Day 6 - 4th of September

8:32am　セミナーハウス
天気：曇り
Shoot, only got half an hour to get ready to go to uni. Gotta go... Yay for Kyoto trip today!!!

9:10am　セミナーハウス
Lolz, I don't have to leave til 10:00 so I still got a little while. Hopefully tonight I can get my blog up to date. I've been writing this all in the notebook I bought at the airport. Also been writing out all my expenses, so I can start creating a budget and weekly shopping list. Diego is talking to his Mum in Portuguese on Skype now. It's really cool, better go...

3:12pm　普通電車
We're on the train toward 祗園四条駅 (Gion Shijou station). I'm with Diego, Jessica, Jacinthe, Georg and Diana, and four Japanese guides. We're only two stops away from Kyoto now. Earlier today Jacinthe and I went to get our Alien Registration done. It was easy enough, and we got in straight away cause it was quiet. We bought some lunch, which was a little expensive. It was tuna (raw) and salad. *One stop away*. Then we tried to make our way back from Hirakata station to the uni. We had to ask a bus driver for help. He was very kind. *Here*...

3:19pm　丹波橋駅
Lol, okay so we have to change trains first. We're at 丹波橋駅 (Tambabashi station), waiting to get on the express train. It's a blue train. We are now three stops away from Gion Shijou... So yeah it was all good. We got on the bus and made out way back in time for the Kyoto tour. I was amazed at how many people had signed up; pretty much everyone. We had a 15 minute walk to 御殿山駅 (Gotenyama station). It was so hot...

3:34pm　京都
We're in Kyoto now. I remember being here before...

6:54pm　京都
Here we are in Kyoto, in the rain, listening to some beautiful singing from some Indian Buddhists. We've just emerged from a huge shopping arcade. it's raining pretty lightly; nice. Our guides are trying to find us a place to eat for dinner. We've been walking for about 30 minutes I think. They are using the GPS on their phones and asking for directions. We must be almost there.

7:15pm　花たぬき
We're in a restaurant called "Hanatanuki". I ordered hetayaki, Hiroshima style with pork and udon noodles. We've all ordered different things so hopefully I get to try a bit of everything. I'm sitting with Georg and Jacinthe. The four Japanese guides are across from us, and Diana, Diego, and Jessica are behind us. *That water looks soooooo good!!!*

8:14pm　花たぬき
I am so happy and full. We split each of our meals in three, so now we're just trying to get the payment sorted. Lolz, Diego and Diana ordered jumbo sized okonomiyaki; it was huge!!! Unfortunately they couldn't finish and I guess I can't blame them. *Note to self, don't order jumbo sizes*.

Today was great. We ended up going to 清水寺 (Kiyomizu temple). Took heaps of photos and saw so many nice shops. Even though I'd been before, this time was a completely different experience. This time I got to drink from the 音羽の滝 (otowa waterfall). ~Three channels of water fall into a pond. Visitors can catch and drink the waters, which is believed to have therapeutic properties. Drinking the water of the three streams is said to confer wisdom, health, and longevity~


8:29pm　花たぬき

お腹が一杯

8:51pm　急行電車
We're on the express train home; I feel a bit more confident navigating the train system of Japan. These trains go so fast. It's so cool. I will time how long it takes to get from Kyoto to Hirakata. Since this is an express, we don't have to change trains. I realised that the first train we got on today from Gotenyama was a local train, so it doesn't go all the way to Kyoto. We had to change to the express train. Anyway... Gosh, I don't have anything to do tomorrow.; at uni anyway. So I will hopefully wash all my dirty clothes. I'll be able to upload my photos as well. Yay for lazy day tomorrow...
~9:23pm - so it takes about 30 mins from Hirakata to Kyoto by train, awesome.~

12:19pm　セミナーハウス
My bottom is hurting for sitting down so long. Georg is moving out tomorrow at 10am, so he's packing now. I'd better get some sleep
お休みなさい。。。