Shiga and Kyoto

So up the next morning to catch the 8:50 bus from Tokushima station. Actually, I was feeling surprisingly well as we strolled towards the station, feeling quite smug as my friend Sam drags her hungover feet behind me. Could it be that I had escaped the fateful hangover that has haunted me for many mornings in the past?! Turns out, no. Denied a non-eventful sleep on the bus I proceeded to be very ill (obviously not helped by my travel-sickness) and at certain points along the 2 hour bus ride, I actually wanted to die! We got to Osaka station and had a quick breakfast stop (which I didn’t participate in) and then were off again, on the train this time, destination Shiga to meet with a friend of Austin’s. This time my body did allow me a bit of sleep as I slumped in a chair and stayed there for the whole hour until it was time to get off. Feeling slightly better, we departed the train in Shiga and were met by Danny’s friend Christine – the smiliest person you will even meet! She then took us to her very nice apartment so we could drop off some stuff (she lives next door to Danny so we could sort out sleeping arrangements later) and we then quickly headed back out to Lake Biwa. Now this day sounded perfect. There were already quite a few ALTs at the lake who we were going to join and we could play cricket and swim in the lake and have a really pleasant afternoon. However, the weather was not on our side and as soon as we reached the lake it started to spit, then drizzle, then rain, then absolutely poured it down soaking us all. We then took this opportunity, as we were already wet, to go and swim in the lake for a bit. But wait, who forgot to bring their swim stuff?! Oh right, I did. I am now proud and slightly ashamed to say that this did not deter me for long, and after a bit of encouragement from Danielle, I got in the lake in my underwear (though modestly as I kept my long top on which seemed to cover most). Did I mention that my hangover had cleared up by this point and I was actually starting to enjoy my day!

After the lake (which was eventually completely rained off) we headed back to Danny’s to dry off before heading back out to get something to eat. After traipsing round the town a few times trying to find a place to fit 18 of us (no, we didn’t in the end!). Everyone but our group and Danny and Christine went back home to chill out for the evening whilst the rest of us managed to find a table in a place called the Olive Garden?! It was rather strange. A buffet style starter, I guess like Harvester but less salady and a pizza or pasta main course! It was very nice but very filling so I was glad that between four of us we shared the dishes we ordered, Danny and Broc polishing off what myself and Bella could not. Then back to Danny’s for an evening of random games (very civilised) before the girls went next door to Christine’s and collapsed onto futon beds!

The morning came too quickly it had to be said, and we were up and ready to go a 9:30, giving us enough time to get to the bakery for some breakfast before we caught the train to Kyoto. In Kyoto we decided to follow a route that took us to 11 temples and shrines. To be honest I don’t really remember whether we went to the 11 or not, but we definitely went to a few. The first that we went to was really interesting. There were Buddhist monks everywhere, and it was clear that there was some kind of ceremony going on. I went inside for a bit (after taking my shoes off and putting them in a plastic bag) and sat down on the tatami mats just listening to the main monk chant. It was quite a surreal experience but definitely worth it. At the same temple, I also got to see my first, weird looking, wild turtle that was swimming around in the pond. It wasn’t like any turtle I’ve seen before – having more of a beak for a mouth than anything else.

Another great experience was going down into one temple into the darkest room I have ever experienced in my life. It really was quite unnerving. Even in very dark rooms our eyes usually get accustomed to the dark and use any light possible to help navigate us. There was simply no light at all under this temple for our eyes to adjust to – when I help up my hand in front of my I couldn’t see it in the slightest even though I knew it was there. An experience you can’t imagine until you have done it and I would thoroughly recommend it if ever you’re in the Kyoto area! This dark walk eventually led to a revolving stone, which I believe when touched you can make a wish and it is supposed to be lucky?! Something like that anyway. After an entire morning walking around shrines, streets and temples, we finally ended up at the most typical looking English pub I’ve seen – obviously being the Rugby World Cup we Brits had to meet up with fellow Brits to watch the game. Needless to say I didn’t watch the game, but did enjoy sitting in a cool pub, eating chicken and chips and reading the guide book! After this we headed to Gion – the area in Kyoto which is famous for geisha. We didn’t see any geisha but the buildings were still interesting to look at. After this we headed back to Kyoto Station – a huge building with great views over the city, where we eventually caught a train back to Shiga and went for some sushi for dinner before heading back to Danny’s for more games and sleep!

 The next morning was taken at more of a leisurely pace as our only deadline was to be back in Osaka at 19:50. We went to another bakery in the morning for breakfast and headed to the old town where we saw another shrine and went up a cable car to see the view of Shiga, including Lake Biwa which we had swam in only a couple of days ago. By this point though most of the girls, for one reason or another were lagging having had too much sun, early mornings and long days filled with walking. We slowly made out way back down the hill and headed for a bit of lunch. By the time we got back to Danny’s there was just time to pack before we headed off to the station for the journey home. Although it was raining buckets by the time we got back to Osaka, there was a perfect end to the trip for me. As we stopped off into the last store before we got on the bus to go home, I found the most amazing thing on one of the shelves. A large bar of Cadbury Dairy Milk!!!! Heaven. Needless to say, that was picked up and not put down for the rest of the night. ¥300 well spent! Home and bed, ready to be completely wiped for the next morning.

Good, no, awesome weekend!