Lost in translation

After graduation I headed out on a mini-grand tour, this time to Asia. I had 3 months before joining the real world again so my parents and I planned on going to Japan and then Korea. After they headed back to home, I was to continue in Korea, hanging with cousins and friends and brushing up on my Korean, and then on the the Stans with my bestie Ang (Stans as in Kazakh, Kyrgyz and Uzbek - I'll explain later).

We had a great time in Japan! We started in Tokyo, went to the Ito Hanzu peninsula for the onsen experience and finally to Kyoto. Japan really is a different place and we had a great time, seeing the sights, soaking in the hot springs and best of all, eating our way through the country!

Shinjinku at night. Its just as bright during the day, maybe even a little more blinding.

English is not necessary at least when ordering food. Just point! The food was so good in Japan, even down to the little ramen stalls on the street.

The fish market in Tokyo. We went there at some awful hour in the morning to see the fresh catches come in. We also had sushi at this little shack and it had to be the best fish I've ever had. Yummmmm....

Japan is into everything perfectly packaged and delivered, even beer in vending machines. YES.

Right after the food was all the temples/gardens/castles are the things to see. They were as beautiful as they were plentiful.

Irrigation system in Japan. Genius and simplicity in one, the only way the Japanese will have it. And cute too!

Hey! Geisha are just girls too!

After 4 action-packed days in Tokyo we were ready for some serious hot springing. We headed to a traditional ryokan in this teeny town on the Ito Hanzu peninsula. It had to be the best couple of nights with outdoor hot springs, amazing massages and best of all, a traditional kaiseki meal. I would recommend it to everyone! The best japanese food I've ever had all in these beautiful tiny dishes with the most beautiful presentation. The meal also takes about3 hours because of all the courses. Food was a theme if you haven't noticed already.

The only way to travel in Japan is definitely on the shinkensen. We took the bullet train from Tokyo to Kyoto, which goes almost 100mph. The scenery just flies by.

Kyoto is definitely all about templing. Kyoto is a beautiful old city with amazing sites and a truly laid back feel. Just don't tell my mom who was a little freaked to be so close to the deer (they just roam around Nara).

And of course the food! We were so glad to find this teppenyaki place after (what felt like) hours of walking.

We were sad to leave but at least we were far from over...