I have successfully infected Japan with swine flu. There are upwards of 100 cases in Osaka and another city on the JR line and they're expecting it to spread to Nara, Kyoto, Otsu, and pretty much every other city on the line. Okay, I'm joking, I didn't do it... However, because Japan is now the 4th most H1N1 ridden country in the world, borderline hysteria has (further) erupted and everyone is wearing a mask. Literally, masks are sold out. I couldn't buy one even if I were legitimately sick and attempting not to infect everyone. Fortunately for them, the health ministry had made us fill out a questionnaire so I'm pretty sure if I were sick (which I had been..shhhhh) I would be on the next flight back to Nashville or in quarantine somewhere awful.
Yesterday we went to the Toyota plant, as you have read, about 3 hours away by train and we had to leave Otsu at 7 and we got to the plant around 10. Everyone was hungry and tired so none of us were in the best of spirits and after 3 hours and 4 trains, we were happy to be at the Toyota plant. The tour was cool but I'm pretty sure if I were to have to work in the plant I would either a. puncture my ear drums so I wouldn't have to hear the terrible repeated midi sequence children's songs play on repeat from 9-5 every day for the rest of my life or b. flee the country.
We got back and around 5 and I exchanged money in Kyoto and went grocery shopping at Kyoto train station. Honestly my ankle is killing me, so much so that I decided to stay in today, even though it is my turn to blog...
Today I discovered that the 120 dollar cantaloupes they have at the grocery stores here are meant to be wedding gifts or gifts in generally, not actually for the purpose of buying a 12,000 yen cantaloupe, because it is apparently customary to give gifts like... all the time here.
I can't remember the last time I bought someone a gift... which reminds me that I should probably buy some gifts since quite a few people have explicitly asked for something. Maybe I'll get generous and buy someone and cantaloupe!
Pray for my hurt ankle because I really don't want to limp around Tokyo this weekend. :(
- Aaron -