🍱 Delicacy of the Day

Archie Holmes - Balance

This is one of those tracks that THRIVE on a good melody.

From the get go you get enveloped in this wave of synthy goodness and get carried on its back all the way through.

It’s a nice and short one. Except by the end you’re like “wait, hold up, that’s it? Nah, run it back I didn’t get enough.”

Interestinlgy enough, there’s a delicate balance that Stingy Scottish Archie Holmes plays with in this track.

What that balance is? I’ll let you find that for your own, but its a very impressive track that will leave you wanting more.

Njoy.

💭 Quick Drivel

I realize I keep repeating the same 5 things like a parrot.

“Woke up at this time”

“Got lost here and here”

“The plan was simple”

Well…

If it ain’t broke…

Nah, today was an odd one.

Mostly because if I missed it I would be down $200 dollars.

And that’s because the FIRST activity of the day issssss:

Yeah, so I saw this on TripAdvisor, and it seemed like the coolest thing ever.

The problem is that I had to get a $40 Uber to get to the location (also to make sure I didn’t get lost)

…Which didn’t help, as when I got there, I wandered around for a good 15 minutes before I saw other foreigners go down an alley I had passed by 5 times already. (wasn’t hard to find the spot after that)

The smithing experience is…

Tougher than it looks.

We were given this huge chunk of metal and told to hammer it, temper it, mold it, and sharpen it

…While getting A LOT of help from the instructors.

It’s a unique experience. Going through all of those steps give you an insight to craftsmanship you couldn’t get anywhere else.

I also got a cool cooking knife! (I can’t find any pictures)

The un-fun thing about this blacksmith is that the nearest bus station was a 20 minute walk away.

Thankfully I was able to follow some other foreigners from the group (without making it too obvious that I was following them) and made it out.

While waiting for the next bus I started looking around the area.

It was very nice and peaceful.

There were also these posters around the wall. They looked interesting so I looked into it further.

Then my stomach dropped.

The poster was about the tradition they have of setting a mountain on fire.

It was something that I kept seeing and wanted to attend (but didn’t know the name, when, or where it was happening.)

The problem was that the event happened YESTERDAY.

(Suddenly all those fireworks I saw from Osaka made a lot of sense)

It was a devastating experience.

So devastating in fact that I got on the wrong bus.

Except it seems the Lord wanted to give me some respite, as it turns out the bus was going to the right place, so all ended well.

Now coming back home this early might be odd.

But the small fact I’ve been avoiding in these emails is that by this day my body is DEMOLISHED.

My right foot has some type of fracture/pulled muscle from the hike 10 days ago which sends a flare of pain with every step.

The lower back pain is starting to come back and my neck feels like falling apart.

Not only that but my sleep debt is at a cool.

Needless to say, the wheels were starting to come off.

…That and I also forgot my portable battery and had to go get it.

But after resting for an hour and eating some microwaved gyoza, I was good as new

-ish.

This was all the way at the eastern edge of Kyoto.

It seems that I’m part of some cosmic joke as I somehow ended up at the same bus station from 3 hours ago (the one from the blacksmith) to wait for a connecting bus.

Then from that one bus station, its a walk and a half to get to the temple itself.

However! There was this little spot that sold Yuba Cheese croquetes and you already know I had to get my hit of crack.

The temple itself was… cool? I don’t know. After seeing so many insane temples and experiencing Kyozumi Sudera this was…

Okay?

There was another one of these stone gardens except this one had a big mount of spherically shaped sand.

Then further down the track you entered this very nice forest.

At this point the place was starting to grow on me.

Then, after a bit more walking I ended up climbing some spot and WOULD YOU LOOK AT THAT:

After this you were sent right to the exit so that was that.

Still, a very nice experience. Quite peaceful and will help you recharge your batteries.

This was a whole lotta nothing. Could have been the summer season but this place was just… a very nice (and lowkey run down) path.

I walked it for a good 20 minutes before realizing this looked nothing like the pictures.

Maybe this is something that looks better during cherry blossom season?

No clue, but this looked NOTHING like the pictures up in google:

But hey, maybe I missed the whole point of the path and now I look like an ignorant american tourist.

Oh wai-

I’m calling it downtown becasue that’s the best description I have for it.

This place is PACKED to the brim with just about any store you can imagine.

I was on a quest to find a single game:

Pokemon Legends Arceus.

Which I was able to find for $25 after going to like 10 stores lmfao.

Regardless this place is really cool. Every turn can lead you into a cool alleyway that looks like this:

An amazing (and expensive) experience.

This was a spot that Hyperoxia and I came to last year.

It had this amazing wagyu dish that was worth coming back for:

Of course, it was well worth the visit. This place is delicious.

After that I went on to explore a bit more of the downtown area.

Unfortunately everything was starting to close, so I got the last of the shopping done and headed back home.

Yeah so…

Wagyu is good and all…

So I swung by the restaurant from a couple of days ago and had another amazing conversation with the owner.

Here are some more delicacies they served:

We talked about some cultural differences between Japan and the American Empire which was incredibly insightful, recommended each other spots to visit, and called it a night.

Definitely one of those incredible places that you wouldn’t experience as a foreigner.

Highly recommend checking this place out, just for the hospitality alone.

Even in the “off” days the ride never ends.

Most people imagine vacation and traveling as this laid-back experience where you get to sleep in and take it easy.

…that’s probably the right way to do it.

So honestly, if that’s your style…

STICK TO IT.

As fun and as much as you get to see in this “wake up at 6, run all day, eat once a day, come back at 12am, and run it all again” type of travel you put your body in an insane amount of strain.

Would I do anything differently?

No. This is my go to for any travel I make.

All of this to say:

Find what works for you. Stick to it. And don’t let anyone else’s experiences get you out of your lane.

Hz

P.S. TRIP SCORE: (14 days)

Hours slept total: 86.

Times phone died: 6.

Times lost/taking the wrong train: 17.

Strangers met and talked to: 23

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