Friday, April 2, 2010
Saturday, March 6, 2010
Tuesday, March 2, 2010
Thailand, ผมรักคุณ
Let me preface. It was really thanks to Anthony Bourdain that my interest in visiting Thailand emerged. Reading his books, watching his Travel Channel show, and meeting him at GW all culminated in this desire to eat real Thai food. Certainly, my ritualistic Thai Place "lemongrass chicken" wouldn't satisfy my curious appetite. And after watching my friend's Thai-trip slideshow, I had all the more desire to visit the country. Thankfully, Thailand from Tokyo vacations are pretty cheap, and so it was very accessible/affordable.
Like my trips to Sapporo and the Yaeyama Islands, I organized the trip through Waseda's co-op. I selected a four day plan, but made the mistake of leaving early and arriving late, so really I only had two days in Bangkok (which were enough, but I'd have liked to visit other places in Thailand). My friend Dave from my Japanese class accompanied me on the trip.
Day 1
I am hesitant to even refer to "Day 1," because we basically spent it on the airplane. We left Tokyo in absolutely beautiful, sunny weather. The flight was a bit bumpy, but I just listened to music (new Joanna Newsom album) and watched "Where the Wild Things Are" as an in-flight movie. The airplane food was not so bad, and the flight attendants were very nice, and were impressed by Dave's and my Japanese skills.
We arrived in Bangkok around ten or eleven at night. We didn't realize JTB (the travelling service who organzied our trip) arranged an airport pick-up service for us, so we took a bus to the city's center and then cabbed to the hotel. When we were checking in, the lady from JTB who was supposed to pick us up called the hotel and complained to me in this hard to understand Thai-Japanese. She then came to the hotel and told us things like "Don't drink the water" and that the fruit (in the room) is not free. She was funny though. You wouldn't meet someone like her in Tokyo.
Day 2
Our big tourist day! Thanks to the "Travel Wiki" website, we found a good one-day plan to cover all of Bangkok's big attractions. We first took a cab to "The Golden Mount," which was a really lovely temple. We got there very early so hardly anyone was there, so we were surrounded by the chirping sounds of birds and in the "distance" the sounds of the city waking up. We then traveled to Mahakan Fort on foot and crossed the streets to Wat Rajanadda, another wonderful, but slightly unappreciated temple. Taking a cab (they were so cheap, and almost always less than two dollars per ride) to Wat Pho, to see the world's largest reclining Buddha. We then walked to the nearby palace (don't remember its name), which was opened to the public after the royal family relocated. The ornamentation and decoration of Thai architecture was magnificent.
When we were done, we walked towards the pier of Tha Tien, which was half-hidden past a market alley full of stalls selling dried squid. We then hopped aboard the angular little ferry and payed 3 baht for the trip to Wat Arun (Temple of Dawn) across the Chao Phraya River. This kind of concluded our list of major tourist attractions, so we then headed back to the hotel for lunch and to take a nap by the pool. In the early evening, Dave and I went separate ways, he to get a traditional Thai massage and I to Lumpini Park (the largest park in central Bangkok). We reconvened at night and had a late dinner (it was included in the trip) at the hotel. It was a kind of Thai-take on Dim Sum. The restaurant staff thought Dave and I were Japanese, which caught me by surprise.
Day 3
meh...will update later today.
Like my trips to Sapporo and the Yaeyama Islands, I organized the trip through Waseda's co-op. I selected a four day plan, but made the mistake of leaving early and arriving late, so really I only had two days in Bangkok (which were enough, but I'd have liked to visit other places in Thailand). My friend Dave from my Japanese class accompanied me on the trip.
Day 1
I am hesitant to even refer to "Day 1," because we basically spent it on the airplane. We left Tokyo in absolutely beautiful, sunny weather. The flight was a bit bumpy, but I just listened to music (new Joanna Newsom album) and watched "Where the Wild Things Are" as an in-flight movie. The airplane food was not so bad, and the flight attendants were very nice, and were impressed by Dave's and my Japanese skills.
We arrived in Bangkok around ten or eleven at night. We didn't realize JTB (the travelling service who organzied our trip) arranged an airport pick-up service for us, so we took a bus to the city's center and then cabbed to the hotel. When we were checking in, the lady from JTB who was supposed to pick us up called the hotel and complained to me in this hard to understand Thai-Japanese. She then came to the hotel and told us things like "Don't drink the water" and that the fruit (in the room) is not free. She was funny though. You wouldn't meet someone like her in Tokyo.
Day 2
Our big tourist day! Thanks to the "Travel Wiki" website, we found a good one-day plan to cover all of Bangkok's big attractions. We first took a cab to "The Golden Mount," which was a really lovely temple. We got there very early so hardly anyone was there, so we were surrounded by the chirping sounds of birds and in the "distance" the sounds of the city waking up. We then traveled to Mahakan Fort on foot and crossed the streets to Wat Rajanadda, another wonderful, but slightly unappreciated temple. Taking a cab (they were so cheap, and almost always less than two dollars per ride) to Wat Pho, to see the world's largest reclining Buddha. We then walked to the nearby palace (don't remember its name), which was opened to the public after the royal family relocated. The ornamentation and decoration of Thai architecture was magnificent.
When we were done, we walked towards the pier of Tha Tien, which was half-hidden past a market alley full of stalls selling dried squid. We then hopped aboard the angular little ferry and payed 3 baht for the trip to Wat Arun (Temple of Dawn) across the Chao Phraya River. This kind of concluded our list of major tourist attractions, so we then headed back to the hotel for lunch and to take a nap by the pool. In the early evening, Dave and I went separate ways, he to get a traditional Thai massage and I to Lumpini Park (the largest park in central Bangkok). We reconvened at night and had a late dinner (it was included in the trip) at the hotel. It was a kind of Thai-take on Dim Sum. The restaurant staff thought Dave and I were Japanese, which caught me by surprise.
Day 3
meh...will update later today.
Monday, March 1, 2010
Saturday, February 27, 2010
Monday, February 22, 2010
Thursday, February 18, 2010
The Islands.
I just had a great trip to the southernmost islands of Japan, which are part of Okinawa prefecture. I went to the Yaeyama Islands as well as the main island of Okinawa itself. Here's a little roundup of my adventure.
Day1
So my friend and I had a pretty early flight from Haneda (6:45AM), which was kind of miserable, but allowed more time during the first day. The flight from Tokyo to Ishigaki Island (the most inhabited of the Yaeyama Islands) was about three hours, and it still amazes me that they don't ever check your ID when flying to anywhere within the country. That being said, Tokyo airports really outshine those of Americas. Service is so much better, everything goes faster, and security is less of a hassle (ie. you don;t have to take of your shoes and you can bring liquids, which they check by using some strange machine).
Anyway, upon arrival to Ishigaki, we took the bus to our hotel, and then proceeded to the port, where we had lunch. I had the local speciality "Goya Champuru." A Goya is a kind of cucumber like vegetable that is extremely bitter. Following lunch, we headed to the port to take a short ten-minute ferry to the nearby Taketomi Island. White sand roads, traditional houses, and ox-carts all add to the atmosphere that can be found on the Island.
My friend and I opted to take the ox-cart tour of the island, which was very special, and I learned that the river-oxen had come from Taiwan, along with several varieties of plants. (Speaking of plants, I noticed many similarities between the foliage of New Orleans and that of Okinawa.) After the ox-cart tour, we rented bicycles and rode to the nearby "star-sand beach" or 星砂の浜. One of two in Japan, the other being at the nearby Iriomote Island, the beach is made up of little pieces of star-shaped sand, which are actually the bodies of little sea animals.
The allure of finding the star-shaped sand, which was more or less everywhere, wore off rather fast, but I was still amused by long, black sea-slugs (poking them made them spit water) and other sea critters around the beach (hermit crabs, sea anemone, corals, etc). There were also many cute beach cats lounging languidly about. Because I am a unique personality, I took several pieces of dried coral and a rock that was shaped like a skull with me as souvenirs.
After returning the bikes, we walked around the village, which was very peaceful. They had a nice tower overlooking the city, and there was a lot of interesting plant life. I couldn't help humming/singing the Okinawan song "Shima Uta," the music video of which was probably filmed on the island.
Of course, this song was played everywhere during the trip, and including on endless repeat during each plane ride. I'm kind of sick of it now.
Upon returning to Ishigaki, we had a nice beef dinner of Okinawan cow, followed by dessert, the milk of which was probably from Okinawan cows too. We then returned to the hotel for some needed rest and relaxation.
Day 2
On Day Two, we went to Iriomote Island. Our plan was sadly Azumanga Daioh inspired, and it ended up being somewhat of a failure. We intended to circle the island within the day, but we didn't research the times of anything, and made the mistake of buying return tickets from the wrong port.
While we missed out on the Urauchigawa River tour, and thus the Maryudo Waterfalls, we at least got to visit the Iriomote Wildlife Center. On the island lives a very rare wildcat called the Iriomote Yamaneko, or locally Yamapikarya in Okinawan. There are less than one hundred estimated to live on the island, and it's only been 44 days since the last car-related accident involving the endangered creature. It's very sad. The wildlife center is dedicated to this animal, and houses one cat in captivity, which due to a car-related accident has a paralyzed arm and an odd twitch of its head (and so cannot survive anymore in the wild). The cat is separated from humans, but visitors can watch the animal via a live-feed cam.
The cat's name is 'Yan,' and is a 13-year old male. (The average lifespan of the cat is presumed to be about ten years.)
I was very touched by the plight of this animal, and will dedicated a future post for a more detailed discussion of the animal.
Anyway, after the Wildlife Center, we walked to the ox-cart crossing to Yubu Island (oxes can walk to the island when the tide is low), and had lunch at a little local restaraunt. While the local speciality of the island is the Zashigani or 'Coconut Crab,' a really creepy looking animal, it wasn't offered on the menu, so I settled for the local wild boar.
We then returned to the port, walked around the little town/bought some souvenirs, then returned to Ishigaki, had dinner (don't remember what), and returned to the hotel. We then planed our final day in Yaeyama to return to Iriomote to try and make the northern island cruise.
Day 3
As luck would have it, after waking up at 5AM, skipping breakfast, and walking roughly three-miles to the port in the drizzling rain, we discovered that the ferry to the northern port of Iriomote (Uehara) was canceled for the day...and I have no idea why, the weather wasn't that bad. We then had to redo our plans for the day, and settle on the slightly less interesting southern river tour.
Anyways we returned to Ohara port on the southern end of Iriomote, to make the 11AM tour (the only one available). It was a nice tour, even though it was a bit cold, windy, and a little drizzly. My Japanese wasn't good enough to understand the boat driver/tour guide, but there was a lot to take in, and I probably knew more than most about mangroves (the special plant of the island). The tour concluded with a short trek through the 'jungle,' which the island is probably 89% comprised of, to see the oldest mangrove tree in Japan. I wondered how someone randomly discovered the tree, but it was huge.
What surprised me was how much trash there was around the mangroves, despite how uninhabited the area was. People are dirty, but at least the Japanese aren't quite as bad as Americans in this respect.
After returning to Ishigaki, we ate a quick lunch and then headed to the airport to take a short 40-minute flight to Naha, the capital of Okinawa Prefecture. There wasn't much to do in Naha, so I was a little worried about what we'd do there, but upon arrival, we found our hotel to be very nice. Thankfully my friend, Japanese-American, found a great tour for the next day, which would take us to a Pineapple farm and the Okinawan Aquarium, which is the second largest aquarium in the world.
Day 4
So the final day, we woke up early and took a bus tour to first the Okinawa Aquarium. It was about a 2-hour drive, but well worth it. It was perhaps the best aquarium I've ever seen; the three whale-sharks and all the deep see-life were pretty awesome. I was glad to see the tropical sea-life on the other side of the world. I didn't know Manatees/Dugongs existed in Okinawa, but apparently they do, even though very rare.
After the aquarium, we traveled on to a Pineapple farm, which turned out to be a tourist trap. It was interesting to try all these foods, wines, and snacks made from pineapple though.
After returning to Naha, we had only two-hours till our flight, so we walked around for a bit and then went there. After a 1.5 hour flight from Naha to Tokyo, here I am now!
For those of you in Japan, or really anywhere, Okinawa is the place to visit! Especially in the coming months when it'll be warm enough to dive and snorkel! I think I wanna move to the islands now!
Day1
So my friend and I had a pretty early flight from Haneda (6:45AM), which was kind of miserable, but allowed more time during the first day. The flight from Tokyo to Ishigaki Island (the most inhabited of the Yaeyama Islands) was about three hours, and it still amazes me that they don't ever check your ID when flying to anywhere within the country. That being said, Tokyo airports really outshine those of Americas. Service is so much better, everything goes faster, and security is less of a hassle (ie. you don;t have to take of your shoes and you can bring liquids, which they check by using some strange machine).
Anyway, upon arrival to Ishigaki, we took the bus to our hotel, and then proceeded to the port, where we had lunch. I had the local speciality "Goya Champuru." A Goya is a kind of cucumber like vegetable that is extremely bitter. Following lunch, we headed to the port to take a short ten-minute ferry to the nearby Taketomi Island. White sand roads, traditional houses, and ox-carts all add to the atmosphere that can be found on the Island.
My friend and I opted to take the ox-cart tour of the island, which was very special, and I learned that the river-oxen had come from Taiwan, along with several varieties of plants. (Speaking of plants, I noticed many similarities between the foliage of New Orleans and that of Okinawa.) After the ox-cart tour, we rented bicycles and rode to the nearby "star-sand beach" or 星砂の浜. One of two in Japan, the other being at the nearby Iriomote Island, the beach is made up of little pieces of star-shaped sand, which are actually the bodies of little sea animals.
The allure of finding the star-shaped sand, which was more or less everywhere, wore off rather fast, but I was still amused by long, black sea-slugs (poking them made them spit water) and other sea critters around the beach (hermit crabs, sea anemone, corals, etc). There were also many cute beach cats lounging languidly about. Because I am a unique personality, I took several pieces of dried coral and a rock that was shaped like a skull with me as souvenirs.
After returning the bikes, we walked around the village, which was very peaceful. They had a nice tower overlooking the city, and there was a lot of interesting plant life. I couldn't help humming/singing the Okinawan song "Shima Uta," the music video of which was probably filmed on the island.
Of course, this song was played everywhere during the trip, and including on endless repeat during each plane ride. I'm kind of sick of it now.
Upon returning to Ishigaki, we had a nice beef dinner of Okinawan cow, followed by dessert, the milk of which was probably from Okinawan cows too. We then returned to the hotel for some needed rest and relaxation.
Day 2
On Day Two, we went to Iriomote Island. Our plan was sadly Azumanga Daioh inspired, and it ended up being somewhat of a failure. We intended to circle the island within the day, but we didn't research the times of anything, and made the mistake of buying return tickets from the wrong port.
While we missed out on the Urauchigawa River tour, and thus the Maryudo Waterfalls, we at least got to visit the Iriomote Wildlife Center. On the island lives a very rare wildcat called the Iriomote Yamaneko, or locally Yamapikarya in Okinawan. There are less than one hundred estimated to live on the island, and it's only been 44 days since the last car-related accident involving the endangered creature. It's very sad. The wildlife center is dedicated to this animal, and houses one cat in captivity, which due to a car-related accident has a paralyzed arm and an odd twitch of its head (and so cannot survive anymore in the wild). The cat is separated from humans, but visitors can watch the animal via a live-feed cam.
The cat's name is 'Yan,' and is a 13-year old male. (The average lifespan of the cat is presumed to be about ten years.)
I was very touched by the plight of this animal, and will dedicated a future post for a more detailed discussion of the animal.
Anyway, after the Wildlife Center, we walked to the ox-cart crossing to Yubu Island (oxes can walk to the island when the tide is low), and had lunch at a little local restaraunt. While the local speciality of the island is the Zashigani or 'Coconut Crab,' a really creepy looking animal, it wasn't offered on the menu, so I settled for the local wild boar.
We then returned to the port, walked around the little town/bought some souvenirs, then returned to Ishigaki, had dinner (don't remember what), and returned to the hotel. We then planed our final day in Yaeyama to return to Iriomote to try and make the northern island cruise.
Day 3
As luck would have it, after waking up at 5AM, skipping breakfast, and walking roughly three-miles to the port in the drizzling rain, we discovered that the ferry to the northern port of Iriomote (Uehara) was canceled for the day...and I have no idea why, the weather wasn't that bad. We then had to redo our plans for the day, and settle on the slightly less interesting southern river tour.
Anyways we returned to Ohara port on the southern end of Iriomote, to make the 11AM tour (the only one available). It was a nice tour, even though it was a bit cold, windy, and a little drizzly. My Japanese wasn't good enough to understand the boat driver/tour guide, but there was a lot to take in, and I probably knew more than most about mangroves (the special plant of the island). The tour concluded with a short trek through the 'jungle,' which the island is probably 89% comprised of, to see the oldest mangrove tree in Japan. I wondered how someone randomly discovered the tree, but it was huge.
What surprised me was how much trash there was around the mangroves, despite how uninhabited the area was. People are dirty, but at least the Japanese aren't quite as bad as Americans in this respect.
After returning to Ishigaki, we ate a quick lunch and then headed to the airport to take a short 40-minute flight to Naha, the capital of Okinawa Prefecture. There wasn't much to do in Naha, so I was a little worried about what we'd do there, but upon arrival, we found our hotel to be very nice. Thankfully my friend, Japanese-American, found a great tour for the next day, which would take us to a Pineapple farm and the Okinawan Aquarium, which is the second largest aquarium in the world.
Day 4
So the final day, we woke up early and took a bus tour to first the Okinawa Aquarium. It was about a 2-hour drive, but well worth it. It was perhaps the best aquarium I've ever seen; the three whale-sharks and all the deep see-life were pretty awesome. I was glad to see the tropical sea-life on the other side of the world. I didn't know Manatees/Dugongs existed in Okinawa, but apparently they do, even though very rare.
After the aquarium, we traveled on to a Pineapple farm, which turned out to be a tourist trap. It was interesting to try all these foods, wines, and snacks made from pineapple though.
After returning to Naha, we had only two-hours till our flight, so we walked around for a bit and then went there. After a 1.5 hour flight from Naha to Tokyo, here I am now!
For those of you in Japan, or really anywhere, Okinawa is the place to visit! Especially in the coming months when it'll be warm enough to dive and snorkel! I think I wanna move to the islands now!
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