road trip: day 7

[chocolate_chip]

I hope everyone has been having a good summer! I spent a very patriotic Fourth of July touring the US Naval ships of Norfolk. We went aboard the USS Wisconsin, and then took a cruise tour of the Norfolk Naval Station, where we saw the USS Cole, the USS Dwight D. Eisenhower, and the USS Enterprise, the world's first nuclear-powered aircraft carrier. Also, in the museum adjacent to the Wisconsin, you can pet sharks! :O They feel like old shoes.

On the 5th, Mom and I went to Busch Gardens. They had a baby Clydesdale!!!!!! And their new roller coaster, Griffon, is amazing, especially if you sit in the front row.

Also that morning, there was a bunny sitting in the driveway, eating an apple. The bunny was like, "I HAS AN APPEL," and then this squirrel came up and was like, "O HAI, I CAN HAS APPEL?" and then the bunny was like, "NOOOOOOOO HE BE STEALIN MY APPEL!!!!" XD </dork>

Friday, we drove up through Shenandoah National Park, which is a very lovely and peaceful drive. And there aren't any stop signs, so my mom didn't have to point every single one of them out to me. We saw a woodchuck, a whole clan of sleeping bats, a white-tailed deer, a black bear with two baby bears in tow (SO CUTE!!!!), a red-tailed hawk, another bear, a mouse, a family of wild turkeys, including 3-4 babies, and another deer. There was also an abandoned Howard Johnson's at the southern end of the park, which I would have liked to have explored if there'd been more time.

Yesterday we went to the National Cathedral, and today we toured the monuments, but it's been too hot do much besides enjoy the air conditioning in my aunt and uncle's new house. Plus, seeing the war memorials always makes me cry. ;_; (In case you're wondering, none of my relatives were killed in war, but my grandfather did receive the purple heart for his part in the Normandy Invasion.) Anyway, hopefully it will be cooler at the seashore.

And! I found out my placement! I'll be teaching at a high school in Kyoto City. Although I was kind of hoping more for junior high, I don't think I could have gotten a better place. Also, Google Maps for Japan is crazy detailed. I've found my subway stop, and it looks like I'm just a few blocks from a McDonald's. XD Anyway, dinner time, have to scoot.


day 7
1191 miles

Comments

[matchynishi.livejournal.com]

OMG BUNNY/APPEL/SQUIRREL OT3?! EH?! EEHHHH??11! XDDD

Omg Kyoto city. *_* Omg you are going to teach high school! *_* Are you scared at all? :p If it were me, I'd be freaking out by now sakld. :D

[chocolate_chip.livejournal.com]

^^ I'm slightly terrified, but I'll manage to get through it somehow. Of course the fact that it is OMG KYOTO helps to keep me from chickening out.

[jimmy-thesiger.livejournal.com]

We saw a woodchuck, a whole clan of sleeping bats, a white-tailed deer, a black bear with two baby bears in tow (SO CUTE!!!!), a red-tailed hawk, another bear, a mouse, a family of wild turkeys, including 3-4 babies, and another deer

Wow!! that's a lot :p

Hope you have fun in Kyoto. it's cool that you can go! :D

[chocolate_chip.livejournal.com]

And today, I saw pelicans, herons, osprey, egrets, and wild ponies~~~! :D

I'm extremely excited about Kyoto. ^^

[rkold.livejournal.com]

Ohhhhhh bears!!! I've always wanted to see bears not at the zoo. I guess I now know where I need to road trip too lol

And speaking of trips, so you up for a visitor in October? XPPPPP

You are seriously the luckiest JET, you'll even be able to easily and relatively cheaply go to Osaka to go to events/concerts.

[chocolate_chip.livejournal.com]

I really am lucky. ^^ And I'd love to have you visit! Beware though, I don't know how small the apartment is yet. XD I've been meaning to ask you, since my time in Tokyo is very limited, what places do you recommend hitting up?

[rkold.livejournal.com]

At the very least we can meet for dinner or shopping or both. ^_^ I'm definitely going to Kyoto because I am going to TnS at least once and I sort of want to go to Fushimi Inari and Enryakuji >>;

And I know how small Japanese apartments are :P

BTW I will have a rental keitai in Japan so we can contact one another. I always rent from Softbank.

As for Tokyo, depends on what you are interested. Unlike a lot of people you're not out in the boonies and it's only 30 mins/ 500 yen to Osaka Station from Kyoto Station. Osaka has most of what Tokyo has. ^^;

Assuming you don't want to try to do a fast X tour, go to Ikebukuro. It's like 15 mins by train from Shinjuku which is where you stay with JET in Tokyo. From there, take the Seibu (East) exit #43. You will be on Green dori. Walk down it less than ablock until you see the pedestrian throughfare with a Dennys, Shakeys, and a Sanrio Gift Gate. This is Sunshine 60 dori. Go down it towards Sunshine 60. (Unlike in Kouri fan-fic you can't miss it.) Go under the underpass and past the Toyota Amlux until you are across from a tiny park, Sunshine 60 will be to your left. On the right is a Mandarake, if you keep going down that block there is a K-books. If you go towards Sunshine 60 but stay on the opposite side of the street there is the 8 floor flagship Animate. But seriously other than events, between Kyoto and Osaka you are set.

If you're more interested in other forms of sightseeing PLMK. There is a Johnnies Shop in Harajuku and I can give you directions there as well.

Email me!!! :P

[chocolate_chip.livejournal.com]

Yes, that was just the sort of "sightseeing" I had in mind. (Sorry; it took me forever to find this comment again!) Blehhhh, e-mail is my kryptonite. You e-mail me first! :PP