Nara, Nikko and Hakone

October 8 will insert photos later when i find an sd card reader

i woke up around 5 to get ready for the day. Checked out of khoasan and headed to kyoto station to go to Nara for the morning. Deer is everywhere and they are tame and will walk right up to you. The highlight of trip was talking to this older japanese lady. Despite our language differences, we still managed to carry on a conversation for almost 45 minutes in Japanese. She said my Japanese was good but I think she was just being nice. I am sure to everyone around us, we were playing a great game of charade!

on the trip to Nara I met a French couple. Francois had a lifetime of wisdom in him and told me about his life now in retirement. He said he admired what I was doing and will follow my blog. I hope to one day visit him in the Alps!

Nara is a nice forest area filled with temples and deer. The deer all have their horns removed and are very people friendly. Next I took the train to Kobe in search of the legendary Kobe beef, also known as shigen. Unfortunately, I discovered that it was hard to find Kobe beef in Kobe. I was sent to another station and had black luck as well. Then I was told to go to Sannomiya. I walked up and down looking for shigen and I even had a piece of paper with shigen on it but no luck...I did find one place but it was closed. I walked in and talked to the guys working there. They told me that they open at 5. I pleaded with them and told them my train to kyoto was at 4 and how i searched everywhere for shigen. My persistence and desperation must have worked because they told me to wait while they discussed what to do. I saw them huddle up and then make a phone call. Then one guy came back and showed me the menu. Yes!!! The shigen that came out was nothing short of magnificent. The sweet and buttery meat created an orgasm in my mouth that left a lasting impression. I was so grateful that i bowed numerous times and took photos with the guys! 

Extra note on Kinkaku ...the golden pavilion contains relics of Buddah and is considered a world cultural heritage site.

Extra note on Nara...kasuga taishi shrine is lined with 2000 stone lanterns and thousands of bronze lanterns. There are thousands of deer because in the 8th century a God from kashima shrine rode in on a white deer. Since then the deer is respected as a messenger. They love shika senbei or deer crackers. They are friendly and even bow.

I just boarded a sleep train to aomori and this is a great experience! You are in a compartment of 2 bunk beds...I'm on top tonight. The trip is about twelve hours. There is a young Japanese couple below me exchanging small gifts. I think they are consummating a marriage on this train because I just saw them close the curtains and theRes lots of movement. Good for him!

October 9

Lately i have been losing track of the days of the week ever since my tablet got smashed and it doesnt help that i dont have a watch too. This journal has helped me keep my days straight. A couple of mornings ago i woke up in a confused stupor not knowing where i was. Train? Kyoto? Tokyo? Plane? It took me a moment to get my bearings. I imagine it only gets worse as i go further into my journey.

I spent the day in Aomori and thus far it has been my favorite city. The long train ride was a great experience and something i will never forget. I had a good night's rest and woke up before sunrise. I then spent the morning sitting by the window watching the gentle Japanese countryside calmly glide by. It was a nice reminder to me that Japan is more than just the bright lights of Tokyo.

What i like best of Aomori is that it is a hidden gem from foreigners. I believe i may have been the only tourist that day. Aomori and the neighboring towns are known for their apples and proudly boasts the reputation of being the apple capitol of japan. Everywhere you go, you will find stores that not only honor but revere the delicious fruit. There are all sorts of apple products and little trinkets. Aomori is also known for their abundance of delicious seafood since they are surrounded by a couple of seas. Adventurously i went straight to the seafood market to try whatever i can find. The market is fascinating and you will find tons of vendors selling various catch of the day. Im not sure what the english words are but i ate soyu suziko, hotate, hoya and ebi. All amazing with curious flavors from the sea. After stuffing myself i went and got me a fuji apple! I finished my day with some sightseeing by the harbor. The rain did put a damper on my walking since i was without an umbrella so i ducked into a nearby mall. Inside a man was doing a performance on an instrument that appeared to be a guitar but not. Nevertheless the sounds he made were beautiful! I ended Aomori by visiting the post office to send Riley a card about my travels thus far in Japan. Afterwards i found what the locals said was the best sapporo ramen shop in town and i was to try the miso curry milk ramen...which was getting to be very popular. It did not disappoint as i cleaned the bowl dry! Back to the train for an overnighter to tokyo where i will transfer to Nikko.

October 10

On the trip to Nikko I was fortunate to meet a lovely French girl named Angelique...or Angie for short. She spotted me out as a lost traveler right off the bat and let me follow her to Nikko. I must say it is so much more fun to explore a new place with someone...it allows you to share the experience and create new memories. We talked about France, America, Culinary Arts, and Korean Drama along the way. The only knock on Angie is that she does not like Lee Min Ho :) 

We explored the temples of Nikko and walked around the lake but unfortunately the weather was nasty and started raining hard. Nikko is a fairly picturesque place when the weather condition cooperates. We decided to head back to Tokyo early due to the weather. Angie took me to the Tokyo Metropolitian Govt building where you can go to the top floor and see all of Tokyo. It was a lovely view at night and I even found a shinkansen toy for Riley...win/win! We capped off the night by eating at this great sushi conveyor belt place and shared many great plates. Thank you Angie for a lovely day! She hopes to move to either Japan or Korea and I told her if she can be in Japan for the 2020 Olympics, I would def go back to Japan!

October 11

I checked into a capsule hotel for the evening and it's not really that bad, even if you are claustrophobic. Def worth the experience if you had never done it before. I will post pictures later. I ended up going to Hakone for the day to meet a couchsurfing friend named Eka from Indonesia. It is def hard to meet/coordinate with someone without a phone. We had made plans to meet in Odawara but could not find each other. The staff there later told us separately about how we tried to search for one another but always missed each other by an hour...very unfortunate. I made the best of the situation and took in the sights of Hakone. I boarded a cruise ship that went across Lake Ashi and then took the Roapway to Owakudani, which is known for their spectacular mountain view and the black eggs...which legend says adds 7 years to your life if you eat it...so i bought 5...they only come in sets of 5. Later, I took the Hakone Tozan Cablecar...not like SF at all, and then ended up doing the Tozan train back to Odawara and then to Tokyo. I ended the evening by meeting Trevor, another person I met from Couchsurfing. He's the host ambassador for Tokyo CS and was a perfect British Gentleman. We talked about a variety of things over beer and some snacks. Thank you Trevor for entertaining me that evening. I'm off to Shanghai tomorrow and will post more. さようなら Japan!!!!