Osaka Zoo and other (semi) recent stuff

OH! I didn't see you there. It has been a while.

Went to Osaka Zoo (not the real name, but I am too lazy to try to figure out what it is actually called) last week with Yuko.


Just like you were there, isn't it?

Correction, went to the zoo with Yuko and a million tiny Japanese school children.
A rainbow of hats. Each color is a different class. This isn't any special area, this was the ENTIRE zoo. Japan....

Oh, and they hold hands with a buddy at all times, so getting around the line of kids is pretty difficult.

And every once in a while one of them would look up and see me, the big ugly gaijin and their eyes would open wide and they would either run away or say "hello" or "good bye." If they spoke it was about a 50-50 shot of getting either phrase.




Saw lots of animals.

Tora



Hokkyokuguma



Pengi



A tree lickin' Kirin . Also, the name of a beer here. Kirin, not tree lickin'



Ashika begging for food.



And this one just swimming around and screaming. Urusai!!! (loud and annoying)

I took a video here to show just how noisy it was.


Lots of chattering kids and screaming seals. You could hear this from the station.


Spotted Neko The size of a house cat. In fact, looks just like a house cat except for the spots. Cats are not domestic animals.




Playful Jaga-


He really wanted Yuko to take his picture. Hello!




Lots of Ookami playing around like dogs. And this guy stretching and posing for people. All animals are just like my pets!



"A Saru and a monkey," according to Yuko. I am not sure which one I am supposed to be.



I got to feed some Shika!

I liked their lips, they were tickley on my hand. Thank god no one actually reads this, that is one weird thing to admit.



Zo butt. That thing would not turn around for anything. It even backed into its house. It would simply not let anybody get a face shot.



Taka giving me the cold bird stare.



A super dorky Kuma!


Look at it! How awkward is that thing? It is so skinny with long legs and a big ass head. I think it was a teenage bear. And it was shuffling around all awkwardly. Words cannot describe just how derp derp derp this bear was.

And another dorky bear.



And a cute bear




More awkward looking Kuma. These are called "Glasses bears," you can probably guess why.





I just can't get over it. I laughed out loud looking at this silly thing. Best part of the trip.




I mean, c'mon! His tongue is hanging out and everything! Also, pigeon. Not many of those in Tsuruga, but tons in Osaka.



A cultural difference. All the kids pack a bento (a Japanese lunch box) and a little plastic tarp to sit on as they eat their lunch. And to claim a place they just leave their stuff there. These kids were no where to be seen. This kinds of "claims" were all over the place at the zoo. And as far as I could tell, no one messed with them. Such a difference. I really appreciate this culture's respect for other people's stuff.


So, that was the zoo. It was fun. A beautiful fall day, and I got to see animals!

Also, this was Kaori's last week so we went to dinner. She is off doing her own teaching. The most notable part of this picture is that Akiko (very left) and Yuko (next to her) are wearing the exact same sweater. Uh oh! Also, good luck to Kaori in her venture!




And since I never post anything because I am lazy and also I really don't do much, cleaning up some old stuff that I didn't think was worth posting fully, I went to a cafe for lunch and had a quiche.
Look at all that delicious food! I believe it was a ham and mushroom quiche. Very tasty. The top left is shiro soup with seaweed. Basically hot salt water, but somehow not bad. The top right is rice topped with pumpkin and sesame seeds. Super super good. Seriously good. And then the quiche on the bottom left with a small salad and a little potato salad (the white glob on the plate) which was good too. And then the bottom right is my gratin. Cheese sauce with mushrooms and onions and big pieces of chicken in it. AMAZINGly good! This place has great food. And all of this plus a drink only cost something like 900 yen.

More importantly...

...Look how skinny I look in that picture! Trick photography or something, but this is my new favorite picture.

As always, if it ain't about me, I don't care.