10 March 2014
Snowstorm
Before today I never really experienced it snowing. A couple of years ago in Osaka I detected a few seconds of what might have been snow, but I wasnt sure.
Today I was sitting on the train to Kyoto enjoying the clear blue sky out the window, when all of a sudden I assumed cherry blossom season had commenced.
Turns out it was snow, apparently coming out of the clear blue sky, and then soon there was lots of it.
This even had the locals oohing and aahing, perhaps because it was unexpected, outside the station they were all doing as I was, standing like fools trying to take photos of snow.
I stood and wondered what do you do in what appears to me to be a snowstorm, the answer is just walk in it and appreciate it, thats what the locals were doing.
What I cant understand is Japanese schoolgirls. For lots of reasons. Todays reason was its 0 degrees, yet they still wear short skirts, no stockings, and ride bicycles in the snow. That must be a very cool breeze indeed.
The snow continued for a good 15 minutes, enough to turn the roof of a couple of temples slightly white, but not the road.
I walked to my hotel past two perfectly good subway stops to enjoy the snow, admittedly only abou a kilometre. Checking in was no problem, I got a strange choice from a selection of drip coffees to take to my room, and a room key thats credit card shaped but more like a sheet of thick paper, with a printed aluminium foil chip on it. To me this is amazing, I presume they are disposable.
My hotel is very well situated I think, right by the main street whos name now escapes me.
I have been to Kyoto before, for a day trip, and really only saw a couple of shrines, the commercial area seems pretty fantastic, so very amazingly clean. The pipled muzak everywhere is somewhat alarming.
One thing I am accutely aware of is left or right. In Australia you drive on the left, and walk to the left of people. You dont really notice this until you go some place where its different.
For the last few days in Hong Kong, they drive on the left, but pass on the right. Its very confusing! I finally got the hang of it after shirt fronting a few old Chinese women yesterday.
Now back to Japan which is the same as Australia, and I tripped a few people over, who were silly enough to apologise.
Next week Taiwan, who drive on the right and pass on the right, for me to be confused again.
Snowstorm, the video I took on my phone depicts it better.
I was so happy to see snow I took two photos. This must be amusing to people who live with it for half their lives. I feel I am now ready to try a Harbin winter.
As per my mothers request, this is my hotel room. Daiwa Roynet Shijo Karasuma. It is under $100 a night including taxes, no breakfast.
It is very new and clean, the lobby is luxurious, the internet is free and ridiculously fast, wired and unwired. You also get a decent sized bath.....read on.
This is about 100 metres from the hotel, the start of Shijo Dori whatever chome lu street. The covered walkways came in handy as it started to snow again!
Running off Shijo whatever is fully enclosed walkways, 2 that run in parallel, each about a kilometre long, with lots more stuff in between and to each side and up and down and whatever.
My dinner. I wanted something warm of course. I resisted the obvious simple temptation of coco curry, of which I passed 3. This place appeared to be a hole in the wall, but the pictures looked good so I went in.
Turns out its a huge place once you go upstairs, with decor like a steakhouse, lots of families there enjoying themselves on a Monday night, they had to really struggle to find me a seat.
My meal is a combo of curry, house made hamburger special spicy (no it wasnt spicy) with a pineapple ring on top. Including the tea it was about $10. Pretty good for full table service.
After I sat down I was provided an English menu which wasnt needed as everything on the Japanese menu had pictures, it did however reveal the name of the place as Bikkuri Donkey.
If you like those rice snack things that are designed to sell bottle water to whoever dares eat them, heres your Mecca.
If however you enjoy fine baked goods, this would be a better choice. The attached cafe and restaurant was doing a roaring trade in Japanese boys with perms and man bags.
I preferred the portugese egg tart from the hole in the wall. Hong Kong tip now that I am in Japan, if you want a really good one go to the Macau passenger ferry terminal, theres a Portugese restaurant there that sells them from a little cart thing. Those ones are great!
Someone made a shop for me.
After enjoying the cold, I decided to buy a green tea kit kat, a bottle of Pepsi Nex, and consume both of them in my hotel room bath. I can send photos by email if anyone wants them, its a truly glutinous display of vulgarity.