Our 'cupboard' for the past 3 nights..
It had been a very warm trip in Kyoto, but rain fell on Day 10, dampening our spirits for the day. Rain made travelling much more difficult, as most pictures most turned out ugly. Our first stop for the day was Toji Temple(東寺
There were few visitors that morning, except for this small group of students..
Plenty of 'No-entry' buildings in the compound..
So deserted..
Fred thought of this pose, which he said the idea was adapted from geishas
The first ever 'ladle' i touched in Japan.. Supposed to wash hands/drink i think.. There were a few such facilities in the temples we've visited b4, but since my 2 partners insisted on not touching them.. I didn't pose with it till that day.
Toji Temple's attraction was this 5 storey pagoda, said to be the TALLEST in Japan. We didn't enter the place though, since it charges an entrance fee.
On our way out of the temple, we came across this building, said to be built without nails.. Quite a feat i think.
Pachinkos, could be seen all over Japan. This seemed to be their biggest past time, where ppl would buy baskets of metal ball bearings to play at some 'machines'. Reminded me of arcades, but at these places, adults were the ones playing. 
We abandoned our plans of touring Nishi Honganji, due to the dampening wet weather. Instead, we shopped in their supermarket, b4 returning to J-Hoppers to take our luggage at noon. This is the 'reception desk' of our hostel. Plenty of brochures and travel guides for backpackers like us. Oh, met a few singaporeans(coz i saw one wearing 'ARMY' singlet..), but we didn't talk to them. 
Our first attempt at connecting with the world, after 10 days of stayin away from internet. I spent just 2 mins at it, tryin to check my exam results. However, the results had not been released yet. Disappointed.
Oh, it was also our last day taking a bus in Japan. For those who haven't gone to Japan before, here's how their bus services work.. Passengers enter from the back of the bus. You don't even have to flag for the bus, the bus would stop at every stop with passengers waiting.
The schedule of every bus was also listed in the bus stop. Not just the first bus n last bus, but EVERY bus.
They had this cute animated 'bus alert' system which gives an estimate of which buses were arriving.
When the passenger alights, he/she pays the fare at the front of the bus, with the coin machine separating the number of coins on the conveyor belt. The coin machine looks just like the ones we see in SG, but they had conveyor belt to move the coins. This is HIGH TECH. Oh, forgot to mention that their bus drivers would thank EVERY passenger who've alighted as well. I had once accidentally overpaid the fare, and the driver was kind enough to return me the change.
We then proceeded to leave Kyoto for our next destination, another highlight of our trip, a Ryokan(旅館
A lot of the sets were sold out, and I settled for this one, Unagi bento set.
Unagi, otherwise known as eel. Was quite a simple bento, but quite ex at 1200yen(S$15).
My first bite of unagi meat in Japan. Tasted better than the ones in SG, less 'boney', 'prickly' taste.
Fred had this 'western' looking set, while balex puasa-ed.
Our train went past such hilly areas, and Atami is a rural area near to Tokyo and Mount Fuji, best known for its hot springs. We saw many mountains, but i doubt any of them was Mount Fuji, coz the visibility that day was very poor, due to the rain.
Even the seats of the trains in the region was specially designed to face the hills, since Mount Fuji is an icon of Japan.
From Atami station, we switched to another train, to take to Ajiro(網代
This pic was taken on the train platform.. Taiseikan(大成館
It was still raining when we reached Ajiro.. and balex took this unglam pic of me..
Waiting at the lobby of our ryokan..
The lounge.. looking posh as compared to the rural buildings in the area..
The first thing balex did when we entered was to brew japanese tea.. and I was just borrowing his tea pot to pose :P
These green tea pastries were to accompany our appreciation of the green tea.
Our 'guest pack', consisting of a comb, brush, and the small little towel for hot bath.
I changed into yukata(bathing clothes)..
Sat in the traditional japanese pose, but only for a few mins, b4 my legs started to get spasms.. Probably coz i'm not a japanese.
Sitting at the balcony with balex.. enjoyin the scenery outside.. Oh! forgot to mention that we were pretty lucky. We had reserved a room on the first level(which was the cheapest), but they gave us a 2nd level one, coz the first floor was full that night.. wierd right?
After changing into our yukata, we went to their hot bath. Hot bath, is part of every Japanese's lifestyle. Hot baths are bath tubs filled with mineral-rich water pumped from the ground, at the temperature of 59 degrees celsius! It was a pretty awkward moment, this being my first time takin a hot bath. We were supposed to have a bath before immersing ourselves in the tub itself, since the water was rarely changed. Imagine getting FULLY naked, sharing the tub with other guys. It's hard to imagine.Fortunately, the hot bath room was empty, just the 3 of us. But still, it was awkward. The small towel(not enough to even wrap around the waist), wasn't meant to cover anything. We used it to cover *ahem* anyway.. and submerge ourselves in the hot bath for about 10 mins. Refreshing experience.
Our dinner was served to our room after that, by obasan clad in kimono. This was the menu for our '9 course dinner'. For each dish served by the obasan, she would introduce to us, wad each dish was made of.. Was like a chicken n a duck conversing.. We didn't understand much but she tried her best.. 
The appetiser.. 1 course and it's already such a mouthful.
Drank the umeshu(梅酒
2nd course.. a bowl of soup with bitter gourd and tofu(both of which i don't eat)..
3rd course.. Sashimi!
Grinding wasabi.. very different from the wasabi paste that we see in japanese restaurants in SG..
Honestly, my first time seeing a wasabi plant
Our main course for dinner.. LOBSTER! Yummy!!
I'm salivating now...
5th course, some peas wrapped with fish meat..
6th course, beef sandwiched between 2 pieces of veg. The beef, was the tastiest i'd eaten in my LIFE. Soft, easy to bite, sweet..
7th was radish, miso soup and gohan(rice). The rice was free flow by the way.. but who could take in anymore rice after all the delicacies?
8th course.. some 'clam-type' of seafood..
Final treat of the day, few slices of yellow kiwi, pineapple.. and white sesame paste! It was my first time eating kiwi.. but the focus was really the white sesame paste! Melted/Dissolved the moment it's in my mouth! Never 'gluey', never 'too sweet'.. Perfect treat for the night!
In love with it, I couldn't feel much happier for every sip i take in.. And sad to know that I wont taste such good food for at least the next few months.. 
A table full of empty plates n bowls..
And 3 VERY satisfied(and bloated) guests..
After dinner, the staff came in and prepared the futon beds for us.. Take a closer look, the pillows arent the normal ones we use.. 2 layers, with different materials inside.
Posing with the futon and paper windows, and a cheeky monkey was hiding behind the window
The futon was so comfortable.. and I could really 'smile' in my sleep..
After dinner, we went for another hot bath again, this time the one with 'open-air' bath. As it was already night time, the air was chilling, and to step into the bath was even a bigger challenge. Just before we left the place, I measured my weight. 1.5Kg lighter. Wow! After the meal, I had become thinner!
