OK
SO
I was in China, and WHAM, blog gets blocked. Cant say it was much of a surprise to be honest. I mean it is China....
BUT this means that I have missed out on so much stuff...
Like I climbed Taishan, the holiest mountain in China, Steps all the way up. Nearly died becuase I started climbing at midday.... But I got resued by this group of chinese people who gave me food and bought me fruit and prvided smokes. And when we all made it to the top ( after a 6 hour climb of the steepest steps ever) they bought me dinner. Very cool.
I saw pandas in the zoo and played with one through the glass! So cute...
I did all the tourist shi in beijing you know temple of heaven, fobidden city etc. Pretty cool but waaaaay too many tourists.
ANd it was madly hot as well, but I did go back to the forbidden city after dark, you couldnt go in but it was ncie to see the gates and stuff without the millions of people milling about.

A french couple who were on my ferry from japan to china turned up in my hostel is beijing, whih was pretty cool and very fucking random. They are really lovely people and they live in brussels! Last stop before home, and they said I have to come see them when I get there, free sleeping!!
WOoo

But there is just soo much I have missed out
Stupid china...

But yes I got the train from bejing to Ulaanbaator (UB) really cool.
I met a couple of people in the last hostel i was staying at and there were 4 of us on the same train... Pretty cool. So ended up getting very drunk in the dining car till about 4 in the morning....
Obviously interuppted halfway through by corssing the border and customs.
AND the hole changing the wheels of the train thing ( which I stayed on the train to watch) was pretty cool really....

Then I got to UB.
Stayed in ub hostel for a couple of nights with two aussie girls from the train, was a crappy hostel.. then this girl from london shows up and we go to look at the hostel round the corner the golden gobi.... its so good here I walked back to ubhostel packed my bags and was back in an hour.
This is where I have been for about a week now.
Been meeting some interesting people, they come and go so fast....
There was a aussie boy, who tried to come onto me for a long time... but he was pretty amusing, bit sad as well so I stayed with him for most of the night (nothing in the slightest happened)
then there was this DISGUSTING american guy, who had this kid (who I actually wanted to take away from him) he was just raw and dirty and very american...

But this will be a long post if I talk about everyone that I met, so I will pretty much stop now....

SO tomorrow I go into the desert, I am a very brightly coloured treker indeed, with my pink hair brand new bright blue boots and green scarf! I wont get lost at least!
Going with an english couple who seem very nice, the guy is actually on the computer next to me... and this Japanese guy, who actually comes from one of my favourite places in Japan. He got very exited when I showed him the scrapbook pages of his hometown.

But yes I cant wait, even though tomorrow we do leave at 8 in the morning.... pretty early. SO maybe i shall go to sleep early....
Had two days in a row where I was chucked out the common room at 3 in the morning.... not good... too much vodka around here....

But its been fun here, Ive actually had a social life! MAdness, one of the guys from the hostel and the train is working here for 3 months so I have been going out for dinner with him and his flatmade kelly, who is lovely! But she left for the gobi yesterday and so I wont see her till I get back in two weeks time, maybe I shall try to find her in the desert! HAHAHAHA

Right you people should be happy with this post, it basically says what i have been doing for the last month....
Shall update when I get back from the desert! OOOooooo

PEACE!
XX

I am now in China!!
The ferry journey was pretty cool but the boat was very small I thought it would be better but eh. I saw flying fish! Was realy cool cos I had never seen them before, so I spent a good hour looking out for them and ended up seeing quite a lot! Some of them even even blue and green! I made a couple of friends on board and came to the hostel with a japanese boy who is also doing a three month trip by himself and can speak pretty good english. So it was ncie to have someone with me to find the hostel because it ended up to be quite a task! They had changed from captin hostel to yha, and not changed on the internet and this confused me for a long time!
But the ferry trip was quite cool, I could actually see stars! Really nice cos there were a lot of them in the middle of nothing. Alll you could see was sea all around you and sometimes a random boat somewhere on the horizon!
So Shanghai is a very industrail city, I dont htink there is much here. I am not sure what to do with myself tomorrow, maybe try to find the train station. I have decided to find this holy mountain and climb up it. So that shuld be pretty cool, although there will be a lot of people also trying to climb up because I think it is in fact the holiest mountain in China. But it is meant to be very beautiful and there are guest houses on it so I will stay there and wake up early to have the mountain to myself before the others arrive!
Then I shall go and see the Confucious temple which is supposed to be amazing and not so many tourists, well not from outside of China anyway. I dont have a guide book for China so I hope this will all work out! Good luck to me!

Ok I cheered up today so now I shall blog somewhat about previous days.
So on Thursday I went to beppu. Went up this crazy mountain with this ropeway. Was really cool. Bloody high up though. Was pretty much on a level with surrounding clouds whcih was really cool. Could see it raining in the town below but it was sunny on the mountain cos the clouds would have to rise for it to rain on the mountain so they went around it. Very cool..
And there were mountains all around as well and most of them were on a level with the one I was on.
And all over this mountain there were loud speakers playing weird music, like I cant even remember right now, just strange assortment of music... Was pretty jokes really. At one poin in the cable car going up they were playing an instrumental of whinny the pooh, Haahhaha! Stupid!
Then I went for a walk about the town and bought the oilest peice of chicken EVER! Sat on a beach and put my feet in the water and started to eat my chicken, like ah this is nice.... Peaceful... Oh look at that eagle soaring above me, how nice.... How peaceful!

Seconds later there is this massive woosh of air past me and my chicken is flying into the sea. The damned eagle tried to steal it from me!! Madness! I felt its talons on my hand, but no scrape or anything. Spent the next 10 minutes shouting at it from the beach, to the amusment of some dutch guys who were watching (didnt think to warn me of an attacking eagle though!!)
Was very strange experience indeed.... The eagle then circled me for ages looking for its lost bit of chicken, but ha! The fish got it not him! Good!

So that was my thursday, then went to meet the Russian at about 9. He had lectures in the day.
Wandered around for a while got some sake, and he drew me some maps of where to stay once I got here.

Today I went up this random tower, looked over Osaka, its fucking huge! Was like looknig over london a little bit. Only with mountains in th background. Why dont we have mountains, it makes the cityscape so much nicer to have mountains rising up over skyscrapers!

Then I just kind of wandered about the town, its not a very pretty place. And there is this random themepark type thing that for some reason is closed. But you can still walk through it. Kinda errie to be honest. This abonded themepark in the middle of city with noone in it apart from a couple of drunks and two random teenagers...
All bright colours and crap as well, rollercoasters and everything. WEIRD!
The Japanese are mad!

Georgia is a fool!

Not even going to go into it, but I am a fool. Feel like a twat and I dont want to be. I am in Japan for christs sake! I got away from all the shit at home to come here and be a fool! Bah least it was fun!
Anyway I am in Osaka now i have three days to kill before I have to get on the frry to china and I just dont know what to do with myself at all! I might end up drinking in my room this evening I think... Sad I know, it really fucking is.
I got here too late to distract myself with tourist things and I havent slpet properly for three days now. So I think I should just die tonight....
Waiting for my ipod to charge so I can have some music....
Hmmmm, I dont know what to say.
I shall be happy again tomorrow, but for today well its over already pretty much.
Go get some food soon... I dont think I had any lunch. Wasnt hungry, not hungry now actually but I thik food is needed. And a bar, or a shop...
Dobedo, why do we put ourselves in positions where we know its gonna be sad at the end? Its bloody stupid! Should just stop it!
Ah well, happy times tomorrow!
Promise!

So quick update. Right now am staying with the russian in his uni halls. Fun times! His roommate seems pretty safe though as well though. Aparently he is wakingup at 3 to watch the football on tv. Heheheh Chelsea vs someone or other. So at leastr i will know the scores of english football come the morning!
Ok quick update over cos I dont wannt soend too long online, i feel mean!

So...
I am back on my own again....
Me and the Russian guy (his name is something random that I have no idea how to type, but aparently people call him Johnny. So we shall stick with that.) went to that mountain, that turned out to be a volcano.
It was a long journey there, like 5 different trains and a ferry and two buses. Long! But amusing.
Volcano was pretty impressive with mad amounts of sulpher and stuff pouring out of the crater. But it was raning and it took ages to get there so only spent about an hour there and then had the task of finding somewhere to stay. Its a holiday in Japan so most places are booked up. Manged to find a room in some weird block, straw mats and futons and the like. Then wandered around town with a bottle of whiskey, ended up walking really far cos it took ages to get back.
Saw this thai place called "Cabbages and Condoms" I actually nearly died laughing. In fact we both nearly died laughing, why? Why would you call anything that?
Anyway today we had to part ways, it is actually pretty sad. He is a proper nice guy and well..
But he said he might come visit. Be really good if he actually did, and also he can look after me when I actually go to Russia!
Now I am just waiting to check in so I can have a shower, cos I fecking smell, it was cold and raining when I got on the train and here in Hiroshima, its sunny and warm. So wearing my jumper just didnt quite work...
Get the ferry to china tomorrow....
Hope there are people on board so I dont have to think about sad things...
I need to find some food....

OK
Well! Im not sure where the last post ended, and I dont quite have the time to check so I shall start from arriving in Nagasaki.
I got here, and I had to waste a few hours. So I tired to find a park.
Didnt work, at all. So instead I went to the A bombing museum and peace park and all of that. Kept seeing this one guy like 3 times, so in the end we ended up talking and got some noodles. This guy is a starnge Russian, hes really quiet, like when he does talk hes quiet as well. Its funny, and means I can take the piss.
Then we ended up in some RANDOM japanese club, which was like being in an english club like 2/3 years ago. Was jokes... Playing a weird mix of hiphop and randomness.
Anyway he ended up staying at my hotel (different rooms for any of you who are sure to be thinknig what I think you are). Then today we walked around the whole city, was really nice to actually have someone to talk to and walk with actually. Saw pretty much everythung there was to see by 3. Sat in a park for a bit, then got some sushi.
Now i have agreed to abandon my plans fopr tomorrow, going straight to hiroshima and instead I am getting a train with him at half 6!!! in the morning then a ferry then a train and climbing a mountain and back down again for no aparent reason, other to see the view from the top.
Bit out of the way really, but yes, thats the plan!
I dont know how far im actually going to get up this mountain... But lets hope I make it to the top...
We shall see and i shall let you know once I get to hiroshima, hopefully only one day later than planned... I have to get the ferry to china the next day so.....

Yeah i never actually made it to the golden pavillion....Another time....
Anyway Its been a while so I got a few thnigs to write about. That tour thing I went on was jokes, turned up at the meeting spot about half an hour early. Kept seeing random people with the little bright yellow leaflet, the guy is well clever to make it so bright. Allowed me to make friends before the tour even started! Anyway the norma guy wasnt doing the tour which was kidna annoying cos he looked really cool....
But this younger guy Ted, he had another name but damned if I am going to remember it... he took the tour instead. It was really worth the money, it was all back streets and random little hidden shrines and the like. Basicaly wht I had been doing on my own but someone actually explaining what I was seeing. Then we saw the nintendo building, the old one, where they first started. As a playing cards manufacturer, oh yes. And the best of it all was it is really close to this mafia headquaters, which we were told not to look at too much and not to take pictures!!! The guy actually said if you do I doubt you will finish the tour.... nice. But yeah these mafia guys they play with the type of cards that nintendo made!! Hahahaha, wonder how they got so big???
So yeah that was a fun day.
Saw geishas and everything, that mafia place was also the "bad geisha district" although tghe police never actually managed to prove this. Jokes...
So yes now I am in kagoshima, right down south. And there is a massive volcano, which I am going to go stand on today! Its its own island in the bay so I shall take a ferry across to it.
I also went to Fukoia, but to be honest that town was brass, hardly anything there...
So this is my lazy day and I may have a dip in the sea...
OH YEAH
Went to the aquariam yesterday when I got here, they had dolphins and they were all jimping about and playing and doing somersaults, I have pictures but its kinda blurry cos I didnt want to use flash, I felt mean....
They had sea otters too and a whale shark! Well cool, bu my sunfish had died a few days before... Sad cos sunfish are my favourite, they look so silly, like half dead fish.
Anyway I have been here too long, time to jump a tram to the ferry me thinks!!

So today I tried to make my way to the golden pavillion....
Didnt quite work out, first I got distracted by the botantical gardens. Spend a good few hours in there, even though it was shtting it down. Was really beautiful, the japanese really know how to lay out a garden!
There was this mad greenhouse thing like kew, But you walked up ramps and stuff which was pretty cool.
And there was a catcus section.
The actualy garden was so massive and about 7 different gardens in one, cherry tree garden, english rose garden, bamboo garden, zen garden, you get the picture. And it had all these random little windy paths in it so that someone like me could pretend they were lost and not just have to walk on the fat paths with everyone else.
Saw this amazing butterfly, which I nearly killed actually.... Shouldnt have been on the path! Also saw a beheaded snake, I dunno if it was killed cos it was a snake or if something just wanted to eat its head... but there was no head...
Everyone in there thought I was crazy, and to be honest not only was i only nonjapanese person that I saw but Im also wearing bright orange tights, have pink hair and was wearing THE ONLY mac I have seen in this whole city, which happens to be bright purple!
Good times!
Then from there i tried yet again to get to the golden temple....
And again i got distracted, this time by this random group of temples and shrines, which happened to have one of the oldest temple/house in japan. The place where they invented the sliding door concept!! Oh yes. I have seen it for myself.
Had a magickal zen garden as well surrounding it as well. And this cool walkway that creaks like a nightingale when you wealk on it so they would know when there was a random intruder.
Very cool...
Then I was so tired form my 5, yes 5 hours of constant walking that I had to get a bus back to my hotel and lie down, and the camera battery was dead from the gardens! pictures coming soon!
So i watched the dark knight, honestly I liked it. BUT it annoyed me because of the difference to the animated series, and that was my childhood! But good film anyway.
Went and got another curry for dinner and I am armed with a apple strudel, or something liek that anyway and Im going to watch a random Japanese film.
Tomorrow Im gonna try do this walk thing with this guy who was featured on C4, hopefully i get there in time...
But yeah that was my day in kyoto.

Its kinda sad I only have one follower.....
Ah well, least I got 1!! Thanks Cam (I think tis you anyway.... Correct me if its actually you there reading this, hahaha... I think I am going insane...)
Just got into kyoto now Im waiting to check in which is at 3, even though its so close to three now, the Japanese like to keep their timings very strict.
Yeah.. Had a bit of a fuck up yesterday, tried to get on a bus to kanzawa from takayama, got half way there to the middle point where you get out for a bit. I thought that you got on the same bus, which i was told! But no, so I got on the same bus, driver stamped my ticket and everything and took me back to takayama! Thankfully being british I refused nothing less than they took me to kanzawa with no extra charge. So it worked out in the end...
Takayama is a lovely place with this mad floats that they use on their twice yearly parade, they are so fucking huge its mad! they dont even have doors big enough for them so have to take the tops down to get them out of the buildings....
Covered in gold and carvings and lanterns, really beautiful.
And there are temples pretty much everywhere, the inn I was at had free bikes so I went for a cycle round town for a while, stupid amount of temples for a town so small, I doubt I even saw half of them really....
Seem to be a lot of americans in this part of japan....
Kinda annoying but we shall se how loud they are!
Ooooo I might actually be able to check in and have a bath now, I need one from all the running around this morning getting trains and such...
Balalalala!
Ohhhh yeah, I ate a curry with chopsticks! A curry! Was very impressed, as were the resraunt owners who had given me a spoon and a sorry look.
Getting pretty good at cutting things up with them as well actually, By the time I get back I shall be a master of the chopsticks!
Right its bath time!

just wow

So today I made it to Takayama, really fucking beauiful place. Surrounded on all sides by mountains. And the journey here... Well, lets just say I would be happy to live in the Japanese alps.... Amazing, really.. Snow capped mountains, forests of bamboo, like the madest stereotype ever and it was all there.
Saw monkeys by the river, and some sort of wild boarhog thing, not too great that my first thought was to stick bamboo through it and roast it. Tasty though.
Went on a wander around town today, saw this amazing puppet show with these 300 year old puppets. Like I saw puppets becuase they were, you know moved by strings and such, but the most intricate puppets ever. on their own platforms and bah cant actually describe it...
My room here is great too, proper Japanese style, straw mats sliding doors bedding on the floor. Could stay here for weeks happily.
Anyway, my wanderings so I went to the main temple and ate my lunch to the side of this random shrine up a mad amount of steps. was very peaceful untill some french people came and started talking so I moved on.
Then I wandered up this hill/mountain thing inot the graveyard. Jesus, when I die please put me here, they have the most amazing view and its so peaceful. hardly anyone goes up there becuase its not signposted. Further up you get to this cool staue guy who has had a building built around him a few years ago, he must be hundreds of years old.
there is a house next to him who must look after him or something, woman looked pretty surprised to see me there. Kept on going upwards past more even more less seen shrines and graves till I got to the top.
Someone clever decided to put a table there, knowing that people would want to sit there and write, so I did. Really stunning views 360 degrees. Shame I only really get one day here.
I wouldnt want to live here like Matsumoto (I dont think I even blogged taht day, really nice city in a valley again surrounded by mountains with the best castle ever. Seriously google it its beautiful!!) But I would love to be dead here.
Had a sick meal too, proper Japanese style with a million little bowls of things all over the place, getting pretty damn good at chopsticks now can almost pick up meat and rice at the same time!! Wow. I did it once anyway.
I`m gonna go on a nighttime stroll down the river I think now, maybe look at some shrines in the dark.
Peace

Wandering

So today I took a boat down the river, great for me cos it leaves from about 10 mins away from my hotel. Was well cool, got to see a really industrial side of Tokyo that I dont think I would have been able to see from walking about like I was doing before. Lots of random motorways and such. Was aparently 40mins but it felt more like 5, annoying...
A huge group of canadian kids got on but thankfully stayed right at the back of the boat, quite a few europeans too but only one other group of brits (from what I could hear anyway.)
The boat went into this cool little walled marina, which was actually Hamarikyu garden, this little garden in the middle of tokyo but its so wooded and lush its mad, but I wasnt to get out there and I went on to Hinode pier. Yeah....
The middle of nowhere, it was the Croyden of Tokyo, just a mad industrial estate.
Managed to find my way to the metro after a while did find a lovely garden on the way Kyu Shibariyu, which you had to pay to get in but thankfully I found myself above it and so had a better view anyway, HA!
So I made my way to Yoyogi park on the advice of a mad canadian I met yesterday, who was very lovely and helped me get back. It has one of the best shrines EVER seriously　it was fucking amazing! Meiji shrine for anyone who wants to look it up. Pictures are up on facebook. Also the park smelt sooo good, I know that sounds weird but really really did smell so good, dont even know what the smell was....
But yeah could have stayed there for a long time, I mean I spent about 3 hours there anyway but still. Had a long walk around the park and a long look at the shrine. Got really lucky with the lack of people around when I was taking pictures. Hard to belive that this park is in the middle of Tokyo it really is.
Then I made my way back here cos I was fecking hungry. Rented a laptop for the night for about 6 pound?! Bought some buff supernoodle type thing and some strawberry milk and now I am here listening to santogold in my hotel room, I am shattered. So very tired.
Supposed to be leaving Tokyo tomorrow as well. Gonna have to sleep early if thats gonna happen. Going to Matsumoto, got to get a train at 9 from the other side of town, oh the joys!!!

ghibli!!!!

So yesterday i made my way to the Ghibli museum. You would think it would be pretty central really would you not?
Ha! No! I had to make my way to the central train station (good pratice for tomorrow I guess) then I had to find the right line, which really should be pretty easy you know follow the signs around. Only there werent any signs for the line that i needed, whcih by the way is like 3 lines anyway. So after about half san hour of wandering i found the line in the new east wing of the station and then got on the train.
Took like half an hour or so. then you get out and walk down this really pretty road with a stream next to it like a mini gourge. Ferns and trees and flowers and carp really pretty. I got pictures somewhere.
So yeah at the station and i see this little notice saying that to get into ghibli you have to book in advance....
Great! So i walk down there anyway hoping that i can either blag my way in or buy tickets for today. The museum is in this massive park which is cool within itself so waljk around that for a bit. Then I go talk to this wom,an at the gate and shes like do you have your passport on you. Which as the clever traveler I am I do...
Then she tells me there is a secret system where I can get in today. Gives me this random slip and sends me to the local shop. Who then sells me the ticket and I can get in!
Amazing place! So cool. you just wander about randomly through all the rooms in this mad house which reminds me more of the moomins than anything to be honest.
SAw this film that is only shown there and its like a mini film of after my neighbour totoro!!
There is a mini cat bus and then the mini bus takes the girl to the king of the cat buses! and there are cat trains!! and the kind is this massive cruise liner that can fly thing.
Sooo cool.
Anyway I got some playing cards cos i forgot them foolishly and also a keyring of my favorite ghibli character ever!! the soot spirits from spirited away!! Woooo.

Anyway people are waiting foe the comp here so I should really get off.

But the pictures and drawings in the ghibli museum are amazing and I wish i was that good and that i could live there kinda...
Ok Im going to try and get myself on a boat today....

So Japan beats England on a few major points.

Trains- they run on time and they are so long that if they tried to be that long in london then they would actually take up the whole of the line between most cental stations.
Hotels- i got a free face mask, weird robe thing to sleep in, comb, toothbrush, slippers, wallet, razor, internet!
pizza- i finked out and bought pizza for dinner but it had salmon on it! and i didnt acutally have to wait for anything it was just there when i finshed my last course, magick!
Water- you can drink anywhere and all the taps are drinking water whcih means you dont have to caarry around a huge bottle for the day.
coffee- they do banging coffee everywhere, here in the hotel its even free decent coffee, whcih is amazing. on my third or fourth cup of the day.

there are more but i am feeling lazy right now.
Seriously though the jay walking thing is going to kill me, have to wait for so long for the lights to go red sometimes.

Tried to go and see the central park today, didnt quite work out. I got distracted by the lights of central tokyo and then relised it was about 7 and i really needed to eat something and go to bed soonish. plus most parks close at around 5.

I did go wander around the sony center though, which was pretty bad. Got some sick new tvs and random dancing speakers. For some reason in their shop you can buy everything, seriosuly everything. very confusing to see cooking stuff and be like eh? sony center?

Had a nice walk back though my local park/shrine district. its a few minutes longer but so worth it cos its pretty, even more so at night.

I think if i can get my act together tomorrow I will actually go to the ghibli museum, its just a little out of tokyo and i was so tired today I slept untill 4. Then all the station booths were closed so i couldnt buy the tokyo oyster the passimo.

So yeah I think that is all I have to say....

OOOOOO smoking boxes, its like smoking in a fishtank!! but then you can smoke inside, (no smoking on the streets) but people walk past you and look in and you feel like such a fish!

Yeah I think that is now it...
Happy reading!

ok so i am now in japan! after a very long flight....
Tried to sleep on the plane and even tried to make it better by not sleeping the night before but this now just means I am in a different time zone and I have had 6 hours sleep in about two days! Woooo
BUT
I am on my feet　I already know my way round the local area and have taken like a billion pictures of the local park which is just shrines all over the place. It is so fucking pretty! Seriously I　going to have to not take camera out with me some days or its going to get bloody stupid.

And first thing I miss about london is the corssing of the roads. I miss jaywalking so much I have only been here 3 hours and already I have broken the rules of crossing the street.
Waiting for my hotel room to be opened up for me so I can have some bloody sleep!

Met some very nice people on the train as well (hello if you are reading this!)　and we may go out for coffee before we all leave tokyo, which would be lovely.

Right this comp doesnt have a stool and I am actually like waving about madness

Peace all! Updates soon!

The day before...

Ok, so its the day before I leave.
I have spent the morning packing. Hopefully I have most of the things that I need at least...
We shall find out soon. Gay sams mum lied to me and I still dont have my ipod to change all my music over, bit annoying but there is enough time to do all that.
Checkin opens in half an hours time, so close to the point of no return. OOOooo its exiting!
Still need to wander into tooting in a bit, sort out the last few things and also have a look around before I leave. Three months is a long time in London, I'm sure things will change by the time I get back.
Well its soup time!