Anniversaries and Matcha

Hello, and welcome to the 2nd post here on the new site! I'm still in the process of adjusting things, so bear with me for just a little longer. With that being said, let's move on to the main post.

Kyoto, again

I originally visited Demachi Masugata Shopping Street back in May. Here's a little backstory on that. The goal of this trip to Kyoto was because I had finally remembered that I wanted to visit Toyosato's Former Elementary School, featured in K-On! Despite visiting Kyoto countless times before, I had never made the short journey out east to check out the school. I was rewatching K-On! and that reminded me that I needed to visit. And off I went back to Kyoto.

After a tight connection at Hikone Station and a short walk later, I arrived at the school. My feeling at that time was "I made it, finally". The school was surprisingly not busy for a Saturday afternoon, and I had plenty of time alone in the Music Room where much of the show took place in. While the room wasn't as decorated compared to some of the images I had seen on the internet, the place where everyone ate cake and drank tea was still there. I also spent a bit of time reading all the messages left by previous visitors. The messages went as far back as 2009 and it was nice to see messages written by people from all over the world. I of course left my own. Another message in the pages and pages of messages. After that, I went back to my hotel to rest and decide on where to go next. As mentioned before, I had visited Kyoto countless times before this, and had basically seen all the tourist attractions. Since I had just finished an "anime pilgrimage", I decided to continue the theme and search for other places in Kyoto that were featured in anime. That's how I discovered Demachi Masugata.

Don't worry, the place was very lively during normal business hours. This photo was taken at 8:23am when only a few stores were open.

Tamako Market's shopping street was based off this. And I absolutely listened to 'Dramatic Market Ride' and 'Neguse' (Tamako Market's opening and closing theme) while walking through the shopping street. That was also when I found out about the special 10th anniversary screening that was being held in June. Initially, I wasn't sure I wanted to attend and pull an all-nighter. But later decided that it was part of the "Japan Experience" (more on this later) and made a reservation. And that's how I ended up making two trips to Kyoto in the span of 2.5 weeks.

Matcha and Movies

Since the screening itself didn't take place until 11pm, I had a full day to do some exploring. I wanted to go somewhere new and decided on Uji. While I don't drink a lot of tea, I figured that a visit to try some high quality tea was a good experience. Overall, it was a nice experience. Nowhere as crowded as some of the tourist attractions in Kyoto, tasty matcha, and a nice hike. Definitely a worthwhile stop for someone heading to Nara from Kyoto.

After dinner and a bit of rest, it was time for the main event. After taking a few photos outside of the decorations, I headed in for a long 7 hours. You know what? It was worth it. I wish I had rested a bit more beforehand, as sitting for a long period of time does get uncomfortable. Fortunately, there were two breaks to use the restroom and stretch. I was expecting more festivities to celebrate such an important milestone, but I suppose writing a congratulatory message on the window was a nice experience.

Was it worth messing up my sleep schedule for the next week? Yes. Would I do it again? Yes, but with more preparation. This was likely my last visit to Kyoto for a while, but like every other trip before, is an important part of my Japan Experience and something I'll cherish for the rest of my life.

The "Japan Experience"

I think that this trip taught me something important. The "Japan Experience" means something different for each person. It feels a bit silly to say this, but you should do things that you want to do. And not feel like you're missing out when you read group chats of the other ALTs going drinking or whatever. You are the author of your own story, and where that story goes is completely up to you. Your decide what you want to do with your time in Japan, and only you.

Where will your story lead you?