Some of my dorm-mates plus a friend were trying to find a place to have dinner and drinks one night and while we were walking down the street I saw this sign from a distance. I swear from far away it looked just like the logo for Insomnia cookies and I got really excited for a minute. I am now craving insomnia cookies (for those who don't know, insomnia cookies can be bought anytime from 4pm to 2am I think, and are the best cookies I have ever eaten in my life--it helps that they are always served hot) I will add them to my list of stuff to do (eat) when I get back :D
This is the place we ended up going to; it was in Gokisou which is like 3 stations from our dorm (yes we walked all the way there). All the decorations were related to American film, so it was kind of cool. There was also a Quentin Tarantino film playing on the TV screens. This place offered at least a 1oo different types of drinks but though I really appreciated the variety it was so expensive I refrained from getting anything. We sat at the very back of the restaurant.
I ordered my first ever pizza in Japan. I decided on margherita because it seemed to me the safest option (having mayonnaise and/or corn in pizza, burgers, etc. here seems to be popular......:| Also pizza seems to be the one thing Japan just can't make right.
It actually wasn't too bad, although the basil leaves were particularly strong. The only real complaint I had was the size: it was tiny for the price I paid for it, which shouldn't be surprising considering I'm in Japan lol.
The next day I went to finally visit my friend who has been in the hospital for the last 2 months. It was my first time going to Kanayama (where the hospital is) and my first time making a trip by myself to an unknown place. However it was interesting because it's very different traveling in Japan as a lone foreigner (usually it's all of us Americans as a pack haha). For example, Japanese people feel more free to look/stare at you and even approach you. After I reached Kanayama and was trying to find the coffee place my friend's mom was going to meet me at, I had 2 people come up to me and ask if I was lost or waiting for someone, probably implying if I needed help or not.
I thought the place looked cool, so I took a few pictures:
That's the station I came out of, so this place was literally surrounding it:
My friend's mom picked me up and drove me in her car to the hospital around 5 minutes away. It was my first time in a car in Japan lol.
I didn't have to sign in or anything to visit, I just walked right in, took the elevator and went to her room.
My friend offered me food and drink (how nice!). It was a cream puff! So goooooood:
My friend and I; she's even wearing an Ohio State t-shirt lol. No matter how many times we tried, the lighting kept coming out like this. Oh well, we're surrounded by light :)
More pictures of Kanayama (after leaving the hospital):
Right after visiting my friend, I had plans to go to an onsen with my dorm-mates. This one was in another location (Ozone):
...and to get to it, we had to take these buses that ran on tracks over ground. I don't know what they're called, but they were like trams but more bus-like. Here's a picture of one of them departing; we're at least 6 or 7 stories up.
Us waiting for the next one. It cost 300 yen to board:
It's not that clear, but outside there were more local trains also on sky tracks. Interesting right? I asked my Japanese friends and they said that it was kind of rare even in Japan:
I thought it was a pretty shot; very industrial looking place:
Another angle so you can see the tracks:
Finally inside the 'bus':
We sat on the very back seat, so I was able to take this shot from the back window; this picture gives you a better idea of how high up we are:
I took a video (not a very good one) to give you an EVEN better idea of what it was like:
https://www.facebook.com/video/video.php?v=10151119967966733
We got off and walked to the onsen; it was so pretty I had to take a picture:
Finally reached our destination! As usual once we got inside, we had to take off our shoes and put them in tiny lockers. Then we got our ticket through a machine (there were many different types of courses and prices--we took a 700 yen one). This onsen was much bigger, nicer, and offered many more things (last time it was just a sento). They gave us a nice big towel and a something similar to a bathrobe.
There was a much wider variety of baths to get into after you showered, including ones outside which were the best! The air was kind of chilly, so it was a really nice contrast to the hot water. There was even a TV next to one of the pools outside. This time I made sure to try the electric bath; the mild currents were weird but alright, but the stronger ones were uncomfortable and sometimes a little painful--I couldn't sit for more than 10 seconds lol.
After about 15 minutes of jumping in and out of pools, we got out, wore our bathrobe things and came out to the public area. I noticed many couples, so that was interesting.
What the bathrobe looked like (below):
Now it was time to go to the hot rooms and sweat. The first one was as small as a hobbit's hole, and to enter you had to go through 2 doors (to keep the heat inside). It was SO HOT OMIGOSH. It was a dark, quiet, circular room, and the heat was coming from what looked like a fireplace without the fire, and I had no place but to sit in front of it because it was a little crowded. You spread out the towel they give you and sit on top. It was torture for me because I hate feeling hot, but it was fun. After 10 minutes we left and went to this large room furbished with these recliner seats (kind of what you see beside a swimming pool), and laid down for 15 minutes. We were basically cooling off before entering another hot room.
This one was also dark, but the floor was made up of pebbles and small stones (kind of what you see in gardens). Again, you lay out your towel on the pebbles and sleep on top; they provided rectangular rock-like pillows. This was actually pretty comfortable; either it wasn't as hot or I was used to it by then. We stayed longer this time, maybe 15-20 minutes. I probably could have dozed off, the heat was making us all sleepy.
After we left we rested on the recliner seats for some time (20 minutes or so) and because I was still feeling hot, we went to an air-conditioned room (also dark) and sat there for another 15 minutes. I really wish I had brought my camera to take pictures, but my friend advised me not to because of the extreme heat, and I also probably wouldn't have been able to take good pictures anyways because all the rooms were dark.
Finally we went back to the baths, took another shower and lazed around in the various pools one last time before changing into clean clothes and leaving.
Waiting at the bus stop to take the bus back to Ozone station:
Inside the bus; we were only ones:
By this point I was absolutely STARVING, so I was really happy to go home and eat my dorm-mate's homemade tempura sushi:
After cutting it up:
And ta-da! He made 4 different types, and they were all EXTREMELY TASTY, better than the ones I've had in some restaurants.
Even though I was eating with 3 other guys, I ate the most haha.
One of my other dorm-mates got some omiyage for the rest of us~
I can't remember if I explained in an earlier post or not, but an omiyage is a gift you bring back for friends and/or family after going on a trip. [It is also a gift you take when visiting someone's home]. Omiyage is usually food, and almost always okashi (sweets), like the one my dorm-mate brought back:
Inside the box!
It was pretty good, had some kind of mochi inside with powdered sugar on the outside:
And to end my post with something random; it was my first time eating lunch in one of these lecture rooms that many Japanese students eat in which I thought was interesting. I was also the only foreigner there so I attracted some attention but not that much. I sneakily took a photo, and that girl in the black shirt actually ducked lol (she's a complete stranger to me FYI haha)
Looks like you're having so much fun, and not a friz in your hair! ^_^
ReplyDeleteHave fun on your break! Tell your family I hope they enjoy their time!!!