San Diego

Day 1

Our first day in San Diego consisted primarily of picking up a rental car and finding our hotel.

On the way to the hotel, I was admiring the green California scenery. With the exception of all the mountains and hills, the landscape reminded me of Florida. Green and lush beats the brown and sparse landscape in Tucson.

Another thing that reminded me of Florida was the stores. Shopping anyone? I was super excited to see some of my favorite stores and restaurants. Oh, I could totally move here.

We went to a seafood restaurant near our hotel. It was horrible. The seafood was underseasoned and overcooked, and my cocktail tasted like a blend of rubbing alcohol and cough syrup.

Day 2

This was the day I was waiting for… SeaWorld!!

We got there nice and early to beat the heat and the lines. We got the opportunity to see a bunch of the smaller exhibits and save time for the shows later in the afternoon.

One of my favorite things there was the motion simulator ride. The theme was an arctic exploration, so everyone climbs into a “helicopter” and sees the sights through the “windshield”.

I’ve been on many motion simulator rides before, but this one shook more than I could have expected. It was so much fun! This thing was really shaking everyone up. People were screaming, I was cracking up. It was a lot of fun.

We went to the Pets show, where all kinds of pets perform tricks. It was cute. I had no idea you could even train cats to do tricks like that.

Of course, the Shamu show was a highlight. It was really spectacular. I guess it has to be in order to pack so many people into a stadium, baking in the sun. I got a sunburn on one arm. It was worth it.

Here’s a video I made from clips at SeaWorld.  There are captions and stuff for the benefit of the kids in my life.

We spent most of the day at SeaWorld, then went back near the hotel for dinner.

We went to Bennigans (I used to love that place when I was a kid). I thought I was ordering a ham and cheese grilled sandwich. I was only half right.

What I actually ordered was a Monte Cristo, the epitome of fat people food. It was a ham and cheese sandwich, battered and deep fried, dusted with powdered sugar, with a raspberry dipping sauce. And yes, it was as overwhelming and hard to eat as you can imagine. I think I took two or three bites, then called it done.

Day 3

Today was the perfect day to go to Balboa Park. The weather was incredible and we were in the mood for a relaxing day to see some culture and admire the architecture.

First thing we did was buy a pass to visit several museums and the IMAX theater. The first museum we went to was the Natural History Museum.

The museum was hosting the Body Worlds exhibit. I love these exhibits. I have been before in Ft. Lauderdale, but it was worth it to go again.

The exhibit displays human bodies in various stages of dissection. What is especially amazing is the bodies illustrating just the blood vessels. I can’t even begin to imagine how the scientists were able to extract only blood vessels from a body, keeping it all in its intact form. It’s truly incredible.

One of my other favorite parts is the pregnant woman. How often does one get to see a cross section of a pregnant human? The exhibit is awe inspiring, informative and entertaining. Really a must-see.

Next we went to the Museum of Man, an anthropological museum. It was very interesting to see the anthropological roots of different cultures. Especially interesting to me was the mummy section. Of course, there were Egyptian mummies. There were also mummies from other parts of the world, like bog mummies from Scotland and shrunken heads from tribes around the world.

After that, we had a coffee at an upscale joint at the Art Museum. I can’t remember what it was called, but it was a very cute place with tables amidst modern sculptures.

Then we went to the Reuben H. Fleet Science Center. This place is awesome for kids, but still entertaining for adults. There are a lot of hands-on gadgets to play with.

The Science Center also houses the IMAX theater. We saw an underwater movie which was so cool. It really felt like we were underwater peeking inside the world of these fish.

The movie was a great way to end a relaxing day. We had dinner, then got ready for some nightlife.

We went downtown looking for some hot nightclubs. We decided to go to a place called Envy. A friend and local told me this nightclub was good. Well, I won’t trust him again!

My boyfriend and I are used to clubs with a more latin flavor (where people can actually dance). I am from South Florida, after all… Anyway, this place couldn’t have been more different from any club I have ever visited.

The music was terrible. I used to be a dancer, and even I was having a hard time dancing to this music. For example, they even played Respect by Aretha Franklin. Seriously? Is this karaoke or a dance club?

Speaking of karaoke… The whole club was singing along to all of the songs. Who does that? Maybe if they stopped singing and focused on dancing, it wouldn’t have been so awkward.

And if terrible music and singing wasn’t enough, the DJ kept spraying foam and blowing dry ice fog on the dance floor.  It was really annoying.

We did manage to have fun because we kept laughing at how bad the club was.  Another source of entertainment was a group of cougars slutting it up on the dance floor.  Ladies, have you ever heard the term “age appropriate”?

Day 4

Today was devoted to spending time with my boyfriend’s family.  Luckily his family was great.  We spent a lot of time laughing.

We went to church, then went to the casino, Barona for a fantastic lunch buffet.  The food was really good, so I stuffed my face.  Good thing I was wearing a dress instead of pants, so I had a little more room for my stuffed belly.

We hung out a bit more, then went out for ice cream.

Day 5

Our very short last day was spent getting breakfast at  Denny’s and packing.  We went to the airport and headed back to Tucson.

All in all, the trip was great.  I will definitely go back to San Diego.

A Few Days in Florida

I hadn’t been back to Florida in about nine months, so I was very excited to see my family and my old stomping grounds.

I was only in Florida for a few days for my sister’s birthday.  I wasn’t able to do much, but I managed to cram in some time for family and friends.

I did a ton of shopping, going out for some night life, and doing some touristy stuff.  For example, I went to my favorite nature preserve, Gumbo Limbo.  They have all kinds of native sea animals, including sea turtles.  The university does all kinds of studies on sea turtle babies.  Here’s a photo inside the facility.

There were little turtles attached to strings, swimming around in these containers.

Gumbo Limbo also houses these large starfish (although they look pretty small in the photo).

That’s pretty much it for my trip to FL.  It was good to go back.  I look forward to going back for Christmas.

May I Dance Here?

We checked out of the hotel and boarded a bus back to the station.

Sitting in the small station and waiting for our train, my mind drifted to a phrase I read in a Japanese phrase book:  “May I dance here?”  I was wondering when the hell that phrase would ever come in handy.

As I sat here, I pictured myself jumping out of my seat and announcing, “May I dance here?”  Upon receiving startled stares but no objections, I would twirl and twirl around the station.

Fortunately the train arrived before I actually decided to try that.  So we boarded the train for the first of our three legs of train travel today.  We were on trains all day, headed back to Tokyo.

We arrived at Narita Excel Tokyu hotel for our last night in Japan.  The hotel was very chic, and had the largest lobby I had ever seen.  The room was contemporary, but comfortable.

We arrived quite late at night, so we were one of the few people in the hotel restaurant.  We ordered Western food (steak and fries), and reminisced about the great time we had in the past week.

Windswept

Last night’s wind had blown in a full storm.  We gazed at our beautiful beach view through rain streaked windows.  We watched and waited for the rain to let up a bit so we could do some sightseeing.  Finally the rain stopped, but the wind was persistent.

I managed to purchase a bus pass.  We boarded the bus and headed to one of the local sights, the rock formation Senjojiki which resembles stacked tatami mats.

The wind was whipping so hard that I felt it was not super safe to be walking on the slippery rocks.  Knowing my luck, a gust would sweep me right into the ocean, and I’d never be heard from again.

We had lunch at the gift shop.  I’m not really sure why one would need a gift shop at a rock formation… But the gift shop/restaurant was great, perched on a cliff, overlooking the rocks and ocean.

We headed toward the observatory, where one takes an elevator 36 meters below the ocean surface.  It was only a few blocks away, but we managed to get lost twice.  While we were searching around for the observatory, it began to rain.  The wind was whipping the stinging rain into my face and eyes.  It sucked.  But we finally made it!… Only to find out the observatory was closed.  Defeat.

So we hopped back on the bus and got off at the beach.  The rain had stopped, so we tried to have a relaxing stroll, but the wind insisted on pestering us.

Clouds of sand were blowing along the beach and shore.  I got little bits of Australian imported sand in my eyes, hair, mouth and (I later found out) even in my ears.

We went back to the market and bought several different types of booze to enjoy in our room.  We lounged in front of the window, enjoying our drinks and the view, pretending we were outdoors.

Upon checking into the hotel, the attendant let us know that each person was provided with a yukata (cotton robe) and slippers.  He told us this was traditional Japanese sleepwear and we could wear it in the hotel on our way to the public bath on the first floor.

We decided to skip the public bath and have a pricey dinner at the hotel restaurant.  I wasn’t sure if we were supposed to get dressed up for dinner, so I put on a nicer top and headed to the restaurant.  Once we were seated, we realized almost everyone in the restaurant was dressed in the yukata.  This was the first $50+ per person restaurant I had been to where it was acceptable to wear a bathrobe and slippers to dinner.

Dinner was excellent.  I’m not sure what most of the food was, but I liked almost all of it.

By the time we returned to the room, the wind had died down.  Tonight, we were actually able to get some sleep.

Lifeguard Off Duty

After a not-so-high speed train to Shirahama, we finally arrived at tiny Shirahama station and followed signs that read, “Tourist Information”.  Considering the signs were written in English, I assumed the person at the counter would speak a little English.  Well, she spoke very little English.

I inquired about the one-day bus pass and she directed me to the bus ticket counter and to a man whose English appeared to be limited to the phrase, “one-day bus pass”.  I struggled, with my minimal Japanese, to ask if I could purchase a bus pass for the following day.  He answered “no”, then struggled with some hand signs and several “um”s before giving up and walking away.

I wish I had told him to just say what he wanted to say in Japanese.  I probably would have understood a lot more from that than from his attempt at English.  But I thanked him and walked away without any idea where to buy a bus pass.

We found the shuttle bus to the hotel and boarded it.  Without too much confusion, we got off at the stop for our hotel and checked-in.

The hotel was a traditional Japanese ryokan called Musashi.  The lobby was stunning and the staff were incredibly friendly.  We were kindly escorted to our very large room, even large by Western standards.  Looking out the window, we had an incredible view of the pristine, white sand beach, less than one block away.

We took a nice, long stroll along the beach, looking to eat dinner at one of the  restaurants near the shore.  Much to our surprise and disappointment, the restaurants and shops were all closed.  There was hardly a soul on the beach, except for the bulldozer operators, spreading more imported sand.

I had read that May-June was a great time to go to Shirahama because the beach was deserted.  The Japanese tend to go to the beach in July and August.

I decided to follow that advice and go at the end of May, thinking we’d have the facilities and amenities all to ourselves… The guidebook failed to mention that without tourists, the shops don’t seem to open.

With hunger quickly consuming us, we stopped at a local grocery store and bought some food items that didn’t need heating.  We had a dinner of sandwiches, cheese, crackers and pudding.

Later that night, the wind really started picking up.  Not long after that, the sustained winds were almost hurricane force.  Our windows were rattling so hard and whistling so loudly, sleeping became impossible.  We layed in our futon beds half conscious, because the wind would not allow us the courtesy of deep sleep.

Castle Climbing

This morning, we went to Osaka Castle and had a nice, long stroll through the enormous castle grounds.  The castle surroundings are impressive on their own.  Not only are the gardens, trails and moats leading up to the castle strikingly expansive, but it’s a wonder how they were built at all.

There are colossal rocks composing the tiered walls.  Seriously, these rocks are HUGE.  They appeared to be granite, and some were over 10′ tall.  Allegedly, the stones came from many different parts of Japan, hundreds (maybe thousands) of years ago.  It was truly impressive.

The castle itself is now a museum.  And I actually took the time to read some history about Japan while looking through the exhibits.  The top floor of the castle offers beautiful views of Osaka.

We got back to the train station and boarded our train for Shirahama.  In just a few hours we will be relaxing on the beach with its imported sand.  Can you believe they import the sand from Australia?

Age of Aquarium

We stuffed our bags to the point of explosion, had breakfast at the hostel buffet, checked-out, said goodbye for now to a private bathroom and headed to Osaka.

Our first stop was Tempozan Marketplace, to visit the Osaka Kaiyukan Aquarium.  A friend told me that on a weekday morning, the marketplace would be deserted.  That sure was true. 

There were restaurants, shops, games, amusement… and there were hardly any people around at all.  Although is was a bit weird to be walking around this brightly lit and colored ghost town, we enjoyed having the place to ourselves.

First, we visited the aquarium.  It was the whole reason we came to the marketplace, and it definitely didn’t disappoint.  It was spectacular.

The aquarium was sectioned into tanks of habitats from all over the world surrounding a giant center tank containing the headliner, two whale sharks.

My favorite exhibit was the jellyfish room.  I had never seen so many different types of jellyfish.  Some of them looked like ornate ribbons of lace, floating delicately through the water.  The displays were lit brilliantly, perfectly highlighting the translucent, ethereal quality of the jellyfish.  It was stunning.

The displays were breathtaking.  This aquarium is a must-see for anyone going to the Osaka area.  Check out my video from our day at the aquarium.

After the aquarium and a quick bit to eat, we decided to take a ride on the giant ferris wheel.  I’m no fan of heights, so I can’t say I was thrilled with the ride, but it sure gave some awesome views of the bay.

After the ride, I took a short break to defeat a ninja…

Then we headed to our hostel, J-Hoppers Osaka.  I can’t say I was thrilled with this hostel.  The location is great, the room is decent, but the lack of an elevator is no fun when hauling luggage, filled with way too many souvenirs, up a few flights of stairs.

After taking a couple of hours in our room to unwind, we met up with an old friend of mine.  We headed to Dotonbori, a famous street in Osaka, lined with an endless array of restaurants and sky-high, mechanical, neon signs.

We took a super fun boat ride along the canal that flows through the area.  The guide was so full of energy and fun when she described the sights, that it didn’t even matter that I didn’t understand most of what she was saying.

The guide said she would try to use as much English as possible to help the two of us English speakers.  Although it seemed her English was limited to the words “bridge” and “boat”, it was great that she tried to include us and it was a lot of fun.

After the boat ride, we went to a restaurant for okonomiyaki.  After my fiance struggled for a while with the chopsticks, they provided him with a fork.  The food was great and we talked until late.

After returning to the hostel, we found out just how paper thin the walls were.  There was a group of girls in the next room talking.  They must have been drunk… or completely unaware that the whole floor could hear their every word.  It was difficult to sleep while listening to the girly (or drunk) banter about ex-boyfriends.

Just to reiterate how noisy this hostel was, I went a bit down the hall to use the bathroom, and I could still hear my roommate chewing Doritos… even through closed doors.  Seriously, was this building built with tissue paper?

Fashion Forward

This morning, we woke up early to grab some breakfast before our bus tour.  No trip to Japan is complete for me without at least one visit to Mister Donut.  I seriously heart Mister Donut, hardcore…  The warm, spongy donut with deliciously tart fruit frosting… The slightly crunchy sprinkles made of god-knows-what, thatsnap so exquisitely between my teeth, releasing an orgasm of flavor…  And even the gods would crave the cafe au lait, nothing short of ambrosia, that fills the palette with its bold flavor and awakens taste sensations that one never knew she had.

Mmmmm…

Anyway, after breakfast, we went on or JTB Kyoto Morning Tour.  This was my third time taking the tour, but the husband-to-be hasn’t experienced it before, and it’s a really great way to see some of Kyoto’s best sights.

Fortunately is wasn’t raining today, but it was quite overcast, which caused the weather to be a bit chilly.  I was ticked I forgot my jacket.

On the tour, we visited Nijo Castle, the Golden Pavilion and the Kyoto Imperial Palace.

After the tour, we took the city bus to a huge shopping area.  This shopping area sold mostly Western style stuff.  However, the styles were primarily copies of what was fashionable in the US in the late 80’s and early 90’s.  It was a fun throwback to old school.

The young people shopping there were obviously very into fashion.  I love Japanese fashion these days.  It’s a mix of 80’s glam, classic layering and high-end designer accessories (think Cyndi Lauper meets Carrie Bradshaw).  Dangerously pointy heels, leather boots and brightly colored high-tops appeared to be the shoes of choice.

We searched for somewhere to eat, and ended up having some strange burgers at Mo’s Burger.  I ordered a cheese burger, but I have no idea what kind of sauce it was absolutely smothered in.

On the way back to the hostel, we raided some 100 yen shops (equivalent to a dollar store, but MUCH better).  We bought more souvenirs than we could even squeeze into our bags.

We ate dinner at a really fun ramen restaurant.  At this place (and many other ramen places), the menu is on a vending machine at the front door.  You select the dish you want, insert your money, receive a ticket, then hand the ticket to the waitress/hostess waiting at the door.  Thank goodness it was a picture menu, as I’m rather Japanese illiterate.

After some window shopping at a department store, we headed back to the hostel for some well earned rest.

Rain Foils My Plans Again!

This morning we woke up pretty early, feeling quite jet-lagged.  We grabbed a nice breakfast from 7/11 (you can actually get fairly good food from 7/11 in Japan).  Then we headed out for some sight seeing and souvenir shopping.

We mainly walked around the Asakusa district.  There’s a fantastic place for souvenirs on the street that leads to Sensoji Temple.  This area is always packed with tourists, but it’s so much fun to see the vendors’ displays.  Several of the vendors have their cooking/packaging equipment intentionally in full view.  Some of these low-tech contraptions resemble a tiny, robotic assembly line, stamping out cookies and sealing them in plastic wrap.

About a block from tourist land, there’s a shopping and eating area more for locals.  We went to a tiny coffee shop for a break from the rain, a coffee and the daily cake special.

After coffee, we checked out a grocery store.  For some reason, my sister wanted me to film inside Japanese grocery stores.  I didn’t get it at the time, but after looking at the different types of things sold in Japanese grocery stores, I did find it quite interesting.

Many people know that there are very interesting snacks in Japan.  However, I think few people in the US have had the joy of tasting Almond Fish snack.  Yep, those are tiny, dried fish in there.

After shopping, we took the long distance train to Kyoto.  Japanese high speed trains are incredibly comfortable.  My travel companion especially loved the girl who regularly paced the train with the snack cart.

After arriving in Kyoto, we had dinner at my favorite restaurant in Kyoto, Tsutsumi.  They serve the best yakisoba I’ve ever had the pleasure to consume. 

There are only about six tables in the joint.  It appears to me that it is mostly frequented by regulars.  The old couple who run the place appear to know all the diners, as they speak rather informally and share laughs with everyone.

We thoroughly enjoyed our yakisoba and washed it down with a refreshing Asahi beer.  It was a really nice way to unwind after hours on a train.

We stayed at my favorite hostel in town, K’s House Kyoto.  This time, I splurged the extra $10 and got a private, double en suite room.  Oh, how I appreciate having my own bathroom.  The room wasn’t much bigger than the last one, but it had a tremendous view.

I Don’t Have Swine Flu

Sitting on the flight to Japan, I remembered just how insufferable a 12+ hour haul over the Pacific really is.

Although the flight provided TV, movies, video games and music, it doesn’t quite subdue the overwhelming boredom.  It also does little to quell the paranoia caused by the number of people uncomfortably close for that length of time.

And after a near intolerable eternity of waiting, we finally arrived in Tokyo.  Ah, but our waiting was not yet over…

Japan, too has been taken by the swine “influenza pandemic”.  So they are all but too careful to let people into the country who may be infected.  The flight attendants came through the cabin, passing out questionnaires.  These questionnaires asked detailed questions about any flu-like symptoms one may be having, or even if one was in close proximity of someone exhibiting flu-like symptoms.

The flight attendants also announced that before we deplane, we must stay in our seats while Japanese quarantine officers inspect the passengers.

This should be interesting…

A group of people walked onto the plane.  They were dressed in garb which was just short of being HazMat suits:  smocks, gloves, masks and even goggles. 

I felt like I was in some kind of movie where some deadly pathogen had been introduced to a group of unsuspecting civilians, and the government was secretly determining the extent of the exposure, without even telling us we had been exposed.

Anyway, after the on-plane inspection, we had to pass another inspection point at the airport.  A few people were selected to have their temperatures taken.  Don’t worry, it was orally… Although it would have been a lot more entertaining to wait in that line if I saw people getting their temperatures taken from the other end…

Anyway, once we passed the checkpoint, we were awarded with a bright yellow document indicating we passed quarantine inspection!  Weird as it sounds, I was a bit proud of my document…  My first vacation victory…  I think I may hang it up in my cubicle…

After our interesting time at the airport, we took a 1 hour train ride to Tokyo.  I felt more and more tired.  I hadn’t slept in over 24 hours, after all.  I wasn’t even sure I’d make it to the hostel without passing out.

Fortunately, I did make it.  We grabbed a bite to eat at 7/11 and passed out in our tiny room.

The room was only about 7′x8′.  Probably the smallest room I had ever booked, but it worked just fine for the next 9.5 hours while we caught up on some much needed sleep.