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My sister Jen and her husband Martyn went back to England this morning
(Phil's still here, currently lying on my bed reading alt.wear magazine).
And yes, we had so much fun. Here's a run-down of what we did....
THURSDAY (24th March)
Phil arrived :) :) :) I think we were both slightly worried that it might
be weird seeing each other again after 7 months, but it wasn't at all.
Just wonderful. Many many hugs and kisses :D
FRIDAY
After having a nice long lie-in, I took Phil around Shimotori and Kamitori
to introduce him to a Japanese city. And in the evening, we went to
karaoke, followed by Jeff's Bar. Phil likes karaoke just as much as any
other Westerners who try it out!
SATURDAY
Phil and I went to pick up Jen and Martyn from the airport. It was great
to see my sister and her hubbie again after so long :) I took them to
Sligo Inn for a quiet drink after checking them into their hotel (although
we ended up staying there until it closed!)
SUNDAY
Took Jen and Martyn around Shimatori and Kamitori. They really enjoyed it,
looking at all the weird and wonderful Japanese shops and even more weird
Japanese fashions. But their favourite thing was the sheer amount of
Engrish everywhere - that is, Japanese attempts at writing English.
One of the best examples of Engrish ever.
Ever.
A small cuddly bear found in Kiddy Land. I'm sure it's
supposed to be innocent, but....
That night, we did the very Japanese thing and ate dinner at a kaitenzushi
(conveyor-belt sushi) restaurant. And after that, we went to Jeff's bar,
where Jen and Martyn had their first nomihoudai.
MONDAY
Apparently, the sakura (cherry blossoms) were supposed to come out today,
so it was a perfect day to visit Kumamoto Castle where many sakura trees
are planted. However, there were only a few tiny little blossoms to be
seen. Nevertheless, the Japanese were still out taking photos of the one
or two trees with a hint of blossom on them. The castle itself was pretty
fun too, even if I've already been there before with my parents.
That night, we all went out to an izakaya with my mates, which was
fantastic. And after two hours of all we could eat and drink, we went out
to karaoke again, staying out very late. Jen told me that the hotel they
were staying in actually left their key at the desk every night, as they
were always the last ones in!
Phil, me and Jen, drunk at Jeff's Bar.
TUESDAY
We went back up to the castle, hoping to see some cherry blossoms, but
once again we were disappointed. According to the woman at the botanical
gardens we visited there, they weren't due out until next week because of
the cold weather. Doh. So instead, we went to the Prefectual Museum and
Art Gallery, which were both pretty interesting.
After this, we went to the picturesque Suizenji park, and had a lot of fun
picnicking on Japanese snacks (pocky, chocobaby and dango) and feeding the
enormous carp in the pond.
Suizenji Park. One place I'll never get tired of
visiting because it's so beautiful.
Where else but Japan can you see traditional gardens
surrounded by enormous office buildings?
A particularly patriotic fish in the Suizenji fish
pond!
That night, we went to an onsen (hot spring), which was the first time for
everyone apart from me. However, just like every other Westerner I know
who's been to an onsen, the awkwardness of being naked in front of a load
of people soon dissolved and they really enjoyed it. And after that, we
went to Gusto, which is always a great after-onsen experience :)
WEDNESDAY
After that, Jen and Martyn came up to my place and we had Easter eggs and
chocolate Japanese snacks together. I then took them to kokai-retro tori
so they could see a bit of traditional Japan, and then went shopping in
the local supermarket for the experience of eating genuine Japanese lunch
foodstuff (bento, onigiri and sushi).
That evening, there was a big football match on between Japan and Bahrain,
so Martyn, who's a big football fan, went to watch the match at the Sligo
Inn with my uni mates while Phil, Jen and I went to Bar Sanctuary to be
joined later by my mates. It was a lot of fun, and Phil even got me to
play a game of darts, which I've never done before.
THURSDAY
We were all a little hungover and tired after getting to sleep at about
5am on Wednesday, but after a revitalizing breakfast at Mr. Donut we made
it to Mt. Aso to climb the volcano. Although we did arrive a little late
in the day so we couldn't visit the museum, it was fantastic. The last
time I went to Aso, there was too much toxic gas to approach the main vent
closely, but this time we managed to go to the very top and see the
steaming vent, boiling and throwing up mud. It really was an incredible
sight.
Jen, me and Phil climbing up Aso. With Mt. Komekuza in
the background!
Me and Jen. Do we look like sisters?
The smoking volcano at Aso, from far away...
...and right up the top, looking into the mouth!
Phil and a bottle of Volvic...on top of a volcano! Oh
the irony...
Frozen lava flow from a previous eruption. It really
did look more like an ocean than rock.
They could've easily filmed the moon landing here.
It was an incredibly tiring day, so afterwards we only had the energy to
visit the onsen again, followed by gusto, and then went home for a very
good night's sleep.
FRIDAY (and Saturday)
Jen and Martyn's last day here :( We spent the early afternoon doing a
last bit of shopping (mainly so Jen and Martyn could buy some genuine
Engrish clothes!), and then went bowling with my uni mates. I didn't do
too badly in the first game (won by Martyn), but completely lost in the
second (won by Phil).
That night, we started off at Jeff's Bar, and then headed to one of my
favourite restaurants to eat basashi - raw horsemeat, Kumamoto's
speciality dish. This was followed by three hours of karaoke, and then Bar
Sanctuary until 5am. Since the restaurant had a two hour nomihoudai, and
the karaoke was three hours of nomihoudai, not to mention the drinks and
Jeff's and Sanctuary, it goes without saying that we were INCREDIBLY drunk
by 5am, when Jen and Martyn had to go back to the hotel, check out and get
their stuff together.
Phil and I said an emotional good-bye at the airport, and took a bus home.
By this time, all the alcohol had caught up with me, and I unfortunately
threw up on the bus. Oops. And then Phil and I went straight to bed, and
fell asleep until 4.30pm.
All in all, it was a great week!
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