Leaving Osaka

After Shitennō-ji, we headed back to the subway station. We had seen signs advertising a zoo, and decided to try to find it. After walking around for half an hour, the whole time circling what must have been the zoo, we found the entrance. We then learned that the entrance closes at 4. We got there right after 4.

Defeated but not dissuaded, we did some walking around in the Tennō-ji district. As the afternoon wore on, we headed back to Umeda so I could catch my train back to Hakata. I said bye to Ju and Lee as they met up with another friend, and I hopped on the Shinkansen.

On the ride back, I sat next to two ladies. We sat in silence for the first part of the trip. I was absorbed in my book when one of them pulled out some Pocky, offered some to the other, and then offered some to me. When I thanked them in Japanese, they tittered about it and began talking to me.

They were a mother and daughter from Fukuoka, returning from a weekend visit to Kyoto. We talked about the sights there, about my visit in November, and what they saw on their trip. They pulled out a big tourist guide to Kyoto and showed me all the places they went. As we got closer to Hakata, they asked if I had a place to stay in Fukuoka. I could tell they were worried, so I lied, telling them I had reservations at a hotel. While I'm pretty sure they weren't going to offer to put me up, I certainly didn't want to deal with the awkwardness if they did.

We said goodbye at Hakata, and, for the first time in what seemed like a long time, I found a hotel easily.