tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-77652970907241563562024-03-05T19:26:42.320+09:00Not Just VisitingAs a former student of Temple University Japan, I now live and work in the largest metropolis in the world.Keithhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04453377662997268519noreply@blogger.comBlogger105125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7765297090724156356.post-15059958863594816092010-01-27T20:19:00.001+09:002010-01-27T23:07:32.629+09:00good evening<p class="mobile-photo"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJi2rqMBOLf-47Ti5ugS9WdzAoGiTgqel1f3NvGV4pKWjNHH_-g1KtHpIbHdMPDkbtLAtCO6TE7C9Cw2fywW-rYr5bIHfguE0u73nyRpVCM_QJjy38rxUO5N6r11s-cz0c0ketPaS4cGPn/s1600-h/SBSH00541-766269.JPG"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJi2rqMBOLf-47Ti5ugS9WdzAoGiTgqel1f3NvGV4pKWjNHH_-g1KtHpIbHdMPDkbtLAtCO6TE7C9Cw2fywW-rYr5bIHfguE0u73nyRpVCM_QJjy38rxUO5N6r11s-cz0c0ketPaS4cGPn/s400/SBSH00541-766269.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5431382854796260258" border="0" /></a></p>Good evening from Kichijoji!Keithhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04453377662997268519noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7765297090724156356.post-36364121958504190452010-01-27T09:25:00.001+09:002010-01-27T09:25:14.068+09:00good morning<p class="mobile-photo"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJ-HozDKqwoJeBEn_sHoqPBfghDxWv8BNq3-aKKnGSCgXznmYSQ_L6b3SC8dzEJ1EDRAPYLsZbSxQqB-xdWMGKDvd_QrMv9KkyLOr4BBfvkixyjYa2S_kEGyC9iqp7S2r60xb9beqpteCD/s1600-h/SBSH00531-714069.JPG"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJ-HozDKqwoJeBEn_sHoqPBfghDxWv8BNq3-aKKnGSCgXznmYSQ_L6b3SC8dzEJ1EDRAPYLsZbSxQqB-xdWMGKDvd_QrMv9KkyLOr4BBfvkixyjYa2S_kEGyC9iqp7S2r60xb9beqpteCD/s400/SBSH00531-714069.JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5431209116234980738" /></a></p>Good morning from Kichijoji!Keithhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04453377662997268519noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7765297090724156356.post-41603787347312081552010-01-10T22:34:00.001+09:002010-01-10T22:34:42.228+09:00Tsukuba<p class="mobile-photo"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiif2-fZOEZCopJco5IzSgae7ha3H2Yxdb6_Jijnd4YmITkiQHHbm8NDLCa4pc2o5BSblSko_ZtmrBCv80XWn-xXN_3XUdF3Y0DDu-OnoITD5jA7Vg1S1qBwUo_jKIMz-Ec8111GJrl5mqK/s1600-h/SBSH00341-782228.JPG"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiif2-fZOEZCopJco5IzSgae7ha3H2Yxdb6_Jijnd4YmITkiQHHbm8NDLCa4pc2o5BSblSko_ZtmrBCv80XWn-xXN_3XUdF3Y0DDu-OnoITD5jA7Vg1S1qBwUo_jKIMz-Ec8111GJrl5mqK/s400/SBSH00341-782228.JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5425104111662291794" /></a></p>Today I went to Tsukuba. Tsukuba is a small town about 45 minutes by rapid train from the opposite side of tokyo from me. its known for a major university and some mountains where youcan see the lights of tokyo, saitama, and chiba.Keithhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04453377662997268519noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7765297090724156356.post-67856978762492609852010-01-09T20:43:00.001+09:002010-01-09T20:43:36.970+09:00My new toy.<p class="mobile-photo"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjiXD1bC8VtV7xNGC2h9iz1-5xwbzabckObdDGQW_TRjyGLVI7qxmmmd8N9XzSIfHzoe9yXgh0blTzAZ3NcsFQ7e7w4Rtc0-LnyCfsDBMPYJxL_LJq4b8eWVCt1724sczfGuqxWmZCm8EFv/s1600-h/100109_2041031-716972.jpg"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjiXD1bC8VtV7xNGC2h9iz1-5xwbzabckObdDGQW_TRjyGLVI7qxmmmd8N9XzSIfHzoe9yXgh0blTzAZ3NcsFQ7e7w4Rtc0-LnyCfsDBMPYJxL_LJq4b8eWVCt1724sczfGuqxWmZCm8EFv/s400/100109_2041031-716972.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5424704402022643746" /></a></p>look what I got today.Keithhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04453377662997268519noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7765297090724156356.post-31020185635336101652010-01-09T17:09:00.001+09:002010-01-09T17:09:11.214+09:00testingI got a new phone, and apparently I can blog straight from it.<p>this is just a test for now.Keithhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04453377662997268519noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7765297090724156356.post-16469357455758993152009-09-13T22:24:00.002+09:002009-09-13T22:28:24.939+09:00New camera filter.I got a new filter for my camera.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhosOa49RQgbH9-lSV0sWQS_pwvJhCe6Wy4NFhY9HmdfMRYDD5iGF6NSrSImSDtRMCeYQbUl3dSI-DdrhcRIQQDPlHp6gq3aBpkRN7iKwkfk7WkR_P-EmXJ_D2CK3IMi46Z_t0bOvlUVgQN/s1600-h/P9065203+%283%29.JPG"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhosOa49RQgbH9-lSV0sWQS_pwvJhCe6Wy4NFhY9HmdfMRYDD5iGF6NSrSImSDtRMCeYQbUl3dSI-DdrhcRIQQDPlHp6gq3aBpkRN7iKwkfk7WkR_P-EmXJ_D2CK3IMi46Z_t0bOvlUVgQN/s400/P9065203+%283%29.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5380943011037475570" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiHhojwUIpPaosw1m041OflyQo8LNl2D5bFuwYd3fectjlg392ZtqL8KBVHDaI2_OMi7d86xfBkHLQAXmxbDQRpYmCc0ZDlstrU0d-UI6Zq9hzD7iXKA4XzC8icXIAmpgQEeLcBHFzmBzI0/s1600-h/P9065203+%282%29.JPG"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiHhojwUIpPaosw1m041OflyQo8LNl2D5bFuwYd3fectjlg392ZtqL8KBVHDaI2_OMi7d86xfBkHLQAXmxbDQRpYmCc0ZDlstrU0d-UI6Zq9hzD7iXKA4XzC8icXIAmpgQEeLcBHFzmBzI0/s400/P9065203+%282%29.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5380943018179798722" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br />Can you guess what it does?Keithhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04453377662997268519noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7765297090724156356.post-75654380524315139542009-08-26T21:35:00.002+09:002009-08-26T21:51:51.335+09:002 years in Japan/my new toy.I have officially been in Japan for two years now. In those two years, I've made friends, lost friends, traveled, had good times and bad times, but mostly good times. I became a university graduate and I got myself an awesome job. I've moved 3 times, which is pretty low for a 2 year period for me.<br /><br />I wasn't sure if I would stay once I got here. It turns out that I do like it here and I'm going to stick around for a while.<br /><br /><br />On an unrelated note, I got myself a new toy. It's an Acer Aspire One micro laptop, and it's a lot of fun. I got it cheap from a store that's going out of business. I really want a computer I can do video editing on, but this is a nice little toy that I can take anywhere. When I get a bigger place to live (move #4) and more money in the bank, I'll get a nice non-laptop for business reasons, but for now this tiny little device is enough to keep me going until then.Keithhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04453377662997268519noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7765297090724156356.post-91260216138915757092009-08-02T10:13:00.001+09:002009-08-02T10:44:21.925+09:00What I've been up to...As I mentioned, I got a job here in Japan. I guess I should show off what I've been doing.<br /><br />First, videos that I didn't make, but I added finishing touches on ...<br /><br /><object height="344" width="425"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/BvH7T5vKTlc&hl=en&fs=1&"><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/BvH7T5vKTlc&hl=en&fs=1&" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" height="344" width="425"></embed></object><br /><br /><br /><object height="340" width="560"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/zORSDJVTpzg&hl=en&fs=1&"><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/zORSDJVTpzg&hl=en&fs=1&" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" height="340" width="560"></embed></object><br /><br />I really can't take much credit at all for these, but I did a few minutes work and upload them.<br /><br />these videos I did SOME work on, but mostly wasn't my work...<br /><br /><object height="340" width="560"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/uZ81pLMjkRg&hl=en&fs=1&"><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/uZ81pLMjkRg&hl=en&fs=1&" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" height="340" width="560"></embed></object><br /><br /><object height="340" width="560"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/PTTu4sMSJ4Q&hl=en&fs=1&"><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/PTTu4sMSJ4Q&hl=en&fs=1&" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" height="340" width="560"></embed></object><br /><br /><object height="340" width="560"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/yamIij5ZWVs&hl=en&fs=1&"><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/yamIij5ZWVs&hl=en&fs=1&" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" height="340" width="560"></embed></object><br /><br /><object height="340" width="560"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/rxqvwLk_zHU&hl=en&fs=1&"><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/rxqvwLk_zHU&hl=en&fs=1&" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" height="340" width="560"></embed></object><br /><br />The last 3 I offered creative input, but I didn't really do anything. The first one I changed in some ways, but I can't take much credit for.<br /><br />The next one I did everything other than filming and basic timing.<br /><br /><br /><object height="340" width="560"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/ShpttiWcAQY&hl=en&fs=1&"><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/ShpttiWcAQY&hl=en&fs=1&" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" height="340" width="560"></embed></object><br /><br /><object height="340" width="560"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/zD3xPFui8bA&hl=en&fs=1&"><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/zD3xPFui8bA&hl=en&fs=1&" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" height="340" width="560"></embed></object><br /><br /><object height="340" width="560"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/iV6CRS80xT4&hl=en&fs=1&"><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/iV6CRS80xT4&hl=en&fs=1&" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" height="340" width="560"></embed></object><br /><br />Actually, the majority of what I've done isn't public yet. <br /><br />Last night I went to a fireworks festival in Ome, which is pretty much the edge of the edge of Tokyo city. It was actually a blast.<br /><br /><object height="344" width="425"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/XCjCu_Y-KZ4&hl=en&fs=1&"><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/XCjCu_Y-KZ4&hl=en&fs=1&" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" height="344" width="425"></embed></object><br /><br />Besides the fireworks, Ome (which is a really cute town) turns out to be the home of cro-magnum man. I've been in Japan for almost 2 years, and I have NEVER seen people act like they did in Ome. It's a bit difficult to explain, but think "New Jersey". I literally stepped over 3 Smirnoff Ice bottles while avoiding this large group of people with a large bottle of sake and ended up getting yelled at by the police because there was a bus slowly heading my way maybe 50 feet away.<br /><br /><br />Anyways, I've been busy, but it's fun.<br /><br />Next week, I'm going to Summer Sonic (a big music festival) and I'm pumped.Keithhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04453377662997268519noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7765297090724156356.post-39352950244910934862009-06-27T22:07:00.001+09:002009-06-27T22:08:46.129+09:00Night picnicI had a lovely night picnic in the park. It was the second one this month.<br /><br />There were tons of bats flying around. Well, maybe not tons, but at least two and they were constantly flying overhead. It was quite surreal and lovely.<br /><br />I didn't get any pictures because it was too dark.Keithhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04453377662997268519noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7765297090724156356.post-31132259302818917782009-06-07T09:59:00.002+09:002009-06-07T10:03:49.506+09:00Graduation day!So, today's the big day. Today's my graduation ceremony. As of tonight, I will officially become a college graduate. I honestly was dreading this day before I got my job, but now I'm quite excited. My whole family is here too, and that's pretty exciting in its own right. <br /><br />So, of course this means after today, I will be done with Temple University Japan for good (probably) which is both exciting and sad. I had great times at TUJ, but all things must come to an end. Now I'm excited about my life at work.Keithhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04453377662997268519noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7765297090724156356.post-66218439152992665522009-05-27T12:34:00.002+09:002009-05-27T13:16:51.924+09:00BIG news!Sorry for the lack of posts. I just can't seem to find the time anymore. Maybe I'll devise a better posting schedule.<br /><br />But for now, I have BIG news...<br /><br />As you may or may not know, I am technically done with school. All my classes are over and I graduate next week. The big questions is 'Are you going back to America now? and the answer is...<br /><br /><br />No.<br /><br /><br />I have recently found a really good job. I am doing video editing work at a language learning company. The company is Innovative Language, and if you are studying Japanese, you might have heard of some of their products.<br /><br />I had been doing job hunting for the last semester, and I got a whole lot of 'no's and no responses. I was really pleased to finally get a yes. For the last two and a half weeks, I have been doing an 'internship' where essentially I was doing what will be my regular job, but for legal and other reasons, I wasn't actually an employee.<br /><br />Now, as of yesterday, my internship is over and I have been formally offered a job. It starts June 15th, which is after graduation and after my family leaves. They offered VISA sponsorship, which is a big deal of course.<br /><br />I was afraid that I would have to be an English teacher to stay. Not that there's anything about being an English teacher, but I have no passion for the English language and while I wouldn't mind teaching, I have little to no desire to teach English. My job now is actually what I studied in school and what I want to do, so I am quite pleased.<br /><br />So, I shall remain here for some time, and as of now I have no intention of leaving the country.Keithhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04453377662997268519noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7765297090724156356.post-50998761367523740792009-03-13T20:03:00.022+09:002009-04-24T15:44:48.122+09:00Osaka<div>Osaka was a party. I have a deep affection for this town. This is partly because Kansai (Osaka, Kobe, and Kyoto) was the first place in Japan that I visited, partly because I've got a good friend there, and partly because Osaka exudes this charm that other places in Japan don't have.</div><br /><div> </div><br /><div>The thing about Osaka is it has some really nice places and some REALLY bad places. I don't mean "bad for Japan", I mean "Bad in general" but I'll get to that later. Even the nice places of Osaka have a little grime on them, and it's not like "Eww, that's dirty! Stay away!" It's just part of life there. People accept it and move on.</div><br /><div> </div><br /><div>And speaking of people, Kansai people are WAY more energetic, noisier, and livelier than Tokyo people. For such an exciting city, Tokyo people are a tad dull.</div><br /><div>Anyways, back to Osaka. Our hotel was a mere 7 minutes walk to Dotonbori, probably the most famous place in the city. If not the most famous, one of the busiest and most exciting.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi9IqvoJxu7JiSrp8a_z-3Yg0tcicaL1h2ZvMu7p10ptvYH8L-n-5Y-gCx7Qa-ge7nHnlsxwvTWx1UWSEZQ7SSWWn9nesJQSNqy-H2qcGQsyQxTTbRonS3pKTcn1ebDtsRqgablwSJfKSGg/s1600-h/P1071152.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5312627423099322754" style="width: 400px; cursor: pointer; height: 300px;" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi9IqvoJxu7JiSrp8a_z-3Yg0tcicaL1h2ZvMu7p10ptvYH8L-n-5Y-gCx7Qa-ge7nHnlsxwvTWx1UWSEZQ7SSWWn9nesJQSNqy-H2qcGQsyQxTTbRonS3pKTcn1ebDtsRqgablwSJfKSGg/s400/P1071152.JPG" border="0" /></a><br />It doesn't look too exciting in the day, but at night, this place is crazy.<br /><br />And what do we do in Osaka? Eat okonomyaki! I met up with a friend and she took us to her favorite place in town.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiOmMhvyqya521samzHs8-ZQ8Kvdgvrneq9kx29e2LJmOxr9RD82HSrTYb0AjizMhFWm35uMC8TKboCxO5BM45vtvwRT67dYVvS_BDp-E0osPxAAz7A-Gu1lAhZnDJNBTy2mkvvuH4vsnSv/s1600-h/P1071165.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5312627434785532818" style="width: 400px; cursor: pointer; height: 300px;" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiOmMhvyqya521samzHs8-ZQ8Kvdgvrneq9kx29e2LJmOxr9RD82HSrTYb0AjizMhFWm35uMC8TKboCxO5BM45vtvwRT67dYVvS_BDp-E0osPxAAz7A-Gu1lAhZnDJNBTy2mkvvuH4vsnSv/s400/P1071165.JPG" border="0" /></a><br />Normally okonomyaki is cooked on a hot iron skillet in front of you and most of the time, you do the cooking, but at this place, the staff took over. And this guy was PICKY! He made sure everything was just right and when to eat. I ordered the yakisoba and okonomyaki combo (with a 'lunch beer'. Osaka is great.) and when my cohorts were waiting for their food, my yakisoba was done. Being the polite guy, when he told me to eat, I wanted to wait for my friends. Two minutes later he came back and told me to eat again. I asked him which was better for the okonomyaki, the sweet (normal) sauce, or the unsweetened (Osaka style, I guess) sauce. I asked him what he recommended, he paused for a second, and said with confidence and a coky look in his eyes "unsweet". He wasn't wrong.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiewNZWNXjXl8dClTXgBMNb8Pf0l85vtJRvwh1cLXeOwaJG69vkhhkvPKmeLf7ceLbDf6eaoI8zeF1ZU1Prz9LJODWlidZLbYjpazOSMni3HZS00MOlm_9MuQc9gw7wgd9ZA-BbYdTKJlDq/s1600-h/P1071159.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5312627429321588722" style="width: 400px; cursor: pointer; height: 300px;" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiewNZWNXjXl8dClTXgBMNb8Pf0l85vtJRvwh1cLXeOwaJG69vkhhkvPKmeLf7ceLbDf6eaoI8zeF1ZU1Prz9LJODWlidZLbYjpazOSMni3HZS00MOlm_9MuQc9gw7wgd9ZA-BbYdTKJlDq/s400/P1071159.JPG" border="0" /></a><br />I'm not sure if it was the BEST okonomyaki I've had in my life, but it certainly ranks on my top 5, no question. I miss that unsweet sauce.<br /><br />The place was right around Dotonbori, so we went there when we were done. Here's the picture that everyone knows.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjmKJWm_rrTX-Vg_cCc4tlgZOPAYcUKTSPI2tLqBRcu6i7oK_YQT6LtZZlVITvGg0JT5713W7W-Sn4-yQxfc5ftATDRL75mNdKCjs8ioBhIF5wkpvJkOBamZUte8HnZUp5c2yU20hXavyfh/s1600-h/P1071156.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5312627428444756274" style="width: 400px; cursor: pointer; height: 300px;" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjmKJWm_rrTX-Vg_cCc4tlgZOPAYcUKTSPI2tLqBRcu6i7oK_YQT6LtZZlVITvGg0JT5713W7W-Sn4-yQxfc5ftATDRL75mNdKCjs8ioBhIF5wkpvJkOBamZUte8HnZUp5c2yU20hXavyfh/s400/P1071156.JPG" border="0" /></a><br />And actually, a few blocks from there is a kabuki theater. I had no idea.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh_HwOl0nPSracWuEcgodzKFGJNdHNFPajnWpcY7OUG1Kb6VFp6BAt5Wj8M8_HiDHH5N6zF_KlCbARX002_np5YCAzDcf5hCElacX7F5_LnDH1sB6BYyUUsdhVOHV3PIagaNLTq2K05w6ku/s1600-h/P1071154.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5312627421900636690" style="width: 400px; cursor: pointer; height: 300px;" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh_HwOl0nPSracWuEcgodzKFGJNdHNFPajnWpcY7OUG1Kb6VFp6BAt5Wj8M8_HiDHH5N6zF_KlCbARX002_np5YCAzDcf5hCElacX7F5_LnDH1sB6BYyUUsdhVOHV3PIagaNLTq2K05w6ku/s400/P1071154.JPG" border="0" /></a><br />The thing about this part of Osaka is there is a REALLY long underground tunnel. It links (and this is a bit confusing) Namba station, JR Namba station, and Osaka Namba station. That's right, 3 stations called "Namba". And while they can be accessed by an underground tunnel, they are probably a good 10 minute walk apart. There's another odd thing, but I'll get to that later.<br /><br />Inside the underground passage are a lot of shops. There was also some nice new year's decorations.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhdngNkBQTJ1ALxkuUpBfbiZsWwNhLXmzvJzNRyjmo1Ly7RIXHDRZ2lPhqnQZxFAEXWj6She5khKDSusmtU-HYBKyqlbWS5UHeQof95iRh57fjp1kacIOrmsJ99K1VRZok-CwgVzVtpAFqj/s1600-h/P1071169.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5312628555137196930" style="width: 400px; cursor: pointer; height: 300px;" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhdngNkBQTJ1ALxkuUpBfbiZsWwNhLXmzvJzNRyjmo1Ly7RIXHDRZ2lPhqnQZxFAEXWj6She5khKDSusmtU-HYBKyqlbWS5UHeQof95iRh57fjp1kacIOrmsJ99K1VRZok-CwgVzVtpAFqj/s400/P1071169.JPG" border="0" /></a><br />Another example of some of the fine people of Osaka. I should also mention at this point that the whole underground mall is playing nonstop <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Para_Para">Para Para</a> music.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiaKinz7PKIdnuhcijBjDEtzP6fR9tZjpgQydvheD6lkQFWEokPdKwxEMxyga5MKu79Q_ilHor0tC9lk-eAWA3-Rqw__UjsWzthXj4skEudX1uijNwOeCcYQuonwpfV4nvWNrDbOWOO8ED5/s1600-h/P1071170.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5312628545496623746" style="width: 400px; cursor: pointer; height: 300px;" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiaKinz7PKIdnuhcijBjDEtzP6fR9tZjpgQydvheD6lkQFWEokPdKwxEMxyga5MKu79Q_ilHor0tC9lk-eAWA3-Rqw__UjsWzthXj4skEudX1uijNwOeCcYQuonwpfV4nvWNrDbOWOO8ED5/s400/P1071170.JPG" border="0" /></a><br />Just leanin' against a whale. Without a care in the world.<br /><br />After enjoying some Namba time, we headed over to Umeda, specifically Umeda Sky Building. Last time I was in Osaka, I was out in front of there for new year's, but I never went to the top. This time I got the chance.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjfrXGHaW3AdeRwVDYu9bok6mW2e7QXQApk7pBqUd7Z1799kOHXSkwYetuA2615kNxrpQ9FCcNK6GHFJSVh41TIlTC5rgZZB7oJk6HgS6B-JmBkwg_lcow58ITtHf-6iW3QkWuK5EzAK9UT/s1600-h/P1071171.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5312628538923319314" style="width: 400px; cursor: pointer; height: 300px;" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjfrXGHaW3AdeRwVDYu9bok6mW2e7QXQApk7pBqUd7Z1799kOHXSkwYetuA2615kNxrpQ9FCcNK6GHFJSVh41TIlTC5rgZZB7oJk6HgS6B-JmBkwg_lcow58ITtHf-6iW3QkWuK5EzAK9UT/s400/P1071171.JPG" border="0" /></a><br />It was quite a view.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgTtw1YYRik7xKLIDeNs8JYn4VeAcj9Axz0wUmNYe4wzDRsrcy0nHN7SXsyqkJ3aCR6wBwmZe31Kkes6lScARXCfzYzgaKoVueEUfm96s7YomzIrc7y3D_g3wCnx5uH2wM3ui49MYYbyDFT/s1600-h/P1071192.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5312628531429201618" style="width: 400px; cursor: pointer; height: 300px;" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgTtw1YYRik7xKLIDeNs8JYn4VeAcj9Axz0wUmNYe4wzDRsrcy0nHN7SXsyqkJ3aCR6wBwmZe31Kkes6lScARXCfzYzgaKoVueEUfm96s7YomzIrc7y3D_g3wCnx5uH2wM3ui49MYYbyDFT/s400/P1071192.JPG" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjeTbX4gf-yINbxVkHHssRhutbXZRQ1_xUhsNYZUmhyc766Aa20XsZqwwi0UhXWFW3qkWeuzPpGL1eE9juWnmRg7vx38qlt9HA_Jj7mPoVlIEPMVQZ_NC0M0kxeteB93xZrA7kzOxfVwcxn/s1600-h/P1071193.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5312628528517388066" style="width: 400px; cursor: pointer; height: 300px;" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjeTbX4gf-yINbxVkHHssRhutbXZRQ1_xUhsNYZUmhyc766Aa20XsZqwwi0UhXWFW3qkWeuzPpGL1eE9juWnmRg7vx38qlt9HA_Jj7mPoVlIEPMVQZ_NC0M0kxeteB93xZrA7kzOxfVwcxn/s400/P1071193.JPG" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgTtw1YYRik7xKLIDeNs8JYn4VeAcj9Axz0wUmNYe4wzDRsrcy0nHN7SXsyqkJ3aCR6wBwmZe31Kkes6lScARXCfzYzgaKoVueEUfm96s7YomzIrc7y3D_g3wCnx5uH2wM3ui49MYYbyDFT/s1600-h/P1071192.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5312628531429201618" style="width: 400px; cursor: pointer; height: 300px;" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgTtw1YYRik7xKLIDeNs8JYn4VeAcj9Axz0wUmNYe4wzDRsrcy0nHN7SXsyqkJ3aCR6wBwmZe31Kkes6lScARXCfzYzgaKoVueEUfm96s7YomzIrc7y3D_g3wCnx5uH2wM3ui49MYYbyDFT/s400/P1071192.JPG" border="0" /></a><br />One thing I noticed about Osaka is that the whole town is rather brown.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhPxi-0V_1VabjKxwDS-X24-LwfFkaKGKZ_km8NvCnTJoAgAnHrP1-OqcQKqY1UQOaPPWYlv8bfLbDWXp2t92JMFeGUy8hMcwudKJDpxS3wxW5AFQQcHk01rAQMnRIGdWU_eKvvZo1yEMq0/s1600-h/P1071194.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5312629295080963698" style="width: 400px; cursor: pointer; height: 300px;" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhPxi-0V_1VabjKxwDS-X24-LwfFkaKGKZ_km8NvCnTJoAgAnHrP1-OqcQKqY1UQOaPPWYlv8bfLbDWXp2t92JMFeGUy8hMcwudKJDpxS3wxW5AFQQcHk01rAQMnRIGdWU_eKvvZo1yEMq0/s400/P1071194.JPG" border="0" /></a><br />Not everything is brown, but there is a LOT of brown in Osaka. Lots of wood, dry grass, rusted metal, dirt, and just brown buildings. I'm not sure if this is better or worse than the bland grey of Tokyo, but that's the way it is.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhqKEhSnswE9Pnu5azRBaQRzALAAq1HM1WWJtJZSK0r8g6d8UYAsWCz77Ywjjv5YNzz9kW3oCeo6UC14kwmjtvjroncSjk6203ky24j0smDHfR3WasfR69T1p-biOpK8baDs4t1vdw3DtfQ/s1600-h/P1071197.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5312629291549841570" style="width: 400px; cursor: pointer; height: 300px;" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhqKEhSnswE9Pnu5azRBaQRzALAAq1HM1WWJtJZSK0r8g6d8UYAsWCz77Ywjjv5YNzz9kW3oCeo6UC14kwmjtvjroncSjk6203ky24j0smDHfR3WasfR69T1p-biOpK8baDs4t1vdw3DtfQ/s400/P1071197.JPG" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh6BQyD-Dt4mh_HxmhzrSqekXfNkTOUjFA-jmN2xk2QbRvg39yZXHfFyOFfkM05VkwIubmHTSremvgT-UXiCYAu87c1yziDoDgbj4SIpM7MF6iUCF0j7482ovntVjjS5iX-InSmImINKcF1/s1600-h/P1071198.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5312629290199014034" style="width: 400px; cursor: pointer; height: 300px;" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh6BQyD-Dt4mh_HxmhzrSqekXfNkTOUjFA-jmN2xk2QbRvg39yZXHfFyOFfkM05VkwIubmHTSremvgT-UXiCYAu87c1yziDoDgbj4SIpM7MF6iUCF0j7482ovntVjjS5iX-InSmImINKcF1/s400/P1071198.JPG" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjEnu11nh0kXHhNhgPAn81NTZ0qMBe_viOuCTWC1gladEvG3hLmo95ilu3_6GkjAGdiVBsX6US2PIgnVLI_aYAPhWDQKyZ3lTstSR2aeo656So1PXsy2nZAW61B_CJad-BRX98I9xXgHb7h/s1600-h/P1071202.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5312629283303414386" style="width: 400px; cursor: pointer; height: 300px;" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjEnu11nh0kXHhNhgPAn81NTZ0qMBe_viOuCTWC1gladEvG3hLmo95ilu3_6GkjAGdiVBsX6US2PIgnVLI_aYAPhWDQKyZ3lTstSR2aeo656So1PXsy2nZAW61B_CJad-BRX98I9xXgHb7h/s400/P1071202.JPG" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEheZnkpeveNGzpjRma5_DYM9gbhupT9At_8Fppac2sBk9CvzpIpDNw7jVv2ClmiaWvTS-8XNhVgkTXsYsu9FD9EmEnR0fHkf0L_5XgdIW1ce8gTcASLoPBM3pxHQqyBT0-RUbsycsvHVwiF/s1600-h/P1071202.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5312629279905636674" style="width: 400px; cursor: pointer; height: 300px;" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEheZnkpeveNGzpjRma5_DYM9gbhupT9At_8Fppac2sBk9CvzpIpDNw7jVv2ClmiaWvTS-8XNhVgkTXsYsu9FD9EmEnR0fHkf0L_5XgdIW1ce8gTcASLoPBM3pxHQqyBT0-RUbsycsvHVwiF/s400/P1071202.JPG" border="0" /></a><br />Umeda sky building has these really odd escalators that take you to the observation deck. They look strange, but they're a lot of fun to ride.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiPxZgH9yfcPokskhACsCIfCFyaS_yxcNyU6u9YZkTw98H2iot9M9pqoBCjq8q-XsS6RcN9KBt-M97iRUf9Po8hf_MJMyBmKVHpx1-W_GqhAJK5FCJW8hjjL4kLVBDkMXt3DQNHucpA8Fsp/s1600-h/P1071208.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5312630271064998658" style="width: 400px; cursor: pointer; height: 300px;" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiPxZgH9yfcPokskhACsCIfCFyaS_yxcNyU6u9YZkTw98H2iot9M9pqoBCjq8q-XsS6RcN9KBt-M97iRUf9Po8hf_MJMyBmKVHpx1-W_GqhAJK5FCJW8hjjL4kLVBDkMXt3DQNHucpA8Fsp/s400/P1071208.JPG" border="0" /></a><br />Here's an odd out of place building. Note the orange train, a lot like the old Chuo trains that I ride occasionally.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhC1jUM-YEm0whLvwvd0PqXiLP2RESA_CiXja4JPpRsw65nRSkrW8DuD4yAVXkxX9bwbBxp3bB6Xj0A8oklhTjuyYNQPMO3BIff05hlla9vZqLzPFa0hyphenhyphenkvWmVs_IOBgrghGlEbr7AJ-Hh4/s1600-h/P1071210.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5312630267024053938" style="width: 400px; cursor: pointer; height: 300px;" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhC1jUM-YEm0whLvwvd0PqXiLP2RESA_CiXja4JPpRsw65nRSkrW8DuD4yAVXkxX9bwbBxp3bB6Xj0A8oklhTjuyYNQPMO3BIff05hlla9vZqLzPFa0hyphenhyphenkvWmVs_IOBgrghGlEbr7AJ-Hh4/s400/P1071210.JPG" border="0" /></a><br />And here's a building that has a road through it. If you look in the center, you can see it there. I first heard about it <a href="http://anenglishmaninosaka.blogspot.com/2008/11/drive-thru-office.html">here</a>, but it was nice to see it in real life.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEihelx9Q_u6UNqBr6_dsAHZMrQccJDSAlHhCm_GtxEhBEHN3DgNhEqiKb9HPaiKrIFaBy66rgBYooM4oE9M9TZPn4tNxn9cExMDDG4uqQnrwfMekH6Q6DMTD3gUnfeJDW0QgEx9Dv2O39pC/s1600-h/P1071212.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5312630262082356978" style="width: 400px; cursor: pointer; height: 300px;" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEihelx9Q_u6UNqBr6_dsAHZMrQccJDSAlHhCm_GtxEhBEHN3DgNhEqiKb9HPaiKrIFaBy66rgBYooM4oE9M9TZPn4tNxn9cExMDDG4uqQnrwfMekH6Q6DMTD3gUnfeJDW0QgEx9Dv2O39pC/s400/P1071212.JPG" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgfsdhJs2U7942kWNBqrzdwzNoHWzGV716jx2cxkhxxvKTYx1_XihnWq1iPGRlV4QpPGgt-dJCl2DqPaOivLEZ_qQqYYjvIX8sUm6T6u21NrvRmtW5sIQiOW9QA2tFJbFwsGe7zmAsLXPRw/s1600-h/P1071221.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5312630263151159506" style="width: 400px; cursor: pointer; height: 300px;" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgfsdhJs2U7942kWNBqrzdwzNoHWzGV716jx2cxkhxxvKTYx1_XihnWq1iPGRlV4QpPGgt-dJCl2DqPaOivLEZ_qQqYYjvIX8sUm6T6u21NrvRmtW5sIQiOW9QA2tFJbFwsGe7zmAsLXPRw/s400/P1071221.JPG" border="0" /></a><br />Inside the top of the Umeda Sky Building was this odd little 'game,' I guess, where you had these chairs with plastic bubbles and the more you jumped and the more bubbles you put your weight on, the more it reacts to your movement with different colors, shapes and sounds.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjM_0BGYovtvjAo-QVGpnLSwomiEuV1YDHkBGIMIhsQhBBOrRW4D766TU1zgqeOuzqN5AZH2DyyYpBEalb58VMEPnOVPQtroCytSc5Nc56WV6ea1aK7Jyug6gugjdIQ5kzsv1Jv52MycZT_/s1600-h/P1071227.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5312630259629836370" style="width: 400px; cursor: pointer; height: 300px;" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjM_0BGYovtvjAo-QVGpnLSwomiEuV1YDHkBGIMIhsQhBBOrRW4D766TU1zgqeOuzqN5AZH2DyyYpBEalb58VMEPnOVPQtroCytSc5Nc56WV6ea1aK7Jyug6gugjdIQ5kzsv1Jv52MycZT_/s400/P1071227.JPG" border="0" /></a><br />It sounds odd, but it was a lot of fun.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhrQWTA53VHPwRX5-eJNNTxWqDwK4rb_oER9wLzU3l6GWpAh96_Nj3zLteH7UgW7_0uoTR49d3YVK8vZDvqSqFssApaos2G9SOlOrHQsx8bIgqbIREJ7bpdqTyy0hHgKloAPe6hGJRF7xsi/s1600-h/P1071232.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5312630783853353314" style="width: 400px; cursor: pointer; height: 300px;" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhrQWTA53VHPwRX5-eJNNTxWqDwK4rb_oER9wLzU3l6GWpAh96_Nj3zLteH7UgW7_0uoTR49d3YVK8vZDvqSqFssApaos2G9SOlOrHQsx8bIgqbIREJ7bpdqTyy0hHgKloAPe6hGJRF7xsi/s400/P1071232.JPG" border="0" /></a><br />Anyways, it was time to leave and I took a shot of that odd escalator. Those were actually quite great. It would be nice to take an escalator like this every day instead of a boring one inside.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhnrLu0aAoht86yThHz4X44ceDUG_8_K9aUl-Cry7yJhAICp1_8C0xWiLOICyYRkR4DgEuJYQ9YHzS9noewgbDLv-B51KUEmZ7tqNBLLuDL2b18ZpGgG5vuOWwVyHSLzDr_7zRf0Qkm3F_-/s1600-h/P1071238.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5312630780312832482" style="width: 400px; cursor: pointer; height: 300px;" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhnrLu0aAoht86yThHz4X44ceDUG_8_K9aUl-Cry7yJhAICp1_8C0xWiLOICyYRkR4DgEuJYQ9YHzS9noewgbDLv-B51KUEmZ7tqNBLLuDL2b18ZpGgG5vuOWwVyHSLzDr_7zRf0Qkm3F_-/s400/P1071238.JPG" border="0" /></a><br />So, after the ultra modern city, we headed to Osaka Castle. Here's a shot from inside a train station.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhBj8Tk2M0vVhyphenhyphenQvN9D2WnUIErylJgvL-tad7KMfIkVJY6g4Ej7ZbVh2-IQuzY_WWkTrILOBXYwjEk7IFc80GXseuQ9siPKiKVM9f7xyFhuAClbEJVrjWuGv5twwAVtBwPZxbxaNJJq0-SF/s1600-h/P1071243.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5312630777673044834" style="width: 400px; cursor: pointer; height: 300px;" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhBj8Tk2M0vVhyphenhyphenQvN9D2WnUIErylJgvL-tad7KMfIkVJY6g4Ej7ZbVh2-IQuzY_WWkTrILOBXYwjEk7IFc80GXseuQ9siPKiKVM9f7xyFhuAClbEJVrjWuGv5twwAVtBwPZxbxaNJJq0-SF/s400/P1071243.JPG" border="0" /></a><br />Near the castle, we were greeted by a friendly cow.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgzIHpp8u6ZkmWfDDceXeOzp4q097iVA-cUA0CmZ24BlqQ0pyQQ4NNYSkfYrzJGF7dAT48Z20DSCM7PExkIKbEsistiBwJO8QMW9FokiBwzkALbTAZO5ac-GF_Pu_65TzIqq171yFukjhhr/s1600-h/P1071247.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5312630772527792770" style="width: 400px; cursor: pointer; height: 300px;" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgzIHpp8u6ZkmWfDDceXeOzp4q097iVA-cUA0CmZ24BlqQ0pyQQ4NNYSkfYrzJGF7dAT48Z20DSCM7PExkIKbEsistiBwJO8QMW9FokiBwzkALbTAZO5ac-GF_Pu_65TzIqq171yFukjhhr/s400/P1071247.JPG" border="0" /></a><br />And there's the castle!<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgu7uk3iBzuGgUyWcP0eCTOOa9Djd7GrlYQuu_UJnIf0OWqlQpWfbxkyCVoHS2iVfkFj4dXza4L5227wX5jJH15zLE1LkKG1wthHjvele0QV5S38SW2fgPAnXvCPeGNtGo-n0_HZvevNygR/s1600-h/P1071250.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5312630773825339842" style="width: 400px; cursor: pointer; height: 300px;" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgu7uk3iBzuGgUyWcP0eCTOOa9Djd7GrlYQuu_UJnIf0OWqlQpWfbxkyCVoHS2iVfkFj4dXza4L5227wX5jJH15zLE1LkKG1wthHjvele0QV5S38SW2fgPAnXvCPeGNtGo-n0_HZvevNygR/s400/P1071250.JPG" border="0" /></a><br />Apparently, a lot of the stones for the walls and base were 'donated' by neighboring regions' leaders and a lot still have markings on them indicating where they came from. You can't really see them in these pictures, though.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhuCO3GI6ShUPKtOIK_z4Y2P2rTNcXbQXonejpCyBHkmAUHm0nXw3B-y2AHtWmJuqk8AM1sy1XDXZs8jLaoi2KxHmWQ5eumyVXCDIRhhL93UTPDdRlvctSTc51EGgv9QeuwJ0H-bqzNyd3j/s1600-h/P1071253.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5312631499723158386" style="width: 400px; cursor: pointer; height: 300px;" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhuCO3GI6ShUPKtOIK_z4Y2P2rTNcXbQXonejpCyBHkmAUHm0nXw3B-y2AHtWmJuqk8AM1sy1XDXZs8jLaoi2KxHmWQ5eumyVXCDIRhhL93UTPDdRlvctSTc51EGgv9QeuwJ0H-bqzNyd3j/s400/P1071253.JPG" border="0" /></a><br />Osaka Castle was pretty damned big.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgauDSCfSe3mIJerjV2xB9VwjrW-cM9q84Mv2vVHjXiJeW2l1j4WJG4BmQOkbAkwGqvXvwL8wPMp8DSq8fNNzhwS1EX6BOOpkb0-Fc7EHPw9q7Gomj1UvJyjNWtAsMmXEEa_savw8LfPpRx/s1600-h/P1071257.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5312631495118467298" style="width: 400px; cursor: pointer; height: 300px;" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgauDSCfSe3mIJerjV2xB9VwjrW-cM9q84Mv2vVHjXiJeW2l1j4WJG4BmQOkbAkwGqvXvwL8wPMp8DSq8fNNzhwS1EX6BOOpkb0-Fc7EHPw9q7Gomj1UvJyjNWtAsMmXEEa_savw8LfPpRx/s400/P1071257.JPG" border="0" /></a><br />The inside was kind of strange. It seemed like the whole castle had been gutted and replaced with a museum. Well, it's been a long time since someone has ruled from it, so I guess it's better than letting it go to waste.<br /><br />Here are some shots from the top of the castle.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgea6t_kRAi6AURvlhyphenhyphenKWNsz7vU466ZPoSSdjAnHTzYgUV-JGSrwNO89x8PTpMbdefPCJFvDoVEaAOEQoy13uKqlGEqLx1kVDc-Ol0kGFaLAYBDIQv3zIrAeWT6YfCfud8Fd9Vaf0yuikBk/s1600-h/P1071260.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5312631496149479106" style="width: 400px; cursor: pointer; height: 300px;" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgea6t_kRAi6AURvlhyphenhyphenKWNsz7vU466ZPoSSdjAnHTzYgUV-JGSrwNO89x8PTpMbdefPCJFvDoVEaAOEQoy13uKqlGEqLx1kVDc-Ol0kGFaLAYBDIQv3zIrAeWT6YfCfud8Fd9Vaf0yuikBk/s400/P1071260.JPG" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-sh8NQjeSaklvN-XpKiD3w-5zrTUPUaK8prT4qeF_M3EnMeZz-1oyAZN8qyEDwKRwp0fapatS7D7k4d4gwGL-aMJGR4j9Co9RfmxhcnFsYQEsr7d84lPNl6YBbtSq1HVR409MSaVth4DG/s1600-h/P1071262.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5312631494327486130" style="width: 400px; cursor: pointer; height: 300px;" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-sh8NQjeSaklvN-XpKiD3w-5zrTUPUaK8prT4qeF_M3EnMeZz-1oyAZN8qyEDwKRwp0fapatS7D7k4d4gwGL-aMJGR4j9Co9RfmxhcnFsYQEsr7d84lPNl6YBbtSq1HVR409MSaVth4DG/s400/P1071262.JPG" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhowYP4bK1fD1diGnrClRmnELEZC0CTCRshbXI1e1ldCOlDy21_Q38Ev5GM0GKJCGOD6sw9N-MpGMew6UWmo9AyBFXH5E7Y6CfIdasQt08DF1p1z3OfuBeGQiciCntJD8-nAso8C1_JhDFq/s1600-h/P1071267.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5312631487318441314" style="width: 400px; cursor: pointer; height: 300px;" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhowYP4bK1fD1diGnrClRmnELEZC0CTCRshbXI1e1ldCOlDy21_Q38Ev5GM0GKJCGOD6sw9N-MpGMew6UWmo9AyBFXH5E7Y6CfIdasQt08DF1p1z3OfuBeGQiciCntJD8-nAso8C1_JhDFq/s400/P1071267.JPG" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiHwbrC_-mN0j9IVzkG4Pm5FBZ4xv2q_8kGiHsEPDr_IiQyYDy_65AzjyxdU4wAhD9InzXrPEAmckNP7BAJw22AuwLgo87KSk8zzoTUfw7iAw1gypdKZyD2qX1M7ri7zykYk8oVH5L_Xj_v/s1600-h/P1071268.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5312632067739641874" style="width: 400px; cursor: pointer; height: 300px;" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiHwbrC_-mN0j9IVzkG4Pm5FBZ4xv2q_8kGiHsEPDr_IiQyYDy_65AzjyxdU4wAhD9InzXrPEAmckNP7BAJw22AuwLgo87KSk8zzoTUfw7iAw1gypdKZyD2qX1M7ri7zykYk8oVH5L_Xj_v/s400/P1071268.JPG" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjepDVHrI5AEXs_79V0QY3SdZ6MyC7mZlKLM8DejGToVrQRGjMoJe-AXnYBv08EalSmZJbRAcpXntSVm4Z4hLTmd_aOdAcqJ5SzoeKJ7aX2PyG-lAvArIjMbfUgfoqSQJmYOitEufgcg8wE/s1600-h/P1071274.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5312632062114240530" style="width: 400px; cursor: pointer; height: 300px;" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjepDVHrI5AEXs_79V0QY3SdZ6MyC7mZlKLM8DejGToVrQRGjMoJe-AXnYBv08EalSmZJbRAcpXntSVm4Z4hLTmd_aOdAcqJ5SzoeKJ7aX2PyG-lAvArIjMbfUgfoqSQJmYOitEufgcg8wE/s400/P1071274.JPG" border="0" /></a><br />After we left, we were a little hungry, so this being Osaka, we went to a takoyaki stand. I couldn't help but notice this precocious feline.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjFJqWG1xO2bJSG-MJ1Uo_L9K0a7_7Qwx5q0pjEdROp96mz6rX3YSJ9QkO8zpKvQgGKT7MZbc9F3DlzhWdqXLh6xAeZkb8fG_yqHvaAOA0O420g4ALZutrx-UQe11RdTcwdYcYWBRollFqQ/s1600-h/P1071281.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5312632062669935234" style="width: 400px; cursor: pointer; height: 300px;" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjFJqWG1xO2bJSG-MJ1Uo_L9K0a7_7Qwx5q0pjEdROp96mz6rX3YSJ9QkO8zpKvQgGKT7MZbc9F3DlzhWdqXLh6xAeZkb8fG_yqHvaAOA0O420g4ALZutrx-UQe11RdTcwdYcYWBRollFqQ/s400/P1071281.JPG" border="0" /></a><br />We headed back to Umeda station and I couldn't help but notice the lights.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj_OWfM-iEwf9JHWjYsBUT1uaXnqTLSP7FNTcZYwoAiCKccb7vSggz7PuBR1AYEXskcZCdNLjs_5iHsGx9MAhBrvix4Lopo_pL9m_4agmlwfd60SvFWW0MZCUeuIadcBYg_4R9dX5Q8xl90/s1600-h/P1071282.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5312632060025470290" style="width: 400px; cursor: pointer; height: 300px;" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj_OWfM-iEwf9JHWjYsBUT1uaXnqTLSP7FNTcZYwoAiCKccb7vSggz7PuBR1AYEXskcZCdNLjs_5iHsGx9MAhBrvix4Lopo_pL9m_4agmlwfd60SvFWW0MZCUeuIadcBYg_4R9dX5Q8xl90/s400/P1071282.JPG" border="0" /></a><br />These odd neon chandeliers were both tacky and classy at the same time. Kind of like Osaka.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgzmH-gDVm3f7F0lHYkoVFU2-i67PbGvTrm06mttgKC5g-ehVYRmduYZ1obEj-zM4vQGpV_EJEf7pmj89LG0l-aK6C9VJVkSE-mZfWuawbN8c0pIeN83rggCOxxA9vATjfBwRjMcDNZ4DNS/s1600-h/P1071283.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5312632057911996402" style="width: 400px; cursor: pointer; height: 300px;" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgzmH-gDVm3f7F0lHYkoVFU2-i67PbGvTrm06mttgKC5g-ehVYRmduYZ1obEj-zM4vQGpV_EJEf7pmj89LG0l-aK6C9VJVkSE-mZfWuawbN8c0pIeN83rggCOxxA9vATjfBwRjMcDNZ4DNS/s400/P1071283.JPG" border="0" /></a><br />From Osaka Castle, we headed towards another famous landmark, Tsutenkaku.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiP7KDvcm2p_d38E9xL7R_qh9NFlZP42e3yInmnpmz1a-jCj7o8bfJqdXISqJ9C1h90zZhMOLDDrMvpqtPUSpPOiApJDYKNfTB45NU0gHyomDufPpXaGcwqE6_pZdT0ZljYIAd1Uo-bMCAc/s1600-h/P1071285.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5312632762225017682" style="width: 400px; cursor: pointer; height: 300px;" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiP7KDvcm2p_d38E9xL7R_qh9NFlZP42e3yInmnpmz1a-jCj7o8bfJqdXISqJ9C1h90zZhMOLDDrMvpqtPUSpPOiApJDYKNfTB45NU0gHyomDufPpXaGcwqE6_pZdT0ZljYIAd1Uo-bMCAc/s400/P1071285.JPG" border="0" /></a><br />This tower was originally built in 1912, then torn down due to the war. In 1956, it was re-built and it's still there today. This tower is also near a REALLY bad neighborhood. But first, how about some T&A?<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiDPRJbBpvclIzK33pivu6ng8p_4am5KwwxAqvwtcTujevnPUkJuPJhCZz4hyphenhyphenucyJ3pfAvqoYUoSHDeJfgCe7D2pjqR7lVqMcd2BBOFdBJFYbmcDY3gTJUplLKZLFM5aYqbu-U43BxlquwV/s1600-h/P1071290.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5312632757149430546" style="width: 400px; cursor: pointer; height: 300px;" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiDPRJbBpvclIzK33pivu6ng8p_4am5KwwxAqvwtcTujevnPUkJuPJhCZz4hyphenhyphenucyJ3pfAvqoYUoSHDeJfgCe7D2pjqR7lVqMcd2BBOFdBJFYbmcDY3gTJUplLKZLFM5aYqbu-U43BxlquwV/s400/P1071290.JPG" border="0" /></a><br />Yum.<br /><br />I saw this building in the distance. I wasn't quite sure what it was, so I asked my friend.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjth57hRjvYbPSNR3BZ068RIagQBNc7fo4SVOz6tuILvkg9K-RpYrewGgN02hflehzDJvsEGizCY6RvWyY5n2rr6W2L8ts4mbvpm4fsRJcM-5lwOhoS0KqLE-9wDJ3L_CSJP0ZjtMCx6xvC/s1600-h/P1071286.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5312632756469015346" style="width: 400px; cursor: pointer; height: 300px;" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjth57hRjvYbPSNR3BZ068RIagQBNc7fo4SVOz6tuILvkg9K-RpYrewGgN02hflehzDJvsEGizCY6RvWyY5n2rr6W2L8ts4mbvpm4fsRJcM-5lwOhoS0KqLE-9wDJ3L_CSJP0ZjtMCx6xvC/s400/P1071286.JPG" border="0" /></a><br />Most neon lights like this in Japan are either love hotels or pachinko places. This was actually a grocery store.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhKJAoJdLjjsK4IybWPVnroR_Bl4m6IP_TPtiJ2pNPB_hMfIdvZZ6qqRWtUmQK5AEfG_PnvNqNpVBd_UnI6Afo-Uh5UJjy9kl9GvcAB2zkz0f8N5JwJQulTaP7oJ78SfTEVO_ecOCCUHAGQ/s1600-h/P1071287.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5312632757248373602" style="width: 400px; cursor: pointer; height: 300px;" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhKJAoJdLjjsK4IybWPVnroR_Bl4m6IP_TPtiJ2pNPB_hMfIdvZZ6qqRWtUmQK5AEfG_PnvNqNpVBd_UnI6Afo-Uh5UJjy9kl9GvcAB2zkz0f8N5JwJQulTaP7oJ78SfTEVO_ecOCCUHAGQ/s400/P1071287.JPG" border="0" /></a><br />My friends told me that it was a chain of super super super cheap grocery stores, and most people know to stay away from their meat and non pre-packaged items. A friend even got some pudding there that was bad. Later we went in one and it was quite depressing. Really bright lights, tons of security cameras, and just an overall creepy feel. There was also a large selection of cheap alcohol. I feel bad for people in this neighborhood who don't have another alternative but to shop there.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhpet8y3xtBzHqECSErw2LEBBQ9rilA0mMOOrlCAJZhLV_bswF7BXI4d65oOA8L5OeUgwrDdt1rPQgGV9Fz26INctPTlBudPy2zwgS7yrq1hvLFmqzklhgdobCz680WCEWjGtNZHew4Bi15/s1600-h/P1071292.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5312632754092093042" style="width: 300px; cursor: pointer; height: 400px;" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhpet8y3xtBzHqECSErw2LEBBQ9rilA0mMOOrlCAJZhLV_bswF7BXI4d65oOA8L5OeUgwrDdt1rPQgGV9Fz26INctPTlBudPy2zwgS7yrq1hvLFmqzklhgdobCz680WCEWjGtNZHew4Bi15/s400/P1071292.JPG" border="0" /></a><br />Anyways, back to the tower. The neighborhood around the tower must have been awesome in the 50's, but it's not the 50's anymore. It wasn't bad, but a bit more run down than most. Even the sign for the main shopping street was a bit broken.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhv1ZHzbN7mhyphenhyphenxNDeXuWBdPXQDsOA9vFrK00L8xWrILxtivDMGzshuP26LaV8XxssV0sluHh0CHRpNRJR_VFbA3kPtJVblA7wOVxt9aBWPg79Iah19CyV20djjxM4VNvrALGmENa002BQmD/s1600-h/P1071294.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5312633297389245282" style="width: 400px; cursor: pointer; height: 300px;" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhv1ZHzbN7mhyphenhyphenxNDeXuWBdPXQDsOA9vFrK00L8xWrILxtivDMGzshuP26LaV8XxssV0sluHh0CHRpNRJR_VFbA3kPtJVblA7wOVxt9aBWPg79Iah19CyV20djjxM4VNvrALGmENa002BQmD/s400/P1071294.JPG" border="0" /></a><br />Despite the grime, this was actually a pretty fun place. I could see myself going back there to hang out if I lived in Osaka.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg_fitG6llxoCdnaMZIC2mAjiD2LJLSJ5L8mXy7ImOWNZIIJ2qXRkgHdOgkqDlT-44sV0kVayosfZ4VtCKNV7QcDpCw3EVT1qbDfLwBrUGdD7sxGAeac7ud5UvTqpvTWBJ3KVDg1dfxf82_/s1600-h/P1071296.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5312633294479158754" style="width: 300px; cursor: pointer; height: 400px;" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg_fitG6llxoCdnaMZIC2mAjiD2LJLSJ5L8mXy7ImOWNZIIJ2qXRkgHdOgkqDlT-44sV0kVayosfZ4VtCKNV7QcDpCw3EVT1qbDfLwBrUGdD7sxGAeac7ud5UvTqpvTWBJ3KVDg1dfxf82_/s400/P1071296.JPG" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjhO7SQ8kuK22c8MQVKwMGdGj7USXY4ZiXdV69r6lNk-UhDYdyyWe-dVaDOUbLJ_C-FLuAyKlScw51VK-R6qnUjBsUcX-uS7I2Vx3UMWswkuuXWDBAHRUf-VBTez9ouv0XFMNv6GPJRZHBV/s1600-h/P1071298.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5312633295324171970" style="width: 300px; cursor: pointer; height: 400px;" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjhO7SQ8kuK22c8MQVKwMGdGj7USXY4ZiXdV69r6lNk-UhDYdyyWe-dVaDOUbLJ_C-FLuAyKlScw51VK-R6qnUjBsUcX-uS7I2Vx3UMWswkuuXWDBAHRUf-VBTez9ouv0XFMNv6GPJRZHBV/s400/P1071298.JPG" border="0" /></a><br />Here's a close up of the tower.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgm-JAJJrQ-EyPKM8Ac1fFtFzO4HpllpZefspANUzgMgfRq-qI3Dm_2o9iTlndRzED2FFkW51opsaH94cXnqFOulEMf6g8fMhp_ptAXDny3fQKZpyMxOxlw7xTQi7jgi_yIHehCOkBFCGjM/s1600-h/P1071299.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5312633293963433282" style="width: 300px; cursor: pointer; height: 400px;" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgm-JAJJrQ-EyPKM8Ac1fFtFzO4HpllpZefspANUzgMgfRq-qI3Dm_2o9iTlndRzED2FFkW51opsaH94cXnqFOulEMf6g8fMhp_ptAXDny3fQKZpyMxOxlw7xTQi7jgi_yIHehCOkBFCGjM/s400/P1071299.JPG" border="0" /></a><br />To the right is the kushiage restaurant we went to. Kushiage is essentially deep fried anything on a stick, and another Osaka specality. It was GREAT!<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjAcBFQUCWPRigDSon3Vjky0ENq1C-hltTyWHtl5NkdlSwOvmej1M-MGtT-kT4B5O-ArT0Se_CPqHO2TWi1pcyGNN6STPRVb34rVhyw5lJrnp-8NTSmkzzS4MB3fGL45DmimvhDVe8Be_JT/s1600-h/P1071301.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5312633291848867442" style="width: 400px; cursor: pointer; height: 300px;" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjAcBFQUCWPRigDSon3Vjky0ENq1C-hltTyWHtl5NkdlSwOvmej1M-MGtT-kT4B5O-ArT0Se_CPqHO2TWi1pcyGNN6STPRVb34rVhyw5lJrnp-8NTSmkzzS4MB3fGL45DmimvhDVe8Be_JT/s400/P1071301.JPG" border="0" /></a><br />You can see the tower from where I was sitting. Man, that place was good. I want to go back.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjHwb6n8L3SUyhAIaV4s20NhI8wMK6QZN91wUH5Hsab8iAeOZ56G-GqQem20WzVpo0XCXVPN62YCezB3HWBmab-pfgu_ZGbb53CAT8LGQTGGLNJE7v7T97melOxttyUlbsBmanLj7TfOptI/s1600-h/P1071302.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5312633994178004034" style="width: 300px; cursor: pointer; height: 400px;" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjHwb6n8L3SUyhAIaV4s20NhI8wMK6QZN91wUH5Hsab8iAeOZ56G-GqQem20WzVpo0XCXVPN62YCezB3HWBmab-pfgu_ZGbb53CAT8LGQTGGLNJE7v7T97melOxttyUlbsBmanLj7TfOptI/s400/P1071302.JPG" border="0" /></a><br />After our bellies were full, we headed back to the station a different way.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgg2rfF-pFHA4p4bB-XUbpff3bZSjQOiOyDnL5vFpKff8hIjQAco3zP4_3ZdwoIDrvIAOddJsru1PC2-lQO29n5kdj8ltp2qc-9_xwK4GmGtZPRyrjd8gJ-zeRRk5Dq7iV-GxPM2bQFLoih/s1600-h/P1071305.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5312633991180400226" style="width: 400px; cursor: pointer; height: 300px;" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgg2rfF-pFHA4p4bB-XUbpff3bZSjQOiOyDnL5vFpKff8hIjQAco3zP4_3ZdwoIDrvIAOddJsru1PC2-lQO29n5kdj8ltp2qc-9_xwK4GmGtZPRyrjd8gJ-zeRRk5Dq7iV-GxPM2bQFLoih/s400/P1071305.JPG" border="0" /></a><br />This time we headed through spa land. It's a giant building filled with hot bath spas, apparentlly from around the world. They love spas in Japan, but honestly I've never been to one. The idea of getting naked with a bunch of strangers is one I'v never really warmed up to.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiWlisupCffG2nMp_aTAcr5B3DOQlDkKQyd_pKdtbJ4U2fHFP4BtJ5LtrOUsaSa8VDqwXlqXFA7jAMPXsCf0T2Bt1NXde-9nmfyGUO33rFJcJDyYpcYONuvyslHhZlE4z0OP4aZGiK1oUjA/s1600-h/P1071309.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5312633991894832194" style="width: 400px; cursor: pointer; height: 300px;" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiWlisupCffG2nMp_aTAcr5B3DOQlDkKQyd_pKdtbJ4U2fHFP4BtJ5LtrOUsaSa8VDqwXlqXFA7jAMPXsCf0T2Bt1NXde-9nmfyGUO33rFJcJDyYpcYONuvyslHhZlE4z0OP4aZGiK1oUjA/s400/P1071309.JPG" border="0" /></a><br />Here's the front (HDR image). Apparently, it's open 24/7.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhfvGYccFM_f3lFLquvA0g08ptOn1j59eOVcXHmKbnrMoSIB_DP8NGJyOy2ZNmXCE1wMaUi1fCsLRZrvmtMJsBh5sagLbC0ZexSARSCbHXcRdQx1sQ-V2WRlN8VrpkRa9Nuc0n0YtfZJPVx/s1600-h/P1071310.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5312633988790096162" style="width: 400px; cursor: pointer; height: 300px;" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhfvGYccFM_f3lFLquvA0g08ptOn1j59eOVcXHmKbnrMoSIB_DP8NGJyOy2ZNmXCE1wMaUi1fCsLRZrvmtMJsBh5sagLbC0ZexSARSCbHXcRdQx1sQ-V2WRlN8VrpkRa9Nuc0n0YtfZJPVx/s400/P1071310.JPG" border="0" /></a><br />On the way back, we saw this work wear shop. Just another indicatior of the class of the neighborhood. Their local clothing stores are open late at night and are aimed squarely at the market for construction workers.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgH3DTHMLDaz9Re0UplpqRWl0mL9Hi00U5WEifOAOvWjN6gNG_eBMRGNEY6Co8agzr_2GA_m4S01fpCxWZRHUuYqDOHcCgN8qR53L06wyYrfIS4Z5kj0-enoQbsJG4ydjcwPumGLqr_NIjp/s1600-h/P1071313.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5312633987447696626" style="width: 300px; cursor: pointer; height: 400px;" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgH3DTHMLDaz9Re0UplpqRWl0mL9Hi00U5WEifOAOvWjN6gNG_eBMRGNEY6Co8agzr_2GA_m4S01fpCxWZRHUuYqDOHcCgN8qR53L06wyYrfIS4Z5kj0-enoQbsJG4ydjcwPumGLqr_NIjp/s400/P1071313.JPG" border="0" /></a><br />All and all, it was an interesting experience. If I was to spend some real time in Osaka, I'd check out this neighborhood during the day.<br /><br />We headed back to the hotel, which like I said was near Namba. Here was a peculiar sign for the JR-Namba station.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgj6g7BwYAAcDGjgderhRYdYHxPRmxOowovPBhklC7UGaxCxJkg0bL5N_PdUUm5Gc-y_y2LEGtOeBGKhNKFfVUpttsHg7CwMs2wEghv4XBRordVGyH61NPzXIxWLaSG47IvRlq7nsX_NTn7/s1600-h/P1071315.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5312634747400891250" style="width: 300px; cursor: pointer; height: 400px;" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgj6g7BwYAAcDGjgderhRYdYHxPRmxOowovPBhklC7UGaxCxJkg0bL5N_PdUUm5Gc-y_y2LEGtOeBGKhNKFfVUpttsHg7CwMs2wEghv4XBRordVGyH61NPzXIxWLaSG47IvRlq7nsX_NTn7/s400/P1071315.JPG" border="0" /></a><br />The reason it's odd, to me at least, is JR is the company (Japan Railways), and normally it's written just as "JR" in signs, even if everything else is in Japanese. Here it's written as じぇあーる which is "Jae Aru", which is the closest pronunciation in Japanese. The strange thing is, Japanese language has a set of charcters for foreign words (Katakana) and since "Railways" is an English word and even the word "Japan" didn't originate in Japan, one would guess that they would use the katakana, which would look like ジェアール, but they didn't. Why? It just seemed strange.<br /><br />Another thing I liked was the artwork in the giant tunnel connecting JR Namba to Namba station. Apparently it was all reproductions of pieces from a museum in Chicago.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgfaRucXT7WOozoddRJiRMdjtPxJmMT1fGNZgx7vRd8dLeo9cqDRhpPQ16Ph-fsreGs3p_6HyTMQunWgeB_xwpeQJe3cokd9AIArMwFqIKEdWeblBBqLYOrHnQLo_CVNTYixNxbAUPHqsZP/s1600-h/P1071318.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5312634744737974978" style="width: 300px; cursor: pointer; height: 400px;" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgfaRucXT7WOozoddRJiRMdjtPxJmMT1fGNZgx7vRd8dLeo9cqDRhpPQ16Ph-fsreGs3p_6HyTMQunWgeB_xwpeQJe3cokd9AIArMwFqIKEdWeblBBqLYOrHnQLo_CVNTYixNxbAUPHqsZP/s400/P1071318.JPG" border="0" /></a><br />But seriously, why the chain? I guess to just remind people not to touch.<br /><br />After we got out of the staion, I saw the new Hello! Project building, called "H!PS", or "HIPS". Not sure which. If you know what Hello! Project is, than I'm sorry. If you don't, then you're better off. Sadly, I was quite overly excited to see the "H!PS" building.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJs2RT_GY3tiF7yEYT-RlBnPSRv3Hgs2SIPz-y8eXIlRj9h00EiABHGH_WfN_G94XrZGeKJF1KqFPe0hJiCrapqpw92KZ5sGmA85SgHKapnM9e1yHUm1t1ZU5hvpjnDnyt3oW46EEyVr9j/s1600-h/P1071319.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5312634748063757554" style="width: 300px; cursor: pointer; height: 400px;" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJs2RT_GY3tiF7yEYT-RlBnPSRv3Hgs2SIPz-y8eXIlRj9h00EiABHGH_WfN_G94XrZGeKJF1KqFPe0hJiCrapqpw92KZ5sGmA85SgHKapnM9e1yHUm1t1ZU5hvpjnDnyt3oW46EEyVr9j/s400/P1071319.JPG" border="0" /></a><br />I kinda wanted to ride the mini roller coaster inside, but after a LONG day of walking, I just wanted to go to sleep. But not after some more pictures.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj8_wQfxauU3UdM_6rr7WitBNtC1ttWzkpn78RLINtCCx4CfW9CRzn9KF0KZ_ppdVrraqRdCPQvoaEJBijzgMtdMtlqGuBmTzmEF7uslNmxHsQIgp9luCknxqxgSlmeWMxrNK75H1WFL8QJ/s1600-h/P1071321.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5312634743304079442" style="width: 400px; cursor: pointer; height: 300px;" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj8_wQfxauU3UdM_6rr7WitBNtC1ttWzkpn78RLINtCCx4CfW9CRzn9KF0KZ_ppdVrraqRdCPQvoaEJBijzgMtdMtlqGuBmTzmEF7uslNmxHsQIgp9luCknxqxgSlmeWMxrNK75H1WFL8QJ/s400/P1071321.JPG" border="0" /></a><br />It sure did seem super exciting.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhYL3j2UXDtvhLlALxBXopch45PDOjNvl6hyphenhyphenPRR8LuUOlPBqqMsL7l4vzX3n_iHpEu0ZJFyhVHWiQZH0kGcTuA-MErnL7F5euesC4o9kRD6L0MNPOf67-fpaUUw3U50w9Lwb1KPomM6dSV6/s1600-h/P1071326.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5312634742422380690" style="width: 400px; cursor: pointer; height: 300px;" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhYL3j2UXDtvhLlALxBXopch45PDOjNvl6hyphenhyphenPRR8LuUOlPBqqMsL7l4vzX3n_iHpEu0ZJFyhVHWiQZH0kGcTuA-MErnL7F5euesC4o9kRD6L0MNPOf67-fpaUUw3U50w9Lwb1KPomM6dSV6/s400/P1071326.JPG" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgwIFJ9vnRPZ72pyI9FTghhTYoYhrT_HpsK7eLVcjLhik6eYnsV267KMS7cVlRWjiypTh0ZOglVsuwo27typAFnX-sGFk6PGB8WXw6QzukQwuQ62m5pg5aUGRbZhLsE5nfmik19uaRjKtSI/s1600-h/P1071327.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5312635485735314914" style="width: 400px; cursor: pointer; height: 300px;" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgwIFJ9vnRPZ72pyI9FTghhTYoYhrT_HpsK7eLVcjLhik6eYnsV267KMS7cVlRWjiypTh0ZOglVsuwo27typAFnX-sGFk6PGB8WXw6QzukQwuQ62m5pg5aUGRbZhLsE5nfmik19uaRjKtSI/s400/P1071327.JPG" border="0" /></a><br />I kinda wanted to go back on Saturday just to see what would happen.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhD6AZJym5OStn-5B54bKpzeMPDhfdl3JVu61SoShYLY8MPKWWzr0QJc93QkbeQxZwYZXkfbOY216ayg4gh8PjIpGMUSh_jWuWw8-Ik8hpVG96Dip39rzqsww1EReYwg4IQvdmCvoipwUN8/s1600-h/P1071328.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5312635477037947922" style="width: 400px; cursor: pointer; height: 300px;" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhD6AZJym5OStn-5B54bKpzeMPDhfdl3JVu61SoShYLY8MPKWWzr0QJc93QkbeQxZwYZXkfbOY216ayg4gh8PjIpGMUSh_jWuWw8-Ik8hpVG96Dip39rzqsww1EReYwg4IQvdmCvoipwUN8/s400/P1071328.JPG" border="0" /></a><br />But, I never did. Here are some more pictures of Dotonburi at night. I know it's touristy, but hey, I was a tourist.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEikp5kyIb8BIvktttJCkHEO4qfNXneHRRvdOX35-fF_LEsovjM4kBhVHpKEALycRwEAiR20oqD8t-8jxrQ0rkBcoK8e2pYMIQ1_7nBQMkIVsBShPdXiVBQnGQRBjqzEkuAl3stswCUbjWda/s1600-h/P1071332.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5312635476733193794" style="width: 400px; cursor: pointer; height: 300px;" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEikp5kyIb8BIvktttJCkHEO4qfNXneHRRvdOX35-fF_LEsovjM4kBhVHpKEALycRwEAiR20oqD8t-8jxrQ0rkBcoK8e2pYMIQ1_7nBQMkIVsBShPdXiVBQnGQRBjqzEkuAl3stswCUbjWda/s400/P1071332.JPG" border="0" /></a><br />Osaka: one giant crab, a million bicycles.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjIeEZ5UI6l-63WezQIYIllJJzjxtbGIlksS4pDB9OgG_KBz9o6cM9StfQhlq8H3YkHxzadi_kJoy2afpRcXMRdx0YqJqnCGaJAA2hNOoxxCOUNS6B0IxXHtVBvA_vFbB-Vn8iXceBB2jYO/s1600-h/P1071333.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5312635475948837410" style="width: 400px; cursor: pointer; height: 300px;" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjIeEZ5UI6l-63WezQIYIllJJzjxtbGIlksS4pDB9OgG_KBz9o6cM9StfQhlq8H3YkHxzadi_kJoy2afpRcXMRdx0YqJqnCGaJAA2hNOoxxCOUNS6B0IxXHtVBvA_vFbB-Vn8iXceBB2jYO/s400/P1071333.JPG" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_iqdtGUbliuRWYIaUSan6nEtS2SCiL2jZA4edS4mEEL67W8P3xDhWIsVHlOD5WOThPyLFCn8SdCszwNfHMbWixuFoPIBcuqv8_w93EuxuPIiLIEhh6cnN7IlzYvtAMqSmLqonOU-IC_vs/s1600-h/P1071348.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5312635470803053602" style="width: 400px; cursor: pointer; height: 300px;" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_iqdtGUbliuRWYIaUSan6nEtS2SCiL2jZA4edS4mEEL67W8P3xDhWIsVHlOD5WOThPyLFCn8SdCszwNfHMbWixuFoPIBcuqv8_w93EuxuPIiLIEhh6cnN7IlzYvtAMqSmLqonOU-IC_vs/s400/P1071348.JPG" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjKWBSru-0XVgxJNlXQ2fGTL60l3OFKU0kcy7aH2sCGXt0KcbMGbGBtocUqmc2iB_cI4Q5Uvt_JHWisUug-oFJox3SPjpKcjtkd02ccc1c0KLdbkCRIz70DMCgqVxjl66-2s64ThfOebBhA/s1600-h/P1071352.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5312636252064723026" style="width: 400px; cursor: pointer; height: 300px;" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjKWBSru-0XVgxJNlXQ2fGTL60l3OFKU0kcy7aH2sCGXt0KcbMGbGBtocUqmc2iB_cI4Q5Uvt_JHWisUug-oFJox3SPjpKcjtkd02ccc1c0KLdbkCRIz70DMCgqVxjl66-2s64ThfOebBhA/s400/P1071352.JPG" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiQxeOctv_zQ7DpoCW6Zvq4iYL1MmikQVe1SJcBlfX_2G6nM2J-2Isuwhe_RJdQeLmxa-tkne9f83oE5a04FWNYGO2qFzbLU9pcGl5tX6ikLYSNeb4XvVzyFA3qnSzHMmWaAEkjEXsKEmbZ/s1600-h/P1071353.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5312636255005378578" style="width: 400px; cursor: pointer; height: 300px;" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiQxeOctv_zQ7DpoCW6Zvq4iYL1MmikQVe1SJcBlfX_2G6nM2J-2Isuwhe_RJdQeLmxa-tkne9f83oE5a04FWNYGO2qFzbLU9pcGl5tX6ikLYSNeb4XvVzyFA3qnSzHMmWaAEkjEXsKEmbZ/s400/P1071353.JPG" border="0" /></a><br />So, that was Osaka. I miss it severely.<br /><br />I can't quite describe it in picures or even words, but there's this sense of Osaka that people are truly ALIVE! The excitement in the air is very tangible and it can be felt everywhere. It's most ceartinly not the nicest city ever (but it has some really nice parts), but it just feels great. I hope I can go back, as it is one of my favorite places in the world. One day was not enough to spend there.<br /></div>Keithhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04453377662997268519noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7765297090724156356.post-429687796552662972009-02-11T22:10:00.002+09:002009-02-11T22:14:02.411+09:00Moving.As I posted earlier, I'm moving soon. That means currently a lot of my spare time is filled with packing and cleaning, and soon my spare time will be filled with unpacking. Because of that, be patient with me. I have a lot to say as always, I'm just too busy to say it.<br /><br />If you have time, check out my documentary film making site <a href="http://tujd09mccreary.blogspot.com/">here</a>. It's school related, so it takes precedence over this.<br /><br />Thanks for reading and thanks for being patient. I'll try to get something fun up soon.Keithhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04453377662997268519noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7765297090724156356.post-20956350163757150452009-02-01T23:32:00.190+09:002009-02-02T00:53:10.664+09:00The first day of my train trip in pictues (Mitaka to Osaka)<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEigZaFL-Nq8PMgqiNpmEZU1n8ZrU60abrdYW1XKAfoC7cAqX0xNXcGtTpMqGX3o76aZQNpu6LubC0MpYJNEW0-kLFSGwyJmQPQlVZdvq4U4iNiuB7x8-CwX6QLrA_g-vZjIsrUPjDrT9WT5/s1600-h/P1061020.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><br />
</a></div><br />
I wanted to show some more pictures of my trip. This was the longest single day of train riding in my life, and you know what, I wasn't bored at all. I had an amazing time, and would do it again if I got the chance.<br />
<br />
I wrote a bit of a narrative with pictures <a href="http://notjustvisiting.blogspot.com/2009/01/first-day-of-trip.html">here</a>, so I won't tell the story again but I thought I'd show some pictures.<br />
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For starters, here's Mitaka.<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgwwV4SCGNZQSukPJTGsuF-zwFXUCGe2cycYpQkvRt_2YmX6qvsxwszaNwcU9x05x-5E30ihFJS7XjVBXfgBXJ6pOdeO6y5mS7G3C_mIpPZrMxJOUXdnHskLo1f9rS9HMmG0T__nmhmXAR-/s1600-h/P1060983.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgwwV4SCGNZQSukPJTGsuF-zwFXUCGe2cycYpQkvRt_2YmX6qvsxwszaNwcU9x05x-5E30ihFJS7XjVBXfgBXJ6pOdeO6y5mS7G3C_mIpPZrMxJOUXdnHskLo1f9rS9HMmG0T__nmhmXAR-/s400/P1060983.JPG" /></a></div>That's the intersection I see daily with the train station in the background. This was when I stepped away from the familiar into the unknown.<br />
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These pictures are between Shinagawa and Numazu<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjbJycYcWJ8wd0L01-73IAFZ3M7sIF2y8Lsuv1LvJ3WTO62sP0RjHS9TdaFnq63D34P1AdZCpuqKxYrIRvK7JwopbsGvBUqBrRVlMwHje5uGG4dkF-vjQTEWbOTbe2PcO9-qyzMR4m9TA4P/s1600-h/P1060995.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjbJycYcWJ8wd0L01-73IAFZ3M7sIF2y8Lsuv1LvJ3WTO62sP0RjHS9TdaFnq63D34P1AdZCpuqKxYrIRvK7JwopbsGvBUqBrRVlMwHje5uGG4dkF-vjQTEWbOTbe2PcO9-qyzMR4m9TA4P/s320/P1060995.JPG" /></a></div><div style="text-align: left;">And here's my first glimpse of the Pacific Ocean on this trip.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgIdVq8S9VpnDzijO1gdGDTiRe7I34Vl71QcjC0esUFhO4t-VSnZAr3Gmg8le35m1DG3Az5WvG4w8bVim5fPXKTvK7sBysYIgfIDdjiojQJFkiKw4q0fu74XnBqeTOwmRchN1ym_pBra_-J/s1600-h/P1060996.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgIdVq8S9VpnDzijO1gdGDTiRe7I34Vl71QcjC0esUFhO4t-VSnZAr3Gmg8le35m1DG3Az5WvG4w8bVim5fPXKTvK7sBysYIgfIDdjiojQJFkiKw4q0fu74XnBqeTOwmRchN1ym_pBra_-J/s400/P1060996.JPG" /></a> </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"> And there's the tip of Mt. Fuji on the right:</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"> <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjb8nhmbo0T0_pbTjplUPsWvP0BPEjqaRq5dPkqFvbUmHyWqQ-COmiLgmM6blhP0eXHJRFv_Q6GLAPmHlnd31_weXh3qLpn2v8Y8a4Mqd09xv8ehUbT7vPZX4v3OlRDTYV8pFwwo9-NstuZ/s1600-h/P1060998.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjb8nhmbo0T0_pbTjplUPsWvP0BPEjqaRq5dPkqFvbUmHyWqQ-COmiLgmM6blhP0eXHJRFv_Q6GLAPmHlnd31_weXh3qLpn2v8Y8a4Mqd09xv8ehUbT7vPZX4v3OlRDTYV8pFwwo9-NstuZ/s400/P1060998.JPG" /></a></div>Here's a bit more from the front of the train:<br />
<div style="text-align: left;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhv1l_bUnPjLGUQykHdQyeXKChyphenhyphenxFhuvmoEJocFnBxnA9FnZNlhFH7EbXPSIyUupt5sGt6jb43TK1NrKz-bIgGf2L2OOkMP7-BXY9eB16V-DF0ftkfTdsPIK_glplOzJKW3AGMc4BX7FnD6/s1600-h/P1061001.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhv1l_bUnPjLGUQykHdQyeXKChyphenhyphenxFhuvmoEJocFnBxnA9FnZNlhFH7EbXPSIyUupt5sGt6jb43TK1NrKz-bIgGf2L2OOkMP7-BXY9eB16V-DF0ftkfTdsPIK_glplOzJKW3AGMc4BX7FnD6/s400/P1061001.JPG" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div style="text-align: left;">Here's some more ocean. You can see I'm not the only one taking pictures.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhGeTJucJsBPYz3_f0LR_u8PpF9MBAkIar7jtd8iEFld_DqQxzkB-vLxxFSBCC0A3IVTbeSQNP1-R2v3g5FX_-YPxB-SIenUPGD26wFFca-qkKIW3dlL3CQY4aOjCVkXnNmcBkdntB5Tpxr/s1600-h/P1061012.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhGeTJucJsBPYz3_f0LR_u8PpF9MBAkIar7jtd8iEFld_DqQxzkB-vLxxFSBCC0A3IVTbeSQNP1-R2v3g5FX_-YPxB-SIenUPGD26wFFca-qkKIW3dlL3CQY4aOjCVkXnNmcBkdntB5Tpxr/s400/P1061012.JPG" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEilZ_VqH9Qf7aTiFwxrAgpZhZQsfRKNQeY99FApAhj9MyxzryIVZ4u1RX17GNBp_cDYftP9Q4B_rUEsWEOYJoMGlIUx7ebTFU5luasY1yz9Hrd5hb1PGh3uZRdY-cgYEOLEzFaz9kGAkLfx/s1600-h/P1061014.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEilZ_VqH9Qf7aTiFwxrAgpZhZQsfRKNQeY99FApAhj9MyxzryIVZ4u1RX17GNBp_cDYftP9Q4B_rUEsWEOYJoMGlIUx7ebTFU5luasY1yz9Hrd5hb1PGh3uZRdY-cgYEOLEzFaz9kGAkLfx/s400/P1061014.JPG" /></a> </div><div style="text-align: left;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhRorliSQXqir6Rf8I0LSZv12kwf_h4apuXera8I60eVeWhd9M-TUZY1k5mPC_kX1GYZI7XoszvHxRTjW4GKm5LTkdgmeG-wVlQIkgW0mi_JU9VAagGgfwGJxxyYljVSyrTXFrgcTRPdSBK/s1600-h/P1061018.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhRorliSQXqir6Rf8I0LSZv12kwf_h4apuXera8I60eVeWhd9M-TUZY1k5mPC_kX1GYZI7XoszvHxRTjW4GKm5LTkdgmeG-wVlQIkgW0mi_JU9VAagGgfwGJxxyYljVSyrTXFrgcTRPdSBK/s400/P1061018.JPG" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Here is lovely Numazu. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi90JvZyznnStBLuOD06MDORFDr0wneVeZt9phPHtTPlKUVfIVSjLM1kJjuTCoxlakWL-v_ZTsA2eZQd0A6wyGoegJMZrt1RZGwnCMiHEvvJ8YGlvuJOjczYDaiAeVgVD5Xh0exK6VVamwn/s1600-h/P1061025.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi90JvZyznnStBLuOD06MDORFDr0wneVeZt9phPHtTPlKUVfIVSjLM1kJjuTCoxlakWL-v_ZTsA2eZQd0A6wyGoegJMZrt1RZGwnCMiHEvvJ8YGlvuJOjczYDaiAeVgVD5Xh0exK6VVamwn/s400/P1061025.JPG" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Numazu was a pretty sleepy town, I guess. I was only there for a little while to get a break from riding a train and to see my traveling companion's friend who gave us some delicious hand made pastries.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">The bird poop covered stone dog seemed a bit odd. If it was clean, was it supposed to be a bench? </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"> <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-TY3StdoTF4pXacn-ZsFApSUVT0o7WguXZhAKAvGBYI7UZ6fjQsnt0kdhyCJlChSSfImAFdIfXPesT9NGgWzuZA7HVgpCSfeBfcHJ2OGUyHA8rPNumAVH7ddxLJdwsj25SLBgGifiSjtv/s1600-h/P1061027.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-TY3StdoTF4pXacn-ZsFApSUVT0o7WguXZhAKAvGBYI7UZ6fjQsnt0kdhyCJlChSSfImAFdIfXPesT9NGgWzuZA7HVgpCSfeBfcHJ2OGUyHA8rPNumAVH7ddxLJdwsj25SLBgGifiSjtv/s400/P1061027.JPG" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"> </div><br />
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<div style="text-align: left;">Next to that was a fountain proclaming that Numazu apparently had Japan's best water.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgJJlFLbaxM9EeqDZiSBCd_j5E1ax8U7aUTXcpaybsfc8eSwNsQ_ByTC3YxMVTFAWpWpCQITzWAvdjudVgK8Ml4Gbj_zRTLkCdrlOpCKQ71wvqpVuiV3-rPeqFzulL_QBiYAYjqH3v-K158/s1600-h/P1061028.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgJJlFLbaxM9EeqDZiSBCd_j5E1ax8U7aUTXcpaybsfc8eSwNsQ_ByTC3YxMVTFAWpWpCQITzWAvdjudVgK8Ml4Gbj_zRTLkCdrlOpCKQ71wvqpVuiV3-rPeqFzulL_QBiYAYjqH3v-K158/s400/P1061028.JPG" /></a> </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">I can't tell you if that's true, because as my travel partner pointed out, it isn't working right now. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Next to that fountain was a statue of naked people. Japan has plenty of nude statues, I've noticed.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"> <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEicrNdvkEAa68n3VghKUjJKKeKiJHo8vG6PtvDBPTyQxJ6QWzwdxEIJbWUOo5ItgzN6Zn-ZbaCDDJ4X5vdFxBB-INbEaHJ-TKxJZKayrUvpmFOi4c2uUGWqPZAYVKsSikXpPNpGX2ds_Ucp/s1600-h/P1061029.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEicrNdvkEAa68n3VghKUjJKKeKiJHo8vG6PtvDBPTyQxJ6QWzwdxEIJbWUOo5ItgzN6Zn-ZbaCDDJ4X5vdFxBB-INbEaHJ-TKxJZKayrUvpmFOi4c2uUGWqPZAYVKsSikXpPNpGX2ds_Ucp/s400/P1061029.JPG" /></a></div><div style="text-align: left;">And next to that was a giant old train wheel and front.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgAHYxq3Zx1lIchwHpM0G8P7BQoBodcLuGG_dBc11FXYm0IFcXQK5ogeCRsmGAx2oRFEWUQsQzcqsisCgeIcYbn6VRX2NzndkpxcGzpCmBpnFA7kkkTRnWyrydzQRdzUGqG1KsWALrzhjf5/s1600-h/P1061030.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgAHYxq3Zx1lIchwHpM0G8P7BQoBodcLuGG_dBc11FXYm0IFcXQK5ogeCRsmGAx2oRFEWUQsQzcqsisCgeIcYbn6VRX2NzndkpxcGzpCmBpnFA7kkkTRnWyrydzQRdzUGqG1KsWALrzhjf5/s400/P1061030.JPG" /></a> </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">It clearly came from an old steam train (more on that later). I guess it's an homage to the trains that helped build Japan to the industrial giant it is today.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">And here's the shiny new Numazu staion. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiHVMO0LvuvUgZB6V1GAkNazWSJxGw9FMciVjqNce2Pe4NX4C52sv4vpi9dS7veeRhAdXg7ivZu3jOddBGKdUB0BqQeST6xHoOa7w0G8vWz9B3jfYTzo8iosCdXmsdU8pTXcP_1kOD3g2t_/s1600-h/P1061034.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiHVMO0LvuvUgZB6V1GAkNazWSJxGw9FMciVjqNce2Pe4NX4C52sv4vpi9dS7veeRhAdXg7ivZu3jOddBGKdUB0BqQeST6xHoOa7w0G8vWz9B3jfYTzo8iosCdXmsdU8pTXcP_1kOD3g2t_/s400/P1061034.JPG" /></a></div><div style="text-align: left;">Back on the rails for a bit:</div><br />
<div style="text-align: left;"></div><div style="text-align: left;"></div><div style="text-align: left;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhi0cwIHpgYcRVKluq0m6-9fRt8mllHNjBerAd3fnQ7uTWvRo3HJMHW1VImuqQXLHMD76X8f-C33YDCJe0UyZmXliJd-f2SBkPxstffZ77zRUqmaCYdBp47sbc5o1f-Xp8Kee6qGr2C7Z6k/s1600-h/P1061046.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhi0cwIHpgYcRVKluq0m6-9fRt8mllHNjBerAd3fnQ7uTWvRo3HJMHW1VImuqQXLHMD76X8f-C33YDCJe0UyZmXliJd-f2SBkPxstffZ77zRUqmaCYdBp47sbc5o1f-Xp8Kee6qGr2C7Z6k/s400/P1061046.JPG" /></a></div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div style="text-align: left;">And then we stopped at Shimizu.</div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhAzm0JSoLnVSy_AQ1o3R-7yDki_7aaceCBgU6ySk6lhRkXAxpHxo_UkbiCgIv8m4aoHfj32aQipqBKQPjy8E-nTWMR2mxiwtO2lvD-udQDRU_2TQmHoFhfdN5DEUdzmsM3UuAcsAKfR4Rh/s1600-h/P1061051.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhAzm0JSoLnVSy_AQ1o3R-7yDki_7aaceCBgU6ySk6lhRkXAxpHxo_UkbiCgIv8m4aoHfj32aQipqBKQPjy8E-nTWMR2mxiwtO2lvD-udQDRU_2TQmHoFhfdN5DEUdzmsM3UuAcsAKfR4Rh/s400/P1061051.JPG" /></a></div><br />
<div style="text-align: left;"> As I said before, Shimizu is the home of Chibi Maruko Chan in the comics and TV show. It's also supposed to be famous for it's tea, which was quite delightful.</div><br />
<div style="text-align: left;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhEhUdj_ATCrTn5TwAGb2r2ysP-yYboqxrnoL2016BztwJn_nzYXpHauUVSOod_WfIkCDibD85MmsTXIL8HjJ0dFBAobNUdes0v24j8lK7dOVJU2OWwaYWp7N7L6Je6YYJ5sxY5ApKuZGnV/s1600-h/P1061053.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhEhUdj_ATCrTn5TwAGb2r2ysP-yYboqxrnoL2016BztwJn_nzYXpHauUVSOod_WfIkCDibD85MmsTXIL8HjJ0dFBAobNUdes0v24j8lK7dOVJU2OWwaYWp7N7L6Je6YYJ5sxY5ApKuZGnV/s400/P1061053.JPG" /></a></div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div style="text-align: left;"> We had a while to kill until the next train, so we got some tea and the lovely lady at the tea shop told us that there was a Chibi Maruko Chan museum and shop near by but we had to take a bus, which didn't come for a while, so we just walked around while we were waiting. I didn't take a picture but there was a NOVA with a 'now hiring' sign. For those who don't know, NOVA was the most popular English school in Japan and they went bankrupt last year. Now another company bought them and opened a few schools and is running them under the old name, but they're kind of rare. It's sort of like seeing a Sinclair station or Bob's Big Boy in America.</div><div style="text-align: left;"></div><div style="text-align: left;">Also, NOVA was known for hiring any native English speaker that had a pulse, and while some good people got NOVA jobs, many people who shouldn't have ended up working for them too.</div><div style="text-align: left;"></div><div style="text-align: left;">Enough about NOVA. How about some coffee? </div><div style="text-align: left;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjOEGU84_LsNjO7bjdKDQoAIKzdywgTx0jsUhDfm2ee4VizmE0V775QLNXNbG_v6bv-o0cNHVLsvtKFunIpGlJ7Na7H13032BQ0opxT-BNghj2RGwd9MOoyv6Kak4jYWr16wBQNY_EIdVdF/s1600-h/P1061054.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjOEGU84_LsNjO7bjdKDQoAIKzdywgTx0jsUhDfm2ee4VizmE0V775QLNXNbG_v6bv-o0cNHVLsvtKFunIpGlJ7Na7H13032BQ0opxT-BNghj2RGwd9MOoyv6Kak4jYWr16wBQNY_EIdVdF/s400/P1061054.JPG" /></a></div><div style="text-align: left;">While wandering, I noticed an outdoor rock climbing wall on the other side of the tracks. It looked pretty fun.</div><br />
<div style="text-align: left;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj6eBuH5ybDN0zGVxLaBNfZCSsTjuXXTsE1-RZU6pUnECRxQGT3-2ux_STYi8HrPs2sIpFrDBbwheIe0q8hpjTmX90Xk5LxTX2vYgc1Fdx7_4n0SExBI_mU4XFaaX8t1EVSksJPocMPC9-F/s1600-h/P1061056.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj6eBuH5ybDN0zGVxLaBNfZCSsTjuXXTsE1-RZU6pUnECRxQGT3-2ux_STYi8HrPs2sIpFrDBbwheIe0q8hpjTmX90Xk5LxTX2vYgc1Fdx7_4n0SExBI_mU4XFaaX8t1EVSksJPocMPC9-F/s400/P1061056.JPG" /></a></div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div style="text-align: left;">We rode a fairly old and ghetto bus to this shopping center that had the Chibi Maruk Chan "museum". It was the first, and I think last bus of the whole trip (minus the return ride, of course). </div><br />
<div style="text-align: left;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjYFr-Q0TA5VYsNfq9XQyXw6zdchkOKyZXKYZULMVc4fPl_Eh708Ssj_WXUTeYmI5bdTmx00gTSOVHVMKYHKFmaJ0FVdhYWvFy6Gy7ATMkskTu1lXwW0rDNQoNBNpC4Nt8lVP3S79kSV5xp/s1600-h/P1061057.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjYFr-Q0TA5VYsNfq9XQyXw6zdchkOKyZXKYZULMVc4fPl_Eh708Ssj_WXUTeYmI5bdTmx00gTSOVHVMKYHKFmaJ0FVdhYWvFy6Gy7ATMkskTu1lXwW0rDNQoNBNpC4Nt8lVP3S79kSV5xp/s400/P1061057.JPG" /></a></div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div style="text-align: left;">The 'museum' was just a place inside a shopping center. There was a room you could pay to go in, but I couldn't imagine what could be inside to make it worth my money to see, so we didn't go in. The shopping center and surrounding harbor was lovely, though.</div><br />
<div style="text-align: left;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh2l8IfQ5ARVdaj6dr54h2DfkKrAfkzbjwqWAcVvYJf_dCdDnPnIqEE_0ZML1pVRfIpYuIqBZLaLOl29bx0jxoA7fa9aBzF_iau5WB9vLxa-N8vp8Bttf5b7qB-F6y5tiKhjTLPrMUJ9wWb/s1600-h/P1061061.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh2l8IfQ5ARVdaj6dr54h2DfkKrAfkzbjwqWAcVvYJf_dCdDnPnIqEE_0ZML1pVRfIpYuIqBZLaLOl29bx0jxoA7fa9aBzF_iau5WB9vLxa-N8vp8Bttf5b7qB-F6y5tiKhjTLPrMUJ9wWb/s400/P1061061.JPG" /></a></div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div style="text-align: left;">My only regret is that I didn't eat any sushi. Apparently, sushi in this town was incredible. I just wasn't hungry.</div><div style="text-align: left;"></div><div style="text-align: left;">Anyways, it was time to get back on a train. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgXG-mSHWWM-q6ifhpM1WQjZwdyhrvhnwvj9ZJK8s1HLc7zLqZSZiHx_AkfESE6dmE5eU0xonJAEYsFc_h5KeDsvskdRT7yvCvLxYibDQl6wMFH_Xtxjd_9uoIR6ccMExn_M6xaiQGfA8GV/s1600-h/P1061078.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgXG-mSHWWM-q6ifhpM1WQjZwdyhrvhnwvj9ZJK8s1HLc7zLqZSZiHx_AkfESE6dmE5eU0xonJAEYsFc_h5KeDsvskdRT7yvCvLxYibDQl6wMFH_Xtxjd_9uoIR6ccMExn_M6xaiQGfA8GV/s400/P1061078.JPG" /></a></div><div style="text-align: left;">I have no idea what this was, but it looked lovely. Maybe a test driving track?</div><br />
<div style="text-align: left;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjFlc2qmc_BwRAtmEsTOqtZYzh5rkIiJ3SATzdSSU51yXg5WQjA2__JNwahh4xtbiVfblQIcZGGfnoxmUAUT8YNUXrtj93LvbZTIMy8oZhz_O1zfxBnHriIEscVXWESuL_Gpazw-EBhP_Dt/s1600-h/P1061083.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjFlc2qmc_BwRAtmEsTOqtZYzh5rkIiJ3SATzdSSU51yXg5WQjA2__JNwahh4xtbiVfblQIcZGGfnoxmUAUT8YNUXrtj93LvbZTIMy8oZhz_O1zfxBnHriIEscVXWESuL_Gpazw-EBhP_Dt/s400/P1061083.JPG" /></a></div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div style="text-align: left;">Around sunset, we met these two people who were traveling from Tokyo to Osaka. They were also using local trains only because it was cheaper, and as one of them said "It's slower, so more relaxing." I agreed. Fast is efficient, but sometimes it's good to take the long way.</div><br />
<div style="text-align: left;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEisV-oZTDcNFpNtTU_6LWFM5yT3BkAY16IQrmSSdvtu6_sC-4h4yneJwtPfLf4sP3pfbqGUux41t9x0KWIk6VBb90G7ZUFZl2XjvfsMEIQvCITm1ZQ13Kwrdcfm3HVGGS2k6F6urX7Typ8C/s1600-h/P1061091.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEisV-oZTDcNFpNtTU_6LWFM5yT3BkAY16IQrmSSdvtu6_sC-4h4yneJwtPfLf4sP3pfbqGUux41t9x0KWIk6VBb90G7ZUFZl2XjvfsMEIQvCITm1ZQ13Kwrdcfm3HVGGS2k6F6urX7Typ8C/s400/P1061091.JPG" /></a></div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div style="text-align: left;"></div><br />
<div style="text-align: left;"></div><div style="text-align: left;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1I_v1yoDW4oO280mUeSx5MRCnrGomqI2_vteSBB57Y2Dwb2DqObg-B-6aopDXmEEhy933pbYHvyIdyHZP7F-88UXlEjOAFE_jF4PKQuRKpVkWQt8-mKqKE5VWMkt8LzdTflVRio-Mv5jR/s1600-h/P1061098.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1I_v1yoDW4oO280mUeSx5MRCnrGomqI2_vteSBB57Y2Dwb2DqObg-B-6aopDXmEEhy933pbYHvyIdyHZP7F-88UXlEjOAFE_jF4PKQuRKpVkWQt8-mKqKE5VWMkt8LzdTflVRio-Mv5jR/s400/P1061098.JPG" /></a></div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgxMkXzCptNZXWKVWybzwwUdljI3AdpybHstR8CPmhaDyvtBjUoDBH27HXu3Th72YzekjdA95ZpZ0QcYAOiOJnyZGbKh7vpAKGyv4bPghnUgsquUhjjLBOJvfMcrArPD2hGOtEAHDj4cT_U/s1600-h/P1061101.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgxMkXzCptNZXWKVWybzwwUdljI3AdpybHstR8CPmhaDyvtBjUoDBH27HXu3Th72YzekjdA95ZpZ0QcYAOiOJnyZGbKh7vpAKGyv4bPghnUgsquUhjjLBOJvfMcrArPD2hGOtEAHDj4cT_U/s400/P1061101.JPG" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiIU0EWQqeyjO88NyaoK87D6d0ovGlwS9ASH8sFopJuidw4xZROIEJPIB4xbRRj_LGkVSj_4KEjScBwsRN2m4ISTZT0a1O0SjYaqHYg_AbeCcukYO27aLxKu1XvkrW3XIvb33adZfK1aFIE/s1600-h/P1061112.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiIU0EWQqeyjO88NyaoK87D6d0ovGlwS9ASH8sFopJuidw4xZROIEJPIB4xbRRj_LGkVSj_4KEjScBwsRN2m4ISTZT0a1O0SjYaqHYg_AbeCcukYO27aLxKu1XvkrW3XIvb33adZfK1aFIE/s400/P1061112.JPG" /></a> </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjxV3DW_vAjYBIx1Gqz3Jjjo5tBTtFDN-SPGz0ypuACPpiKe2o7V_vty-7HCiOcNreJIxAjCCNenA9NoKfR62yvyHEhSVh77FPC2IVSTQBUJ0xl5GA7wDXz8yIW0AtTof_Z7NYRIGQkbc5w/s1600-h/P1061113.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjxV3DW_vAjYBIx1Gqz3Jjjo5tBTtFDN-SPGz0ypuACPpiKe2o7V_vty-7HCiOcNreJIxAjCCNenA9NoKfR62yvyHEhSVh77FPC2IVSTQBUJ0xl5GA7wDXz8yIW0AtTof_Z7NYRIGQkbc5w/s400/P1061113.JPG" /></a></div><br />
<div style="text-align: left;"></div><div style="text-align: left;"></div><div style="text-align: left;"></div><div style="text-align: left;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiDUTxOR2I-s725IZwBlq5VOVRAcEhdKAT2ma0fLlN64CjeRSY-fBVAPPTXUIt-v5biDNKi-icOOzHqjojRouRFghcNwnzJtF1efxZpsSMy0zPhGNq6zxaelXsjDJZxG11APNSOGjeaArVQ/s1600-h/P1061114.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiDUTxOR2I-s725IZwBlq5VOVRAcEhdKAT2ma0fLlN64CjeRSY-fBVAPPTXUIt-v5biDNKi-icOOzHqjojRouRFghcNwnzJtF1efxZpsSMy0zPhGNq6zxaelXsjDJZxG11APNSOGjeaArVQ/s400/P1061114.JPG" /></a></div><br />
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<div style="text-align: left;"></div><div style="text-align: left;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEigQ4LBE1eYm7E8xIOKqyfCLsDG-xeijrq225lqvu48hJOo2ILYsLDb1JFNrEh727fMrWvPV_9Y4WdasvGrnRDyDjOha3lGzUHVEDZ2JzvWZZMZGoataJ0W_Whf5gExV_BIXLuVZHQJnzZX/s1600-h/P1061116.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEigQ4LBE1eYm7E8xIOKqyfCLsDG-xeijrq225lqvu48hJOo2ILYsLDb1JFNrEh727fMrWvPV_9Y4WdasvGrnRDyDjOha3lGzUHVEDZ2JzvWZZMZGoataJ0W_Whf5gExV_BIXLuVZHQJnzZX/s400/P1061116.JPG" /></a></div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div style="text-align: left;">Here's a picture from Ogaki station.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi3g7JmRZpO-8GNwoNSVJR7s8qQvCkTzT8k8PSNKnQjajx6XSDz7dcrJy8HVw2hV6VBNVzuCkK0vv2ucvVrtb8tqYFXjzfPs7YTfRN3Rl1B_eCrAI8brp3zlpfYaruLRooT-vwSrdDG3V2F/s1600-h/P1061119.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi3g7JmRZpO-8GNwoNSVJR7s8qQvCkTzT8k8PSNKnQjajx6XSDz7dcrJy8HVw2hV6VBNVzuCkK0vv2ucvVrtb8tqYFXjzfPs7YTfRN3Rl1B_eCrAI8brp3zlpfYaruLRooT-vwSrdDG3V2F/s400/P1061119.JPG" /></a></div><div style="text-align: left;">This town looked a lot like Tachikawa, Omiya, Machida, or many of the other towns that lie just outside Tokyo. It was kind of a bit run down and odd, I felt.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjGx3ucqsPcpoimDiiw455SjwRYUl58jMODA0VIPY9jiPqdE5WX2nnrSSA-qC6nVTcc7X6wUXZ908icjxth3XD6bcxqqc0oPJyWzcMDptY6kaPlXd7egw-QCpmcNe2Ph5rl0IBQIDnHPzvW/s1600-h/P1061123.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjGx3ucqsPcpoimDiiw455SjwRYUl58jMODA0VIPY9jiPqdE5WX2nnrSSA-qC6nVTcc7X6wUXZ908icjxth3XD6bcxqqc0oPJyWzcMDptY6kaPlXd7egw-QCpmcNe2Ph5rl0IBQIDnHPzvW/s400/P1061123.JPG" /></a> </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"> I liked the USA spaceship though.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">I also thought it was funny that in Tokyo, there's a chain of department stores called "Marui" (written 0101), but out here there was a department store called "Maruei"</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgo9iCufx0lIwec0B1o_WQd0IKOu6HpVWb73yJnnP4rUEOkf83cfKcoMYjPtqEKxZ9oSwz7zIF9fNx511CyQOp2LyIiHE5drEhNZVuZ02de9rxARownuQkD2ZIsMmWlv0TOSFNoi3k4vVkx/s1600-h/P1061126.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgo9iCufx0lIwec0B1o_WQd0IKOu6HpVWb73yJnnP4rUEOkf83cfKcoMYjPtqEKxZ9oSwz7zIF9fNx511CyQOp2LyIiHE5drEhNZVuZ02de9rxARownuQkD2ZIsMmWlv0TOSFNoi3k4vVkx/s400/P1061126.JPG" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"> My opinion drastically changed after dinner. We were told that this town was famous for inari-zushi (rice in a sweet fried tofu pouch) so found this tiny shop. Apparently we were told bad information, but we got inari-zushi anyways and it was the best I've ever had. The shop had an old woman and an old man (husband and wife?) that I'm pretty sure live upstairs. The woman was quite funny and enjoyable and the man hardly ever spoke and just made sushi. They were incredibly friendly and it was one of the best sushi experiences of my life, and only for 700 yen! (less than $8) I couldn't believe it! I was worried we were going to have to spend a lot of money, but it was SO cheap, and WONDERFUL! If I ended up in that neighborhood, I'd LOVE to go back.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">After dinner it was too dark to take any good pictures, but I noticed I had this picture that I didn't put up. This was after leaving Ogaki</div><br />
<div style="text-align: left;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhuqEkq3gl2ZA2asmlnucR-XsxL-dS7qEOdO7kDNV9C7usIxPr06TA1k0_dYZwjV8Eyst9tM07td9LExki1p_KsMKmvOo9ouvpMa5gUzLFYfqPCosOy7Tl-2g-yFDZxoua_SF2boKCl3VUW/s1600-h/P1061127.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhuqEkq3gl2ZA2asmlnucR-XsxL-dS7qEOdO7kDNV9C7usIxPr06TA1k0_dYZwjV8Eyst9tM07td9LExki1p_KsMKmvOo9ouvpMa5gUzLFYfqPCosOy7Tl-2g-yFDZxoua_SF2boKCl3VUW/s400/P1061127.JPG" /></a></div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div style="text-align: left;">And after a LONG day of travel, I MADE IT!!! OSAKA!!!</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg4ENVebbBIrYLrTVj4HpiwJ0WZKlvmxF-NLEbwa1NynitWdOyqMATyXrhsohw05-yANKflPuXDd-c8w9slKrxOxNS-L85b2OUy_eKPNnaH4khWeepLkXgk9fsSa9Pu30Fc_AietbrrdWsv/s1600-h/P1061151.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg4ENVebbBIrYLrTVj4HpiwJ0WZKlvmxF-NLEbwa1NynitWdOyqMATyXrhsohw05-yANKflPuXDd-c8w9slKrxOxNS-L85b2OUy_eKPNnaH4khWeepLkXgk9fsSa9Pu30Fc_AietbrrdWsv/s400/P1061151.JPG" /></a></div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;">Osaka was a site for sore eyes and I was happy to be there. I ate some okonomyaki from a street vendor coupled with a cheap beer. The okonomyaki was the best my traveling partner ever had (and my second best).</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiPg-LP7jdZzqqG2oz8qTNGqD_2F7YIi4zy6FI7uagDrqwdQZh0muQDVi9m3c7OfDmoSsYDInl8-kzCMpthdHWsZfxQMhrlub371YfLudFUI1TCg5Tv0NUVPqFLVf8Ou5hwedaJvogcLbvG/s1600-h/P1061150.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiPg-LP7jdZzqqG2oz8qTNGqD_2F7YIi4zy6FI7uagDrqwdQZh0muQDVi9m3c7OfDmoSsYDInl8-kzCMpthdHWsZfxQMhrlub371YfLudFUI1TCg5Tv0NUVPqFLVf8Ou5hwedaJvogcLbvG/s400/P1061150.JPG" /></a></div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
But, there's just something about Osaka. It's a really special place.</div><div style="text-align: left;"></div><div style="text-align: left;">And more on that next time.</div>Keithhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04453377662997268519noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7765297090724156356.post-68292843595111964092009-01-26T17:46:00.002+09:002009-01-26T17:53:15.000+09:00Whoops.I went to go partition my hard drive on Friday and in the process, it messed up and nuked all my data. Well, the truth is, I probably could have recovered it, but I was thinking about reinstalling anyways, so I just went ahead and did that.<br /><br />In the process I was dumb, and a combination of using the first version of Firefox 2 (I don't like Firefox 3), being lazy about installing an antivirus program, and installing a shady file that I shouldn't have, gave me a pretty nasty virus. I was stupid, but after not having a virus for years, I got cocky. I wasted way too much time trying to fix it yesterday and decided that I'm just going to re-reinstall.<br /><br />On the plus side, before I partitioned I was smart and backed up everything except for a few processed pictures, which since I have the originals, it's not that big of a deal.<br /><br />Anyways, my posts will be a bit slow as I need to reinstall a ton of programs to get back to normal. So, as always, thanks for reading and I hope you don't hate me for the delay.Keithhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04453377662997268519noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7765297090724156356.post-47258407529962611282009-01-22T18:48:00.003+09:002009-01-22T20:14:40.426+09:00First day of the trip.<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">I heard about 18 きっぷ (or 18 ticket), which gives unlimited usage of local JR trains for 5 days for a low fee of 11,500 (about $125 at today's rate). I can use a ticket any day and ride as many trains as I wanted for essentially $25 a day. I could have used this to see the sights around Tokyo and it would have saved me money if I traveled a lot and exited the stations often, but I wanted to do something else. I wanted to go to Osaka, Kyoto, Nara, Nagoya, and then back home.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Osaka was the first stop, as I thought it would be nice to go there and then leisurely head back and do the heavy traveling on the first day. By airplane, a trip to Osaka is a little more than an hour. By shinkansen (bullet train) it's about 2 and a half hours. By local trains, it's 8 and a half hours.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Here is the route I took on the first day of my trip. I think I'm missing some stops, because it was a LONG day of traveling Starting in Mitaka, I met my traveling companion around 8 AM and left.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiys_zgl79frdia2KV_F_JFh7eQG44qwkAgfgC9gnWj41YXxkNopFizVMxAYvFE8SXulTb0RMW2v429XwDUUd6zCajnK-u6BtJa2A1h37eaPkEGDBW4DnBwOA4w3se8lRQgzFi_89pNw0cP/s1600-h/P1060987.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiys_zgl79frdia2KV_F_JFh7eQG44qwkAgfgC9gnWj41YXxkNopFizVMxAYvFE8SXulTb0RMW2v429XwDUUd6zCajnK-u6BtJa2A1h37eaPkEGDBW4DnBwOA4w3se8lRQgzFi_89pNw0cP/s400/P1060987.JPG" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div style="text-align: left;">It of course was a regular Tuesday morning rush hour for most people.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjeeA0nLeN4Ay8K7aTifZqaH_lYg3EZOhIVaYd_vxPGwpg8zdHiu_ZCYvQ4WJRSghKvdLTU1VysJLF3yhOG0AK0WBaBW7JleBeZLUpQHIIccgEm5PDFlr9qE6DHZLHAsTNnQdzyMiSMoc3G/s1600-h/P1060986.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjeeA0nLeN4Ay8K7aTifZqaH_lYg3EZOhIVaYd_vxPGwpg8zdHiu_ZCYvQ4WJRSghKvdLTU1VysJLF3yhOG0AK0WBaBW7JleBeZLUpQHIIccgEm5PDFlr9qE6DHZLHAsTNnQdzyMiSMoc3G/s400/P1060986.JPG" /></a></div><div style="text-align: left;"></div><div style="text-align: left;"></div><div style="text-align: left;"></div><div style="text-align: left;"></div><div style="text-align: left;"></div><div style="text-align: left;"></div><div style="text-align: left;"></div><div style="text-align: left;"></div><div style="text-align: left;"></div><div style="text-align: left;"></div><div style="text-align: left;"></div><div style="text-align: left;"></div><div style="text-align: left;"></div><div style="text-align: left;">From there, we went to the always overcrowded Shinjuku station. It doesn't look like it, but it was pretty crowded. This platform was just after a train left.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh5DXoZsQQmw6618lqt0gXqhyiZGrbxCtsr_kEyonHIAKbIeiy0qXihrhIsYpuydDN7MT7mnM4l-419utvNV7VDl8pGrtEuf27HJRpZL0xPRN5dP8nNlcQBUv0_HtOvrXhU43YxlkyGqzbB/s1600-h/P1060991.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh5DXoZsQQmw6618lqt0gXqhyiZGrbxCtsr_kEyonHIAKbIeiy0qXihrhIsYpuydDN7MT7mnM4l-419utvNV7VDl8pGrtEuf27HJRpZL0xPRN5dP8nNlcQBUv0_HtOvrXhU43YxlkyGqzbB/s400/P1060991.JPG" /></a> </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">We boarded ye olde Yamanote line...</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiDLj4P-xD2UQc0dvaZ7juaaRpC8lqpX2GaPqAUuB0EXq574zkxh-RJJrizU_cJCPG_ZLerP9nQ8GJFfJaemMqTSZdfSN8Nk_16WAPUjYioZJ7H0zVRRHeWPKHWx1dkHgjyZq4fQdT4BDah/s1600-h/P1060992.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiDLj4P-xD2UQc0dvaZ7juaaRpC8lqpX2GaPqAUuB0EXq574zkxh-RJJrizU_cJCPG_ZLerP9nQ8GJFfJaemMqTSZdfSN8Nk_16WAPUjYioZJ7H0zVRRHeWPKHWx1dkHgjyZq4fQdT4BDah/s400/P1060992.JPG" /></a></div><div style="text-align: left;">Then we stopped for a fast breakfast in Shinagawa.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgcAyxDdBXuq9bZ_wz-Ix0B_IFJotAeQ8AYp0VQXrv4UUVxPvgK8m4VoFavEw5Z1D_XdYw-otptzo_wIVTQpU9w9XnTqHHwywPx3eFbiEWA02Smw3gaat_MIqWxfGzzd55vLON63skXW_8c/s1600-h/P1060993.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgcAyxDdBXuq9bZ_wz-Ix0B_IFJotAeQ8AYp0VQXrv4UUVxPvgK8m4VoFavEw5Z1D_XdYw-otptzo_wIVTQpU9w9XnTqHHwywPx3eFbiEWA02Smw3gaat_MIqWxfGzzd55vLON63skXW_8c/s400/P1060993.JPG" /></a> </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">We boarded our first train that took us outside of the Tokyo area.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"> <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiqD-f02g1GfFVhjwWisD4PV_RXvrUn79_RGjsFfeZp-nNZjkdIUt5xAkkxzkxTmsR0wxhzGHKOTHkgGPJotkKVA1z_FwFSAytkOyfAbmgsd4n_i84mbV58bmeiDdIMgMmGYSS9H9ZvCOqz/s1600-h/P1060994.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiqD-f02g1GfFVhjwWisD4PV_RXvrUn79_RGjsFfeZp-nNZjkdIUt5xAkkxzkxTmsR0wxhzGHKOTHkgGPJotkKVA1z_FwFSAytkOyfAbmgsd4n_i84mbV58bmeiDdIMgMmGYSS9H9ZvCOqz/s400/P1060994.JPG" /></a> </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"> And rode it until the end of the line which was Atami.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"></div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg6RZ-hKdgL9jNBQjCzDvHXKqv6dooMGSuXJU4zAprLQNxRIoh77zrWKVM1AkI38Oa1LKhTvP345of28qxFu3LX-e2hr5HbNurbdBUis87R3AvoOpR4m6ae-9degab32miT1mXSqpKE3Vmg/s1600-h/P1061022.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg6RZ-hKdgL9jNBQjCzDvHXKqv6dooMGSuXJU4zAprLQNxRIoh77zrWKVM1AkI38Oa1LKhTvP345of28qxFu3LX-e2hr5HbNurbdBUis87R3AvoOpR4m6ae-9degab32miT1mXSqpKE3Vmg/s400/P1061022.JPG" /></a><br />
<div style="text-align: left;">After a short stop, we went to Numanzu.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhYv9-hosUISSjPWY2wYf6KdyDQFuzFhnKC0XTSfcCnt4vjCUVv9IXXuCfUPkQReNnW3sXIDyKWMBDgxemG9ye65HBfsroGvhvVtArC13Md_s-VW-BJ_xX2nisDeCyUBt0ecnVcL4gNmqFv/s1600-h/P1061039.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhYv9-hosUISSjPWY2wYf6KdyDQFuzFhnKC0XTSfcCnt4vjCUVv9IXXuCfUPkQReNnW3sXIDyKWMBDgxemG9ye65HBfsroGvhvVtArC13Md_s-VW-BJ_xX2nisDeCyUBt0ecnVcL4gNmqFv/s400/P1061039.JPG" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div style="text-align: left;">There was a stopover here, and not a whole lot to talk about, but a cute town. I seemed to have missed taking a picture of the train. Oh well.</div><div style="text-align: left;"></div><div style="text-align: left;">Then came Shimizu.</div><div style="text-align: left;"></div><div style="text-align: left;"></div><div style="text-align: left;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgIXvYYd89_uf3DUhOO-cptDJc_gEG2Jq15jeafYv8MUcLNwP1SnqRR_lI1AYZvr1zdQ-4IBaQ15-ngrhkLbFOX4P_qoJ8YDfG4jH_DBo6FG2buGE4HqAuaUumI1yVYGSZRx-YrG6d3Km0B/s1600-h/P1061050.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgIXvYYd89_uf3DUhOO-cptDJc_gEG2Jq15jeafYv8MUcLNwP1SnqRR_lI1AYZvr1zdQ-4IBaQ15-ngrhkLbFOX4P_qoJ8YDfG4jH_DBo6FG2buGE4HqAuaUumI1yVYGSZRx-YrG6d3Km0B/s400/P1061050.JPG" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div style="text-align: left;">Shimizu was not a required stop, but was the hometown of the popular comic book and TV Charcter Chibi Maruko-Chan. It was also known for great tea, and we were getting a bit sick of riding trains, so a well timed break was in order. Look forward to seeing pictures from that town later.</div><div style="text-align: left;"></div><div style="text-align: left;">I was kind of disappointed at the trains I was riding. Not that they were bad, but they were bland. I was expecting some crazy trains. They were all pretty normal. When I went to the <a href="http://notjustvisiting.blogspot.com/2008/09/hippie-festival-in-middle-of-nowhere.html">hippie festival</a> I rode some crazy trains, and this was WAY further out than that.</div><div style="text-align: left;"></div><div style="text-align: left;">Anyway, feeling refreshed, we got back onto yet another boring train.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiEF_I9vxDEBtNCwLgIqWJRmn4avGkSrgXSmXBfufV0BlHHsHfZBrIyi5i4vKRXYgz1eCqYbpDEX8Q1geXCGk3sSeZk6SBxkgnHDnhW2m934KnpkA7IzpCmNc9HyJpv0d2uLXXD7LfArT5u/s1600-h/P1061074.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiEF_I9vxDEBtNCwLgIqWJRmn4avGkSrgXSmXBfufV0BlHHsHfZBrIyi5i4vKRXYgz1eCqYbpDEX8Q1geXCGk3sSeZk6SBxkgnHDnhW2m934KnpkA7IzpCmNc9HyJpv0d2uLXXD7LfArT5u/s400/P1061074.JPG" /></a> </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">We had to change yet again in Toyohashi. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg7mI11sIMnLIIaqrM2iT9TaZQCJ-cb6tnM5zvmgzHIj9ks6exWEzZR_8n_VPkKxk__Z-rjhI4DRaT99qGMTLR1v7w9GqJNYIXoaW2pn_cdSgAe7tqm79ojOzMtKwUdQ0MTQWs11KIxNGuC/s1600-h/P1061122.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg7mI11sIMnLIIaqrM2iT9TaZQCJ-cb6tnM5zvmgzHIj9ks6exWEzZR_8n_VPkKxk__Z-rjhI4DRaT99qGMTLR1v7w9GqJNYIXoaW2pn_cdSgAe7tqm79ojOzMtKwUdQ0MTQWs11KIxNGuC/s400/P1061122.JPG" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">And we boarded yet another boring train. Although I'm complaining now they were boring, I should be grateful that they were all comfortable.</div><div style="text-align: left;"></div><div style="text-align: left;"></div><div style="text-align: left;"></div><div style="text-align: left;"></div><div style="text-align: left;"></div><div style="text-align: left;"></div><div style="text-align: left;"></div><div style="text-align: left;"></div><div style="text-align: left;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj7VNDb0iXS7ZWmb-LhSF9YBoh7U0dg_sI9_3Nw06gzSlX0OcXtwY89zXJ9MQcaUC9YNHJx7v_znhBpsXHIb3BSeLPzGhm0QDGLDWh8DQ0FCkgDUa-c_iwDBzozTvZm1dS9-R4jGmq0SCAu/s1600-h/P1061128.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj7VNDb0iXS7ZWmb-LhSF9YBoh7U0dg_sI9_3Nw06gzSlX0OcXtwY89zXJ9MQcaUC9YNHJx7v_znhBpsXHIb3BSeLPzGhm0QDGLDWh8DQ0FCkgDUa-c_iwDBzozTvZm1dS9-R4jGmq0SCAu/s400/P1061128.JPG" /></a></div><div style="text-align: left;">Here's a map. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi25Adft9vDhqEMiNEpjp0wa-zrtMWByT3XEgQAB7RBxSi4CyO2FCbDhT6UDvHS1hToUaU9xtpGgAkOOGVRDoAo8QFP7Z_-DIZAImSsxCzpew8-hwuOdF5eg-GnqcbJ-lPy_L11OXBXMAp9/s1600-h/P1061129.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi25Adft9vDhqEMiNEpjp0wa-zrtMWByT3XEgQAB7RBxSi4CyO2FCbDhT6UDvHS1hToUaU9xtpGgAkOOGVRDoAo8QFP7Z_-DIZAImSsxCzpew8-hwuOdF5eg-GnqcbJ-lPy_L11OXBXMAp9/s400/P1061129.JPG" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Then it was off to Ogaki.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgVc2ArMbRu5vsvybD8NuNPvroUuZidC_acDzRhEByTgemJWI_Xf6VNMsVvl903cwSSFQ5gB_7P5FkET_6qpuDQ-rniqMJss3GY0obB5dHP31mmFc7AtTK8aPwWLk0vg_TDQhwAkHn_fS8k/s1600-h/P1061131.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgVc2ArMbRu5vsvybD8NuNPvroUuZidC_acDzRhEByTgemJWI_Xf6VNMsVvl903cwSSFQ5gB_7P5FkET_6qpuDQ-rniqMJss3GY0obB5dHP31mmFc7AtTK8aPwWLk0vg_TDQhwAkHn_fS8k/s400/P1061131.JPG" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">And finally, an interesting train! It was pretty comfortable too.</div><br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg8Z4tp1XRjX-sXDYiBUcRjYUzFf3ChQuQI-YToBZf_ljgHv2fiGkRWR3MEu8wThFzz8mMIBFnW1EDWZWXcXtzsrqJRNAHL09dZzngbaOfUil0t_tbPEashrcTpUVB-w5CgfPy9oK8L-0fh/s1600-h/P1061132.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg8Z4tp1XRjX-sXDYiBUcRjYUzFf3ChQuQI-YToBZf_ljgHv2fiGkRWR3MEu8wThFzz8mMIBFnW1EDWZWXcXtzsrqJRNAHL09dZzngbaOfUil0t_tbPEashrcTpUVB-w5CgfPy9oK8L-0fh/s400/P1061132.JPG" /></a><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"> After Ogaki, we had to change trains at Maibara.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"> <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg9Mf2MMSs682SdmpEQ26GxV62V-0GbbxLO_0mOsx1byrM7ZYPfEFmczRvTi4H2ZiEOHV_PKDtMwehrxK9dAhKgp70MTTZABUQmnVenV96419vvq7dr2dYOHxKWutM6aX105N1R6iSLd6BP/s1600-h/P1061134.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg9Mf2MMSs682SdmpEQ26GxV62V-0GbbxLO_0mOsx1byrM7ZYPfEFmczRvTi4H2ZiEOHV_PKDtMwehrxK9dAhKgp70MTTZABUQmnVenV96419vvq7dr2dYOHxKWutM6aX105N1R6iSLd6BP/s400/P1061134.JPG" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"> While waiting at Maibara, there was a guy on the pay phone shouting very loudly and angrily. First off, I hardly ever see anyone using the pay phone, and when I do, it's only for a little while, rarely a conversation. Also, this guy was MAD! I'm not sure what, but it was starting to creep me and my travel companion out. Apparently he shouted "So, I'm a homosexual pervert, SO WHAT?!?" In Tokyo, I would have been a little worried, but out here, a family, including a kid that was about 12 were laughing at him and saying "He's drunk. Hahaha." It was then I really felt the cultural difference between Kansai and Kanto (Tokyo) people.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">The train that finally came was a bit interesting too. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzXAPaU4OoAxiGs0LaTSxNZYN6Si0hwff-TiYBFfCcICDhUbsF88dUUJZy2IQ-EXdFpDe_VZ6Qir4ZFGYjXOMYzTjFvHo0NDmWMkt_05r6Ov2Mlstn1gcy6mpA9cT50vVsUW6P0bvyKr_8/s1600-h/P1061135.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzXAPaU4OoAxiGs0LaTSxNZYN6Si0hwff-TiYBFfCcICDhUbsF88dUUJZy2IQ-EXdFpDe_VZ6Qir4ZFGYjXOMYzTjFvHo0NDmWMkt_05r6Ov2Mlstn1gcy6mpA9cT50vVsUW6P0bvyKr_8/s400/P1061135.JPG" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"> Thankfully, the loud drunk didn't get on our train, or was quiet when he did. either way, it was the last train before...</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"></div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEguFCpS9kPQ2l_N6y_Q57KlT5x8_VgXh3acFo8xuOy14Kc0qs2bRCdFwDfKfO5tqcNqqtnbdHG3_Ebubc4Ro1ohb6t3zhUI6xXNRnDkv4Q0KBH4gcb3H_dpbNzXGOD5Is2npWdi9OSHpohe/s1600-h/P1061138.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEguFCpS9kPQ2l_N6y_Q57KlT5x8_VgXh3acFo8xuOy14Kc0qs2bRCdFwDfKfO5tqcNqqtnbdHG3_Ebubc4Ro1ohb6t3zhUI6xXNRnDkv4Q0KBH4gcb3H_dpbNzXGOD5Is2npWdi9OSHpohe/s400/P1061138.JPG" /></a><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">OSAKA!!!! After a LONG day of traveling, I was FINALLY THERE!</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Okay, we had to get on another train to get to our hotel, but this was close enough. I didn't take pictures of the last train and stop because I was tired and I kind of felt like the last stop didn't matter as much, because I was IN Osaka. It was close to 10:30 at this point. An 8 and a half hour trip became 14 and a half hours. That's what happens when you take your time. It was great, though.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">So, that was the trip. I'm pretty sure I left at least one stop off and I'm sure there are some factual errors, but whatever. Later on, I'm going to post pictures from this day, but that's the route for day one.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">In total, this trip would have cost almost 9,000 yen, but thanks to my ticket, it only cost me 11,500 for the whole 5 day pass.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Stay tuned for more pictures and stories. </div>Keithhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04453377662997268519noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7765297090724156356.post-72559048748337000832009-01-22T02:25:00.000+09:002009-01-22T18:44:07.860+09:00Sights from the last day of my trip.I kind of want to explain my trip... I got a 18きっぷ or 18 ticket, which means I could go anywhere using JR local trains and could get on and off the trains for 5 days. The first day, me and a companion went to Osaka, which was a LONG trip. The second day we chilled in Osaka. The third day we explored Kyoto. The fourth, we went to Nara on our way to Nagoya. The fifth was enjoying the city of Nagoya, and the last day was going home. Here are some pictures of the last day. If you want to know more about my route, check <a href="http://notjustvisiting.blogspot.com/2009/01/last-day-of-trip.html">here</a> for a mostly complete order of the stations I got on and off at.<br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">On the way to Nagoya station, I saw the largest rubix cube I've ever seen. </div><div style="text-align: left;"></div><div style="text-align: left;"></div><div style="text-align: left;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjX9aUQetNimyBjtDECLMUt5jfRNJhjcweiEMNwPxnPhIJa_SNEbYu8wEAt3DClwzRwbJnTwYLvKFQS-IRtvlUq58jlgFNmD9nvW260hBYeZ-me4uOMxNzFOXKI9n6eG9cGmG7f6S25W_JS/s1600-h/P1112094.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjX9aUQetNimyBjtDECLMUt5jfRNJhjcweiEMNwPxnPhIJa_SNEbYu8wEAt3DClwzRwbJnTwYLvKFQS-IRtvlUq58jlgFNmD9nvW260hBYeZ-me4uOMxNzFOXKI9n6eG9cGmG7f6S25W_JS/s320/P1112094.JPG" border="0" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"></div>There was also this large, dramatic sculpture.<br /><div style="text-align: left;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhvXyjCfuQ36zjE-0meIaIBnk2AbeNp7PnK5D8C8XcD-3dmcqjPiBo5D3GJQPfdJBE1xrFSC399sc9XP_NIkUlI9E8sDG2wJSDELcjDM2L4z_HSgSi4IG8npZfg9tk9Thcf8FfAa01U2tEx/s1600-h/P1112095.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhvXyjCfuQ36zjE-0meIaIBnk2AbeNp7PnK5D8C8XcD-3dmcqjPiBo5D3GJQPfdJBE1xrFSC399sc9XP_NIkUlI9E8sDG2wJSDELcjDM2L4z_HSgSi4IG8npZfg9tk9Thcf8FfAa01U2tEx/s320/P1112095.JPG" border="0" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div>I took some pictures as we were leaving the city to head towards the mountains.<br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div style="text-align: left;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj1cB4VzcVeigUfgzp3yx-GzFLmbBy3fpgqjeg9j4nCmXfMOKWgQQ9DsLyGZ6ZMX1agVc8zbxkgiUD5J0k0B1TWuqNjjq7-1t9EoMjv3-9Q55aSuDzK0FbMN6GI7Bt7ZApEpmRUWS6rZjEL/s1600-h/p1112105.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><br /></a></div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjXiWyg5X2hx-m5py0HBwxKQRMbzTBxtjwIaGWYI9yk_7imkwcbUpS29oVYGFf6iaxFHL_ZQfyK4WUCfFgiLYDPAh1FQzl4QmYsbTgqHcRwl38WMyhobBqXYnSpXX7nQzGsx10gShV3SEqA/s1600-h/p1112103.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjXiWyg5X2hx-m5py0HBwxKQRMbzTBxtjwIaGWYI9yk_7imkwcbUpS29oVYGFf6iaxFHL_ZQfyK4WUCfFgiLYDPAh1FQzl4QmYsbTgqHcRwl38WMyhobBqXYnSpXX7nQzGsx10gShV3SEqA/s320/p1112103.jpg" border="0" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj1cB4VzcVeigUfgzp3yx-GzFLmbBy3fpgqjeg9j4nCmXfMOKWgQQ9DsLyGZ6ZMX1agVc8zbxkgiUD5J0k0B1TWuqNjjq7-1t9EoMjv3-9Q55aSuDzK0FbMN6GI7Bt7ZApEpmRUWS6rZjEL/s1600-h/p1112105.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj1cB4VzcVeigUfgzp3yx-GzFLmbBy3fpgqjeg9j4nCmXfMOKWgQQ9DsLyGZ6ZMX1agVc8zbxkgiUD5J0k0B1TWuqNjjq7-1t9EoMjv3-9Q55aSuDzK0FbMN6GI7Bt7ZApEpmRUWS6rZjEL/s320/p1112105.jpg" border="0" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiyqvdFLP6DPCYSlFujyD5lRQ-dYnU3cXbJ4XY4VCSFsG1DvRUHI8atcVLYhTsM7dX2XR7MZInO5UoKzLP1RhARE8Tdjj5legvuTh4NjqzQp_Y6_RJcMBEPX2UBul5NiCme-E_JxV9xv7R4/s1600-h/p1112111.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiyqvdFLP6DPCYSlFujyD5lRQ-dYnU3cXbJ4XY4VCSFsG1DvRUHI8atcVLYhTsM7dX2XR7MZInO5UoKzLP1RhARE8Tdjj5legvuTh4NjqzQp_Y6_RJcMBEPX2UBul5NiCme-E_JxV9xv7R4/s320/p1112111.jpg" border="0" /></a></div><div style="text-align: left;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhmFTMGBa_vxlvTjduVmuN4OldcThqf9O5MQ3VeihzE-YsB2DlA1FToDoHPED_AuU0pBo8zpEdBb-9bjTwuwZVx1hFftHXrj9ejBhE36FB2ONvs5QgcHgx3FtpFH3UDqHYo2zjl0UjLA614/s1600-h/P1112123.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><br /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhmFTMGBa_vxlvTjduVmuN4OldcThqf9O5MQ3VeihzE-YsB2DlA1FToDoHPED_AuU0pBo8zpEdBb-9bjTwuwZVx1hFftHXrj9ejBhE36FB2ONvs5QgcHgx3FtpFH3UDqHYo2zjl0UjLA614/s1600-h/P1112123.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhmFTMGBa_vxlvTjduVmuN4OldcThqf9O5MQ3VeihzE-YsB2DlA1FToDoHPED_AuU0pBo8zpEdBb-9bjTwuwZVx1hFftHXrj9ejBhE36FB2ONvs5QgcHgx3FtpFH3UDqHYo2zjl0UjLA614/s320/P1112123.JPG" border="0" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">You could see people gathered by a river and it looked like they were barbequing and fishing. It was Sunday after all. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiDFC-B2boCIBN5op6f-mAIV348HMIGT8sj6B_SN7l1aH_nH9AihMe_gHHmpBS6LyGp5qhuwPjy4Y6i5KwiDic97WA0rGLuiur_VZx-ZyFbfONAWALhkRPOU8at7Rv9ExB-9HXTosmZ3xtL/s1600-h/P1112132.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiDFC-B2boCIBN5op6f-mAIV348HMIGT8sj6B_SN7l1aH_nH9AihMe_gHHmpBS6LyGp5qhuwPjy4Y6i5KwiDic97WA0rGLuiur_VZx-ZyFbfONAWALhkRPOU8at7Rv9ExB-9HXTosmZ3xtL/s320/P1112132.JPG" border="0" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Here is a better picture of them close up. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj0CksGhkQRX8U0gm6JM9saZUdHvVFEz6x5iRd2E9hnac7ZGiNziFoakCjwaFp5raclBJO2ZkHLH1hrKEejErwr_wtUYXPjDfOjsD3fiOIRXZB9FaL2GnMjPZ_q8N-GckC10r6ptNA6RQAu/s1600-h/P1112133.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj0CksGhkQRX8U0gm6JM9saZUdHvVFEz6x5iRd2E9hnac7ZGiNziFoakCjwaFp5raclBJO2ZkHLH1hrKEejErwr_wtUYXPjDfOjsD3fiOIRXZB9FaL2GnMjPZ_q8N-GckC10r6ptNA6RQAu/s320/P1112133.JPG" border="0" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">At this point outside of Nagoya, you saw lots of mountains. I didn't realize how mountainous my chosen route was. Train maps don't show things like that.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhys0urfgZyvKldZZFgbONzwDSpDZJF6pnMEsyZ2Ywq5Lhjj0t0eDXjIbODCw8nuAPHW1rkjInIs_lKS2TCNF5ZWkvjuuWx0fRs6EBt4vR5y-luHiFcbXLciA9bc2FdhqlfgDlarZGMsy9P/s1600-h/P1112138.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhys0urfgZyvKldZZFgbONzwDSpDZJF6pnMEsyZ2Ywq5Lhjj0t0eDXjIbODCw8nuAPHW1rkjInIs_lKS2TCNF5ZWkvjuuWx0fRs6EBt4vR5y-luHiFcbXLciA9bc2FdhqlfgDlarZGMsy9P/s320/P1112138.JPG" border="0" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhFwxQbnarupqTi2T-7jirYi0WjW1qa_nnXlZMSEroE5G9PqFYRMeyKAbwOyc_e98FElyWDXveEjqLWfvnLqgrLAPx2Dlq46YNPt1btEkdlcLOEbA1_yiZlnyLhF6_hP1s-okmSSM2plMxd/s1600-h/P1112151.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhFwxQbnarupqTi2T-7jirYi0WjW1qa_nnXlZMSEroE5G9PqFYRMeyKAbwOyc_e98FElyWDXveEjqLWfvnLqgrLAPx2Dlq46YNPt1btEkdlcLOEbA1_yiZlnyLhF6_hP1s-okmSSM2plMxd/s320/P1112151.JPG" border="0" /></a> </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">There was a brief rest stop at Nakatsugawa. There was still SOME city left at this point, but it was getting towards no-man's-land.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"> <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEivSbOaNiyVEjvqUI_sQaK7wuXXu0gPoUA8p7KF-dP7knRfw2oPIfJWGVQAKqqCaSnNCb7lfX3-75z-QnUdjo3wOTiMHKu-3LAInTQyt9hOLWoDXhYbez_GsxbxUFJ3W34_tlptOOzkKswl/s1600-h/P1112164.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEivSbOaNiyVEjvqUI_sQaK7wuXXu0gPoUA8p7KF-dP7knRfw2oPIfJWGVQAKqqCaSnNCb7lfX3-75z-QnUdjo3wOTiMHKu-3LAInTQyt9hOLWoDXhYbez_GsxbxUFJ3W34_tlptOOzkKswl/s320/P1112164.JPG" border="0" /></a> </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"> <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiXwQ2jG3LoyMuLtXOiTx5NgLJss6sLL9IaZFZYMcNlgQrH547Xv9udEWC313eZsHAfs1w-xktw4c_hTuY5nS6rVRAH4KKELEbutZpACmxhccrjjHmvZOwKSwTRi8c-_iyPm87trjwaFq3A/s1600-h/P1112166.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiXwQ2jG3LoyMuLtXOiTx5NgLJss6sLL9IaZFZYMcNlgQrH547Xv9udEWC313eZsHAfs1w-xktw4c_hTuY5nS6rVRAH4KKELEbutZpACmxhccrjjHmvZOwKSwTRi8c-_iyPm87trjwaFq3A/s320/P1112166.JPG" border="0" /></a> </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiXwQ2jG3LoyMuLtXOiTx5NgLJss6sLL9IaZFZYMcNlgQrH547Xv9udEWC313eZsHAfs1w-xktw4c_hTuY5nS6rVRAH4KKELEbutZpACmxhccrjjHmvZOwKSwTRi8c-_iyPm87trjwaFq3A/s1600-h/P1112166.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiXwQ2jG3LoyMuLtXOiTx5NgLJss6sLL9IaZFZYMcNlgQrH547Xv9udEWC313eZsHAfs1w-xktw4c_hTuY5nS6rVRAH4KKELEbutZpACmxhccrjjHmvZOwKSwTRi8c-_iyPm87trjwaFq3A/s320/P1112166.JPG" border="0" /></a></div>This area was famous for chestnut sweets. I went in a lovely little shop and had a slightly pricey sweet, but they gave me free tea and another snack, so it was an incredible deal.<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"> <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjCQrS5g1S5OLmq4c4AdcUO43Ec9oQrTfNMqQo0wZiJV9aQWbagA-CNs2uZIDFCwLEF3HdTFvV9Ux5Q5SxgAdNFsY12CBdHlIdQqo-dIXarG_x5O8aXcFM5q0LRrrLRKGgGjxz-tJEJoIBl/s1600-h/P1112171.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjCQrS5g1S5OLmq4c4AdcUO43Ec9oQrTfNMqQo0wZiJV9aQWbagA-CNs2uZIDFCwLEF3HdTFvV9Ux5Q5SxgAdNFsY12CBdHlIdQqo-dIXarG_x5O8aXcFM5q0LRrrLRKGgGjxz-tJEJoIBl/s320/P1112171.JPG" border="0" /></a> </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">The mountains kept getting bigger and the towns got smaller. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"> <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEisVfkmWf8Zv1O-k5OQ2qtBYNY5xO3czZD7Q7c8oPkdmbnoNwsyCXWwGtT628nCnQ3VLXGsekYXf6w4zdadVSdNCH1Uxha5q2y7l7gfaO7ndWXezPj-Jj9mJ_-qVhh3AYJNQwjLL4_Ga7fX/s1600-h/P1112178.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEisVfkmWf8Zv1O-k5OQ2qtBYNY5xO3czZD7Q7c8oPkdmbnoNwsyCXWwGtT628nCnQ3VLXGsekYXf6w4zdadVSdNCH1Uxha5q2y7l7gfaO7ndWXezPj-Jj9mJ_-qVhh3AYJNQwjLL4_Ga7fX/s320/P1112178.JPG" border="0" /></a> </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Here are some concrete erosion barriers. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"> <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj8ZasVXrHvS4FKh3FP-tSlP8BQCr4xFSSJyAowyd_atSkXSKf7A84R2EFUWhmRTyacSxrQYpHQA0LyvQpck0vtf0CaWthOwJQA1Zfe9afvq8cXM7P5GKubgvtG3h9V0huW-HKjsBD3exhz/s1600-h/P1112179.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj8ZasVXrHvS4FKh3FP-tSlP8BQCr4xFSSJyAowyd_atSkXSKf7A84R2EFUWhmRTyacSxrQYpHQA0LyvQpck0vtf0CaWthOwJQA1Zfe9afvq8cXM7P5GKubgvtG3h9V0huW-HKjsBD3exhz/s320/P1112179.JPG" border="0" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"> I've seen pictures of them, but never really in real life. Apparently they are there to slow down the effects of erosion, but it's been said that cities put them up due to corrupt politicians with pockets lined by construction companies, which themselves are controlled by organized crime. I don't quite understand why they were at this river. There seemed to be plenty of natural rocks to prevent erosion.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"> <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh57tYoMZXnLN2xIEBbjoKRtZUuXlyXDWEhOlLIzUj7r7rcw9gzjCclh8Nw19-n5xVGsGoAu0-PqHU6zBHVUeT10Py2do3HZPkbbI9dapieAENF6dDQSoL15rQ7h1G33vQRao-C1WvHsBJb/s1600-h/P1112190.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh57tYoMZXnLN2xIEBbjoKRtZUuXlyXDWEhOlLIzUj7r7rcw9gzjCclh8Nw19-n5xVGsGoAu0-PqHU6zBHVUeT10Py2do3HZPkbbI9dapieAENF6dDQSoL15rQ7h1G33vQRao-C1WvHsBJb/s320/P1112190.JPG" border="0" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"> Here is a shot of Nagiso.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg-2ZWI6VWZmToWYdRL7oB_MN6PAnZyot0YG2k0MHNJ4Ay8nMTWSUZq6izKb70YPKAg3TU6-F1cbyElZoN_lJaf_qKRObS3k-Lc099i6TObaJLfJeqNwcx7d7_n-RJROrhLO5SyjbiAuhIb/s1600-h/P1112184.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg-2ZWI6VWZmToWYdRL7oB_MN6PAnZyot0YG2k0MHNJ4Ay8nMTWSUZq6izKb70YPKAg3TU6-F1cbyElZoN_lJaf_qKRObS3k-Lc099i6TObaJLfJeqNwcx7d7_n-RJROrhLO5SyjbiAuhIb/s320/P1112184.JPG" border="0" /></a> </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">It was a tiny speck of a town that seemed like a good place to take a break from the real world. It was also freezing.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjQ9FPiXsf19DjauEw1FhJynFJuL2HH3HpHGbn8wQM0_RCQHEQjOE551tpCKKfKPj7gH5aQuFUFJluxjewJJj4J7rzbqxrx3Y48lYtskGPVXyXp6CEIHqss3WTeE0XXlXas4EleUrg-PXE5/s1600-h/P1112187.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjQ9FPiXsf19DjauEw1FhJynFJuL2HH3HpHGbn8wQM0_RCQHEQjOE551tpCKKfKPj7gH5aQuFUFJluxjewJJj4J7rzbqxrx3Y48lYtskGPVXyXp6CEIHqss3WTeE0XXlXas4EleUrg-PXE5/s320/P1112187.JPG" border="0" /></a> </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">More pictures from the train: </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg3b36XMEM6JzCW7EFB_bmW_qPsFmifT2T5Qtc3mUf50uVFdvKv0uTegv9zUmMyVX5Yqwt1f0zWeFRMBR-yH6Dij7M2ply8lUBKpoCkkqdGuiw6MhFS-wE6t55BKt4cXuNABRrd_3cDkpEU/s1600-h/P1112201.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg3b36XMEM6JzCW7EFB_bmW_qPsFmifT2T5Qtc3mUf50uVFdvKv0uTegv9zUmMyVX5Yqwt1f0zWeFRMBR-yH6Dij7M2ply8lUBKpoCkkqdGuiw6MhFS-wE6t55BKt4cXuNABRrd_3cDkpEU/s320/P1112201.JPG" border="0" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjmk_pMZ-wfypUZRMoO-lze6z0AC5IZBLVfMYOLRgdSv2fkdAF3DsNxMtFd2Xa6ksSCb_BFsGfmUevLgu5T-IeddslMf2NLJ-W-SswFE3VxXh4PJIT0q0rDyYXqWiYD-S9L3oA9bpSv9q0P/s1600-h/P1112202.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjmk_pMZ-wfypUZRMoO-lze6z0AC5IZBLVfMYOLRgdSv2fkdAF3DsNxMtFd2Xa6ksSCb_BFsGfmUevLgu5T-IeddslMf2NLJ-W-SswFE3VxXh4PJIT0q0rDyYXqWiYD-S9L3oA9bpSv9q0P/s320/P1112202.JPG" border="0" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">In this one town in the middle of nowhere, there was a steam train just hanging out. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"> <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjPqTTWgd_ODbEy25jYiTCnYp2q4SDQIqFUUeGkD3lRMMjj2lo603jGx0zfVv4lqqP_sux6MFiKPTI2ixYSyfxF-_J4LiXb2pWBM3Mr5qcLi9DicpsNX2pIPEieUEfl_T-4R-UiA9nUnhQK/s1600-h/P1112210.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjPqTTWgd_ODbEy25jYiTCnYp2q4SDQIqFUUeGkD3lRMMjj2lo603jGx0zfVv4lqqP_sux6MFiKPTI2ixYSyfxF-_J4LiXb2pWBM3Mr5qcLi9DicpsNX2pIPEieUEfl_T-4R-UiA9nUnhQK/s320/P1112210.JPG" border="0" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">I don't know if it was a monument, a train just sitting there, or something that was actually used from time to time, but it looked like it was in great condition.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEji2mNJns-_42AdhPAxqMrXpreviuhlk0CS5G7ipe-cwQ0Sw_57pGK5UVBClKsLpH1v9fOB91D5c7wrNiAxzvtvdg_gBLN3LAndcL2mH3INRUPyaho9k_Cq7CIBmRTK7yyGyKTQKOeMf87k/s1600-h/P1112221.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEji2mNJns-_42AdhPAxqMrXpreviuhlk0CS5G7ipe-cwQ0Sw_57pGK5UVBClKsLpH1v9fOB91D5c7wrNiAxzvtvdg_gBLN3LAndcL2mH3INRUPyaho9k_Cq7CIBmRTK7yyGyKTQKOeMf87k/s320/P1112221.JPG" border="0" /></a> </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"> <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiYqugySFUnIMdcQ4H9-Z6BuvD76Tj1UZg9Zpmh4TpJZ9usk-3-bVomRRqeENd90dngero0inJ5lR9ndKOcortQ1SA2e5d_KS54iVLL-ZTVVLs0EtEmb0GWZA081B4WIEa6OkdVfyUbPGeC/s1600-h/P1112223.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiYqugySFUnIMdcQ4H9-Z6BuvD76Tj1UZg9Zpmh4TpJZ9usk-3-bVomRRqeENd90dngero0inJ5lR9ndKOcortQ1SA2e5d_KS54iVLL-ZTVVLs0EtEmb0GWZA081B4WIEa6OkdVfyUbPGeC/s320/P1112223.JPG" border="0" /></a> </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Here is a shot from Shirojiri station. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"> <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi8ZTSZEtv93AvHAamDqG4rsWmT54K2ZXk9dQ9HHA7Q3JM4yQ9MDWJ8CrPT9jf4dU6T5X-GfM5158WmPfPACk4PpGeydX_-snlYaN-TUb8nubd92thnvlMmqfEQ2HCn8sIw1mhIBPRONYQR/s1600-h/P1112232.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi8ZTSZEtv93AvHAamDqG4rsWmT54K2ZXk9dQ9HHA7Q3JM4yQ9MDWJ8CrPT9jf4dU6T5X-GfM5158WmPfPACk4PpGeydX_-snlYaN-TUb8nubd92thnvlMmqfEQ2HCn8sIw1mhIBPRONYQR/s320/P1112232.JPG" border="0" /></a> </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"> There was barely enough time for a hot meal, so I enjoyed the local delicacy of Soba.<br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhPRmOjek-wbAgA815TYO1qV8zCB2JTXKdyhpxc6tQVU8fBnN8cc5PbWyP9Cq7-GpJW39t2swX474Jm6xR1oqjOh8faz8I-x3LIOfJkPtUQVAz_vEcjrVce-9fQAMctRoDbKFZinQuPITmB/s1600-h/P1112235.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhPRmOjek-wbAgA815TYO1qV8zCB2JTXKdyhpxc6tQVU8fBnN8cc5PbWyP9Cq7-GpJW39t2swX474Jm6xR1oqjOh8faz8I-x3LIOfJkPtUQVAz_vEcjrVce-9fQAMctRoDbKFZinQuPITmB/s320/P1112235.JPG" border="0" /></a> </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">It was without a doubt, the best soba ever. After that, I darted back to the station. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"> <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhMEA1r1eeBSZbCEUQPOStCRjVPCJ08JU8AbB9dRcHTbnkDc-gBWeutOSD1hUIYjsvJpNar2528HPxLlCr_4FFF0wrX-l3hasXSwG0dXP4QKvPpZMCuZQiph5ajD_wWt_HMnOz9U-TESESY/s1600-h/P1112236.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhMEA1r1eeBSZbCEUQPOStCRjVPCJ08JU8AbB9dRcHTbnkDc-gBWeutOSD1hUIYjsvJpNar2528HPxLlCr_4FFF0wrX-l3hasXSwG0dXP4QKvPpZMCuZQiph5ajD_wWt_HMnOz9U-TESESY/s320/P1112236.JPG" border="0" /></a> </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">It was getting dark fast.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgkuX80itq2uHYRpxhel0DjbgFu9tmnJRgA-z1JDBsN9pDnJ8HCeDdl9L_A4Safr4uY5CpG0DbvTf06TV0w5_Cb9remGIAYCkK2Slb438Ivm5aEZvnwkaVWYuFp_4e48wKiVapGd3u3Dvig/s1600-h/P1112140.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgkuX80itq2uHYRpxhel0DjbgFu9tmnJRgA-z1JDBsN9pDnJ8HCeDdl9L_A4Safr4uY5CpG0DbvTf06TV0w5_Cb9remGIAYCkK2Slb438Ivm5aEZvnwkaVWYuFp_4e48wKiVapGd3u3Dvig/s320/P1112140.JPG" border="0" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">My camera might be nice, but there is nothing I could do about the glare from the lights inside the car. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"> <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh4713jDpQnEvQk7z4bj4ADSoNp0xYD6hIsmsEDVgdWtgof_elU5aeKuqorZT5LQ5aSkJzhR0JNampyaqaYc5V2ifH64fhgYdfOMhYhF3fz4aJJ6pESqtt0riBNFUeImKGezvo5cvsCzP4L/s1600-h/P1112245.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh4713jDpQnEvQk7z4bj4ADSoNp0xYD6hIsmsEDVgdWtgof_elU5aeKuqorZT5LQ5aSkJzhR0JNampyaqaYc5V2ifH64fhgYdfOMhYhF3fz4aJJ6pESqtt0riBNFUeImKGezvo5cvsCzP4L/s320/P1112245.JPG" border="0" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">But here at a stop you can see how snowy it was. This was really mountainous and very far from anything. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"> <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEio9Ehys3gGHgzIvaCXwDUOJNgjeB8JIV_pZmgiuSQ7wx0FZo_uKFY38BNu9HMvTRsNyOgZqYKQVfeJ3oOTvDyp2g9mNV0W4IQIpdTDmiuzdIb4uJ2z5a_Vmp46xdTNQdj1vqfBFPvM-YXE/s1600-h/P1112248.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEio9Ehys3gGHgzIvaCXwDUOJNgjeB8JIV_pZmgiuSQ7wx0FZo_uKFY38BNu9HMvTRsNyOgZqYKQVfeJ3oOTvDyp2g9mNV0W4IQIpdTDmiuzdIb4uJ2z5a_Vmp46xdTNQdj1vqfBFPvM-YXE/s320/P1112248.JPG" border="0" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">I don't know where or what this is, but I kind of liked this picture. It almost looked like a castle outpost or maybe a small castle itself. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjBlPRT8t7f1ODVX1kC6aTaiHnf98Q3Lx0vjJ1tiuSkjMzDUGMYxNFGTxTL1TAOBmD3OuMxxF3QAz9nL2T22bDUpnaLiEcgix39b7nODH1cj1SnOdni7ohwjRxyiZEZxnmxm184zjJNZSiR/s1600-h/P1112251.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjBlPRT8t7f1ODVX1kC6aTaiHnf98Q3Lx0vjJ1tiuSkjMzDUGMYxNFGTxTL1TAOBmD3OuMxxF3QAz9nL2T22bDUpnaLiEcgix39b7nODH1cj1SnOdni7ohwjRxyiZEZxnmxm184zjJNZSiR/s320/P1112251.JPG" border="0" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">After that, my camera was useless. I couldn't see anything anyways. It was an amazing trip and I hope I'll have time to share my stories and pictures.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"></div>Keithhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04453377662997268519noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7765297090724156356.post-69859736469147892352009-01-22T01:49:00.000+09:002009-01-22T18:44:33.133+09:00Last day of the trip.My thoughts and photos are all scattered from this trip. I want to write about all that happened, but that would take ages. I think I'll start right now at the end. When viewing them later, it will make more sense, but now it seems odd. Anyways, here is the last day, which was riding from Nagoya to home.<br /><span style="font-weight: bold;"><br /><br />The last day, Nagoya to Tokyo: The entire Chuo line.<span style="font-weight: bold;"><span style="font-weight: bold;"><span style="font-weight: bold;"><span style="font-weight: bold;"><br /></span></span></span></span></span>My closest station is on the Chuo line and I ride it almost every day, but it goes all the way to Nagoya, which is really far. Here's where I stopped and what trains I rode.<span style="font-weight: bold;"><span style="font-weight: bold;"><span style="font-weight: bold;"><span style="font-weight: bold;"><span style="font-weight: bold;"><br /><br /></span></span></span></span></span>My first train:<span style="font-weight: bold;"><span style="font-weight: bold;"><span style="font-weight: bold;"><span style="font-weight: bold;"><span style="font-weight: bold;"><br /></span></span></span></span></span><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh2Ltb9Dqe4f9mRO7Sfp9kzG3_RomO6L4_96bRlcQnCu2lllKrzLirJ7cGPcajyrKdbe45_bFmIPwcWdd2gw-U0sbcOow8B0yHkoN0mzBSSPW5i7jBy26Aur9G5NtAVslq7DtFn2cTiikq4/s1600-h/P1112097.JPG"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh2Ltb9Dqe4f9mRO7Sfp9kzG3_RomO6L4_96bRlcQnCu2lllKrzLirJ7cGPcajyrKdbe45_bFmIPwcWdd2gw-U0sbcOow8B0yHkoN0mzBSSPW5i7jBy26Aur9G5NtAVslq7DtFn2cTiikq4/s400/P1112097.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5290451987749690370" border="0" /></a><br />This says "Nagoya"<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1UELfwgdHyn1AMqh56U3RDKnpYG6BcKr2rN8eCbh8OgPDbwQy6QPcQ1vpGfQ_yzqqOxS1aAkcKS5smiekY8FdODgCzicBJFasLfpYl-tCFIw61CTv8-sICcYLxijOxU7MnEA97KFY5LnT/s1600-h/P1112098.JPG"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 300px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1UELfwgdHyn1AMqh56U3RDKnpYG6BcKr2rN8eCbh8OgPDbwQy6QPcQ1vpGfQ_yzqqOxS1aAkcKS5smiekY8FdODgCzicBJFasLfpYl-tCFIw61CTv8-sICcYLxijOxU7MnEA97KFY5LnT/s400/P1112098.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5290451865265898546" border="0" /></a><br />I changed trains at Nakatsugawa. There was about 1/2 hour before my train left.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjIz6DjjmIZcIc5GxpkOUYwZcCAvQxR0S8TkTWTbc4a1FawzVEmZmw6ZrdomLczsmWv3T3sRnb-suwSZUez37T8oZUffVStBOuBQsgViGqewfNmvbOHj9koI7K2PP49k6iX-hiVeUqTH8R5/s1600-h/P1112156.JPG"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjIz6DjjmIZcIc5GxpkOUYwZcCAvQxR0S8TkTWTbc4a1FawzVEmZmw6ZrdomLczsmWv3T3sRnb-suwSZUez37T8oZUffVStBOuBQsgViGqewfNmvbOHj9koI7K2PP49k6iX-hiVeUqTH8R5/s400/P1112156.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5290451857372026450" border="0" /></a><br />The train I got on:<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhGBSMEU6TevMbOYsOagBJ6VLbZ-ciJczq4asigclVxEJmLRGLPT-UH3asZaxG892ytyqeehLMo3_BMr2lC3Qekw1XZoMsbJL_VnUz034imhCNoEU6rdjzo-Fiw5Sq_0TxVSWVTlGApITYY/s1600-h/P1112163.JPG"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhGBSMEU6TevMbOYsOagBJ6VLbZ-ciJczq4asigclVxEJmLRGLPT-UH3asZaxG892ytyqeehLMo3_BMr2lC3Qekw1XZoMsbJL_VnUz034imhCNoEU6rdjzo-Fiw5Sq_0TxVSWVTlGApITYY/s400/P1112163.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5290451853024600162" border="0" /></a><br />I had to change trains at Nagiso.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgQw_kG0eJeRqmqEZ9kIhtxtosFdg7HRDjghoMt0Mm3zTE-XxbPwfwKsnVoUmnK4MeJxrMlxPBeecSn4z_6H4sDuBPDDLeAwRCCxSUIOX7weeXIObAGyZZNT7TP9sy5BmEJp0QzX3IEb380/s1600-h/P1112183.JPG"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgQw_kG0eJeRqmqEZ9kIhtxtosFdg7HRDjghoMt0Mm3zTE-XxbPwfwKsnVoUmnK4MeJxrMlxPBeecSn4z_6H4sDuBPDDLeAwRCCxSUIOX7weeXIObAGyZZNT7TP9sy5BmEJp0QzX3IEb380/s400/P1112183.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5290451849688846898" border="0" /></a><br />Which led me to this train.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgARVfqPEia3quRslBThED5PuWGmgXUjDzFhAYpbsNxG2xN6n0y_XeuDfrXkdL08JLwfMMHpl6DhsjFnSrb4wKW7FR3xEh2-kybXgsTpkvqOfb0-J2AfSr79ovF6AzVirFzQklvWePN6rsF/s1600-h/P1112191.JPG"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgARVfqPEia3quRslBThED5PuWGmgXUjDzFhAYpbsNxG2xN6n0y_XeuDfrXkdL08JLwfMMHpl6DhsjFnSrb4wKW7FR3xEh2-kybXgsTpkvqOfb0-J2AfSr79ovF6AzVirFzQklvWePN6rsF/s400/P1112191.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5290451850104546290" border="0" /></a><br />This train was abysmal. Not the train itself, but it was full of some really creepy people. Also, because of the cold and how small the towns were, not every station had a ticket window, so people could only use the front doors of the train. Both the front and back cart smelled pretty odd, but the worst was the air was so thick, it was like breathing soup. Kind of ironic that in the mountains, with incredibly fresh air, I was stuck in a train breathing something awful.<br /><br />I was happy to get to Shiroji.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj9ltqE6sccvzmvGv3WwSzaGKHdIqc_MwhFgneMjRtjusz8Vs_D8fYO3Mc1Ca0iG46p14A6QvfHygbR7QX8NSgYMJto4tb3ltwW9Ei0aga7M5hkkjZ8vFkf8sgL3lkVg_fwTH3WWmW2bRZW/s1600-h/P1112230.JPG"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj9ltqE6sccvzmvGv3WwSzaGKHdIqc_MwhFgneMjRtjusz8Vs_D8fYO3Mc1Ca0iG46p14A6QvfHygbR7QX8NSgYMJto4tb3ltwW9Ei0aga7M5hkkjZ8vFkf8sgL3lkVg_fwTH3WWmW2bRZW/s400/P1112230.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5290451057592183666" border="0" /></a><br />The train I got on, I was at the longest. I had a 1/2 hour break in which I ate and that's it. I rushed back to make the train, so I didn't get a picture of it.<br /><br />FYI.. Shiojiri with that kanji literally means "Salty butt" (塩=しお=shio means salt 尻=しり or in this case じり= butt). They had this lovely place that served mountain soba (buckwheat noodles) that were really good and the people were really friendly.<br /><br />The train took a brief rest stop in Kofu.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjYB9twm-gATVB4ILsZQ_BZ9zbfNfJEGr4knxiymUvr8hquacr0U_-jD97be4IY9RSO8jkzMjdr0ZbeSMGuyqGCWlJEQHhZcTt5LGmZbARg-T5GIDRZricrqK06rtuvwtpRLPHzAxMZWIOI/s1600-h/P1112249.JPG"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjYB9twm-gATVB4ILsZQ_BZ9zbfNfJEGr4knxiymUvr8hquacr0U_-jD97be4IY9RSO8jkzMjdr0ZbeSMGuyqGCWlJEQHhZcTt5LGmZbARg-T5GIDRZricrqK06rtuvwtpRLPHzAxMZWIOI/s400/P1112249.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5290451050257446194" border="0" /></a><br />This was about an hour and a half on the same train, so I was pretty sick of it by then. I grabbed a beer and a snack. That beer was one of the most satisfying ever.<br /><br /><br />Then I got to Otsuki after another hour and a half.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgSGRgg-rQY1xYpiVtxB0RNwFDycEoHhOv4Fj7ihfppCG1OmUgqUufvS6Lz1qPe7DbFK7vQgSgsAjWxla2gyB44W1RQXAsTTA4NUOzzb8JojllZ8uK3m3-fQqhBEe3hRNnfvLMPldzX1_kj/s1600-h/P1112264.JPG"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgSGRgg-rQY1xYpiVtxB0RNwFDycEoHhOv4Fj7ihfppCG1OmUgqUufvS6Lz1qPe7DbFK7vQgSgsAjWxla2gyB44W1RQXAsTTA4NUOzzb8JojllZ8uK3m3-fQqhBEe3hRNnfvLMPldzX1_kj/s400/P1112264.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5290451026074676594" border="0" /></a><br />Otsuki is the last stop on the normal Chuo maps that I see every day, and it was also a normal Chuo train so I didn't bother to take a picture. I could have gone straight home, but near the end, every stop the doors opened as the train sat there for a minute or so and let in freezing cold air. Then after we got moving, the heat would crank up and it would be boiling and I began to look forward to the doors opening again. Then the process repeated. It was making me kind of ill, plus 3 hours on a train and one minute to change made me a bit sick of moving, so we stopped at good ol' Tachikawa.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh3hpb2508uEnHv1OY5b6uG-VH8asKCGMOemyVjk4LvpCDq1ZV7CDakQqAlgH7Kj4bbxUfT3NTbe1HhmOKu3iMVjPFSGyYenvUkkfgy3b5ooTjf6LUT_jVk2oxkDmysij5lwKnaHWajH-OU/s1600-h/P1112267.JPG"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh3hpb2508uEnHv1OY5b6uG-VH8asKCGMOemyVjk4LvpCDq1ZV7CDakQqAlgH7Kj4bbxUfT3NTbe1HhmOKu3iMVjPFSGyYenvUkkfgy3b5ooTjf6LUT_jVk2oxkDmysij5lwKnaHWajH-OU/s400/P1112267.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5290451016882550418" border="0" /></a><br />Next stop for any logical human would have been home, but I wanted to go ALL the way down the chuo line, which ends in Tokyo station.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEimbAAP2AZnyVD4X857PMW0fnCuP1yJ0EBE5TLOEQWL5ikUSIM5Si35UNhQcG_ptIoRtdc3oH-d0hWxLfTOvYERwcv7JOeiubVqqnBg1THosdEsTG-rh0akgN92a39po7XbKITTWj7HZEWT/s1600-h/P1112287.JPG"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 300px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEimbAAP2AZnyVD4X857PMW0fnCuP1yJ0EBE5TLOEQWL5ikUSIM5Si35UNhQcG_ptIoRtdc3oH-d0hWxLfTOvYERwcv7JOeiubVqqnBg1THosdEsTG-rh0akgN92a39po7XbKITTWj7HZEWT/s400/P1112287.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5290451017000536530" border="0" /></a><br />And that was it. Starting at about 12:20 and ending at about 10:10ish, that was a long train ride. It was an amazing trip, and I hope to write more about it (and in a more logical fashion) later, but I have to organize my pictures and thoughts any more.Keithhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04453377662997268519noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7765297090724156356.post-70063054894690744762009-01-16T17:42:00.003+09:002009-01-16T18:03:49.874+09:00Moving in a month and a half.Looks like I AM moving. I've still got a month and a half, but it looks like I'm going to have to say goodbye to this apartment.<br /><br />To make a really long story short, I moved in with 2 Japanese people. Apparently, my name never technically got on the lease. Now, they're moving out. If I want to get on the lease, I have to A) sign a new contract B) find 2 new people C) pay a huge fee for the new contract, and D) get a Japanese co-signer.<br /><br />A and B would be no problem. C is an obstacle, because I can't afford it, but if I find 2 people willing to pay for it,then it would work out.<br /><br />D presents a problem, and one that foreigners often stumble upon. A co-signer that resides in Japan is often required in order to rent houses. Since I wasn't on the lease, it wasn't needed, and until this afternoon my understanding was we needed ONE co-signer for the apartment, not one for everybody.<br /><br />Given enough time and possibly money, I might have been able to get a co-signer, and if international co-signers were an option, I could easily get one, but they have to live in Japan.<br /><br />But, the point is, I have to move. Nothing I can do about it. Oh well, I've got a month and a half, and it's been fun living in this apartment. Time to move on.Keithhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04453377662997268519noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7765297090724156356.post-66104301506293220232009-01-15T21:57:00.004+09:002009-01-15T22:36:58.132+09:00I might have to move soon.I'm going to either find two roommates or move out in the next 3 days. It's quite stressful, because I want to stay here, but I can't if I don't find 2 roommates.<br /><br />I knew my roommates were moving, but there are so many other things I have to deal with that I wouldn't have to put up with in America, it's really frustrating. I'm most certainly aware this is not America, but I was surprised at how different room sharing is in Japan from a legal aspect. The deal is if I stay, I have to sign a new contract and get a new co-signer who has to be Japanese with a gaurentour that is within Japan.. I was expecting that but what caught me off guard is the new roommates would have to pay a fee for the new contract which will be somewhere between one month's rent (about $1410 total) and $7000. One month is acceptable (and affordable), but the higher end of that spectrum is way too much to bear and I'm not sure I can find two people willing to pay $3500.<br /><br />But, if I don't find 2 people, I have another place to stay. The problem is I won't have my own room, but it will be in a pretty nice place and probably only temporary.<br /><br />The most frustrating thing is I'm graduating in May, and I'm not sure what my plans are after that, so I might find a great job somewhere else. The odds are I'm staying in this city, but I can't say for sure.Keithhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04453377662997268519noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7765297090724156356.post-71181827858546663592009-01-12T00:02:00.002+09:002009-01-12T01:11:58.002+09:00Back from my tripI JUST got back from my trip and I have hundreds of pictures and stories. I had an incredible time thanks to all my friends and my amazing travel companion. I will write about it later, but for now I need to rest.<br /><br /><br />Edit: here's a preview.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEim5VBDbhjf2_P08UZGHJm-s3nvL8bFSjuj9QWh628wuk8kAo4k8zJdmJCf0-EGNgHdZg075BJud6OPR_7nZIfp9MrRX9Bs3170CChig9jOAmltQ649ruo3DW1uDzMFYLp3c7y2Y5Fbau71/s1600-h/Nara+resized.jpg"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEim5VBDbhjf2_P08UZGHJm-s3nvL8bFSjuj9QWh628wuk8kAo4k8zJdmJCf0-EGNgHdZg075BJud6OPR_7nZIfp9MrRX9Bs3170CChig9jOAmltQ649ruo3DW1uDzMFYLp3c7y2Y5Fbau71/s400/Nara+resized.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5290069397178554674" border="0" /></a>Keithhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04453377662997268519noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7765297090724156356.post-15513734580354693872009-01-05T02:10:00.002+09:002009-01-05T02:41:55.735+09:00Kichijoji and Hard Off again (important note at the end)Today, I went to Kichijoji yet again. You my notice I go there a lot. It's because it's close and I like it. Also a lot of my friends like to hang out there. We went to this delicious Thai restaurant called Peppermint Cafe. They have a lunch special for 980 yen you get an entree, a salad bar, unlimited rice, and unlimited soup and for 200 yen more you get drinks (iced/hot coffee, orange juice, apple juice) and dessert. The entree was good but not great, but the salad bar was delicious and one of the two soups was incredible. I'm not sure how many bowls I had, but it was one too many.<br /><br />After that, my friends and I went to Lush, a cosmetics store. Everyone besides me and Monchi is a girl. I got a chance to take a picture of Monchi but they told me to stop, because apparently you can't do that in Lush.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh8fQpxaNDQQZD0ovr0q8467FkW8w614XsJkkJNUAziCbTXzNBT3wpyvicOgGKgMdwmEenIvajwj0H6KrXxRDvaOJHp5BNEsi3AhHK77L816O-g6iccnRh2Xh_hz9Ir1zgXqZNX407La-tH/s1600-h/P1040845.JPG"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh8fQpxaNDQQZD0ovr0q8467FkW8w614XsJkkJNUAziCbTXzNBT3wpyvicOgGKgMdwmEenIvajwj0H6KrXxRDvaOJHp5BNEsi3AhHK77L816O-g6iccnRh2Xh_hz9Ir1zgXqZNX407La-tH/s400/P1040845.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5287487578019037138" border="0" /></a><br />Monchi was wearing his new suit. It kinda blended with the background. Hopefully, you will see a lot more of Monchi in the future.<br /><br />After Lush and a bit of walking, we saw a marching band randomly in front of a department store. Apparently it was the 35th anniversary, but I wasn't sure if it was the 35th anniversary of that store or the company, as that building does not look 30 years old.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhxLli9rTIAqTzDiB4aMZMnXu7CLkK2LcUcv81ny9ceDBGv1JssUOJOA0Y6HdVl5QYWxumoIJ-u6RTx82gTRvZJisA8rxveJrDzzjdN66wnpRIpXWYQ6NdHwmahLbCvx4NjK2pSHqPEXsAw/s1600-h/P1040847.JPG"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhxLli9rTIAqTzDiB4aMZMnXu7CLkK2LcUcv81ny9ceDBGv1JssUOJOA0Y6HdVl5QYWxumoIJ-u6RTx82gTRvZJisA8rxveJrDzzjdN66wnpRIpXWYQ6NdHwmahLbCvx4NjK2pSHqPEXsAw/s400/P1040847.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5287487573369616450" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhRD_ELB2zS81Qnnd4X1pBqm_BlA32Z-L-8sC58oA-pMmHRM1ozttHfOCWPvOds_SkeSnzRqD-PsVgZFXodQBeKIDPo5LKzicq5DxisuMgaWM2tfMQ4g1Q3KTHGipg11oqesuCWdn5_3-Xm/s1600-h/P1040848.JPG"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhRD_ELB2zS81Qnnd4X1pBqm_BlA32Z-L-8sC58oA-pMmHRM1ozttHfOCWPvOds_SkeSnzRqD-PsVgZFXodQBeKIDPo5LKzicq5DxisuMgaWM2tfMQ4g1Q3KTHGipg11oqesuCWdn5_3-Xm/s400/P1040848.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5287487574290528738" border="0" /></a><br />After they finished, someone contacted me about a find at Hard Off yesterday. As I said, Hard Off is a used electronics store in the outskirts of Mitaka (and many other places). The find was a HUGE TV for 3150 yen (about $35). They said it worked but was a little odd, but for a price like that, it's hard to beat, so we got it and brought it back home.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhlIhmdtp8SPGR2q9ztftqo5uW-mhLZ9ru21nt9kWJBt2wpKDsIlYsOXk58bWPuZB02x21k73l9iuISi_hFFzjWPtTFJbavMy1Nq9G7mSoYkIKC2fPxAl8GyWx2IV1g9razmlUSE7TL76ks/s1600-h/P1040856.JPG"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhlIhmdtp8SPGR2q9ztftqo5uW-mhLZ9ru21nt9kWJBt2wpKDsIlYsOXk58bWPuZB02x21k73l9iuISi_hFFzjWPtTFJbavMy1Nq9G7mSoYkIKC2fPxAl8GyWx2IV1g9razmlUSE7TL76ks/s400/P1040856.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5287487568313968354" border="0" /></a><br />It worked but it sure was odd. At first, occasionally the sides would discolor and then return to normal for seemingly no reason. It's the same type of discoloration you get when a magnet gets near a TV, but it kept correcting itself after it happened. Then after watching it for a while it seemed to stop doing that. Even so, 3150 for a TV that big with an odd glitch like that, it's still a good deal.<br /><br />And that box on top... That's an "AU box", which I don't fully understand, but it plays DVDs and TV. The TV comes straight from the internet, but looks flawless, so I'm wondering what the deal is. Is it TV over IP or just some odd modified cable style setup? Anyways, besides a 2 second lag when changing channels it works fine. Apparently the AU box also allows you to 'rent' movies, get pay channels and something when you hook up an AU phone. Since there wasn't an AU phone (mine's Softbank) we couldn't test that out. Anyways, it was working fine as is.<br /><br /><br />Important note:<br />Today I also bot a 18きっぷ(kippu) or 18 ticket. What that means is it's 5 days of unlimited JR train usage. It's called 18きっぷ because when you turn 18, that winter you are supposed to travel. With this I intend on going to Osaka, Kyoto, Nara, Nagoya, and places in between. What this means to you, my readers, is first off I'm going to have a lot of odd stories to post. Secondly, I might not post much between the 6th and the 12th, as I'll be busy doing things. This trip is a large part of why I bought my new camera, so you can bet I'm going to take a lot of pictures.<br /><br />I'm really excited about this trip, as I really don't leave the Tokyo metropolitan area very often. It may not look so on a map, but Japan is a huge country and there is a lot to see out there. I'm really excited that I get this opportunity to do this. A few more things are the 18きっぷ lasts between December 10th and January 20th and costs 11,500 yen, or about $125. I can use any JR train, but if I use a shinkansen (bullet train) or special train, I have to pay extra. What this means in reality is a one way trip to Osaka is going to effectively cost me 2300 yen ($25) when a single express train ride would cost 14,460, or over $150. Of course, the trip will take around 8 hours instead of 3, but even 8 hours on local trains would cost me about 9000 yen.<br /><br />Anyways, to make a long story short, I'm going on a trip, I might not right much, and it's hardly costing me anything for transportation.Keithhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04453377662997268519noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7765297090724156356.post-33225269288342674502009-01-03T21:35:00.004+09:002009-01-03T21:59:36.586+09:00This site and some quick comments on today.Wow! I've been doing a great job of meeting or exceeding my goals for this site. It's easy now that I'm between semesters and I'm finding new things to say, but I'm afraid it might slip once I get back in school and get into a routine. Anyways, I've been doing better with shorter posts, so here's one more.<br /><br />Today I walked to Hard Off in Mitaka. Hard Off is a great used electronics store and hopefully on a slow weekend I'll write more of it, but it's my favorite used electronics store. I found better prices for cameras at Fujiya camera (where I bought mine), but Hard Off has an amazing "Junk" section.<br /><br />The Hard Off in Mitaka is about 2 miles from my house, so a walk there and back with a friend makes for a nice afternoon and some good exercise.<br /><br />On the way there, I saw this:<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjvWKMN7dIve0wBGjd8PPrq5njmbBhJP8G3jQRUPyQI9SU1qaoNg80oR8W_NAKn670yXNMXbLt8chyY_zbGV5j_oGmE8RgoyG8nGTbYtXOL789yAYYkIlR0y3V6klXX4_WigfP_D6Jk3MNq/s1600-h/P1030839.JPG"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjvWKMN7dIve0wBGjd8PPrq5njmbBhJP8G3jQRUPyQI9SU1qaoNg80oR8W_NAKn670yXNMXbLt8chyY_zbGV5j_oGmE8RgoyG8nGTbYtXOL789yAYYkIlR0y3V6klXX4_WigfP_D6Jk3MNq/s400/P1030839.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5287047494692549842" border="0" /></a><br />I don't usually post Engrish pictures here, but this one stopped me in my tracks. Here's one of the many banners below this building under construction.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhvCbk7l5P6utB-1Atl33A4UTuHEjkAxk94OynlwQEP4AEMKiEpbtPOZwT5NslVpB66o-8HVR9pn6QpA0pqJuYBtph7cO-UvCBAUrVpFz9JiecIdzST7s56naVlqphHzUOZ7zC-AluACrNG/s1600-h/P1030842.JPG"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhvCbk7l5P6utB-1Atl33A4UTuHEjkAxk94OynlwQEP4AEMKiEpbtPOZwT5NslVpB66o-8HVR9pn6QpA0pqJuYBtph7cO-UvCBAUrVpFz9JiecIdzST7s56naVlqphHzUOZ7zC-AluACrNG/s400/P1030842.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5287047493254952978" border="0" /></a><br />Wow. The ironic thing is the building in progress seemed to be entirely concrete and drywall. Oh well.<br /><br />Another thing that I saw that pleased me was this job application sign.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhyoPz0DQ6CV29UE3gkReHaax3f0LaEWm1MJdDuOM9V4pvpO6W7FmFRIxMzpEQRR2kZj9Av-dn6rtAG7lJmsU3N9MCt9C6Ra2e7rSZMfG28f3j4Mk5kA9RRgW5MOu7eJaM0Ac8SpvCOPRfn/s1600-h/P1030843.JPG"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 300px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhyoPz0DQ6CV29UE3gkReHaax3f0LaEWm1MJdDuOM9V4pvpO6W7FmFRIxMzpEQRR2kZj9Av-dn6rtAG7lJmsU3N9MCt9C6Ra2e7rSZMfG28f3j4Mk5kA9RRgW5MOu7eJaM0Ac8SpvCOPRfn/s400/P1030843.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5287047487189217698" border="0" /></a><br />It was written in both Japanese and English and while the sign clearly stated you needed to be able to communicate in Japanese (and said 'experiments' instead of 'experience'), it showed that they were open to hiring foreigners. I have no desire to work in a restaurant, but if I did and I owned a bike, I would be sure to apply. I wonder if it was because of the proximity to ICU, an international school only a mile or so from this restaurant. Whatever the reason, the attitude of this establishment made me pleased.<br /><br />Another unrelated note is my laptop screen hinge seems to be dying. It was not working right today so I super-glued it, and surprisingly it worked! I know it's only a temporary solution, but this computer, after over 2 and a half years of daily use, is showing it's age. When I get a REAL job, I'll probably invest in a new one.Keithhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04453377662997268519noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7765297090724156356.post-49119134990682015922009-01-03T20:01:00.004+09:002009-01-03T21:34:55.785+09:00So, you're moving to Japan...It's almost a new semester and that means there will be a new crop of people coming to Japan.<br /> I thought I'd try to dispense some advice to those coming. I'll try to be brief:<br /><br />Before you move:<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Don't come here because you like anime/manga. </span>Japan is a country, not a comic book. If all you know about Japan you learned from cartoons, do some real research and then think about it. If that last sentience made you twitch when I used the word 'cartoons', then you are better off not coming here. Full disclosure, I used to like anime and I love Ghibli films, but it should not be a primary influence/reason for coming here.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Learn SOME Japanese and be prepared to USE IT!</span> Could you imagine you working at your job and someone came in speaking Japanese expecting you to know it? Probably not. It's the same here, don't assume everyone knows what you're saying. Learn some basic phrases and try them out. There is a BIG language gap, and sometimes it's rough, but the more you know, the better you'll have it.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Visit before you move. </span>If you can, check out Japan before you move there. Would you buy a car without test driving? Would you buy a house without checking out the inside? Why would moving be any different. If you only intend on being in Japan for a short period, then it's not so important, but if you want to stay, visit.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Japan is not what you expect.</span> Japan is nothing like you've read in comics or seen in movies and anime. Just like America is nothing like Full House or The O.C. Japan is NOT a perfect country and if you move here, you will be able to see the flaws. It is not a fantasy, it is a reality. Don't get me wrong, I love it here, but I know Japan is a severely flawed country and Tokyo is far from a perfect city, but it's the best place I've lived despite the flaws. If you have a fantasy image of Japan, it will get smashed into a million pieces. Be prepared for that.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Japan is different from your home country.</span> Unless you grew up in Japan, you will counter many cultural differences. Some may be pleasant surprises, some might not. When you can't do or get something you're used to, deal with it. That's life here. Beware of the phrase "Where I'm from." Japan is not where you are not where you are from, so don't expect things to be the same. It sounds obvious, but the first time you try to do something you can't do, you will be frustrated. Deal with it, as that's all you can do. The more you try to live like a native, the easier time you'll have. And on that note...<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">There are a lot of cultural rules. Try to learn them.</span> There are a lot of cultural do's and dont's, and there is a big difference between what is legal and what's socially acceptable. You won't get arrested for drinking beer on the train and loudly talking, but it's rude. Even if you don't care, every time a non-Japanese person makes an ass of themselves, it makes everyone look bad. There are plenty of books on etiquette in Japan, so pick one up or check one out at your library.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Learn about your city.</span> I'm writing this mainly for TUJ students, but if you're anyone moving anywhere in Japan, learn about where it is, what's good to see, what's the best hidden areas, what the local favorite food is, where trains are, how to get around, and so on. Surprises are nice, but knowing the basics are important.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">People will like/dislike you because you're different. Know this.</span> Some people are racist. If you've never dealt with racism, you may very well in Japan. People will treat you differently just because you're not Japanese. Some people will love you just for being a foreigner, some will hate you. There is nothing you can do about it, so just accept it and try to enjoy it when you can.<br /><br />After you move:<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Hang out with natives.</span> Japan is full of Japanese people, so try to befriend them. TUJ's dorms are really nice for meeting people, but everyone at those dorms is a foreigner (besides Aki), so it's not a good way to get integrated into the culture. Try to meet some Japanese people outside of TUJ too, to get a perspective of what locals think and act like. This is a bit harder for people only here a few months because, let's be honest, do you want to befriend someone you'll probably never see 3 months from now?<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Enjoy the food.</span> Japanese food is great, but sometimes scary. Don't ask questions on what you're eating and just try it. You might not like everything, but that's the point of experimenting. The best food I've ever eaten here looks and sounds terrible. Just be brave and try it out!<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Explore your neighborhood.</span> I'm constantly learning stuff about my own neighborhood. Mitaka/Kichijoji is NOT a small place, and I see something new almost every time I go outside of my normal route. There is probably a lot more to your town than between your house and train station. Also, when you have time...<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Leave your neighborhood.</span> Tokyo is a huge city. Explore it. Some parts are great, some parts are pretty bad. I can tell you what I like, but you should find out what's good on your own. And on that note...<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Get out of the tourist spots!</span> I can't stress this enough. There is WAY more to Tokyo than Shinjuku, Shibuya, Harajuku and Roppongi. Those are places where it's very easy to be a foreigner, and I'll admit, they all have positive qualities, but if you spend ALL your time in those areas, you are missing so much and you should really question your motives.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Keep a good sense of humor and an open mind.</span> You will have bad days, you will be in bad situations, and things won't be perfect. You can either get angry or roll with the punches. People will react to you in strange ways and you won't know why. Just deal with it and try to enjoy life with a smile.<br /><br />And probably my most important points...<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Don't ask too many questions.</span> It's great to ask questions! It's a great way to learn, but you will find some things that make NO sense. Don't try to figure everything out, because you'll only get frustrated. Sometimes things are the way they are just because that's how they are and that's how they've been for a long time. Accept things the way they are and don't question it. Some answers you will find in time and some you won't. That's life.<br /><br />And...<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">HAVE FUN!</span> Japan is a great place to live if you can put up with the downsides and enjoy the ups. Cultural and language barriers can be rough, so can social interactions, as the way people interact is quite different, but that's life. Make your time in Japan the best you can, if it's just a few months, a few years, or life.Keithhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04453377662997268519noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7765297090724156356.post-40349099836500756822009-01-03T13:28:00.005+09:002009-01-03T19:52:43.415+09:00FukubukuroYesterday was January 2nd, which means Fukubukro time. Fukubukuro is a grab bag from a Japanese store. I wrote about my adventures last year <a href="http://notjustvisiting.blogspot.com/2008/01/new-years-part-two.html">here</a>, and this year I also went to Shibuya 109, so the story isn't too different, so I'm not going to bore you with the same words, so here are some new pictures and some comments.<br /><br />I went back to the belly of the best. This time I wasn't solo, but I was a bit late. Oh well<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgU6669Tw0JqMdgacrO0Y9IngYgAjfvI15kw-C8qaYNNt-wjUeeXTltfgPqdjh8l3U-RM75KjwDsyoJUCmnOoWtVyv6jCto7NbIlYIqP6RMvimG2izsVE_ZahESEDc6wSZtUtShcM_eHwMw/s1600-h/P1020517.JPG"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgU6669Tw0JqMdgacrO0Y9IngYgAjfvI15kw-C8qaYNNt-wjUeeXTltfgPqdjh8l3U-RM75KjwDsyoJUCmnOoWtVyv6jCto7NbIlYIqP6RMvimG2izsVE_ZahESEDc6wSZtUtShcM_eHwMw/s400/P1020517.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5286921156805387762" border="0" /></a><br />Just like last year, there were plenty of women waving clothes around and plenty of security guards.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiqPcGzZsABxz7lqGzEsOQA8CtNqmcnUVCg-5Biv1VjkIyOl-HMPND2F_9Tr9Z526EWB1_OjvXrYHEyad-7if_m9yjsQ91cE86D7Yz3q18MrxyQ1K5lQtKrwjK2NkV3BQi4LOGGKVeKlcQN/s1600-h/P1020532.JPG"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiqPcGzZsABxz7lqGzEsOQA8CtNqmcnUVCg-5Biv1VjkIyOl-HMPND2F_9Tr9Z526EWB1_OjvXrYHEyad-7if_m9yjsQ91cE86D7Yz3q18MrxyQ1K5lQtKrwjK2NkV3BQi4LOGGKVeKlcQN/s400/P1020532.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5286921161804070594" border="0" /></a><br />Here's someone trying to trade brown hot pants.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi12BopXotdvrA-5dKjlKRTCnvLMx40vuFV2FmizGYccgUd8rbaDuVCnmMzByLRKls42JMyRYi5Udzq3PgijJDYhVibPQTS6jmh77LRe7vIhuQfZgJnHPRn-UfOVMKJwPjAMOGFa_juBDLW/s1600-h/P1020531.JPG"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi12BopXotdvrA-5dKjlKRTCnvLMx40vuFV2FmizGYccgUd8rbaDuVCnmMzByLRKls42JMyRYi5Udzq3PgijJDYhVibPQTS6jmh77LRe7vIhuQfZgJnHPRn-UfOVMKJwPjAMOGFa_juBDLW/s400/P1020531.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5286921165584400882" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjVscHJ_3CoMpQaCWCYYY9kDBGGrD4bnC-okZTcXp6xG40rXTbT8FXmbnQxzNogDLb_gaY-r-hXgxDAnCdd2Mob87PdEI-ywYE6MXFoWIbDkNJBnZavQgmCTn2qQUfzHtCSZaSvYhWJ_Qev/s1600-h/P1020530.JPG"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjVscHJ_3CoMpQaCWCYYY9kDBGGrD4bnC-okZTcXp6xG40rXTbT8FXmbnQxzNogDLb_gaY-r-hXgxDAnCdd2Mob87PdEI-ywYE6MXFoWIbDkNJBnZavQgmCTn2qQUfzHtCSZaSvYhWJ_Qev/s400/P1020530.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5286921160353234946" border="0" /></a><br />This next picture makes the girl look a little like a homeless bag lady.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhR2D-zVUjaUq_KA2ImcF3QDvVyReZM37QOdqM6BfXMFf1vTgOj8g2_GPbCXNFQZLvBxn-kM2jfF8hPB3nAXH0WnvB5HyZEGsbjBO1i3mLCOF6sWevccqm1eC-4-4Oreb3zbXhACgPcjiIx/s1600-h/P1020523.JPG"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhR2D-zVUjaUq_KA2ImcF3QDvVyReZM37QOdqM6BfXMFf1vTgOj8g2_GPbCXNFQZLvBxn-kM2jfF8hPB3nAXH0WnvB5HyZEGsbjBO1i3mLCOF6sWevccqm1eC-4-4Oreb3zbXhACgPcjiIx/s400/P1020523.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5286921156570643666" border="0" /></a><br /><br />I didn't notice it until I got home and looked at the picture, but who are those people standing up there?<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjl0KZHUyjhmkwFnascQxIt90-NJDX7tcqU63jCZLPYzr5OIncnAxvz0F6-kDOlvd6EqGLGUsD6zj30uRR__IMCF0estHVI0vgmFwdHHdMytazBBDYp5Z75oDro4febNklRkh061oFCRFFm/s1600-h/P1020539.JPG"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjl0KZHUyjhmkwFnascQxIt90-NJDX7tcqU63jCZLPYzr5OIncnAxvz0F6-kDOlvd6EqGLGUsD6zj30uRR__IMCF0estHVI0vgmFwdHHdMytazBBDYp5Z75oDro4febNklRkh061oFCRFFm/s400/P1020539.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5286922054080486882" border="0" /></a><br /><br />Anyways, Shibuya was fun, but I actually wanted to buy my own fukubukuro in Akihabara. The more I go there, the less I like it. I enjoy some of what they sell (all the anime porn isn't something I'm looking for, or honestly regular anime either), but I really don't like the people who go there. A combination between sweaty nerds, women in silly outfits looking for attention (Kind of like Shibuya, actually), tourists, and someone looking to get rich from any or all of these people. It's a far stretch from the electronic parts utopia it used to be.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhigzWkvk0hB0G8kh14vr2-IitFNIZZmHtCn1UEODMTUprH6fDZUKga_Ihq2gqZ4tnJPFXNSQTe7IZmPlTZMfJM-7FnyqVwUp_qMzdv2HheplcCN8X5u87FB9Ex3-nmXRU7ePQSP7-JoZPQ/s1600-h/P1020581.JPG"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhigzWkvk0hB0G8kh14vr2-IitFNIZZmHtCn1UEODMTUprH6fDZUKga_Ihq2gqZ4tnJPFXNSQTe7IZmPlTZMfJM-7FnyqVwUp_qMzdv2HheplcCN8X5u87FB9Ex3-nmXRU7ePQSP7-JoZPQ/s400/P1020581.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5286922054519122386" border="0" /></a><br />But, I came for 2 things. A new memory card and a fukubukuro. I went to one of my favorite used game stores, and I got there just at 11 and they weren't open yet. I thought they opened at 10, but I was wrong. When I got there, a small line had already formed, and I got near the end and after less than a minute waiting, I got in. Good thing I didn't wait any longer because the guy up front bought most of the good sets.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgnYWGn1Xlaqc3wlAJ-RlzlSWN43dNAzhfl77DLWn3Y3B6k1r6tt4iy6RiliwtgZE-yi9f1m8gmY-R440KBURz3xM5GsN_G6-DooDlMrZWkkMNj1RqKSZUEONyjAJSfIYP8c46sbT6RjFVY/s1600-h/P1020618.JPG"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgnYWGn1Xlaqc3wlAJ-RlzlSWN43dNAzhfl77DLWn3Y3B6k1r6tt4iy6RiliwtgZE-yi9f1m8gmY-R440KBURz3xM5GsN_G6-DooDlMrZWkkMNj1RqKSZUEONyjAJSfIYP8c46sbT6RjFVY/s400/P1020618.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5286922050133285026" border="0" /></a><br />I ended up with something (a Game Boy set), but I was kind of disappointed when one person bought maybe 1/3 of all that they had. Also, he was kind of bossing the salesman around in English. It's one thing to be pushy in America, but it's another thing to be pushy here in Japan, especially in English. To me, it just came off really rude, also coupled with the fact he bought more than he should have. Well, it is partially the stores fault. They should have said "Limit # per customer" but they didn't. Oh well.<br /><br />I did get a cheap memory card. 1280 yen (about $14 USD these days) for 4 gigs. That's REALLY cheap. Sure it's a no-name brand, but it works, so I'm not complaining.<br /><br />After Akihabara, a friend and I went to Nakano. I don't think I ever wrote much about Nakano, but it's a few stops from my house and I really like it. I showed my friend <a href="http://www.fujiya-camera.co.jp/">Fujiya Camera</a> (which I wrote about <a href="http://notjustvisiting.blogspot.com/2008/12/my-new-camera.html">here</a>). They were tecnically closed, but people were in there rearranging and were nice enough to allow us to take a peek around. I'm not sure if we could have bought something if we wanted to, but we were just looking, so it didn't matter.<br /><br />After that, we went to the lovely Nakano broadway.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgiAhxgk3Wz2ilmQUr4fqAuMC8X7nZ5pupynOrMxfbK-P5XiBRLFENvGVi9SZqXm0kKuOnv47dWSydiNX97Q1cn6RJmilKOWDYjgAFEXJRkRQRxw-nwBuxpP2wLaB_tpGJmiNa3gz3GtSs4/s1600-h/P1020584.JPG"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgiAhxgk3Wz2ilmQUr4fqAuMC8X7nZ5pupynOrMxfbK-P5XiBRLFENvGVi9SZqXm0kKuOnv47dWSydiNX97Q1cn6RJmilKOWDYjgAFEXJRkRQRxw-nwBuxpP2wLaB_tpGJmiNa3gz3GtSs4/s400/P1020584.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5286922047852526418" border="0" /></a><br />Broadway is a fun place, and kind of strange. Apparently, it used to be really fancy back in the late 80's. After the bubble burst, Nakano Broadway kind of slid downhill. Now it's a really strange collection of Anime and manga shops, used CDs/Books/Electronics, antique shops, gun and rifle replica shops, strange collector items, and some odd things like fancy watch shops and suit stores. It is clear what is leftover from the fancy days. It was kind of sad when I first went there, but even in a year, it's been getting better. Some entertainment enthusiasts who like the goods of Akihabara minus the porn are heading to Nakano now. It's a fun place, but really odd still.<br /><br />Too bad almost everything was closed.<br /><br /><br />After Nakano, we walked to my friend's house in Koenji, which is about a 20 minute walk from the end of Broadway. On the way, we swung by this shop that always seems closed. The owner was sitting stuff out in front of the shop, and was really nice. He gave my friend a great deal. We dropped our stuff off (remember, I was still carrying the fukubukuro I got) and headed back there. The guy was REALLY friendly and a lot of fun to talk to. He loves ukuleles and American 50's/early 60's music and anything Hawaiian. He owns two places, but they're both really messy. I'm tempted to help him clean up his shops and make it a nice place for everyone to visit. He also has a large porn section and is unapologetically a fan of porn. It was a bit odd to hear that, but whatever, at least he was honest.<br /><br />Then I hung out at my friend's house some more, ate some cheap ramen, then called it a day. While playing with my camera, I snapped this picture with different light settings and processed it like other HDR shots. The dynamic range wasn't very dramatic to begin with, so processing didn't do too much but I thought I'd share it.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEggG_z4v-640qbg2iZ4ih8k96NAb5nF1Uq-F2WumEAdRrud7VZzOYJkdA94q78H3TzK3L6hSusOY7fyIJyLYsFVWK_4sd0-L82vfe54RLw44L4nafpLwtXXsEUj6QITkuanxpY73MrXiHjz/s1600-h/Rians+room.JPG"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEggG_z4v-640qbg2iZ4ih8k96NAb5nF1Uq-F2WumEAdRrud7VZzOYJkdA94q78H3TzK3L6hSusOY7fyIJyLYsFVWK_4sd0-L82vfe54RLw44L4nafpLwtXXsEUj6QITkuanxpY73MrXiHjz/s400/Rians+room.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5286922044987487522" border="0" /></a><br />Can you guess which instrument is mine?Keithhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04453377662997268519noreply@blogger.com0