Travelling

Hey everybody! I can probably start off with making you jealous: above 30 degrees, blue sky and blazing sun! Every day! It's so great that I can actually enjoy these couple of days and finally have my much longed for vacation!

1. KYOTO

I came to Kyoto by nightbus from Fukuoka which was quite an experience. Very comfortable seats but not very much sleep unfortunately as the driver stopped every 2 hours for a break and turned the lights on -.- 
When I arrived in the morning, the weather was incredible! So hot!! First I had to find my way to the "Guest House Kinta" by bus, which was kind of a mission in a city where all street names sound the same and the bus shows the next stop only in Kanji (signs). But I made it and arrived at that really small, cute and very traditional hostel in the Geisha-district. I had to wait until my room was ready so I took the chance to rest and surf the internet. Soon, an english guy arrived. After a small chit-chat, we talked about our plans for the day and decided to go together. As Kyoto is the former capital of Japan, there are many cultural sights to explore...temples, shrines, palaces, gardens... So much that you can't possibly see everything in 2 days. But I think we made the most of it. Including a Sake night and a spectacular wall-climb (more joke than anything else...got a big bruise on my arm haha) Here some impressions:

All in all Kyoto feels like a really small town rather than the city it actually is. The houses are small, the streets narrow and I felt like knowing that "town" quite well when I left it, although I could've easily spent a week in that place without being bored! Next:

2. OSAKA

First "problem"-day. I couldn't  withdraw money! Tried all the banks, different amounts, not working. Found out that my credit card limit was too small and already used up. Damn it. But then: (I love travelling!) a guy, that I had only known for a couple of hours, lends me money!!! Incredible but lifesaving! I wouldn't have known what to do. Backup cards and all my papers left in Fukuoka to stay "safe" - nice plan, Patricia. Next time think before you act. Nevertheless, the train from Kyoto to Osaka takes only 28 minutes and is quite cheap. It ended up being a nice but very strange day. Why?

1. I was getting used to the left-hand traffic in Fukuoka and Kyoto (also on escalators) but then in Osaka, suddenly they walk on the right side again?! What? Why? I don't know. Only pedestrian things though, the cars are still "normal" on the left side...well well well
2. First food escalation! I love Onigiri (rice wrapped in seaweed usually stuffed with tuna, chicken or salmon) but I always buy without knowing what's inside (can't manage to read the Kanji - yet!). So I sit there, watch the beautiful sunset at Osaka castle, take a bite of my Onigiri and... aaahh what's that?? It was filled with some kind of worms!! Even I, although usually very happy to try out new things, couldn't eat that.
3. After a beautiful skyline scenery on the top of the Osaka Skytower, I got hungry and decided to go for plain rice. Can't do anything wrong with that, can you? You can! When I had the last bite of the rice cake, I noticed that it had worms in it as well!! Too late. I had already eaten all of it. Aaaaahhhh! What the hell is wrong with them putting those white little creatures in my food!
4. And this is a good point: people are soooo friendly here! Whereas in Kyoto nobody really cared, here, when I pulled out the map to look for the directions to my hostel, an old lady came immediately towards me, explained me the subway, helped me buy a ticket and luckily she had to get off at the very same stop, so she accompanied me all the way! And although my language skills have already massively improved, she spoke english so incredibly perfect that it was impossible to try out my newly refreshed Japanese (except for some randomly thrown in words that were immediately commented as "aaaahh nihongo wa jouzu desu!" = you are very talented with Japanese hahaha I guess they would say that to anybody who can say "arigato gozaimazu" = most important thing to remember! means thank you. Next to "sumimasen" = sorry.)
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   

3. HIROSHIMA

I went to Hiroshima by train - more specific: Shinkansen. This is the fastest train in Japan and can be compared to the German ICE. Or not. It's way more spacious! You feel like in an airplane, only bigger. The seats are comfortable (if you can get one in the non-reserved section...I had to stand) and you can feel the speed as the wagon moves to the sides in every bend. The distance of more than 300km could be conquered in 2 hours. Compared to Germany where it takes me appr. 4-5 hours for the same distance this is quite an experience!
As my lent money was nearly gone aswell, the hostels were fully booked and the train ticket was also way more expensive than I expected, I decided to do couchsurfing. So my host met me at the train station and showed me around the city center. Incredible to walk along the river, seeing the atomic bomb memorial and knowing that only a few decades ago the whole area had been destroyed beyond imagination and all the life had been perished. Now everything was quiet, green trees, only the sound of the river...peaceful. I nearly cried so emotional was this situation. Knowing that up north there was another nuclear catastrophe going on...The only question I could think of was "why?" - "why are people so stupid?"
Well, to forget about the emotional part we started drinking. First a really small bar with balcony and view on the roofs of Hiroshima city center, then a very small music place where the customers are the band (everybody just grabs an instrument and off we go!). I had to sing. I didn't really want to, but in the end it was great fun to make music with some random Japanese guys who were actually really good musicians! After that we went to a hookah (shisha) bar and then took a taxi "home". I had my own room and slept really well! Next day, we went to the city center where I visited the atomic bomb museum (very interesting and also very touching again), had the best Ramen for lunch and in the afternoon I went to Miyajima island to see the famous "floating shrine". Spend the evening in the hostel to catch up with my English friends that followed me to Hiroshima and gave the money back that I owed (finally could withdraw in the morning). Next morning I already had to leave to go back to Fukuoka because I already had a ticket for a brasilian festival starting at 2pm. Plans plans plans ;)