Kyoto with Setsuna

I met up with Setsuna, a friend from UMass that I hadn't seen in around a year!!

It's been so long!

Our first stop was Fushimi Inari Taisha

Saw a familiar face at the train station

One of Japan's most famous shrines

Fox statues, representing Inari

Many torii gates in a row

Companies purchase gates with their names on them

Lots of cats around

Two adorable cats!

A friendly Shiba

Kanon surrounded by Jizo statues

Afterwards, we went to the bamboo forest at Arashiyama, another of Kyoto's famous landmarks. By this time it was getting dark, and the bamboo forest looks amazing at night.

Finally, we rode a river boat and watched traditional cormorant fishing. It was hard to get many good pictures, but it was very enjoyable.

Nightlife in Osaka

After leaving Nagasaki, I had an excellent night in Osaka. I went to Dotonbori, one of the liveliest streets in the city.

Some kind of dance party going on

All lit up for the night

The famous Glico sign

Enjoying karaoke and drinks at a maid bar

Saw these cuties outside a cafe

Glover Garden

One of the most popular places in Nagasaki to visit is Glover Garden. Glover Garden was the residence of the Scottish trader Thomas Blake Glover, who lived in Nagasaki. It's a gorgeous park with a lot of interesting history behind it.

Glover Skyroad, the ropeway you take up the hill to the garden

A nice view of the city

Koi

And pigeons

Some nice trees

Old anchors

The man himself

A cicada, Japan's universal symbol for summer

A beautiful fountain

Within the garden were several historical residences, such as the Walker house.

A bit of info on the house and the Walker family

A monument to the 26 Martyrs

Another residence was the Ringer House

A bit of info

An article on Japanese opera star Teiko Kiba

The site of Japan's first tennis courts

A fountain bearing a portrait of Giacomo Puccini, composer of the opera Madama Butterfly

A statue of Tamaki Miura

And Giacomo Puccini with a butterfly on his shoulder

Near the end of the visit, the main attraction is Glover's house itself, full of historical info

Some info on the Glover house

Thomas Glover

His wife Tsuru

A model of the house

Glover's son, Tomisaburo Kuraba

More about Glover

A portrait of Queen Victoria, as any good Brit at the time would have. (Not sure who that is on the left)

A cycad outside the Glover House

A plaque in honor of Thomas Glover

In Japanese as well