The Final Bus Tour in the Trilogy ...

Kyoto & Osaka Bus Trip

Part Ichi

Another Saturday, another bus tour. Amanda and I were invited to go to Kyoto and Osaka with a large group of teachers from a couple of our schools. I'm beginning to think that the school staff does this kind of thing regularly. I think it's great. We knew this was going to be an overnight trip, so we packed accordingly and headed out (on our bikes) at 7:30am. (Notice I'm not even complaining about having to wake up at 6:30? I'm used to it after 3 of things).

So when we boarded the bus we got a couple bottles of water & a whole sack full of Japanese snacks. We're off to a good start.
On our first bus trip the seats were small & Amanda and I were all over each other. On our second bus the seats were slightly bigger and we were a tiny bit more comfortable. On this bus Amanda and I got the celebrity treatment & didn't have to share our seats. That's right - two seats to ourselves.

The whole crew ...
So the bus leaves right on time - 8:00am - & we notice that we have an adorable tour guide. She's wearing the uniform, carrying the flag & has a cute little hat on. There was only one bad thing about her ... She wouldn't shut up. She literally talked the entire time. The whole two hours to Osaka she talked and talked and talked ...

We couldn't exactly sleep with all of the tour guiding going on so we found ways to pass the time. We ate Japanese snacks, Amanda was foolish enough to eat the dried squid (compliments on Misaki), and we got out the video camera.

Eenie, meenie, miney, mo.
Amanda being foolish & eating the unknown. & She wonders why I would try it ...
We also decided to interview our friends Masami and Mayaka. Their English isn't the best, but they are so cute. (I'll post the video later)

We made a conbini stop (a Japanese convenience store) and got some food & coffee and continued on. We made it to our first stop - a temple in Kyoto - in a little over two hours.
In true Japanese form we had to back the bus in (everyone backs in everywhere here) & this little cute lady's job was to direct the buses, similar to that of a runway.
We begin the hike up the mountain where the temple & lunch are waiting. One of the first things we notice is the scenery. The gardens surrounding the temple are absolutely beautiful and since it is Autumn season the leaves are changing colors and the weather is good. Everything was gorgeous.
Of course I took way too many pictures.

Koi, right? Wrong! Japanese carp.

Ayaka drinking some gross looking tea on top of the mountain at the temple. "Tara, try?" No thank you.
Masaki taking a break from all the climbing. We definitely got our workout for the week.
The flowers were amazing & huge. The plants were over five feet tall & the flowers were the size of my head, not joking!
We bought fortunes at temple and Amanda bought me a love fortune. The fortune is suppose to bring your true love into your life, or something like that. I don't know if I'm a believer but it's cultural. :)
You can also buy your own fortune. If it is bad you must tie it on a rack and leave it at the temple. Some of our friends didn't have the best fortunes. Sorry about your luck ladies...

Ok, so we make it to lunch. Traditional Japanese lunch. Between the hiking, our Japanese snacks, the conbini food and lack of breakfast, Amanda and I are hungry. We had no idea what to expect.
The presentation of our lunch was amazing. It was served to us in this jewelry box type thing and we were suppose to eat from the bottom up. Some of the drawers I opened and quickly closed, not even touching what was inside.
Think any of this looks appealing?
How about now?
A little bit closer now ... Hungry yet? (& yes that's some sort of grass, tofu, a radish of some sort & that speckled thing was some sort of fish or other sea creature, despite what it looks like.)
A close up of all three of our surprises. All raw, all cold, all not ideal.
Amanda was playing with our shrimp who I swear was alive ten minutes before this lunch. He was found in drawer number two with his other raw friends.
But when in Rome ....All of our group eating lunch together ... sitting Indian style. I mean Japanese style. :)
My precious Ayaka ate all of her food. I'm the bad kid in the family because I didn't eat all of mine. But don't worry - I didn't want dessert anyway :)

stay tuned for part two
much love
-tara-
xoxo

Osaka Bus Tour ...

After spending one Saturday on a bus to Awaji Island, we were invited on another bus tour, only this time heading to Osaka. I'd been sick the week leading up to the bus tour, but I put on a smile, packed some cough drops and off we went.

So last weekend Amanda and I had to get up at 5:30am for our bus tour. For this bus tour we were able to sleep in ... until 6:30!! I have never got up so early on two consecutive Saturdays in my almost 25 years of life. I just know it. It's not possible. I am not a morning person and I hate waking up when it's still dark outside, but when in Rome ...

This time Amanda and I had to wake up, get ready and then bike to the train station to catch the 7:20 train. Kazuyo (one of my principals) picked us up at the train station and took us to the school where we would be departing from. This bus was slightly smaller than our bus last weekend, but it resembled more of a party bus with neon lights, lots of speakers, and chandeliers hanging from the ceiling. Although at 8:00am, no one was partying.

The bus left right on time and Amanda and I were asleep in no time. This bus was slightly more comfortable than the last and, although it wasn't ideal, we were able to quickly fall asleep. I've never been more thankful for my ipod. Without it I would have had to listen to Shrek dubbed in Japanese the entire time. Instead I was able to fall asleep listening to my favorites.

We got to Osaka in no time and the group split up. Some of the teachers brought their children and were going to USJ - Universal Studios Japan, while the rest of us were going to lunch and shopping.

We went to a large, upscale department store first. We got there before the shops actually opened and everything was roped off and there were guards all over. At exactly 11:00 the bell sounded and the guards moved the ropes and escorted everyone up the escalator. Kind of strange, kind of cool.

We shopped, or window shopped anyway, at Hermes, Prada, Chanel, Gucci & then Louis Vuitton. I fell in love with a handbag I'd give my left arm for. Maybe it's a good thing I left all my credit cards back in America. :)
Louis and I are in a long term relationship. Have been for the last three years. :)
After shopping around we went to lunch at the Hilton Plaza. We ate lunch on the 35th floor of the Hilton at the Skye Lounge.

The inside of the Skye Lounge. It was all windows, lots of glass, and very ritzy.
My sweet friends Megumi & Yuka. They are so cute.Half of our group... Amanda and I fit right in, right?Osaka, from 35 floors up.The food was amazing, which is a huge change from what we usually eat. We could order whatever we wanted and there was an unlimited supply. We didn't have to pay (our teachers paid for us) but we were pretty sure lunch was something like 5,000 yen a person, which is roughly $50.
My friend Miki, complaining that she ate too much. Just like Grandpa :)After lunch we had a few hours to go shopping. Amanda and I hit the streets of Osaka and made our way to the Hello Kitty store. Three floors of everything that is Hello Kitty. Amanda was in heaven and I wanted to vomit. :)

After our shopping we ventured back to the bus. Sometimes I have no idea how we get from point A to point B. Amanda and I are wandering around a city with 3.7 million people and still managed to make it back to the right bus, and on time (if you believe that).

Everyone boarded the bus with an excessive amount of shopping bags and all of the children were talking excitedly about their trip to USJ. My beautiful Sayaka had her face painted and it made me think of when my brother, sister and I would get our faces painted. Am I still allowed to get my face painted if I'm almost 25?
After winding down and sharing all of our purchases with everyone I managed to get my headphones on just as yet another Japanese dubbed Disney movie started. Yet another long, but exciting Saturday bus tour.

much love
-tara-
xoxo

Awaji Island Bus Trip ...

Way back when Amanda and I were invited by Naoko's mother to go on a bus tour. We had no idea what to expect or what a bus tour consisted of, but we gladly accepted the invitation and began preparing ourselves for whatever might come along ... we never really know what we are getting ourselves in to. I cannot remember the last time I woke up at 5:30, but I can guarantee that I was not happy about it. Needless to say, I was less than thrilled when Naoko said she would be at our apartment at 6:10. Surprisingly, Amanda and I made it out the door, with coffee in our hands, right at 6:10 and we all headed to the bus station. There were about ten of us going together and Amanda and I were rather chipper considering the time. When we got to the bus station to get on our bus tour, Amanda and I realized that we were early…by almost an hour. I know I'm not the most punctual person and I try to justify when I'm late by saying that I'm maximizing my time and yada yada, but come on. An hour early when it is already so early? Are you kidding me? We were not amused in the least. Instead of complaining, we waited. Outside in the cold, sleeping with our eyes open.

Once we finally got on the bus we were ok. We escaped the cold and were ready to begin venturing towards our destination, although we still didn't know exactly where we were going. After about 10 minutes we had both managed to somewhat fall asleep, although we were in the most uncomfortable positions. Everything was ok until about 30 minutes into the trip when our tour guide came on the microphone to tell us that we had to turn around and head back to the station because she had left people thinking that they were no shows for the tour. Oh no, they were there and had been there, she just accidentally left them. Naoko explained to us that "maybe she is a freshman".

Trying to sleep ...

but it was difficult.
Especially with two cute girls in front of us who were not interested in sleeping. :)
Ayaka & Misaki...

We traveled for a couple of hours, although we made a couple of stops at the Japanese rest areas, and we finally arrived at our first stop; Shirogane Jewelry Company.
We walked around and saw some interesting things and Naoko helped translate everything. I still swear that this is straight out of Harry Potter...

Don't we have this stuff in Iowa? Come on Bob, help me out.

Then we were able to go on a tour of the building. We saw all sorts of interesting things being twisted and turned, jeweled and sized, polished and cleaned. It was really interesting.

And when we finished we had the opportunity to try on all of the extremely expensive jewelry. Amanda and I tried on all sorts of things priced over $10,000. Huge rings, outrageous necklaces, big earrings.
Misaki was checking out the quality of the craftsmanship...

After the jewelry shop we got back in the bus and headed to our next stop; lunch and the onsen at a famous hotel of some sorts.
Most of the drive looked like this ...

By the time we got to the hotel, we were starving. That 'I'd-give-anything-for-a-____' type of hunger. Of course whatever you used to fill in the blank was not available. Our lunch was traditional Japanese and mostly raw. Inside every covered bowl was a raw surprise, except the big bowl. That was a cooked surprise. An entire fish kind of surprise. When I opened the lid I was being stared out by a fish with a huge eye and lots of teeth. Naoko explained to me that you can just use your chopsticks to "dig around" and that the "most delicious part is around that eye". I'm still not completely used to the traditional food.

After lunch we went to the onsen. If you aren't familiar with the concept of the onsen, let me know and I will be more than happy to explain. It's easily described as a large collection of hot tubs with extremely hot water where everyone hangs out and relaxes, minus the swim suit. Or like bathing together, minus the soap. So Amanda and I hung out with Ayaka and Misaki at the onsen, which I know sounds strange but we've done it so many times Naoko says we are "professionals". And after we were healed and beautified and relaxed, we went shopping at the hotel before heading back to the bus.

We made a quick stop at a fish market of some sorts and watched some assembly line of fish and bamboo and then made some prefectural food purchases. This is a Japanese custom... whenever you leave your prefecture (kind of like your state or county back home) you buy food from that place and bring it back to your close friends and family or the people that you care about. Amanda and I follow the custom. We're learning to be Japanese. :)

Finally we boarded a ferry, bus and all, to head back to the mainland. Little did I know what we were going to encounter along the way ...

Those who know me well know that I am terrified of bridges. Not like I just don't like them or I'm just afraid, like I am terrified. Phobia like. I start to hyperventilate and I can't breathe and sometimes I cry and my hands get sweaty and I start to freak out. It's not typically that bad when I'm not actually on the bridge, but I still feel like I'm going to throw up when I look at it.

This bridge was so massive that I had to turn almost completely around to see both sides. Naoko was so sweet. She kept saying, "Tara are you ok? Do you want to return to the inside? Please do not (making puking motions)." Then she said, "Tara, we drive over this bridge earlier. You were asleep. I thought about maybe waking you. Only joke." It reminded me of that trip to Virginia when my brother woke me up just as we got on a huge bridge. All for his own amusement. I don't even want to think about what would have happened if I would have been awake going over that bridge in a bus ... the thought makes my throat tight.

The sunset was beautiful, although it was really cold on the water.

It was also extremely windy. I was convinced Ayaka and Misaki were going to blow away, but they were having fun.
The day was long. We got back to our apartment at around 21:00. Not too bad for our first bus tour with a freshman guide. :)
Little did we know that this was the beginning of several.

much love
-tara-
xoxo