Sakura and Family

As I sit at my desk after the welcome ceremony for new students, I decide it is time for another entry. The weather is getting warmer and in a little over two weeks I will be entering an Indian inferno. A strong contrast to the current weather of light pink blossoms making their final decent carried by a chilly wind.

This past week has been pretty eventful. I met my brother Damien and his girlfriend Michelle in front of the famous Hachiko statue in Shibuya on the evening of March 30th. After finding a business hotel to throw our bags we headed out for some Italian food and a few drinks. It was my last night in Tokyo and part of me was happy to be leaving the crazyness and part of me longed for the life that a modern metropolis could offer me.

After a two and a half hour shinkansen ride, Damien and Michelle were in my home prefecture of Shiga. Another hour later on one of the slowest privite lines in Japan and we were in my small town of Hino, where we would spend the next two nights. I had to come back for an official farewell party for some teachers on the night of March 31st and was told to come to work on April 1st for an opening ceremony. The party was pretty good although formal, and I felt that I could actually talk with a few of the teachers. The opening ceremony could have definitely went on without me. However, it was good to meet the new teachers on their first day.

I was given the opportunity to meet a local woman who worked at the Junior High School a few years back and her husband. They both speak great English and are also well traveled. Two very good combinations and quite rare in rural Japan. That evening Damien, Michelle, my co-worker Anna and I enjoyed some chanko nabe and some great company. I am relieved and excited about meeting my new friends in Hino, since they are the first local people I have truly felt welcomed by since moving here almost nine months ago.

Anyway, on April 2nd my visitors and I were back on the trains headed to Nara to see the daibutsu and the famous 'tame' deer. Luckily we arrived at the Todaiji a half hour before the gates closed. After this it was off to the city of Osaka for a night in a capsule hotel and 'Japanese' nightlife. Of all the cities in Japan to party, Osaka is one of the best.

The largest wooden structure in the world. Todaiji, Nara.

The next morning, after feeling a little rough from the night before, we headed to Kyoto. Unfortunately because of the cherry blossoms blooming, there were no available hostels, business hotels, hotels, or guest houses. We were lucky enough to find a share house that one of the the hostels that I stayed at a few weeks earlier knew about. Also for tourists to see the cherry blossoms is also very lucky, since a few cold days could change their blooming date by weeks. After resting up, we headed out for some Indian curry and cherry blossom viewing at a local temple and park. I was happy to finally see the famous weeping cherry tree in Maruyama Park in full bloom, which I missed two springs ago on my visit to Kyoto from Kumamoto.

Sakura in Maruyama park

The next morning we decided to head to Arashiyama and take a look at a bunch of Japanese monkeys and of course more cherry blossoms. Dinner was at a pretty fancy restaurant which served Shabu-shabu. I know Damien has wanted to try a chinese style hot pot for a while, but unfortunately it wasn't the same style he was hoping for. I think he was looking for the spicy Sichuan style hot-pot made with a hot sauce called ma-la. Nonetheless it was very delicious!

The evening was spent back in Maruyama Park where we decided to join in the hanami festivities before our departure from Kyoto back to Hino the next day.

Honestly, we did so much that it is impossible to write about any of it in the detail it deserves. But I am certain that we covered as much as we could have with the amount of time we had.

Now it is back to everyday life. Tomorrow is pay day, and it couldn't come any sooner! I have a lot of preparations before I head off to India on the 28th.