We just arrived in Kyoto this afternoon and were greeted by a snow storm straight off the train. It’s been sunny clear and cold thus far for our days in Kobe and I have to admit I was looking forward to some snow to frost the beauty of Kyoto. We have hit as many different coffee shops as my constitution will allow, went to the top of Mt. Maya, scored vinyl from an excellent record store, hit some thrift shops, and eaten some awesome food. When people ask where we are from and are unsure where Seattle is, we just say “Ichiro” and they go “OH!!!, Mariners!” It’s pretty much like knowing the pope.

We met our SAS friends the Lillie’s here in Kyoto for dinner tonight. Our first stop was a ramen place that came highly recommended, but it was packed (all 7 seats) and we moved on to several other places that were all slammed. We eventually landed on a yakitori spot that could accommodate 8 of us. I have not had to sit criss cross apple sauce since kindergarten and both my legs were asleep in about 7 minutes. Since we had little success on our first attempt at ordering (8 small chicken skewers and some Japanese sodas), by the time we finally figured it out Andy and I were having out of body experiences with all the blood that should have been in our legs rushing around our torsos.

Atty made friends (of course) and by the time we got out of the place it looked like this:

We look forward to seeing the sights and enjoying more of this wonderful city tomorrow! More pics in Photos section.