Expo Park and Minoo Park

Also during Golden Week, my host family tried to drive me and a high school friend of theirs to Expo Park in Osaka. Unfortunately, there were too many people and we could not get in. Here is a picture from the outside that my host mother took. Expo park is an amusement park made on the grounds that held the 1970 World Expo. This statue was built then.

After giving up on Expo Park, we headed to Minoo Park for a picnic in northern Osaka. The park looked really nice, but once again there was an excess of people. Here is a view of Minoo from behind my host father and a high school friend Nao.

Here is what they were looking at.

Here are some trees where we stopped.

Here is my host-parents and Nao in front of the same trees. I really like my host-mother's shirt.

On the way back, my host family tried to help find an ATM to withdraw money for my rent. While looking for an ATM, we saw this coffee shop.

Here is a Minoo-man-hole cover.

Although we couldn't go where we intended to go, I still had a good time just talking in the car. We later found out that some one died on the Expo-park roller coaster that day, so I think we were fortunate that we couldn't go. Also, I was able to withdraw money and pay my rent!

Kinkakuji: Golden Temple

Also during Golden Week, fittingly I traveled to Kyoto to see Kinkakuji, or the Golden Temple. This picture here is the a very common angle; however, most pictures of Kinkakuji are taken in the winter.

Here is a not-so-common angle of the temple.

Here are some nearby trees.

Here are some stairs. Besides, the Temple itself (which people are not allowed to enter), there is not a lot to see there.

Here is a small waterfall, and a couple signs.

Here is a lantern, a sign and a rock at which people throw money.

Here is a separate shrine down the path from the temple.

At that shrine, people can spend 100 yen on a fortune. When I saw that they had English, I bought one, and it gave me an "excellent" fortune. I wondered if they all said that.

Osaka Aquarium

I went to Osaka Aquarium during Japan's Golden Week Holiday. I took too many pictures. I will just try to highlight the best ones.

Here is a giant tortoise shell that was near the entrance. Unfortunately, there was no turtle of that size inside.

Not all of the creatures inside the aquarium are fish. Here is a playful otter.

Here is a turtle and duck tandem.

Here is a different, more audacious turtle and an alligator.

I don't know why the penguin area had a greenish-tinge, but I was happy I could catch them during feeding time. The taller creatures are Japanese people.

Here are sardines swimming together. I like to say that this picture reminds me of Japan.

This fish just seemed to have a sour disposition.

This fish seemed to fly like a bird, also I don't think it could close its mouth.

Here is the largest turtle I saw and its reflection.

Here is a cute-looking puffer fish. It is probably deadly.

This was the best shot I could get of a dolphin. Keep in mind, because I went on a holiday, there were probably more Japanese people there than sardines.

Here is a creepy-looking crab. Doesn't it look tasty!

There is a small fish hiding in this picture. This fish is featured because it looks just like Nemo from the animated movie. I had trouble finding him.

Here is a tiny jelly-fish.

Here are two larger jelly-fish.

There were a number of jelly-fish there that day.

These jelly-fish are not really bluish-purple, but the light is.

I liked the color of these jelly-fish.

The jelly-fish in the foreground looks a little like a sea-horse. The background one is just a baby.

This was the strangest fish I saw that day. Apparently it is somewhat famous because it has its own gigantic tank and they sold small stuffed-animal versions.

Sakura, Sakura, Kyoto

Last week, I also had the chance to go to Kyoto with my friend, Tomomi. As we found, there are some streets in Kyoto which are lined with Japanese Sukura or cherry blossom trees.

Here are some Sakura overhanging the street.

Please bear with me, as Tomomi did. I took many pictures of the Sakura.

As you can see, some of the Sakura blossoms are white.


Others are pink.


These Sakura are on the way to Maruyama park, which is like a Sukura hub.


Here is a wide-shot from along the road.


I like how in this shot the Sakura seem to cascade into the water.


There were many people taking pictures of the Sakura that day. Also, it rained a little bit. Here is a picture of someone taking a picture in the rain.


Here, he is reviewing his shot.

This is a shot outside of Maruyama park.

Here is a gate inside Maruyama park.

Here is the large tree in the center of the park. That day, we saw a TV crew at the park. They told me that they were from the BBC taping the Sakura.


Here is a shot from the road back to the station.

Outside the station there was an elderly man selling kittens.

If that kitten looks cranky, it is probably because it is jealous of the two other kittens fast asleep right in front of it.

I guess the time at which we went was a little early in the season, so that means I will probably go back, and there will probably be more Sakura pictures...