Kyoto and Nara

Hi! It has been a very busy/tiring 2 days. Remember that whole "enjoying Japan to the fullest" thing? So, I've been traveling up and down the JR Biwako line (and by that I mean from here to Kyoto and back/beyond). Yesterday Brad and I went to Kyoto for part of the day, came back and checked in our luggage to be shipped, and then went with some friends to Omi-hachiman to hang out with our history professor at his house (and yes, he is that cool). And today we went to Nara! It was the biggest trip I've taken during this study abroad program - 6 of us went! I had a lot of fun. :)

The night before our huge traveling adventure began, we went out for yakiniku. It was still delicious! :) Some of the beef they serve there is melt-in-your-mouth.Onto the pictures, because I know that's what you're interested in. In Kyoto, we first went back to Fushimi Inari so I could get to the lookout at the top. It was an arduous climb, but totally worth it!After that, we went to a restaurant we learned about through a friend's recommendation: Falafel Garden! It's an Israeli restaurant. It was amazing how easy it was to find - we just went to the station we were told it was closest to, then asked the station attendants. One of the women knew where it was, and rattled off directions in really rapid Japanese. We just caught the main points like "exit 6" and "go right", and walked right to it. XD Kyoto was really a win day, as far as finding things and catching trains was concerned. And we got yummy kebab sandwiches out of the deal.
Our last stop in Kyoto was Nijo Castle, palace of the Tokugawa Shogunate, a family who ran Japan for 250 years. The outside is impressive enough - it's a huge compound with a garden and the castle is sprawling. But the inside was my favorite - I wish I could post pictures but we couldn't take pics of the inside. Each room is full of decorative carvings and gorgeous screens, but the best part was the floors. They're called "Nightingale Floors" because they are designed to creak with every step, to prevent burglars. The cool thing, though, is that their creaking sounds like birdsong! Beautiful. :)

Our Omihachiman trip was fun, too! We got McDonalds (which is way better in Japan than the US, by the way), then ate at our professor's house and watched a movie with him, Taken. It was fun! I just wish we would be able to do it again. :/ There were so many things he wanted to plan for us...we were going to go on a field trip to Osaka and have a huge barbecue at his house and all go out to karaoke as a school after our graduation ceremony (which we were also supposed to have...), but no such luck. :( I'm not really upset about everything that's happened any more, but I do keep getting reminded of things that I was going to do, and then I think "...Oh. Yeah, I don't have time for that now." Just means I have to do it when I come back, right?
Next stop was Nara, yesterday! We had a full group: Me, Brad, my roommate Amanda, Jade, her roommate Rebecca, and Addie. :) It was a pretty long train ride - over an hour and a half - and we had to change trains in Kyoto anyway so we decided to stop by Crepe Ojisan one last time! It was yummy.Once we got to Nara, we walked to Todaiji Temple (which literally translates to "East Big Temple") because it is the most famous in Nara. Nara is the old capital of Japan so it has tons of places to visit. But there are 2 things Nara is really known for:Daibutsu, the biggest Buddha in the country! It's 14 meters tall (46 feet!) and really quite awe-inspiring. You can't imagine the size of it until you're there, and it's astounding. Really really cool!Todaiji also has some other statues inside. They're all pretty neat!And the other thing Nara is known for? The deer.Have some cute deer pics! These deer are awesome! They cross streets en masse at crosswalks (but only when the walk sign is on), and they will bow to you! If you bow to them, some will bow back. It's like the hippogriffs in Harry Potter, and it's awesome. XDAfter oohing and ahhing over the big Buddha and all the deer, we headed back near the station for some okonomiyaki. Okonomiyaki literally translates to "As you like it cooked", which is not descriptive at all. Basically, it's like a savory pancake, but the batter contains stuff like cabbage and green onions (and spices, of course). Beyond that, the possibilities are endless! Here are some of our orders: shrimp, pork, and pumpkin.I ordered "Modern Yaki"(Modanyaki), which is from Hiroshima. It has noodles and usually bacon cooked into one side. You can also get stuff cooked into the batter, like ground pork or beef. It was so good! Watching them cook it in front of us was the best part. I'm definitely making some when I go home!And, after a long train ride home, we made it back here. :) It was our last hoorah for some, as Jade is leaving tomorrow. :( Ah, well. It was fun! And I know I'll be up to Michigan to visit everyone.

Have a great day! Next time I'll be posting Osaka, part II.