The Rest of My Monday

It's almost 7 now and I got back for dinner a little while ago.

Class with the D. Choi was longer than I wanted it to be. We all went through our presentation on our different topics but I had a huge headache so I had a little trouble paying attention. I've been getting those semi-frequently and I don't care for it. However, there were some interesting topics about the different food and shopping places around town and the different type of public outdoor space that is available in urban Japan. It's pretty unique how the street becomes almost a public open space here. It is much less vehicle focused and much more geared towards the pedestrian, much like many European cities. When you think about it, it makes sense because this city was around long before cars were.

There is also very limited public plaza or open space set aside. This is because these cities were originally designed as castle cities, which means they are designed for defense, not necessarily for civic activity. This might pose a bit of an issue for us as tourists because these cities are not meant to be easily navigated, but I'm sure we'll be ok.

Tomorrow we're meeting at 7:45 am for a day trip to Ise, which is where Japan's most sacred Shinto shrines are located. This is one of those sites that we learned about in our architectural history classes and I never thought I'd actually see in person, so it should be worth getting up early for. I should probably get to sleep early anyways since my head is bothering me.

After class I was really hungry...like too hungry for rice or noodles. No...this hunger would not be satiated by such mundane options. I'm sorry to say that it was time for...McDonalds. Yes, my friends, but an hour ago, I was sitting in a McDonalds in downtown Kyoto enjoying a delicious burger. Some would mock me for it, but I just don't care because it was so good, and it was definitely what I needed.

Now I am sitting in our hotel lounge, downloading some readings and the syllabi and schedules for our classes and enjoying some Maple Cookie flavored Haagen-Dazs (very delicious, by the way). I also bought a drink that I was told I have to try. It is called Pocari Sweat and sounds gross, but I was told it is good. I just opened it and tried some and it's not bad. It tastes like a very weak lemon gatorade, though I think it's a little thicker.

Anyways, now I'm going to go do some reading, some Japanese homework and then potentially some scrapbooking (which I haven't started yet despite my strong intentions to do so). I still have some more pictures to upload but I will slowly catch up on that. After tomorrow, there should be a lot more really beautiful pictures.

Until then...