Free time in Kyoto (02.11.08)

This sign was outside the hotel. Can you see anything that stands out?

We had the day off in Kyoto. Hanne got up really early and took some trains for about 5h to get to Izumo to visit a friend. I slept until I woke up (and therefore missed breakfast), and went with Hege, Kristine, Sandra, Tiril, Martine and Vilde to Shijo Street, the central shopping street in Kyoto. We did some browsing, but not too much shopping, since the fashions in Japan are quite special, and they were often just have one size or small size clothes. We lost Martine, Vilde and Kristine on the way, and we went to a coffee shop to get some food. I have never been so happy to see toast in my life. I hardly had food at all the day before and had also missed breakfast, so the toast was heavenly, as was the hot chocolate I had with it. We discovered a new shopping street with lots of smaller shops, where I decided to go on my own, because I wanted to see all the little Japanese shops. I wandered around while my wallet got lighter and my bags heavier. I couldn’t see the others anywhere, so I headed to the Hankyu department store, which looks a lot like Harrods. I went into a Puma store, and wanted to try on some shoes in size 40, which apparently is giant size in Japan. She explained in Japanese that the largest lady shoe size in that store was 37. It’s always nice when I talk in English, and the shop lady talks in Japanese, and neither of us understand each other. But apparently I did understand something, so maybe my Japanese is improving. The shop lady was very nice, as most Japanese people seem to be. She was so sorry that I couldn’t find shoes in her store, so she ran away and came back with a map, where she marked all the Puma stores in the vicinity (which turned out to be a lot). She also too all my little bags I was carrying and put them into a bigger, cooler Puma plastic bag, and taped it shut so nothing would fall out. Yabai! I wandered into the street again, which the rest of Japan seemed to be doing at the same time at the same place. This was the first day I actually experienced what we were all expecting of Japan but we had never seen: a whole lot of people everywhere you turned. I still couldn’t see any of my peeps, so I took a taxi home. Yes, all by myself. And I didn’t even have to explain to the driver where I was going, I just showed him the Hotel Tozankaku business card which Martin had acquired for all of us when we went out last night. Clever. I got back to the hotel and had some time to write down some things for the blog, before me and some other girls decided to go out and eat Mexican food. We were longing for ‘real’ food, and by real food I mean food we could eat, like, and not be hungry afterwards. We got it. We managed to track down a Mexican restaurant, so we acquired three taxis and went straight for it. We had great food, and very interesting conversations. We took a few taxis back to the hotel and as usual, Norwegian students were occupying the 2 100-yen-for-10-minutes-of-internet-computers. We talked a bit, and then I went upstairs to pack my stuff, hoping Hanne would not go arimas (lost) on me, because then I would probably have to pack all of her stuff, which was shattered around everywhere. Luckily, she did not go arimas, and arrived just after me, Kristine and Hege had gone to bed. Unluckily, both for me and the people in my room and the next room, I couldn’t stop coughing until about 1.30am. Very annoying. Being sick while travelling is not really fun, and I’ve been sick now for over 3 weeks, and it is really starting to get old.

This large store in Kyoto looks a lot like Harrods

The two computers in the lobby were often visited by Norwegian students

Pringles with baked-potato-taste.... They also had Pringles with lasagne-taste and miso-soup-taste.

Hanne's day: As Julie has already mentioned, I went to Izumo. Why, oh, why would anyone spend their first free day in ages on a train? For ten hours? Who knows? I actually do. I have a friend in Japan (former teacher of English at Vestborg, and thus former teacher of my boyfriend, although who was trying to teach who I'm not sure of..)

Coming back to the point, it is not always that one has the opportunity to actually visit someone you know in a new country. Inger picked me up at the train station and we rushed off for an English Bible Study Class at the local church. I met four lovely Japanese people, and I really enjoyed spending time with them and discussing with them. After Bible Class, one of the Japanese ladies joined Inger and I in search for cultural impulses. There was a soba (noodle) festival in Izumo at the time, not to mention the gathering of all of Japan's gods, 8 million of them. Whether they were there for the noodles I don't know, but the month has always been called the month with gods in that region (in all other regions the month is called the month without gods.) Because of this festivals, there were queues everywhere, except from the museum where we decided to go: The Shimane Museum of Ancient Izumo.

After cultural impules, food was definitely due, and we all went for Indian. I had my first try at a fork and spoon... no knife.. they are all babies in Asia.. except from when they use chopsticks, which is supercool:P