March 23: The Bowing Deer of Nara

 Today started bright and early as usual— we all woke up around 6:30 (some more willingly than others) and left the hotel by 7:15, heading for the train station. Breakfast was a win: pastries, sweets, and all the carbs you could dream of. After fueling up, we hopped on a train to Nara, where things got interesting fast… because deer were everywhere, well, almost everywhere.  

These deer roam around like they own the place — and honestly, they kind of do. The park was beautiful, with paths lined with blooming cherry blossoms, plum blossoms, peaceful lakes, and towering trees. A few brave students and the staff ventured deep into the forest to visit Kasuga Taisha, a stunning temple surrounded by over 3,000 carved stone lanterns and guarded by sacred deer (the locals say they’re messengers for the Shinto gods, but they definitely looked like snack hunters to us). The hikers reported that the views and the peaceful atmosphere made the trek totally worth it.

After all that nature and culture, it was time for — you guessed it — burgers and fries! We found an awesome spot in the Nara Park shopping district, and these weren’t just any burgers… they were made with 100% Japanese beef and apparently 95% Hokkaido cheese (makes us wonder what the other 5% is made of) and yes, they were as good as they sound.

Once everyone was full and happy, we jumped on a train to Osaka to wrap up another amazing (and slightly deer-obsessed) day. 

-Kane

March 22: Gold, Fire and Lost phones!

 First thing in the morning, we set off for Kinkaku-ji to see the famous Golden Temple — and yes, it’s really gold. Well, actually, it’s covered in gold leaf. We strolled around the ancient site, admired the artifacts, and felt very cultured… until we left and realized Angelique had left her phone back at the temple. Classic. 

On the bright side, it was lunchtime! We stopped at a place called Fire Ramen, where not only was the ramen delicious, but the chefs literally set it on fire. They poured burning hot oil over the ramen — part cooking, part magic show. No one lost their eyebrows, so we called it a win.

After that, the group headed to Nijo Castle, while Angelique and Scott went on a phone rescue mission. At the castle, we walked around, marveled at the giant gates and the real-life moat (seriously, it looked like something out of a movie), and treated ourselves to gold-leaf ice cream, because when in Japan… why not eat gold?

Scott and Angelique returned victorious, but the phone chaos wasn’t over. At the subway station on our way to Fushimi Inari Taisha, Sirrah announced she had lost her phone, too. Cue round two of the Great Phone Retrieval Adventure, with Sirrah and Kane sprinting off like action heroes.

Eventually, we made it to Fushimi Inari Taisha, home of the thousand bright orange Tori gates, and it was totally worth the drama. The tori gates were stunning, and the sunset made the whole scene look straight out of a postcard. Tired but happy, we headed back to the hotel and called it a night — phones safely in hand.

The end… until the next adventure (or phone crisis).

-Jesse 

March 21: A Day Out in Nature

 Everyone got up and got ready, but Scott ended up getting locked out of his room. Inside were his shoes, socks, and three girls’ phones. So, Scott and Sierra stayed at the hotel until he was able to get in his room with the assurance of hotel staff. The rest of us went to the train station and ended up eating at a Starbucks — but this wasn’t an ordinary Starbucks; it was called Teavana, and honestly, no one really liked it.

After breakfast, the group caught a train to the Saga-Toriimoto Preserved Street. We walked up and down the street and saw some beautiful sights. Then we met back up with Scott and Sierra and visited Gioji, a Buddhist temple with moss covered grounds. It was peaceful, but an unusual rule was that no photos were allowed.

After that, we all walked to lunch and then got ice cream. Next, we rode the Sagano Scenic Railway trolley, also known as the Romance Train. We enjoyed the scenery and the views of the river. When we got off, almost everyone grabbed a second ice cream.

We then walked about three miles (Scott commentary here: No, it was not three miles, it was close to 1.5 miles) to Hozugawa Kudari boat company, where we took a boat ride down the Hozugawa River. It was such a cool experience, and our tour guides were funny and entertaining. We even saw some monkeys and lots of interesting rock formations. We enjoyed riding down the rapids. It was a beautiful warm day for this boat ride. 

After the boat ride, we walked through the bamboo forest and enjoyed our walk through nature. We finished the day with dinner, though almost no one liked their food except the staff and a few students. Then we finally returned to the hotel and went to bed.

The end 

-Sirrah Wilding