Can't quite remember where I got that phrase from, but I think you should catch the meaning. I'm not actually gone though (and I hope no-one else is), I am still in Japan, just a completely different part of it to last time I made an entry, or even a non-entry.
Last time you heard of my existence I was in Kyoto but I haven't even told you about what I did there, let alone how I now come to be in Asahikawa on Hokkaido. What I really want to do right now is write a couple of e-mails, unfortunatly that doesn't seem to be working here. So instead all you lucky people are actually getting an entry for once. Now all I have to do is try and remember everything that has happened since the last meaningfull entry.
Right, well before I was in Kyoto I went through Nara where I will admit I didn't do much. I visited the main temple, [enter name here] and saw the very tame deer but other than that I mainly just wondered around the streets and parks. That was on May 10th, in the afternoon after my entry from Osaka.
The next morning I took a train to Kyoto (with a little more trouble than usual as the signals weren't working). Leaving my luggage at the station initially I started on the temples around the station. First was To-ji and the attached museum, just to the south-west of the station, before heading back north of the station for Higashi-Hongan-ji , Kikoku-tei and Nishi-Hongan-ji and finally to my hotel after picking my luggage up again.
The next day (May 12th) I headed for Nijo-jo. While exploring the castle here I met a small group taking a short tour of the city and hooked up with them for the rest of the day. What followed was a quick tour of some of Kyoto's best sights, including Kinkaku-ji, containing the Golden Pavilion and Ryoan-ji, known for it's Zen-garden.
With my second full day in Kyoto I didn't do a huge amount, just visited the Imperial Palace before walking to Ginkaku-ji (containing the Silver Pavilion) and on along the Path of Philosophy.
My last full day in Kyoto I headed back out west, starting with Sanjusangen-do and it's incredibly impressive 1001 Buddha's, stretching into the distance. Heading north I visited Kiyomizu-dera, with it's wooden platform sticking into the valley and then went on to Kodai-ji with it's plesant gardens and also visited the small museum nearby. Continuing north I visited Chion-in, with it's massive temple buildings before my final stop of the day was at Heian-jingu and it's gardens.
On the morning of the 15th I headed first to that station to drop of my bag and then returned to the Imperial Palace and watched the prossesion of the Hollyhock Festival passing by before leaving Kyoto by Shinkansen to Tokyo. Changing at Tokyo I took a second Shinkansen as far as Sendai, where I spent that night.
In the morning one more Shinkansen got me to Hanchinohe where I changed trains for an LEX heading through the long tunnel to Hakodate on Hokkaido where I spent a surprisingly pleasant night in the youth hostel there.
The next day I headed first to Onuma-koen where I spent the morning cycling round the lakes and islands. Sometime after mid-day I got back on the train to Sapporo, this time getting off at Toya, to get a bus to Toya-ko Onsen, with beautiful views of the lake on one side and volcanoes on the other. That night I got to see part of a fireworks display over the lake before spending the night there.
The next morning I got back on the train to Sapporo, but stopped off once more at Naboribetsu and visited the Hell Valley there with it's bubbling sulphurous pools and streams before going the rest of the way to Sapporo.
After a night in Sapporo I spent the day in the nearby port town of Otaru before returning for a second night in Sapporo.
Now were up to Yesterday the 20th May (unless I've missed out something) when I visited Sapporo's botanic gardens before coming here to Asahikawa where I spent the night.
Now it's a very sunny day here in Asahikawa but there isn't a whole lot to do here so I've finally got time to write out this long entry and plan what I'm going to do with the next week or so on Hokkaido before returning to the mainland for my last few weeks in Japan.
Posted by Haifisch at May 21, 2003 03:53 AMThanks for this nice long log entry.
Posted by: Graham at May 21, 2003 08:59 AM