Okay, as promised, here are the picures. These were taken in Kyoto. They are in random order cause something kept going wrong, somehow. So enjoy!! More from Nagoya and Tokyo coming up!
Wednesday, December 31
~Ivor~ Monday, December 29, 2008
The background behind the 12 Days of Christmas song.
The partridge in a pear tree is Jesus Christ.
The two turtledoves are the Old and New Testaments.
Three French hens stand for faith, hope and love.
The four calling birds are the four Gospels.
The five gold rings recall the Torah (Law) the first five book of the Old Testament.
The six geese a-laying stand for the six days of creation.
Seven swans a-swimming represent the sevenfold gifts of the Spirit.
The eight maids a-milking are the eight beatitudes.
Nine ladies dancing? These are the nine fruits of the Spirit (Gal. 5).
The ten lords a-leaping are the Ten Commandments.
Eleven pipers piping stand for the eleven faithful disciples.
Twelve drummers drumming symbolize the 12 points of belief in the Apostles' Creed."
Monday, December 29
~Ivor~
Sunday, December 28, 2008
Here is a short post, wishing all those, if any, who visit this site a Very MERRY CHRISTMAS! And if anyone says that i'm late in my greetings, i say that christmas is 8 days, not one!
Sunday, December 28
~Ivor~
Sunday, December 28, 2008
So anyway, i know this is very late, but i feel the urge to blog about it, briefly though. So, as some may have known, i went to Japan on the 15th and returned on the 22nd. Will blog about it day by day!
Monday-15th Dec
Took a 11.45pm flight to Tokyo from Singapore. Flight was good, as i took SQ. Though the Japanese breakfast was quite crap. So got to Tokyo on the 16th.
Tuesday-16th Dec
So, continuing from the top, arrived in Tokyo around 7am+. Got through immigration and customs quite swiftly. Took a bullet train aka "faster train" aka shinkansen from Tokyo to Kyoto, which was the destination for the day. When there, we checked into the hotel and went to some temple up a hill, which was very high up and very tiring to walk up. The best thing about it all, was that the weather was nice and cool so you didn't really sweat. It was disgustingly dry though. After that, went to the underground shopping centre near the hotel for dinner. Quite good, can't remember what i had though. After that, went back to the hotel, and knocked out around 8pm. By the way, the sun starts to set in Japan around 4pm cause it was late autumn when we went.
Wednesday- 17th Dec
Woke up early, went to do a variety of stuff on this day. Went shopping, i think, or at least my parents and my sister, while me and my brothers stayed in the hotel. This took place in the morning. Also, seeing that there was a 10 story Isetan near the hotel, my mum went on shopping spree, and bought nothing. After that, went to a castle in Kyoto. Quite nice, and beautifully built, with many different paintings. Can't really remember where we went to next. I think to a shrine, a big huge garden and a temple. What i can remember for sure is that we had curry rice for lunch. Good, and if i may say, better than my brother's. After all that sight seeing, went to a national museum, which was close, and where my phone totally ran out of battery. So that rounds up the day.
Thursday- 18th Dec
Woke up even earlier i think. Had to catch a shinkansen to Nagoya, which was a little up north from Kyoto. Upon reaching Nagoya, we went to another castle, to walk around, before heading back to the station to buy bento boxes to eat on the train. They are not bad. Had to get back on the shinkansen to go to Gero, where we would be staying in a hotel with hotsprings!! So, there, we had to wear traditional clothing around the room, and we all stayed in one room. We even had a 16 course dinner in the room! So, out of the three hotsprings in the hotel, i went for all three! Won't elaborate on the hotsprings cause it is suppose to be a private affair. All i can say is that it is a nice experience. The ones i went to on this day were the one with the good view and the open air one. And before i forget, we tried to walk out of the hotel in the traditional clothes which was thin and not really tied right. And when i walked out, there was a huge wind, and i don't think i need to elaborate furthur.
Friday- 19th Dec
Woke up early, for breakfast, followed by a hotspring bath in the cedar wood one. The largest and nicest of them all! After that, went to the train station to take the shinkansen back up to Tokyo, where we would be spending the last days of our trip. So, we went to our hotel, checked in again, and went for dinner at a place nearby. Can' t remember where though.
Saturday- 20th Dec
Woke up really early. Took a subway down to the biggest fish market in the world. Saw huge huge fish, and it was just huge. Got sick of fish after a while though. After that, went to somewhere to walk around, and shop a little. There, we had lunch. Then, we decided to go to shop at some funny place, where all the teens hang out and we had sushi there. After that, went back and slept. Watched Czar Putin for a while.
Sunday- 21st Dec
Woke up early, again. Went for mass at the Fransiscan Chapel Centre. Mass was in english. After that, went to Disney Sea. Sat on a couple of rides, thought much time was wasted queing for the ride. One ride we sat on had a 2hour queue and it didn't even last 1min! Really wasted! Anyway, had lots of fun in disney sea. Will put pics up soon, i hope.
Monday- 22nd Dec
Got packed and everything, got to the airport, and did last minute shopping for some friends. Had breakfast, then boarded the plane. Service was crap on board, had to ask 3 times for a cup of water, they ran out of Japanese food, so served me International food which was crap, got ignored by a steward, who was rather rude. So due to all these, i hated the flight back. I managed to finish 3 shows though. So now, i'm back! Home Sweet Home!
~Ivor~