Destination Okinawa

We got to Okinawa and it was really hot compared to where we came from. We were hungry and went for Okinawa soba at the airport. It was really good.

We also went for blue seal.. an ice cream brand in okinawa.. Nicole and Kathy made it their goals to eat it everyday... and they did.
We met up with Wan at the airport since his plane was slightly earlier than ours and then we took the shuttle off to our own resort. Resort was nice and clean. Rooms were quite large.

The three of us enjoyed the pool there. We got hungry after and i noticed wans internet approaching... thats how i knew he was outside. He took us to Yakiniku that night. Next day we went to the other hotel closer to the airport in Naha.

Met up with Risa and Yuta. Went for karaoke and dinner. It was quite nice to see them again. I realized Okinawa had many famous local things. Risa took us to the pineapple park one day. All u can sample wine, pineapple treats and pineapple. It was great.

We also went to the famous aquarium in Okinawa. The giant tank with the three whalesharks was great!

The weather was somewhat bad that day so it started rainning and we couldnt go see the dolphins in the end. I noticed how cheap the food was in Okinawa. Its great. The night we went to American village.. we went to a curry all you can eat that costs you 700 yen if you eat outside. I took advantage of that deal :). We went to the beach when the forecast said it was going to be sunny.... and they lied.. it was really cloudy.... Manza beach was still really nice tho but i wanted to see some sun... The bugs there were intense.

Near the end of our trip, Risa took us to Okinawa world. There was a snake museum there.. It was awesome. Apparently they used to have snake and mongoose fights but now that is abolished and instead... they make them race. Managed to touch a few of the animals and even take a picture with a snake.

We later went down in the caves. It was really nice down there. At some point we saw an eel looking figure in the water and decided to ignore it.. further down the paths were some aquariums with an empty one at the end saying ... our eel escaped.... ^^'
Had A&W there before we left! that was tasty :)
We had a blast in Okinawa and i wouldnt mind going back again :)

Destination Kansai

Destination Kansai!
After Ramin and I finished packing at the apartment, it was time to leave Hakodate for Kansai. We were using a ticket called the Seishun 18 that allowed us 5 days of unlimited travels via local trains all over japan using the JR. After meeting up with Huw at the station.. i felt like i overpacked...

So we boarded our first train and we were on our way with high spirits and lots of energy. Eventually got onto the hakutou, one of the really fast trains that goes in the under sea tunnel from Hokkaido to Honshu. It was really nice and fancy. Eventually we reached Aomori. Got some apple cream puffs for someone & headed back on our way.
Several hours later and taking 3 hr trains and changing trains again and again was starting to take a toll on us. Huw and Ramin looked like they were at their limits.
Long story short.. we reached Niigata that night and stayed in a tiny hotel room. Was alright i suppose.

The next day, Ramin parted from us as he was heading towards Tokyo. Huw and I passed several High speed trains to Osaka while we were riding our slow local trains... it was very tempting to just buy a ticket for those. I was getting really tired and somewhat cranky.
Finally saw Huw off at Kyoto station and arrived in Osaka. When i got to my hotel, it was very tiny.... i guess you get what you pay for. I went back to Umeda to meet up with Chris Sy and Nicole. They will tell you that i wasnt on my best mood that night. went for drinks and food on skewers. good stuff.

2nd day there, i decided to head to Nara. Nara was quite nice... I did get lost for a bit and decided to have some Unagi donburi for lunch. Eventually i reached some temples and several wandering deers.... i knew i was in Nara. The deers were everywhere and people were feeding them crackers. They would follow you even if you are not feeding them anything. Something spooked them out at some point and 2 of them almost charged me... my earphones almost got me run over, preventing me from eharing the gallops...The temples there looked really nice. I really enjoyed it. Went to see the Daibutsu... or giant buddha in one of Toudaiji. Was breathtaking really... There was a pillar with a hole in it and it is said that if you pass thru it you would attain good luck.. Being a lone traveler at that point.. it was a tad pointless and i started wishing i was traveling with others.
Outside the temple i started hearing screams all over the place.Some school girls were buying senbei to feed the deers.. but started screaming the minute the deers approached them.... They were being chased... hid behind trees..... i didnt want to question it... i was laughing at them tho...haha

Day 3 in Kansai, Wan and I went to meet up with Ryoko. It was so nice seeing her again :D i wished i had more time to hang out with her. Went for parfaits and talked about random stories.

 
Went to Osaka aquarium with Nicole that afternoon. Saw a whale shark for the first time. That was quite something :D i liked the design of the aquarium. You basically keep going around this giant tank with the whale sharks and other fishes inside as you view other tanks on the side. I love my animals ：D We went for purikura afterwards and Nicole really loved that one machine that makes you appear taller. Was reaaaallyyy late but i managed to see Keiko at night, which was great. i was happy she remembered me.

Fun Day :D
Day 4, we met up with Teruko, her friend, Keisuke, Asuka & Miki. Went for okonomiyaki! Keisuke treated us! Thanks again Keisuke!

We wandered around and i finally got my picture with the glico guy haha.

Went for takoyaki like 4 more times & we went to sing Karaoke at one point :).
At night, we met up with Mao, who was getting off work. We went to have all you can eat and drink until 3 in the morning and the three of us went to Spaworld. A themed onsen that was pretty nifty. That month was Asian themed for guys so we got the japanese baths, persian baths... etc..etc....

Day 5, we went to Kyoto to meet up with Asuka! Didn't think that in Calgary when Asuka told me she'ld show em around her hometown, it'ld actually happen. We had matcha soba and parfait at the Eki, was pretty nice :).

So took the bus to head off to kyomizu. It was a really nice temple. Took some pictures of the traditional streets and such. We also did the fountain thing. forgot what it was called exactly but one fountain was for health, one for love and one for studies and you are supposed to choose one and rinse your mouth with it. Asuka chose health, Chris chose love and i chose studies... being the only undergraduate.... At the highest point of the temple, there were quite a bit of shrine looking areas. One area in particular had two rocks a few meters apart.

Apparently, if you walk from one rock to the other with your eyes closed, you will have good luck with love. I decided to give it a try. Since it was a very elevated spot, i felt like i might fall off the edge anytime. Managed to pull it off tho :D.

Day 6, Didn't do much. Hung out with Wan for the day. Went to Osaka castle and also went to　see the plum blossoms. They were really nice.　

At night, went to meet up with Sy and the student going to uofc next year. Went to the chicken place haha was really good! That felt like a bro hang out.. ish type of time. Was nice haha.

Day 7, Went to Hirakata to meet up with Nicole. Got a tour of KansaiGaidai. Was really nice :) Met up with Hiroyuki at night. He took me to this reaaallyyy nice place where we had a lot of tempura and kaisen donburi. Hiro had a lot of interesting stories about Thailand, It was nice catching up.

Day 8 i wandered around waiting for my hotel reservation to .... expire? lol I was gonna go stay at Nicole's homestay for a few days. Met up with Nicole after she finished her class and we literally ran to Kyoto to watch "Time". Sy was supposed to come but ended up not coming cauz he was too busy. That movie was alright. I really liked the concept but a bit too many time puns. For those of you who didn't watch it. The movie is about using time as a currency and you die after you run out of time. So get ready for a load of "don't waste my time..." and "tomorrow, you'll have no time to stand around...". Anyways, that night, i met Nicole's homestay. They were really nice and really enjoyed drinking. They had a nice ambience to them.
Day 9... Went to himeji castle with Huw and his friend. When we got to the castle.... We saw the castle... painted on a building.. lol

Day 10 .. Went to that one temple with the gates and the kitsunes.. Went to USJ with kosuke(costo) & Sy. Was really fun. smaller than the LA one but still really fun. The spiderman ride was amazing and i really liked some of the coaster rides too. We were thinking about what to do for dinner. I brought up sweets paradise. 1400 yen pasta, drinks, dessert tabehoudai. Sy said no way... and kosuke immediately was like.. YES... So we ran to sweet paradise after exciting USJ and made it there right on time before they stop putting out food. It was really good!

Day 11.. Nicole and I bought the Osaka pass. all subways are unlimited and some places have free admission upon buying the pass. Unluckily that day, i forgot to tell Nicole to bring both pamphlets as they contain the coupons which give us free admission to places. One of us ended up having to pay for some of the admissions. We first headed to Tennoji Zoo. If some of you read the reviews, you:ll find out that many animal lovers gave really bad reviews to that zoo. I actually was thinking that before i read those reviews. It made me feel a tad bad for the zoo because it is very old fashion.... and many animal activists would be against the old zoo set ups. After the zoo, we went to the ferris wheel near the aquarium. That was pretty nifty but im still bad with heights. Fun day overall.

Day 12.... Okinawa :)