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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train to Andrew Joiners in Shiga Ken, where I proceed to spill his ENTIRE protein shake all over his floor. God I am a great houseguest!

Tuesday morning (I was playing hooky from work shhhh!!!) We headed to Lake Biwa to check it out. It is the largest lake in Japan, and at some points very difficult to see the other side- similar to the Great Lakes of America. It was neat to see where Andrew lived and check out Lake Biwa. That afternoon I was planning to take Kelle to the famous Golden Pavillion because, well, everyone has to see the Golden Pavillion. Andrew mentioned the monkeys at Arashiyama and Kelle had her mind set on seeing the monkeys. At first I was hesitant, but well, Kelle was the guest so monkeys it was. After visiting Arashiyama I can totally eat any doubt I had and honestly, is probably the COOLEST part of Kyoto. If I was a JET I think my number one location to be placed would be this outskirt of Kyoto. The atmosphere and terrain were phenomenal. I think I would visit the monkeys at least once a month.

So the monkeys....soooo freakin awesome! We paid our entrance fee and started to climb to the top of Arashiyama. For a good 15 minutes, no monkeys. We were getting ripped off? All of a sudden, out of nowhere, I look up at a tree and a monkey is staring me in the face! I was so startled I screamed and jumped back. Monkeys started to appear everywhere! It was awesome! We spent a good hour playing with the monkeys and taking photos. We were told which monkeys to stay away from because they had bad tempers. In attempt to take photos of monkeys, other monkeys would come up and hit us, as if telling us to NOT take the photos! They had baby monkeys which were out of this world. Seriously, screw the shrines and temples. When you go to Kyoto go see the monkeys! After that we walked through a nearby bamboo forest. Again, a treasure of Kyoto hidden by the beautiful shrines. We found our way wandering through the bamboo stalks and coming across small temples- it was so peaceful.
After this the sun was starting to set, and it was time to head to Hiroshima and settle in to Hotel Casey.

Hiroshima

It was time for Kelle to check out my turf. Unfortunately I could not play hooky much longer so could not tour Hiroshima with Kelle. Instead, I met up with her after. When we met up I made sure I had Chu-Hi in hand- Barcelona style baby. We sat by the river with the Atomic Bomb Dome behind us enjoying the spectacular weather. That night Kelle tested out okonomiyaki- I think after the Buddhist food anything seemed okay to try! She was a huge fan as most are- nothing beats Hiroshima okonomiyaki. The next day Kelle and I met up with my friend Tiffany and went to a cheap restaurant were carafes cost 300 yen- just like Barcelona! Needless to say, the train ride home was a little uncomfortable, and the following morning Kelle headed back to Tokyo a lot later than originally planned. By the time I finished work Kelle was gone :-(.

I definitely think Kelle experienced Japan to the fullest! I still can't believe she actually came out to visit
me and already want her to come back and live with me. It was also great for me because I got to see a lot of new things in Japan that I hadn't seen yet. Definitely go check out Koya-san and test out the Buddhist meal yourself. Kyoto is famous for its temples AND monkeys! It's great to have visitors and show them my life here. So, any readers, you are welcome and wanted in Japan! Adventures to come I promise! I love you Kelle and please come back soon! Who knows where we will be headed next...mb you can meet me to hike basecamp next October! :-)