Pilgrimage (750 miles?!?! Nuts!). We had a lovely evening exchanging stories.

I awoke the next morning to the smell of freshly baking bread. What a great start to the day!

My breakfast!

After a leisurely breakfast, I took advantage of the clear morning and walked around the Okuno-in area for a few more hours. Finally, I headed back to the real world though... and to the typhoon that is currently headed towards Osaka! What a great trip; I truly felt as if I had gone back in time!

Back down the mountain...