Travels with hannah II

A Night in Tokyo, Turn Left at Nara, and Straight On Till Osaka.

We got into Tokyo late on Friday night and checked in to our hostel, one of the cutest places I've seen in a long time. I love a hostel that takes itself less than seriously.

A battle between an Octopus Samura and an Octopus Ninja raged up the stairwell.
Neither hannah nor myself being big city girls, we made our way out of Tokyo early Saturday morning. We were on a shinkansen (bullet train) by 10:30 and on our way to Nara, the first of our stops.

Nara is famous for a particular area, Nara Park, which is home to a number of well-known temples, pagodas, and even natural formations. As with all cities, there are more things to see than one can take in a day, and our time was even more limited than this - we were staying only a few hours. With this in mind, our main goals* were limited to seeing Daibutsu, a large statue of Buddha, and deer.


Yes, deer. Nara park is home to a number of deer made tame from years of being fed by tourists. The deer wander the park freely, impeding traffic and wandering without any apparent cares or woes. Street vendors sell "deer crackers" for those wishing to feed the deer, and any impression the deer have that you might be in possession of such treats will lead to them crowding around you in hopes of your patronage.

Daibutsu is housed in Daibutsu-den, which takes claim to being the largest wooden building in the world. Daibutsu himself is nothing to sniff at, measuring in at over 49 feet in his sitting splendor. He really was beautiful. I wouldn't mind visiting him again, sitting with him, letting the tourists wander by while we understood through silence.


We were soon on the train again and heading to Osaka, our last destination for the day. After unintentionally making the rounds of the city via the Osaka loop, we found our hostel and settled in for a few moments before heading out again. The hostel's landlady was adorable and more than happy to recommend a karaoke place to us. We walked, and walked, and walked, and after several mishaps (and a run in with a very drunk bunch of sexagenarians), we found ourselves settled in to a room.

If you've ever the chance to karaoke while in Japan, I highly recommend you do so, if only for the entertainment value in selecting songs like Justin Timberlake's "Sexy Back," middle school sentimentals, and, of course, "The Battle Hymn of the Republic." I have to credit Caitlin with finding this last one, and ever since I've been using it as one of the more entertaining surprises on the karaoke list. (I'm also a fan of Rick Rollin' the proceedings. Shhh, don't tell anyone.)
Doubt my sincerity? Well, Doubting Thomas, stick your finger in this!


Victory is mine.

Another trick for those who wish to win at Japanese karaoke - bring your own drinks. By the end of the night, hannah and I were giggly, happy, and entirely enjoying our "suurou daun" ("throw down") of an evening. We made our way back to the hostel just in time for curfew and slept as only one can after a full and fulfilling day.

* Now, I say "our main goals," but in the interest of full disclosure, I should say that hannah was being used as an excuse for me to finally visit Nara and, later, Osaka. Still, hannah was an ever compliant guest and allowed me these liberties.