So my last week of vacation I took a trip back to Japan to visit Ike! He was kind enough to meet me in Kyoto, which is a city near where he went to Kansai Gaidai University when he studied abroad junior year. I got to meet one of his friends from Kansai, Alberto. We had a nice time in Kyoto, which has lots of historical sites. We saw Fushimi-inari (lots of orange gates) and Kiyomizu-dera (a Buddhist temple complex). I also got to eat in one of the conveyor belt sushi restaurants!
Me in Kyoto Station -- the largest train station in the world? Or something like that...
Tommy Lee Jones, sold his soul to Japan!
Conveyor belt sushi!
Pay by the plate.
Ike is too cool...FUSHIMI-INARI:
1000 cranes = make a really big wish!
Ike ringing the bell for a wish!
Lots of gates.
Local businesses pay for the gates.
The orange color is for the fox.KIYOMIZU-DERA:
This is where Ike proposed! This whole temple is made without using nails. It looks out over the city.
Monday and Tuesday I went to school with Ike. We did a lesson about the differences between Korean schools and Japanese schools. We also did lessons where the kids asked me any question and guessed my name by playing hangman. I can't believe how much better Japanese students are on average -- they actually pay attention and aren't burn out? Could it be that they aren't at school until 10pm followed by hours of hagwon (cram schools)?!?
At the elementary school he visits on Monday afternoons:
Students playing with his belly!
The oragami the students made us at the end of class!Wednesday Ike took the day off of work, and we took a 2 hour road trip up to see a monkey hot spring! It was definitely worth the drive and the expensive toll roads to get there. The monkies were super cute!
Ike with his new car! On the way to the monkey hot spring.
View near the hot spring.
Monkeys on the loose!
Just chilling in the monkey hot spring.
This little guy liked my bracelet from Thailand. Haha! He was adorable.
View from the water level.
It was super cute!! Definitely worth the trip.Thursday Ike went to school but I stayed back at his apartment and did some serious cleaning. Then Friday it was time for me to head back to Korea bright and early! (And that is when all the illness began... ugh, glad that is behind me).
I know this is a really brief entry, but hopefully the pictures explain more of what we saw! :-) I had a great time.
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