Today turned out to be a busy day. We thought it would be more quiet, but we ended up doing a lot. We got an early start today, and went to the little train station. It took us to Gora, where we caught the cable car. It took us slowly up a steep hill, stopping a few times along the way. At the top we got onto the ropeway (it was a kind of big gondola that could carry 6-8 people). The views were beautiful and we were high up and going higher. We even got to see the top of Mt. Fuji! Though the rest was hidden by clouds. There is one place you pass by that is all barren, and all the sulfurous steam is pouring out from the mountain side. We switched to ... read more

Today was a pretty low-key day. This morning we headed to the train station and took a bullet train to Nagoya. Then train was nice and super fast. In Nagoya we picked up some sandwhiches (pork cutlet, i think) and caught our train for Takayama. it was a nice train too - like a big airplane - lots of leg room! The ride was about 2 hours and 20 minutes. We rode through the mountains. It was really really beautiful. The train tracks run alongside a river that was this brilliant shade of green-blue. It was amazing. There were cherry blossom trees by the river at some parts, and it all was just very lovely. We got to our hotel, Hida Plaza Hotel, and then headed off to explore. We found the old streets that have ... read more

We took the bus up to Ginkakuji temple (the Silver Pavillion). It was really pretty - it was up in the hills a bit - very lush and calm. We then walked down the Path of Philosophy to the other temples. The path was charming - very quaint, and there were still some cherry blossoms out. They are so pretty. We philosophized a bit. We passed by Eikando Temple, and stopped in quickly at Nanzenji temple. We went to Konchi-in temple, a much smaller one - so it was less crowded and quiter. There were nice garden's there - one was a rock garden. But part of it was under construction as well. We stopped in a little place to have lunch - we had to point to the plastic food to order. I got pork ... read more

Today has been a very full day. I slept in until 8am! Almost a human hour to wake up ;) This morning we walked through Nara-Koen some more on the way to various temples and shrines. We saw Kofukuji temple and the five-story pagoda next to it. The pagodas are so pretty and iconic. Also around was a building called Nanendo. We walked for a long while until we reached Todaiji temple. There were a ton of tourists around -- they get brought in by the busloads. Todaiji is the home of the Daibutsuden Hall, where the giant Buddha lives. He was such an impressive statue. On either side of him were smaller statues. Really awe inspiring and peaceful. Right outside was a wooden statue of Binzuru -- who was a student of Buddha that mastered ... read more

We had a busy day. After picking up coffee from Starbucks we got on a train to go to Osaka-jo. We got off a few stops early, but realized our mistake quickly, and got back on. We found the castle quickly and walked up the long way -- through the gardens and moats. We got to the top right at 9am, and there were a TON of students there. We went inside and got to go to the top and look out over Osaka. Very cool. The other floors had a lot of history of the castle and time period. One had these windows you looked in and they had holograms! (I think). The moving video of people were projected into these 3-D models/scenes. So awesome to watch. Afterwards we went to Tonnoji-Koen. On the way ... read more