Home » Japan » Some More Unflavored Tofu to go with my Stringy/Gummy/Flavorless Root Onegaishimasu!

I was sad to be headed back to Japan; my trip to America was just a little too short. Yet lucky me, I already had a slice of home (well kinda!) waiting for me in Osaka. My friend Kelle was in Japan coming to visit me! She is a slice of one of my many homes (Japan included, I now have 5 places I consider home). Kelle and I met spring 2005 ‘studying’ in Barcelona. We use the word studying loosely, as more time was spent living the high life in Barcelona with crazy senoras, endless supply of 2 euro wine, Spanish boys, tapas, travels, getting lost on trains, absinthe, beaches, wrestling boots, mullets, and dancing till dawn. What can I say, it was one of the best semesters of my life. Kelle, Lindsey, and I dubbed ourselves the ‘3 amigos’ as we did everything together. Dos Amigos were reuniting in Japan- watch out Nippon dos amigos are coming at ya! Follow along on this blog and see how we conquered Mt Koya (location not even available on blog selection!) and the life of a buddhist monk, discovered the true beauty of Kyoto, played with some fierce monkeys atop Arashiyama, and were ballers Barcelona style in Hiroshima. Just like in Espana, never a dull moment!

Some More Unflavored Tofu to go with my Stringy/Gummy/Flavorless Root Onegaishimasu!

Casey Lary
2007-03-10 16:39:10

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a salesclerk at a chocolate store personally escort us to the location - only in Japan!

Instead of staying in a normal hotel, I thought I would give Kelle a true Japanese experience, and stay in the famous capsule hotel- unique to Japan. It was my first experience as well. Japan is known around the world for these hotels, which are literally a bed (no floor space), a TV with plenty of porn to go around, and a light. We walked into our girls-only floor, greeted by each wall with 2 rows of capsule beds, one on top of the other. After showers we headed out on the town. I took Kelle to an izakaya and was quickly reminded of the greasy food that Japan liked to serve up at these places. We guzzled down our nama birus while munching on edamame and gyoza. Kelle was going to work up to the wide array of Japanese foods- the fish and natto would possibly appear later. Osaka is always pumping with lights, music, energy, and some of the craziest Japanese people out there. Due to jetlag and our early departure the next morning, we just wandered the streets and headed back around 11. Our capsule hotel was next to a Love Hotel. Was fun trying to explain Love Hotels to Kelle. Her mouth dropped!

Koya-san
The next morning we were up early headed to Koya-san. With Kelle visiting, I decided I was going to take her to places I had not been to yet. Koya-san, southeast of Osaka, is one of the most sacred mountains in Japan. It is home to the Shingon school of Estoteric Buddhism. There are many Buddhist monasteries and temples still in practice today. Koya-san is famous for its Buddhist graveyard and temple-stays, called shukubo. Getting to Koya-san is an adventure in itself. It is a small train track winding through the mountains of Wakayama Prefecture. Then you ascend to the actual mountain on a tram. Then you have to take a bus to the center of the town. I do know the JET who lives on Koya-san, but unfortunately he was out of town for the weekend. We found ...