Monday, Nov 3

Eggs and (stupid) frying pan toast

My “rule” for myself when traveling is when I get someplace new I get two days to rest, recover, veg, sleep, whatever my mind and body need. Traveling is exhausting always, but going to a totally new place is…oofah.

So, while yesterday I really just rested, today I (after sleeping in a bit) slowly unpacked and got organized, ordered actual groceries from an actual grocery store (not just a convenience store), and just sort of puttered. Not that I have much to putter with here.

Continued with my list of disappointments with the airbnb….the shampoo is 99% water and 1% something soapy…there’s no conditioner/cream rinse…there’s very little space for storing groceries.

I did find that sliding the round table in the bedroom over to the bed (after setting the tv on the floor) and sitting on the bed with the laptop on the table is a much better situation than sitting on the horrible flimsy metal chairs. It’s still not ideal and my back gets sore/tired quickly, but at least my butt/nerve/sciatica are better off on the bed. When I get over that way, I will still look at an actual desk chair  – with wheels, adjustable height, and back support. And also a toaster.

I’d been about to go out in the early afternoon for a stroll and all of a sudden it was raining, so. I never left the building. That’s okay. I’m still within my two-days rest phase.

Tuesday, Nov 4

“My “rule” for myself when traveling is when I get someplace new I get two days to rest.” And by “rule,” I really mean more of a guideline. Cuz if I want to be a slug for THREE days, I can.

Wednesday, Nov 5

Osaka Castle

Finally got myself out today for an outing. It wasn’t so much about the destination as just making an easy first trip to test out my train skills. So Osaka Castle seemed like a good goal as it was a straight train ride with no transfers…and ChatGPT (that jerk) said I’d get off the train and literally be in the park where the castle is.

FAIL.

It was a LOT more walking than he (I know it’s a HE cuz he’s so DUMB and set in his ways. Sorry any he-s out there.) promised. So, while I made it to the park,  and was close enough to get some pictures, I didn’t actually make it to the castle. My hips were DONE. I’ve barely moved in the past eight months. And Korea fitness I once had is long gone.

Starbucks had a nice little chicken and cheese quesadilla that was actually pretty pleasing

I made it to a Starbucks (2 points for familiarity and clean bathrooms) for a small lunch and rest, before starting the trek back home. Another long walk back to the station. And then the stress of “am I getting on the right train? in the right direction??” I did and I was. Phew. Very comfy ride going home – soft velvet bench seating, pretty much empty train.

Stopped in 7-11 at the station when I got to my stop for some 7-11 shampoo and conditioner cuz the stuff in the airbnb is like water. And bananas. And pudding.

And then the walk home…and The Stairs. Oofah. That was brutal.

I could already tell I was going to be crippled, so I took a hot tub soak before showering with my new fancy 7-11 hair products.

And five hours later, I am, indeed crippled. SO SORE. I’ll stay close to home tomorrow…and maybe Friday go back to Osaka for a bus tour of the city

Was just checking out the election results. And am encouraged. The people understood the assignment 🙂

Thursday, Nov 6

In the hood

Oh my gosh, it’s Thursday already?? Tomorrow I’ll have been here a week already!

Quiet day at home…took a little walk around the hood right before sunset. I’m walking along minding my own business when I hear someone call out “BETTYE-SAN??” And I’m like wha-who-wha? Remember the time that happened to me in Korea when someone at the crosswalk asked me if I was Bettye and I was like I’M IN KOREA. How do people know me? Anyway, it was Rica, the airbnb host’s assistant, she’d just been by the building to pick something up and now she was riding her bike back to the office, and there I was! Bettye-san! How much do I love THAT?! Even more than the Korean Bettye-ssi (which sounds like shi). Anyway, we chatted for a few and off we went.

Friday, Nov 7

Quiet day at home. Had some “please do right away” work from the remote job, so I got that done, did a Japanese lesson…read my book. A nice retirement day. Don’t gotta do nuffin I don’t want.

Saturday, Nov 8

Got up early and headed off to a cool shrine about an hour+ by three trains away. Five trains later (sigh) and a 30-minute walk, I made it!

This is the Namba Yasaka Shrine. According to legend, around the 4th century, a plague swept ancient Japan, until the deity Gozu Tenno appeared and POOF stopped it. In gratitude, locals built Namba Yasaka Shrine. For centuries it blended Shinto and Buddhist traditions, but after the Meiji Restoration, it became purely Shinto. The shrine was destroyed in World War II, and in 1974 it was reborn as you see it now: a 40-foot lion head whose roaring mouth is said to swallow evil and bad luck. Today, this fierce concrete lion is one of Osaka’s most popular landmarks.

My plan had been to get there before the PEOPLE, but my back-and-forth train route took longer than expected, so. People.

After that I had a little lunch with really good iced tea (Japan does better straight tea than Korea) and got to sit outside (one of my very favorite things), and then headed home. On just three trains. Success!

This a lovely thing. They were popular in Korea but I never tried it. It’s like a cross between soft serve ice cream and a milkshake. This was the only coffee flavored one left in the case. SCORE.

Stopped for some goodies at the 7-11 inside the station at the home end and collapsed on the bed for about hour. I’d walked 2.5 miles. I’m so out of shape, the walking is killing me. I walked 2 miles on Wednesday when I went to the Castle park.

Sunday, Nov 9

I found the Korean food

And I was rewarded with a day of rest. It was rainy and cool all day, so I stayed in and cleaned the room, got some things organized that I hadn’t gotten to yet, and relaxed and read. A good day. And not a bad week.

More shriney things

I’m obsessed with the manhole covers

I’m less than pleased by all the stairs. Everywhere.

I spend a lot of time standing on train platforms hoping I’m in the right place.

I really enjoy the Japanese trains. The seats are plush and cushy and the windows are big. They also have women only cars that are nice.

In the hood

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