A Weekend in Nagoya

This weekend I traveled to Nagoya with Leah to meet our fabulous friend Makensie! Why Nagoya you ask? It was a meeting point in between Numazu/Fuji and Okayama (where Makensie lives). I have to say that we weren't overly impressed with Nagoya. Nevertheless, we were so thrilled to be together again that it was one of our most memorable weekends yet in Japan. We went to the Nagoya port and spent the afternoon relaxing and catching up on Sunday. We intended to go to the aquarium but didn't ever end up getting to it! We did find a Red Lobster though and had a wonderful lunch there. On Monday we went to the beautiful Nagoya Castle and Sakae for some shopping. I managed to find a few shirts at Uniqlo to wear under my suits that are cool and colorful. It is getting incredibly hot here and wearing a suit is definitely not ideal! The three of us had a magical time together and made a vow to meet up every few years after our Japan adventure is over :)

We also stayed at a magnificent Ryokan Hostel thanks to Leah. It is the Ichi Fuji Ryokan in Ozone. I was a little bit reluctant when Leah mentioned that we were staying in a traditional Japanese style room on Tatami but I have to say that it was fabulous. It was actually really comfortable! When we arrived there was a table set up in the room and we took it down in the evening and put the mattresses and blankets down. It was incredibly clean and beautifully decorated. A delicious breakfast was included in our stay and it was one of the best breakfasts I have had in Japan (see image below).

The Ryokan was definitely difficult to find though. When we arrived at Ozone station in the afternoon, a friendly lady overhead our conversation and led us to the hostel. When we came back in the evening, we had a really hard time finding it and had to ask a taxi to take us there. We realized in the morning that we had walked down the correct street, just not far enough! Nevertheless, I would recommend it to everyone. It was a marvelous experience and we had a really special weekend! We will be seeing Makensie again for Leah's birthday in mid-July when we climb Mount Fuji!

Fun in the sun.

Long shirt, belt, and bracelet-Thrifted at Fuji recycle shops.

On the train-Dress and clutch at Fuji Recycle Shops!

Ichi Fuji Ryokan.

Beautiful Lighting throughout the hostel.

Breakast!

Ryokan down a peppled path.

There were deer in the moat at Nagoya Castle!

Shaved ice cones.