Day two started pretty early for me. In a nutshell, I slept a few hours and found myself back outside taking pictures in the wee morning hours. The rain had recently stopped and all that remained were puddles and dampened sidewalks. The streets, now much more alive, were already dotted with busy commuters rushing across streets and into subway entrances. Definitely a much different scene than just three hours prior. After a quick walk around the block and a handful of street shots later, I returned to the hotel and prepared for an afternoon walk to Shibuya. This is where I would find the two-prong adapter for my laptop charger, among a dozen other things I would have liked to purchase. After my time in Shibuya, it was already time to check out of the Toko hotel. Next stop was Sendai to visit my grandmother. Traveling by train, we arrived at her place within hours.
By day three, my mother and I were well reunited with my grandmother. The three of us were excited about the hot spring resort we were visiting later that day, there’s nothing more to hot spring resorts than relaxation. Quite ideally, it began to snow this day, as if welcoming us to the warm hospitality ahead. This was the first time I had seen falling snow, a memorable moment for sure. Before we headed to the resort, we grabbed a quick bite at a busy restaurant, then ventured into the mountains for some serious R&R.
Day four was our last day at the hot springs. So I took one last dip and bid my farewell. We headed back to Sendai to my grandmother’s place. Once we got back into town, I took a quick stroll to the local convenience store for some grub and a drink. Even though I was pretty tired, I took some pictures along the way. I also stumbled across some Kirby Kleenex when I got to the store. I’m all about the little pink marshmallow known as Kirby, I mean, he’s practically my homeboy. You’ll see him at the end of the post, haha. All in all, day four was pretty chill, definitely pretty soothed out from the hot spring goodness.
Enjoy the pics.
The last of the rain drying up. A Tokyo train picking up morning commuters in the background. Everyone on the train was staring at me because they thought I was taking a picture of them. Almost, but not quite, haha. Happens a lot.
Some empty bottles behind a bar. Bottoms up.
Manhole. Or shield?
Shop owner preparing for the day and Tokyo commuters crossing the street.
This one’s for Leon back home. Apple Store Shibuya. Tokyo, Japan.
Cross the street, play the piano.
My first time seeing falling snow.
So cold outside.
Most everyone in this shot was pretty cold, it was only snowing a little, but still arctic-windy. So I found it funny that the three girls, least dressed for the weather, walked through it so nonchalantly. I know I was freezing.
A busy kitchen at a busy restaurant. A quick bite before heading to the hot spring resort. Sendai, Japan.
A creative advert for a nearby camera shop.
The beginning of the ride to the hot spring resort. A very cinematic back window view. The black lines at the top and bottom are the inside of the bus. Made it look like a movie the whole way there.
Half snow tree.
I was loving the snow. At this point, the bus had dropped us off up in the mountains, where it was snowing even more. A taxi picked us up from there and took us to the hot spring resort.
The view from the hot spring resort lobby. My jaw pretty much dropped.
The last three shots were taken from our room. According to our hostess, we had the room with the best view. I think she was right because we were on the top floor and if you looked at the rooms next to us and below, our room extended out quite a bit more. It gave us a seamless view.
Our complimentary slippers.
My personal hot spring tub. The water flowed in naturally from a hot spring in the earth. The heat and pressure is all natural and the water rejuvenates the body. I really did feel amazing after this. This was one of many they had at the resort. Each one is a little different, size and scenery wise. This spring tub was level with the floor and had drains along the front. You go in the water naked and it’s not uncommon to share the spring with others, even people you don’t know. This one happened to be one of the smaller private springs, so I didn’t have to sit with anyone else. A hot spring tub to myself, nothing short of amazing. This water was HOT. The next thing you notice is how buoyant you are in it. I felt like an apple in a bucket of water, because I kept floating around at first lol. The view outside was breathtaking, no one as far as the eye could see. Snow still lightly falling and a river below, this experience was great.
Random rabbit and another view from our room. The sun was starting to come out now.
Bugzilla.
The last of the snow. It was pretty much all gone except for in shady areas. Pretty amazing, considering it only snowed while we were at the resort, which made it that much more cozy. The day before and the following days after were pretty sunny and warm.
This totally reminded me of Bill Murray in Lost in Translation.
A pigeon and a man of the streets. Taken at waist while walking.
A blue Kirby?! I never knew. Blinged-out crown and everything. And on the right, almost busted my ankle walking down those steps. They were at a park and nearly two steps at the bottom were completely covered in leaves. I had no idea they were there and involuntarily stumbled down to ground level. It was like those booby traps they make in cartoons with leaves lol.
So there you have it, that’s pretty much all of day 2, 3, and 4 in one post. I pulled together some faves for this set and will show more from these particular days at a later time. For now I’d like to continue focusing on chronically revealing parts of my trip with the photographs I’ve taken. So pics from day 5, 6, 7, & 8 will be grouped together for the next Japan post, stick around! If you’ve been following my blog, or just started visiting as of late, I just wanted to say thank you for stopping by and checking it out. If you see something you like, feel free to leave a comment!
by Kirby
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