Japan

Japan was a blasty blast (to quote Dane Cook). My mom and I toured around the Kansai area (consisting of cities Osaka, Kobe, and Kyoto) with a small tour group. The first day was spent travelling through multiple modes of transportation- car, plane, bus, spaceship. (...) We arrived at a hotel in Shirahama, which is a town known for its dazzling white sands that line the sea. After getting settled in, we went downstairs to the hotel dining area and were presented a traditional meal:

Although well-received by most other diners, I myself found this meal a bit too rich in some dishes and lacking in others. Maybe I just wasn't eating the dishes right.......however, the visual aspect of the meal made up for the taste, tenfold. 

The hotel was an onsen, which meant they offered several hot springs for the guests to use. Before going in one, I had to shower beforehand, as to not contaminate the waters. I spent the rest of the night taking advantage of the hot springs and the in-room foot soak, and crashed before midnight.

The next couple of days were spent sightseeing around the Kansai region: (brace yourself for myriad scenery shots)

shirahama beach

rocks shot #1

rocks shot#2

colourful rock cave- oooo

a tiny waterfall at the bottom of a trail

a temple in Kyoto

ghost cave

bamboo trees

that temple emoji in real life

We only had one day to shop in Osaka, and went to Shinsaibashi, the city's main shopping area. Mom and I spent most of our time there searching for specific products that our relatives and friends requested, so we didn't have much time to scour around and shop for ourselves. I did, however, manage to buy a well-loved Japanese crepe (which, in all honesty, tasted like a regular crepe with a lighter whipped cream)

Our last day was spent in Kobe, where Mom and I devoured a Kobe steak (which, in contrast to the crepe, exceeded our high expectations), and watched some Japanese kindergarteners play with deer.

a glorious piece of meat

kindergartners

deer

kindergartners and deer together

Before we knew it, we were back on a plane to HK. It was great to have had my first experience in Japan around scenic Osaka, but I'd love to go back someday to explore Tokyo!