You'd think that Hawaii would be a lot closer to Japan than the U.S. mainland – and it is – but it's still a ten hour flight from Honolulu to Osaka. Or, if your plane has a malfunctioning window heater, as ours did, then you get to sit uncomfortably on the plane for an additional three hours as the maintenance crew tries to fix it. The three hour delay caused us to arrive late at night and miss the shuttle I had reserved to take us from Osaka into Kyoto, but the airline arranged for a bus to take us to Kyoto Station and then we were able to hail a cab to take us to our hotel, which we finally stumbled into bleary-eyed at two in the morning.
The hotel is centrally located and really quite nice for the price. They provide a light breakfast and there's a common lounge and kitchenette for guests to use, as well as massage chairs and laundry facilities. The hotel is also spotlessly clean - so much so that I nearly walked through a sliding glass door that was so clear I could have sworn it was open. Now it has my nose print on it. Our private bath even has one of those high tech toilets the Japanese are famous for with a heated toilet seat and bidet-like function for those times when toilet paper alone just won't do. I had to try it out, but I wasn't brave enough to set the “fountain” at full throttle. That just seemed wrong.
Our first meal out was at a great little restaurant where you remove your shoes before sitting on a chairless platform on thin cushions in front of a low table. I tried my best to sit cross legged in the local fashion without banging my knees on the underside of the table but, as I know from my yoga practice, I just don't have good hip-opener flexibility. I finally had to settle for a hybrid position where one leg was bent close to my body and the other stuck straight out under the table with its corresponding foot making an appearance at the opposite end where Deborah was seated. She found this quite amusing. The vegetable tempura was delicious and gave us enough energy to do some grocery shopping and to walk about our new temporary neighborhood for a bit. It was just enough of a taste of Kyoto to know we are going to love it here. But I'm too jet-lagged to write any more today.
Asuka Restaurant, Kyoto
The food's good, but the furniture is small
Deborah, ignoring her husband's intruding foot at her side.
Classic Kyoto architecture
Vending machines are everywhere
This strikes me as an unfortunate choice of name for a beverage product
Control panel for the toilet - not on the space shuttle, but in our hotel room.
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