Daioso Shima

... nice austere architecture and clean unstained woodwork.

I'm still somewhat conflicted abouthtre exclusivity factor of Ise Jingu--at both shrines, the central complex is off limited to the public; in fact there are four or five layers of fences to keep prying eyes away. This complex contains the main halls for religious rites, the Imperial family prayer facilities and the treasure houses. For a publically ...

On the weekend of the 6th and 7th of December we joined the Kizuna trip to Ise (again attentive readers a place I had already visited but instead of lounging around shamelessly I actually did some sightseeing this time). Kizuna is a student organization which focuses on interaction between Japanese students and the foreign students. They also organize a gathering with some drinks and cookies on every Thursday. Afraid that it would ...

So Saturday I woke up early, caught the 7:30 train to Nagoya and got there at around 8ish. Met up with Emily and Roxy at around 8:30ish and we took the Kintetsu line to Ise. Took 2 hours! Most of it was sleeping. We got there and went through the bazaar, I ended up buying this fish cheese thing, because I needed something to sustain my ...

... belief in. That is merchandise. They had an infinite array of goods all sporting the small group of dodgy and hardly Spanish characters. They even had baby versions of these characters, and old fashioned black and white versions. I smell a Disney copyright lawsuit in the air. But my little fishing village was lovely, and being next to the ocean again was fantastic. I didnt realise how much I missed it.

... seen. 5. The men who work on the ground at the airport bowed in unison at us through the window when our plane landed. 6. Crazy writing and crazy signs with funny people on them with funny expressions. 7. Heated toilet seats! I am staying in Osaka tonight and heading to my place in Kobe (a harbour city about 20 minutes away) tomorrow.

... the past because the Japanese police had finally had enough antics on the train - passengers were being harrassed, squirted with waterguns, etc...Various websites for foreigners were saying the Japanese police had cancelled the train hijacking, to which people replied, well this isn't an official event, so technically it can't be cancelled - and how can you stop us from riding the train? Anyways, Katherine and I were intrigued and upon recommendations from many fellow ...

... time to make. Making that many would be rather time consuming, I imagine. At the main temple building there is this underground passage that the Emperor built. It's completely dark, absolutely no lighting down there whatsoever. The Emperor also had one of his seals placed on the wall, it's the key. If someone goes down there and finds the key (all alone in the dark), it's considered very good luck. Yves had found it the second time he went down there and took me right to it ...

... that I can't get out of the plane :p They're feeding the rest of the cabin right now. The food smells good, and it looks good too. I think I'm going to work up an appetite before I decide to eat. I'd rather not put the food to waste because I couldn't finish it. I hate wasting food. Haha, wow, the attendant noticed my tea was getting low and asked me if I wanted more. She even referred to me as "Miss Liu." Haha, I think the crew leader came by and saw me typing and she ...

Construction on Osaka Castle (Osakajo) started in 1583 on the former site of the Ishiyama Honganji Temple, which had been destroyed by Oda Nobunaga thirteen years earlier. Toyotomi Hideyoshi intended the castle to become the center of a new, unified Japan under Toyotomi ...

The island of Miyajima (literally: shrine island), located 40 minutes from the city center by train and ferry. The island is beautiful with lots of greenery and surprise.. penguins . Hiroshima was the first city in history to be the target of the first ever atomic bomb. August 6, 1945, US ...