Kansai

I'm finally in Kyoto for the final leg of my Japan trip. Only two more full days! ;_; I'm staying with a Couchsurfer, Shuji, in Kyoto which is really nice. He's really nice but also really awkward in a Japanese man kind of way. I sort of feel like I am abusing Couchsurfing because I am already so familiar with Japan and know so many people here, but oh well. It has its ups and downs compared to a hotel. I'm staying in a real Japanese old house which is exciting and reminds me of the little inn my mom and I stayed at in Tokyo. Sliding doors, stairs that are wooden and steep as f*ck, a teenytiny bath room, etc. and of course tatami woven floors. I actually really love tatami and futon. Comfortable bedding on a tatami floor is so nice and tatami rooms smell great. :) 

Tomorrow I'm going to Nara with Yuka and on Monday I'm going to Arashiyama and Fushimi Inari in Tokyo. This trip is kinda messed up because I could be going to places I've never been like Himeji castle, Koyasan in Wakayama prefecture, or Tottori sand dunes, but I'm not. I'll have to save them for next time. 

I'm exhausted now so bedtime! 

My babies

I'm in a much better mood today. Yesterday was so much fun and due to a series of fateful coincidences everything worked out perfectly so that I got to see all of the students I wanted to see. I visited my school and had class during the day with my students. They were so precious. After school I was futsing around on a ukulele that my successor left at school and watching the girls' tennis practice in the gym when their tennis coach laid out a chair for me and told me to give an impromptu ukulele/singing concert. I'm seriously a beginner at ukulele so I felt sort of embarrassed but it was fun. All the girls just sat silently in a line and watched me. Japanese kids, they just know how to be polite. <3 I'm glad my voice has recovered juust enough from my pharyngitis/laryngitis to be able produce vocal sounds that are actual pitches and not just grunts. I played/sang I'm Yours and More Than Words(which I had just learned an hour before....barely.)

After school Cece (my successor) and I went to Onogami Onsen and happened to run into two of our old students who had graduated. Then later we went to dinner at a Chinese restaurant and two other graduated students were able to join us, including my favorite, Konomi. I care about them and their happiness and their futures so so much. I'm really happy I got to see them again. <3 

Today I'm on a day trip to Niigata, a neighboring prefecture, for no particular reason other than to do something and to make use of my rail pass. Except I just missed the last train so now I'm waiting an our for the next one. Woohoo! 

This mouse and man say hi from Niigata station. 

Sick

I'm in a bad mood. I'm sick and I wish I wasn't sick...especially with something that makes my voice sooooo hoarse and limited and weak. Why is it -always- my voice. I just want to talk to people. :( I hope I get better soon. I woke up late and now there's not enough time to do a day trip today. So I guess I'm not doing much today. :/ 

Back home

I'm in my old apartment which now belongs to my predecessor. It's not that weird. Everything just sorta feels like I never left. Everything feels super normal. 

Mt. Takao

Mt. Takao was gorgeous and in the end I'm happy that I went alone because I got to not use my voice for that amount of time (I have a weird cold but I'm not down about it except for the fact that my voice won't come out.) I got lost but it was fun. I've never been to a place like Takao. It's a hybrid of gorgeous pristine mountain trails, tourist traps galore, and a huge temple/shrine complex embedded into the side of a mountain. 

First night

I was tired and exhausted after my plane ride and train ride into Tokyo, so I just wanted to go home. But Nana wanted to make a stop at a restaurant. Whatever, I said. It'll only take a minute. 

Surprise! There were 7 of my supportive and kind friends, who only knew me for a month, taking time out of their busy lives to meet with me and even make me a sign. All-you-can-eat, with special consideration to my veggie-ness. Funny stories, feeling weak in my Japanese but participating as much as I can (and enduring the relentless compliments.) Walking an empty harajuku at 10pm on a weeknight. Getting a ride from Yuta all the way home instead of having to take the train home. (Yay!) Singing Ariana Grande at the top of my lungs (to my later regret.) A nice warm shower and cozy bed. (Though I woke up at 8 unable to go back to sleep for probably the first time in my life...stupid jet lag.) 

On the train from the airport to Tokyo

It seriously feels like I never left. Everything feels....SO....normal. Like I'm just picking up where I left off. I still have moments of biting nostalgia, though. Just like seeing streets and shops and stuff. I'm excited to be here. Feels like I'm coming home.