Washıng Machıne

I am currently ın Istanbul and today I went to a Turkısh bathhouse - Hamman.
It was very ınterestıng! The bath house ıs 300 years old and ıs all marble wıth beautıful tıles and natural lıght comıng through the skyılght staıned glass wındows. There are lıttle taps and basıns and (sımılarly to a japanese bath house) you sıt and pour water over yourself from the basın and clean yourself etc. In the center of the bath house women lay around and are washed by some bath house ladıes. So - my fully naked body was scrubbed ALLLL over by a bıg lady wıth a rough mıtten. she scrubbed all of me... and basıcally exfolıated my whole body... chest bum feet and face etc... now I thınk about ıt wıth the same glove lolol. She showed me how much my skın was peelıng away. It looked lıke when you use a rubber and ı had lıttle dry old peelıngs of skın comıng away. Then I sat between her legs by a basın and she lathered me up wıth soap and gave me a very vıgorous cleanıng! She was scrubbıng my haır and face dousıng me wıth water... so that I felt lıke I was ın a washıng machıne. Then she lathered up my body and was massagıng me too lol. I felt a lıttle lıke I was drownıng ın soap! But afterwards my skın felt very soft and clean! I sat ın a hot steam room too and just by the basın wıth some water. Its very relaxıng to sıt ın the bathroom ıtself. Then myself and 2 other gırls sat ın our towels and had turkısh tea and as much turkısh delıght as we could eat! and we got a present of a comb and some very bıg underwear lol.
Im really enjoyıng Istanbul so far!!! My eyes are wıde open wıth all of the sıghts. Women wearıng full relıgıous dress all ın black and burka and just a lıttle wındow for theır eyes and also women ın tank tops and short shorts and haıry men wıth bıg moustaches and lımbless beggars and tonnes of polıcemen carry around machıne guns casually as ıf they are a toy! The skylıne ıs full of Mosques and at certaın tımes there ıs someone sıngıng over loud speaker ın arabıc callıng people for prayer. It ıs very exoctıc here! hehe I have felt safe so far and not hassled by any menat all. I mostly walk around wıth my 3 dorm room mates - a turkısh gırl and her french boyfrıend and theır frıend from the moldıves. So ıts nıcer to walk wıth people and they have wanted to do the same thıngs as me. We have been vısıtıng some Mosques (where I had to cover up my body and haır) and a beautıful palace wıth the sultans clothes and bejewelled everythıng and beautıfullly patterened tıle walls. To the grand bazaar markets and spıce markets wıth everyone callıng hey lady etc... tryıng to get you to buy somethıng! I have smoked some Nargıleh too (shısha) apple flavour - I got dızzy from takıng so many deep breaths lol... and I trıed to play backgammon wıth the moldıves room mate but we dıdnt know how.

Also I have not wrıtten at all about Vıenna.
I cannot belıeve my luck really. I met a couple ın Prague at my hostel and they ınsısted I stay wıth one of them when I got to Vıenna. I stayed wıth Lara and her 2 housemates for a week! They were sooooo ıncredıbly kınd to me and I enjoyed theır company alot! They were cookıng dınners at theır house or Laras boyfrıend Mılos house and also comıng to some gallerıes wıth meand out to some pubs and cafes. One of Laras housemates leant me Fıght Clubto read. They were regularly pourıng me coffee and lettıng me do my laundry and check my emaıls and were soooo lovely.I really hope to meet up wıth Lara agaın on my travels!! we are tryıng to organıse a few thıngs... I let you know how they work out. Lara even took me to the aırport when I left and I was very sad to leave Vıenna and such warm company. In Vıenna I went to 4 amazıng gallerıes. The Albertına. Museum Modern Kunst. Leopold Museum and also Belvedere. For me I was nearly explodıng wıth happıness! to see some of my favourıte artısts. Chagall and Klımpt especıally and also Pıcasso and Monet and Kandınsky and Magrıtte and Mıchael Angelo and Ruebens and all of the masters etc lol... I just wanted to melt ınto the floor - thıs could also have been the coffee buzz... but I was SOOOO excıted to see!! Anyway I would lıke to wrıte more about Vıenna... I have wrıtten some ın my book andneed to put up more photos.
thats alll for now!!! mıss my frıends and famıly alot! xxx

Salzburg

My first 2 day of Salzburg were filled with alot of heavy rain!
But I still made the most of the days. I got up early on my first day and walked through the old town. There were lots of church bells ringing and classical music in churches and from buskers. The center was quiet because it was Sunday. The air felt really fresh and the city is quite clean. It is alot less hustle and bustle compared to Prague too. The hills are all around the border of the city aswell. I met up coincidently with a group from my hostel doing the free tour taken by one of the hostel workers. We climbed up a big hill on the new side of town for a good look over the city and of the river etc... There are lots of sound of music cliche locations here hehe... I went to Mirrabell palace which has a beautiful garden! There was a wedding group there. Also beds of roses and fountains beautiful garden planning. I got some dinner at the vegan restaurant and the owner gave me a free dessert to eat!! with a yummy sesame pastry and blueberry jam filling.
On day 2 I was determined to hike up to the fortress overlooking the city. It was very wet and cold. I climbed up with my crappy umbrella and then walked along the crest of the hill... it was quite a long walk too! with some beautiful views and I packed a little picnic! I bought some bread from a very cool bakery with lots of pretzels and even little hedgehog pretzels... lots of creative dough molding there! So I had a pretty good day! and looked around in some churches in the afternoon etc... had to give in and buy a waterproof and windproof jacket... I was soaked and still have possibilities of windy raining cold day on my trip! So its an investment...
I had the best hotdog for lunch too! It such a good sausage with very nice mustard! Extremely satisfying.
Today I had the best day of all. The sun came out!!! I watched a bit of the sound of music whilst it was still cloudy and then went on a bike tour run by my hostel. I think it was good value as it was just the cost of the bike hire plus the cost of entry to the palace and it was a discounted entry to the palace. Also the day was beautiful for riding and it was a very small group of 3 plus me! We through lots of shady trees and some very nice house properties and past fields of grass with wild flowers and past some very beautiful views of the mountains too! The very big one even had a little snow on it!!!
The Hellsburn palace was very cool too! We walked through the trick fountains! which are very tricky... and I got pretty wet. It was like a summer palace built by the king for his amusement. He had a dinner party etc and as the guests are not allowed to stand up until the king leaves the table etc... he had built these trick fountains into all of their chairs and around the table... so they got really wet but they weren't allowed to get up. Everything had a surprise fountain in it... statues... like a deer will shoot water at u from his mouth and then his antlers will start spurting water everywhere... and walls ... alot of jets just seem to aim at your crotch too. He had some beautiful fountain rooms with like a feature wall of a woman in water or like king triton. etc... suprise fountains in door ways and from the roof and floor... haha There was a very cool musical water room where the water moved around pipes and blew out conch shells in a special way to make music and bird sounds... he had water powered moving displays... It was a very nice fountain garden! Inside the palace was cool too... he had lots of weird paintings of animals and exotic animals...They reminded me a bit of my style of paintings. He had a bird room just full of paintings of birds and a room with beautiful Chinese wall paper and a fish painting room and another music room with beautiful gold and red painted walls with people and birds everywhere... it had good acoustics for renaissance style music etc... he seemed to be a very eccentric king Anyway! We rode back along the river and the sun was fully out with a nice breeze and lots of green trees etc... very peaceful.

I haven't been able to afford to eat too much here... but eat some pretzels and very nice frankfurters with mustard and grated horseradish! When not eating those I eat bread and jam or fruit or soy milk or juice poppers... for like breakfast, lunch and dinner. hahaha
Salzburg is expensive! and my hostel is no where near as nice as the one in prague... staying in a mass dorm with bunks and the bathrooms are mass ones and toilets too are unclean. No kitchen here!! which is why I cant cook good meals for myself. It is very busy and party and lots of big groups of backpackers who r traveling together... The other night I was in a common room and I realized it had 12 Australians and 3 Americans in it... no one else. I'm trying to get away from Australians!!! ... and Also...internet is not free!!! and no place to sit quietly... The hostel tours have been good though and the train station is really close! Also i enjoy staying in an all girls dorm... its nice :)
I really love salzburg though... all of the surrounding nature is very fresh and exciting... I have an urge in me to hike everywhere hehe and swim in lakes etc... and crunch around in the snow... Id love to stay but I will be heading to Vienna tomorrow I think... :)

OK well... it takes me a very long time to put up photos on these computers... I put some up of latvia on facebook if you haven't seen them yet.

Love Emily

The hills are alive...

Dear Travel Diary, I have now left Prage. I will be heading to Salzburg via a series of confusing trains. The first one was so packed that I stood in the aisle for 3 hours. Literally every man and his dog were on there. Plus bikes and lots of camping gear. It was nice bz the window with the wind blowing in my face and lots of hills rolling bz... after a while I sat on my bag and fell asleep. The train kept coming to deafening screeching stops and everyone would stick their heads out the windows. My train was late and I missed the transfer so I now have to catch 3 more trains to get to Salzburg... providing that I dont miss THEIR links... hehe
Yesterdaz I got up early and did a day trip out to Kutna Hora on the train. It was a hot sunny day which was very uplifting after the past few cold dribbly ones in Prague. The train passed a few fields of sun flowers and on the way back a man mowing the lawn in only jocks, boots and gloves. ( I get the impression that a lot of Europeans strip off in the summer heat)
I had a really nice time in Kutna Hora. Again walking passed red and purple wild flowers. I had a new spring in my step. The area near the train station was very quiet and like suburbs... I went to the Kostnice Seldec Ossuary! Which was the one thing I really wanted to do in Czech... It held up to my expectations after a big crowd of tourists left and it was very quiet. The whole interior of the church is decorated with human bones! After about 40000 were buried their as a result of the Plague. There were skulls and cross bones hanging from the ceilings in arches (like you might thread popcorn on a string and hang it up for Christmas). There were towers of skulls with angels on top, bone shields and a great chandelier made of bones... The frame holding it up were all jaw bones and then lots of arm and leg bones cascading down. The skulls were the centerpieces for candles (on top of their heads) and the skulls sat on like a fanning plate of hip bones. I was very fascinated with all of the bones. I didn't feel such a sombre atmosphere - but it was very beautiful.
I walked up to the main town with lots of Gothic architecture and a beautiful view of the town, forest and fields. I got really lost on the way back and it was so hot and I was in the sun constantly. I ate a stick of cooking marzipan on the train ride home.

For my last night I went out with Martins and I brought an Australian girl with us too. She was little and blond and traveling alone like me. We all caught a tram out to a really nice row of beer gardens along the river... during the day there were swimming fountains and volley ball nets. There were lots of lights along the river and a backdrop of the hills with some big houses and castley style buildings. We drank beer at a cool sandy outdoor pub with hammocks and wooden chairs etc... it probably felt more like Bali than Prague though hehe... We ran around in the rain and tried a few pubs it was fun. On the way home to our hostel Me and the other Aus got lost on the tram and were a bit scared... we ended up in a random suburb... but worked out how to get back! :) hehe

Anyway... I AM IN Salzburg now... after catching 4 trains... near the Austrian border there were lots of campers getting off the train... I think that there are some white water rafting rapids... there were lots of guys with paddles and big plastic barrels with their clothes and stuff in it (which I suppose is to keep their stuff dry). There would be some other reallz nice places in the Czech country side to visit too I think. Austria had an immediate distinct appearance. The buildings look very typically german... you know with the wood and flower boxes etc... hehe
Passed lots of sunflower fields and mountains with woods and grassy hills...
More about salzburg tomorrow!

Prague-ing around

I am still wondering around Prague. Maybe enjoying the comfortable hostel too much. It has been around 5 days... and people that stay for 3 say that there is not much more to see, but I think there is much more to be uncovered and that I am only just scraping the surface. Each time I walk through the city I find new things... there are lots of book stores and cafes and tourist shops, but I think on 3rd glance there are 2nd hand book stores and interesting pubs with galleries in them and art student fashions stores and antique stores... with lots of interesting bags and necklaces and old boxes and cups... you could do a lot of op shopping here. There are lots of theaters and art galleries to be found too... Also there are police or ambulance sirens almost on the hour! lol I dont know if people are being murdered or somethign!! but I hear sirens allll the time! I really like the ornamentation on all of the buildings. Like men holding up window sills and women laying across doorways or a big lion or owl looking down over a door way and lots of gold painting too... like some gold flowers or a gold fence or a gold star up the top of the building...
I dont really even think I have covered all of the sections of the city yet. I really like the islands in the middle of the river... they seem like such a nice place to escape the tourists and the city... I visit them a fair bit to eat some lunch or sit down and relax with the river view.
I have been doing alot of drawing. The other day I sat and drew a homeless man sleeping on a bench infront of a really beautiful art nouveau building. Then some police came and were poking and hitting him because he wasnt allowed to sleep there... so I drew them too! I also bought a heap of berries at the market (blueberries, raspberries and black berries) and ate them in the park after I went to visit the DANCING house... which is a very twisted up looking building.
I had spent my budget for the day (mainly on vegetables) so I sat outside a wine bar on a bench with a muesli bar and listened to some free jazz (a sax and guitar).
I have been making lots healthy food whilst away: vegetable stew, vegetable and sausage stew, and zucchini and tomato pastas...
Today I walked across the main bridge and up a big big flight of stairs to the prague castle! There was a really beautiful view of prague... and a fantastic violinist... I even gave him some money. I ate a bagel in the park... and it was successfully dairy free... after much discussion about mlairchnair virobky (milk products... i spelt it how it sounds). Tonight I went into the jazz club redutta. I saw a band playing alot of jazz standards but it was pretty enjoyable and they were good musicians. Their guitarist and bass player especially... and they even had a guest trumpeter (just for me). Then... I walked home on my own... with my hoody on... without being robbed or attacked! Im very happy about this. I avoided walking near the park and also quiet streets! I felt safe though... lots of people walking around still.
Anyway... just drifting around prague, through the town... there is a lot to take in! so tired... its nearly 2 am... the cobble stones make my feet and legs sore!!! long dayy...

kafkaesque...

Im going to skip Latvia (it is written in my book) and write about it later... so I dont forget to write about Prague...

I am loving Prague soo much... there are lots of tourists here but that hasnt taken away from the vibe and the beautiful scenery. The city center is really pretty with cobble stones and beautiful decorated buildings and churches... a very big old clock... and surrounding prage are lots of little mountains with castles and church steeples peeking up. When you cross the main bridge it is such a beautiful sight... the bridge has lots of statues of saints etc and the river is busy with row boats and paddle boats and riverside cafes/beer gardens and pretty buildings and the mountains and castles in distance etc... Also lots of nice islands in the middle of the river that have bridges leading to them and there are people reading books on the grass, lots of dogs, people drinking beer by the river and even one island I went to had a little artist camp set up with tents and people painting the river/city view. There is a jewish district, and lots of funky cafes... and jazz music around the place. Im not sure exactly what it is but I have a content smile on my face in Prague...
I have a really nice hostel too! I paid a little bit extra but it was worth it... the beds are NOT bunks... and super clean sheets with a squishy white doona and big squishy pillow... about 4 beds per dorm room with lots of natural light and space. The bathrooms are like super modern... and has a MASSIVE SHOWER HEAD lol... like dinner plate size... and sensor lights that go on and off as u go in and out of toilet and rooms etc... and a nice cosy lounge/kitchen with leather couches and like a brick cellar room. So clean and comfy... (called Miss Sophies)
Yesterday I went to the Franz Kafka museum... it was very interesting... and the whole museum was set up like metaphores for his writing/life ... so it kind of made u feel like you were suffering a bit like Kafka... walking down file cabinet rooms and listening to old telephones to hear some of his readings... lots of strange music... but it was VERY interesting to read about his life and also get a bit of prague history from it... I bought a Kafka book (metamorphisis...plus other short stories in it and also Judgement... a guy in the hostel that studied kafka at uni told me to read judgement first...)
I climbed a hill where I could see all of Prague. Lots of red roof tops and steeples. Warm with a light breeze, sitting on the grass under some shady cherry trees. Green stringy grass with flowers and fallen cherries. The smell is warm like freshly cleaned sheets that have dried in the sun. Cicadas and birds twittering and bees buzzing to each other in the grass. Distant sounds of traffic feel far away. I read Kafka on the grass and drew girls sunbathing in their bikinis on the hill. I ate a few cherries and tried an apple.
Last night I went with Uldis son (read latvia... later) and he took me to a castle and some beer gardens. The beers are very large here with about 1 third head... So you get tankd quickly lol...
The beer garden had a view of prague and there were lots of dogs wandering around with their owners... It started to rain and everyone piled in the reggae pub and EVEN the dogs piled inside too... about 5 big dogs all inside! lol...
Today it is raining... and unfortunately this internet cafe... was misleading in its internet facilities on its website SO i cant put photos up... or use skype... sorrry readers... photos will be added later... aswell as latvia... latvia is a whole novel lol.

Finland last days

So I need to write and catch up some blogs!!!!
Finland was really nice, a quiet town... except for the seaguls...
But I enjoyed walking around the markets and the slick design shops and crazy old antique shops. However, finland is soooo expensive so I couldnt afford to do much.
I bought food from the markets and tried to copy the local food...
Potatoes and salmon and dill... (looked very fancy once I cooked it... the backpackers were impressed) Also lots of fresh raspberries... they are such a novelty for me... like in the opening of Amelie... I put them on all my fingers and then eat them hehe...
And the most delicious sweetest juice ever! raspberry and mixed berry juices... omg... like drinking cordial hehe
On the last day I went to the island soumoleina... with some english backpackers... one of them does Hash... look it up on the net... its like a communal running group all over the world and they have meetings everywhere... and basically you run and drink beer and have code names and its almost like a special running game... with short cuts and cheating and fast runners and yeh... I think look it up should be interesting... they even have songs... which are rather like college songs with rude words etc... lol Anyway the island was really pretty and has all of these fortresses built on it for protection etc... it had a very cold looking swimming beach and lots of tunnels to climb around in which was fun. The view was beautiful and lots of grass and foresty trees and yellow flowers. It was nice seeing little surrounding islands with like one little shed of a house on it and like one pine tree lol... apparently the sea in helsinki harbour freezes over in winter and they need big icebreaker ships every day.
That afternoon back from the island I walked for half an hour in the rain... and I thought it was a seedy area too... some hobos and guys trying to talk to me (whom I ignored) and yeh I was freezing and wet and lost... but once I found it - the wooden Sauna was very nice!! (pronounced sOWna)
1. I got my 4 hours of nudity fix. 2. it really warmed and cheered me up and was so relaxing.
I talked to a finnish lady but it was quiet because of summer and during the week... it was fun having cold showers and then sitting in the sauna on the wooden slats... or having a drink and readning a magazine in the cool air and back to the sauna again! I caught the tram home !
Oh also I cant remember if it was the same day... but I went to a beautiful church built into the rocks... like carved in... and you go in and it has beautiful rock walls and water was trickling down from the rain and an amazing wooden spiraling dome roof... and glass looking into the elements...
to me it actually felt like a spiritual place because it was built into nature... it was so relaxing sitting there listening to some gorgeous piano music and listening to the water trickle down the rock walls... :)
Anyway I enjoyed finland... !!!
I need to find a computer that lets me plug in my camera desperately.

Finland

I had a 10 hour flight yesterday... it was long!! but i felt more relaxed on the flight... I nearly cried a few times getting t o plane and then getting to hostel etc... but i stayed strong!
On the flight over we flew over Russia (yes ben thats you)! and I was pretty excited about this... but then it was boring and lots of forest.... BUT THEN after about 7 hours I really realised how big russia was!!!! it blew me away all of that space... we flew right to the top of Russia where it meets the sea and then down to helsinki! I saw crinkly snowy mountains, icy lakes and rivers, snowy river banks and a beautiful bright blue sea! which to my delight had big ice sheets over it! and the ice was making pretty patterns in the sea. I then started to realise that it might be cold in Helsinki... and its freezing there are icy breezes blowing through the buildings! It is very much a harbour town with seaguls flying and sqwaking around... and has literally been a cold shock! hehe compared to Japan!
I got really lost after I got my bus to the town center... my hostel is a 15 min walk... but it was very confusing and I took several wrong roads and held my bag as if it were made of diamonds... in my minds eye I could see theives all about!! maybe today I will still think the same... or maybe its just cause alot of finlandians look like lumberjacks and bikers... and have reallly long hair... men and women... or look super rich and euro and drive bmws etc around the cobbelled streets with their roof off and techno pumping...
Anyway after a long search I found my hostel... my room is semi clean... ive slept a whole night in my sheets and no bed bugs and they seemed clean enough even though they look old... the building is old with old school patterened wall paper and carpets and wooden floors... has a very antiquesy look! book shelves... hat stands... decorative wooden furniture
It seems to stay light alllll night here haha... which is safer for me i think... but confusing... it gets darker like the sun goes low behind the buildings and there is an eerie light... like about 5pm 6pm... but at 11pm when i went to sleep it looked like 4pm...
there are lots of pretty parks and i think russiany influenced buildings... like rows of them... a bit st petersbergy from pictures ive seen... a bit latvian looking... haha and very harbour! huge ships and all of that harbour industrial kind of stuff... seem to be tonnes of quirky shops and antique shops everywhere ... but they were all closed yesterday cause of a summer solstice holiday... so the city was kind of empty too!
its a bit daunting but ill get into it more today!!!! i think after another nap though cause its 5am... i jsut saw the computer free ....
ok love lots

Hiroshima at an end...

I have spent this week taking it easy! Collecting my thoughts and trying to relax. I spent the first 2 weeks running around alot and have been exhausted! Every day tasks become so much more difficult with a language barrier. For instance shopping - You cant read anything and as Alex has said you dont know if you are buying a sauce or disinfectant! Small tasks take alot more energy than normal! But that is how it makes things more different and interesting compared to every day life I guess!
I have been bike riding alot, eating good food (okonomiyaki) and hanging out with Alex.
I have also been having lots of weird dreams! Like declining dangerous space missions with Bruce Willis fighting Aliens and another about people throwing bombs at each other in a game and I was wrestling tigers and panthers. I looked up the dream dictionary and it all matched up with feeling alienated, supressed emotions, travel, spiritual journeys and self discovery etc... hehe

(cool bar Alex and I found)

Tonight I went to an amazing Tempura restaurant with the boss of Cut for you - Chief and Machan. We had aprons put on us. There was a special tasting dipping salt, lemon, tempura sauce mixed with grated daikon (raddish) and a salad. Each piece of tempura was served individually and the chef told us what to eat with each item - for example dip it in the salt, half salt half suace, half salt half lemon, straight, curry...
First Prawn neck (legs and shell) with salt - absolutely delicious crispy morsel, 2 prawns, a tender fish, Shitake mushroom stuffed with prawn, lotus root, fish with daikon and lemon juice on top, asparagus, squid and squid in a leaf, Okura (I call them sap pods...cause they are gooey inside and look like a green chillie but not hot), and a sardine (with curry), eggplant, 2 pieces of eel (with curry). Then tendon prawn tempura mix on rice with pipi miso soup and pickles. We drank white wine and then Atsukan (hot sake) The sake made us very warm. Then for Dessert we had a redbean jelly square with macha green tea (the special powder tea that looks bright green) in a big bowl whisked/prepared tradditionally. The red bean was really sweet and the macha was bitter so they even each other out.

(I wish I took a photo of the chef setup... he was very helpful)
This combination made me gooey with happiness. The tempura melted in my mouth - not oily at all - apparently very expensive oil. It was still hot and fresh and there was a big tank of fresh prawns. He served each piece individually as he made it and had been making tempura for 40 years, he was an expert! (Chief was extremely kind as to pay for Alex and my dinner!... Way too kind!) I am so content, warm, fuzzy, nicely full, with a smile on my face right now.
Plus - I have a new haircut. (I think Chief is a great hairdresser and gave me a very interesting haircut!) I am now a travel warrior - about to embark on my journey alone. Fresh, new... Japan is my safe base: I have been here, it is familiar, I have friends here, accomodation, dairy free food, it is a friendly, cute, kitsche, upbeat atmosphere, and a peaceful life style (if you are not working and just eating, drinking tea and bathing all the time like I have been). I think the next leg of my trip will be very different. But I think the first part has helped prepare me for what is to come! Best last night in Hiroshima ever!

Cut for you castle dinner...

On Friday I did a little bit of work for the hairsalon that are friends with Alex and Flic. I swept some hair and washed a few things etc... I felt a bit intrusive and my Japanese skills are not good! But Alex said that Chief likes the staff to practise some english. I helped for the morning and was pretty shy and probably more of a hinderance than help hehe... but they were really nice to me. It was very quiet so I left at around 3.
Tonight Cut for you Hair salon wanted to take Alex and I out for dinner! We all piled into 2 cars - ours had a tv/dvd player for us all to watch music clips haha... We drove for about an hour through alot of tunnels and past mountains and rivers following the cars directions...until we got to this nice restaurant that was styled like a castle. It was built into the mountain and forest and there were lots of lanterns... it was quite spectacular! Inside it was really castle fashioned with lots of armour of warriors etc... that were kind of scary! Chief wanted to Choose dinner for Alex and I and we got soba noodle soup, a giant rice ball with little fillings in it, a big crispy tasty chicken wing on a stick... it was huge..., gyoza, baked fish on a stick, and this marbled beef that we cooked on a bbq at the table... it was a tremendous feast! everyone had dessert... I had a little taste it was like an icy redbean sweet... but I was way too full!! THey gave me a little purse souvenier present and shouted Alex and I dinner... I cannot believe how kind and generous they were! We had SUCH A GREAT TIME! the food was delicious and the company was very interesting and funny hehe... Chiefs english is very good
After dinner Cut for you team took us to a really old bridge... I can imagine in the day there would be amazing scenery... but it was a bit dark to take photos... but it seemed like a really old bridge with big arches (we walked across) and a stream and mountains and forest all around etc... it was about another half hour drive from dinner... It was a very nice walk hehe and lots of fun!

Beppu!

This weekend I went to Beppu with Alex. Beppu is on the main south island called Kyushu. It has alot of hot springs and therefore is a bath house town! We stayed in the Khaosan hostel, which was really nice! It had a big rocky bath and free internet and clean bunks etc... it was very comfortable!
Alex and I got there Friday night and then Saturday had a really full day of bathing! I had 3 baths!
We caught a bus to an onsen area around 20 mins from the center of Beppu. On the way we found a really strange statue. It is of a man that is kind of leaping forward... and the statue sign says that he is called Shiny Unkle and that he loved children. It was very strange and connoted alot of weird suggestive ideas.

Anyway Alex and I spent the first part of the morning pretty lost... walking around the hills through the suburbs with steam rising out of drains from the hot springs. Finally we found our way and definately needed a bath! The first onsen we went to was called Hyotan. It was fantastic! I think I spent over half an hour trying all of the different baths... and my bathing etiquette is much better now so it wasnt stressful at all! The first bath I tried had these water jets pouring down and you could stand under them or sit under them to massage your back! They water was very powerful but I got a good back massage. There was also a wooden bath and a pebble bath and another one with all of these rocky pools and one with a religious statue etc... there was also a sauna but I didnt use it... I loved the open air out door bath - it had a waterfall.
After our baths Alex and I met back again for lunch and had tasty chicken tempura, miso soup, tofu, rice, pickles, etc etc which were all specially prepared with hot spring water like hot spring steamed etc... We had a little nap on the tatami nap... everyone seemed to be doing this after lunch...
We had another bath at Hyotan after lunch! and then went on an adventure up the mountains and went to one of the Jigoku (hells) which are some hot springs that are for viewing but not bathing... I think you would cook yourself. There was a massive one that was cobalt blue (something to do with the sea) and a red muddy one that was bubbling away. They were pretty impressive. Alex and I had a foot bath there aswell. There were some really beautiful red gates... and they were open... something about letting the spirits and god flow through. I think what I understood from the conversation tonight was that it was god... and similar to Miyajima Island etc...
After that Alex and I had one more bath at a little public bath house and it was free... some little old ladies talked to me and I didnt understand. One guestured to me as I was putting my jeans on and laughed... Im not sure why... maybe telling me they were tight or something lol
The bath houses were very relaxing and I was soo tired after the day!
ALex and I shared a carton or two of plum wine at the beach after dinner... plum wine is so sweet and nice! but today I am suffering the consequences! Plus I was given some home made plum wine today as a gift!!! ahh! hehe




Alex and I went to a really big old bath house in the morning before heading home! It was wooden and very tradditional looking... the bath was fairly small... but SUPER HOT!!! omg... Alex said that he couldnt even get in the bath! I had to ease my way in and I was bright red... like a cooked crab... !! I kept my arms out though... it was so hot if you moved a little bit... So I didnt stay in there TOO long... incase I might cook all of my innards...

biking hiroshima

HIROSHIMA TALES -------
Last night, I had a delcious feast of Fresh shushi with Alex at a nearby pub. I ate tuna, shrimp, squid and octopus and a few other types of fish. Alex and I also shared a plate of Octopus Karage - deep fried octopus pieces. It was delicious for sure! We drank very tall beer and a drunk man sat at our table and tried to talk to us for an awkwardly long time. He was arguing with his wife about which umbrella was his. Alex and I rode our bikes one handed, holding umbrellas in the other to a french style pub after dinner. It was a super delicious night!


It was a magnificent sunny day today. The sky was crisp as apposed to the usual haze. I rode my bike all day around the rivers. I bought a bento lunch box and rode into town. I had to go to a service station to get my tires pumped up and there were two lovely guys there! They filled my tires for free and one of them even got out some tools and fixed my bike a bit. The other man gave me a fan to fan myself with whilst I waited. I bowed and waved goodbye and rode along the river unil I found a nice spot to sit on a bench with a view of the river. To my surprise... my bento box was all shaken up inside... and also another surprise was that I had ordered those tiny little fish again!! Yuck! All over my rice little white fish.
Just as I was about to eat my lunch I heard this awful screaming from across the river. I thought that maybe a woman was being raped or attacked or something. I could just see across the river a woman running down the stairs to the river and she jumped in. (there is like a big sloping wall against the river). She stood in the water screaming at the top of her lungs. At first I felt really sick and thought that maybe her child or baby or something had fallen in. Im still not really sure what happened... my guess is that maybe her pet or something drowned. There was a man there with her and I couldnt see an ambulance or them rushing back up the stairs in a hurry or anything like that. It seemed to me that they had accepted whatever had happened, so I dont think it could be a human life. She was sobbing alot and they sat by the water for a long time and he was comforting her. I think that something definately went in the water... Im still wondering though.
After that river drama I set off on a long bike ride following the river for about an hour or two. Bike paths seem to follow the rivers FOREVER... The river was sparkling and I rode past alot of buildings and grassy slopes and mountains. There were lots of people walking little dogs on the grassy slopes by the river. I saw children playing under bridges and also a sax player on a dry river bed under the bridge. There was also an island in the middle of the river that was like some sort of crane/ bird island... it sounded like a bird party.
Had a nice drifty day today just taking in the sights :)

commenting issues...

I have made it now so that you dont have to have a google account and password to leave a comment... I hope that helps mum and Lucinda and anyone else... just remember to leave who you are when you do! xxx

eating Hiroshima

Yesterday I did alot of exploring around Hiroshima. Alex has leant me one of his bikes so I can ride around while he is at work. At first I was scared to leave the apartment incase I could not find my way back! But after a litte bit of riding I started to get my bearings. I made a little map with some landmarks so I could remember where things were: for instance the river, school at the end of the street, bridges, service station etc... I did lots of riding around the rivers and worked out that if I follow the bend around the river I can get to Hiroshima Dome and from there can get to the main shopping area. I rode into the city and got a rice ball and juice for lunch and did some drawing at Peace park. It was a really beautiful day to be out in the park! The green grass and flowers around the rivers make it look alot like spring; very pretty scenery. I rode from about midday until 6pm and then when Alex came home from work he cooked some dinner. We had some plum wine after dinner and went for a night ride around the rivers and then the night life district!
Today Alex and I had some Octopus balls for lunch/breakfast for me. I cant remember the Japanese name for them but they were really yummy. They had a piece of octopus in the middle and some sort of batter around the outsde... crispy on the outside but gooey inside.
Then Alex suggested I might go to Miyajimi Island today for a look around. I did not realise it was so close. It was about a half an hour train trip from where Alex lives and then a short ferry ride across (both fares covered on my JR pass... so no extra cost!) It was a really beautiful warm day for the beach and the ferry ride to the Island was really pretty over looking the mountains and there was a cool breeze! The island had alot of piney forest but the side I was on not really sandy beaches... The island is famous for its water temple/shrine that is built over the sea, with its main big red gate way out in the ocean. The island apparently (from what Alex has told me) is supposed to be the island of gods and is very sacred etc... and that there are no cemeteries or hospitals on it because they are impure and such. Also there are heaps of wild deer running around on the island and they are really friendly and will let you pat them if you want to. They just hang around and walk around with the people. I walked around alot looking at shrines and the sea and drawing and trying little snacks and walking through the park etc... For lunch I had oysters grilled in their shell (oysters are the islands specialty and I noticed a big Oyster farm on the boat ride over). I got 3 from a stall and the chef cooked them fresh and cracked them open and I had them with lemon and a beer. It was a very relaxing day :)
Unfortunately my camera ran out of battery so there are not as many photos as there should be.

Arriving in Hiroshima

READ LAST DAY TOKYO BELOW FIRST
After 2 jet speed train rides ... I arrived in Hiroshima at about 10.30pm (where Alex luckily found me at the pay phone trying to call him. ) Alex was dressed in his Japan fashion, looking a bit like a cowboy - Hiroshima Lone Ranger. The Yukata festival is on in Hiroshima for the weekend so heaps of people were dressed in kimono style fashion! So NO people in Japan dont all normally wear the yukata outfit and little clog thongs everywhere! just so you know...
Alexs apartment; is very nice! and has lovely views of the mountains and a big shower/bathtub and kitchen, loungeroom and bedroom. It has a nice feel to it. I plan on splashing around in the bath tub all week whilst alex is at work and making a nice water bill for him!
Hiroshima night 1; jumped on bikes (mine blue with a basket and a night light), followed alex zipping through the Hiroshima streets and over bridges and dodging people (with the wind in my HAIR as you dont have to wear a helmet here!) , rode passed Hiroshima dome and into the city nightlife area,
the streets were very messy due to the yukata festival with lots of drunk people everywhere! but it was very exciting and mind melting in a way just because so much was going on, went to a gaijen bar... like a foreigner bar and we had lots of beer and umeshu (plum wine) and chatted to people, we had convenience store beer which was only $2.50! and we drank in a little park with lots of flowers (which is also ok)! and then found our way to MAC bar where a big guy with a pony tail puts on popular western cds of your choice... I requested bob Marley and we drank more beer. It was a very cosy dark bar with a HUGE CD wall. Alex said to me something like you dont need a liqure licence to have a bar in Hiroshima or something... and that there were about 1000 bars in Hiroshima... Futatsu (insert drink name) O one gai shi mas. (Ill have 2 beers please) Danced and jumped around until too tired. Walked outside of the dark bar... and it was LIGHT ... about 5am!!!
Day 1 Hiroshima;
Had a very wobbly blury bike ride back to Alexs place... but the morning was beautiful ! Alex says that the rivers are his fave part of Hiroshima... and I agree really beautiful riding along the river and over bridges etc.
Slept in til 1 pm and had some recovery time with a very big headache. Then went to the Yukata festival with Alex and there were yummy street stalls with - octopus on a stick, meat on a stick, sausage on a stick, seafood on a stick, pancake thing on a stick, chicken on a stick, pork on a stick, toffee strawberries on a stick, toffee orange on a stick, chocolate coated banana on a stick etc... but we didnt get a meal on a stick. We got some street Okonomiyaki sort of thing ... like the cabbage pancake thing with strip of bacon on top and an egg and big glubs of sauce and mayonaise... it was quite delicious... with a frozen mango juice drink! then I had a toffee strawberry stick and got toffee all over me.
Nursing our heads we rode back to Alexs and slept some more before going to the hair salon where Alex and Flics friends are (Where flic did like a homestay thing for a while etc)
I felt really retarded when I got there and immediately forgot all of my Japanese out of shyness. The head hairdresser is named Chief. Everyone there seems to be really artistic and creative and are into films and photography and painting etc etc... and are wearing gorgeous fashion. Chief seemed pretty interested in my hair and apparently likes to try and find out a bit about his clients so he can give them a hairstyle that fits their personality. He seems to have alot of drive and big ideas and was talking about his plans and designs for updating the hair salon. very slick designs! We went for japanese curry and Chief was extremely kind to shout us dinner. He also gave me some shampoo and conditioner. I felt really embarrassed and shy the whole time though because I was fairly out of the loop and didnt have much to offer to them.
Alex seemed to be able to speak and understand alot of japanese! even though the whole time hes been telling me hes really bad at it and only knows BASIC in my opinion he was definately IN the LOOP! hehe
ok well maybe I should go practise some more Japanese etc... sweet dreams everyone... it is 3am...
I will write my last day with maruna blog and publish some photos tomorrow

Last Day Tokyo

I am leaving Tokyo on a Shinkansen Hikari 423 super express to Shin-Osaka where I will change trains for Hiroshima. Overall a 5 hour 2o min trip. Maruna was kind enough to come to Shinagawa station wih me. We had an extremely rushed time getting to my train with about 2 mins to spare. (after missing earlier train) With Maruna yelling out behind me PLATFORM 24!!! non-reserved carriage 1-5!!! (looking after me well) I really loved staying at Marunas and spending the day wiht her today! She looked after me so much I felt really bad for he interpretting everythign for me! Today was warm and sunny and Maruna had the whole day off! So we caught a bus and train and went to a really nice park (which I have forgotten the name o alrady). The park is near an art uni and on the weekends they have a uni markets ... that is pretty casual selling art and jewellery etc... There were some really cute shops leading down to the park - kind of hippy alternative as apposed to poppy kind of clothes in the city. Also a dog clothes and dog cafe shop so hence adorable jacket and ribbon wearing poodles and dashhounds and chiuahuahs etc... big range of SUPER CUTE dogs!!! Anyway thepark was really green and overlooking a little river with row boats and more swan paddle boats and people playing music and singing and the markets and people having picnics and street side BBQ stalls like yakitori sticks. Maruna and I gotsome Yaki soba - cooking up meat, cabbage and noodles on BBQ and got a Smirnoff each to eat/drink in the park! (coronas were only $3). It was very nice and pleasant! wewalked the parkets and prayed at the temple for each others health and safe journeys etc. Maruna showed me how to was my hands in the fountain at the shrine properly and hit the gong wth the rope before prayer etc... We also read our fortunes for the year at he shrine. Mine talked of travel - something about being hard in the beginning but through perserverance will pay off. It also said I would be worrying alot abou my relationship and feeling distant ...but not to worry because it would be ok. Both of ours meant that we were not the luckiest but a bit luckier then average. There was more that I cant remember but I hope it comes true.
There was a little zoo in the park we could visit for $4 so we had a little wonder. Maruna was in heaven in the guineapig pen... with about 100 guineapigs that people could hold. - kids going nuts!! We went to see the elephant too but I was sad he didnt have alot of roaming space... he loked a bit bored.
THe train I am on right now is sooo fast! It is zooming like it might take off. past suburbs, rice fields, mountains, through mountains, seaside, tunnels, industrial/factories, its hard to get used to the speed.

Im safe at alexs now... that is all... incase you were wondering... and pretty badly hungover today... blog later...

Losing blog writing motivation due to lack of comments.

Current status: Just having a rest after a long day I have VERY sore tender feet tonight... they have not experienced so much walking in a very long time. I also have a very full belly from eating to many Japanese veges (just had some snow peas, carrot and potato and then this squishy stuff that soaks up the juices across between bread adn tofu, and some jelly like stuff with bits and pieces in it... and aniother green type of jellied stuff... and also some like egg like stuff... that could have been a vegetable im not sure... but this is like a typical vege mix... minus the burdeka root... i made that burdeka name up... but its something similar... its like root and u cut it and it is kind of holey like lotus or cheese... but its yummy... carroty ... root vege like texture AND i drank some vege/fruit juice)

What did I do today?
The sun came out again today AND Maruna had this morning off! so we went to Shinjuku for lunch/breakfast... and we ate at a Pasta Joint... but Japanese pasta joints have alot more creative recipes... Maruna had a very green herb, Prawn and acovardo pasta and I had a pasta with chicken, crab strips, sour plum, seaweed, herbs and like a japanese syrup sauce... it was very unsual... but tastey I think! I wondered around Shinjuku for a while after Maruna went to work and it was warm and the sun was shining and this definately lifted my spirits! The city is much more bareable when it is not raining and there are umbrellas everywhere and its cold etc...
I next went to Harajuku but instead of heading to the usual shopping mall I took a turn towards the lush green trees... which actually lead to a beautiful temple and walk through the forest! it was very peaceful and sunny and green and a nice breeze etc... There were really big black crows everywhere though! swooping through the trees... and cAWing alot... THere were these big wooden archways... I walked around the forest for ages until my feet were aching and I finally found a bench to sit down and drink my juice popper. I took my shoes off and I think that just made my feet swell up more! lol... After my rest I hobbled to the cobbled shopping area and enjoyed the busy atmosphere and sales etc! the fashion in japan is sooo beautiful...but alot of really baggy floaty tops and dresses... and layers... its hard to know if it fits or not!
ok well then I started walking more and found myself in the designer part of harajuku... and I kept walking and walking and then found myself arriving in SHIBUYA!!!!! ... cant believe I walked all the way there!!! my feet were burning and stingingand there were NO SEATS!!!
made my way to a restaurant with set meals just to rest my feet!
Shibuya was buzzing in the afternoon sun and I just sat and watched the skyscrapers with big screens and people crossing the road madly for a fair while!!
PEAK HOUR TRAIN!!! crammed in ... and limped all the way home...
Had a really good day!! very rambly just like my blog...
also this might be my last blog... because no one seems interested in reading... i dont get any comments or anythign ... you dont have to have an account to comment you know...