This is Gonna Be a Long One
So how about a full detail of very un-Ann like adventures last night?
I swear to you, folks, I only do this once a year--if that.
So I left my apartment at 6:30 and caught the train to Kochi. First of all, I didn't even recognize the station. They have completely renovated Kochi Station. It's absolutely unrecognizable from the old one. It's bight and modern, has new ticket kiosks and escalators, and those different tones at each gate for the deaf. When we got to Kochi, I seriously could not believe I was in the right place. It was the biggest shock ever. Normally I'm used to seeing a crappy, dreary, cramped station and now it's all bright white and shiny and has escalators. Holy. Crap.
Anyway, so I met Bernadette at the station and then we proceeded to meet nighstar (yaaaaaay!) and Elizabeth outside an okonomiyaki place (I requested okonomiyaki for my birthday dinner.) We spent a good hour and a half there eating and I drank three lime sours. Then we had cake (they bought me cake! :Ov) After that, nighstar went home to prepare for her trip back to the states on Sunday.
Bernadette, Elizabeth, and I proceeded to a 500 yen bar (500 yen = about $5) where I racked up 4,000 yen worth of drinks. I had vodka cranberries, Kahlua milks, and screwdrivers. Don't ask me how many of each because I don't remember.
Then we headed to an Irish pub. That's where things got interesting. I should mention that each drink here costs 1,000 yen. That's why we did most of our drinking at the 500 yen bar. You go to the Irish pub just to top the night off with a couple of really good drinks. They have strawberry daiquiris here that I was just dying for. So all three of us got our daiquiris and we're like "Cheers!" And the guys beside us were like "Cheers!" and we're like "Cheers!" That's when they slide right over and start talking to us. (Drunk Japanese men speak the best English.) We got the usual fair: "Where are you from?" "Are you on vacation?" "Do you like Japan?" blah, blah, blah. The guys were some kind of engineers and/or researchers or something. They gave us their cards.
Then I told them it was my birthday.
Suddenly, I'm drowning in drinks and food. They ordered us chocolate and french fries and three more daiquiris each and a shot of tequila each. I drank and ate 3,000 yen worth of stuff, but only paid 1,000. Sweet awesome.
I only barely remember getting back to Bernadette's. I don't remember falling asleep.
But, surprisingly, I woke up without a hangover. I caught the 11:59 train back home, took a shower, then headed right back out to a yakiniku party with one of my students. Zoe, an ALT in a town close by, was there too so we had a grand old time.
Now I'm really tired, though (and so full I think I'll never eat again.) Thank goodness I have nothing to do tomorrow except clean the bathroom and make chili for my lunch this week. Yaaaay for lazy days!
Even though Bernadette and Elizabeth will probably never read this, I want to thank them and nighstar for the great evening out and making my first birthday in Japan very memorable. I think my 24th year on this earth is looking to be a good one. :D
I swear to you, folks, I only do this once a year--if that.
So I left my apartment at 6:30 and caught the train to Kochi. First of all, I didn't even recognize the station. They have completely renovated Kochi Station. It's absolutely unrecognizable from the old one. It's bight and modern, has new ticket kiosks and escalators, and those different tones at each gate for the deaf. When we got to Kochi, I seriously could not believe I was in the right place. It was the biggest shock ever. Normally I'm used to seeing a crappy, dreary, cramped station and now it's all bright white and shiny and has escalators. Holy. Crap.
Anyway, so I met Bernadette at the station and then we proceeded to meet nighstar (yaaaaaay!) and Elizabeth outside an okonomiyaki place (I requested okonomiyaki for my birthday dinner.) We spent a good hour and a half there eating and I drank three lime sours. Then we had cake (they bought me cake! :Ov) After that, nighstar went home to prepare for her trip back to the states on Sunday.
Bernadette, Elizabeth, and I proceeded to a 500 yen bar (500 yen = about $5) where I racked up 4,000 yen worth of drinks. I had vodka cranberries, Kahlua milks, and screwdrivers. Don't ask me how many of each because I don't remember.
Then we headed to an Irish pub. That's where things got interesting. I should mention that each drink here costs 1,000 yen. That's why we did most of our drinking at the 500 yen bar. You go to the Irish pub just to top the night off with a couple of really good drinks. They have strawberry daiquiris here that I was just dying for. So all three of us got our daiquiris and we're like "Cheers!" And the guys beside us were like "Cheers!" and we're like "Cheers!" That's when they slide right over and start talking to us. (Drunk Japanese men speak the best English.) We got the usual fair: "Where are you from?" "Are you on vacation?" "Do you like Japan?" blah, blah, blah. The guys were some kind of engineers and/or researchers or something. They gave us their cards.
Then I told them it was my birthday.
Suddenly, I'm drowning in drinks and food. They ordered us chocolate and french fries and three more daiquiris each and a shot of tequila each. I drank and ate 3,000 yen worth of stuff, but only paid 1,000. Sweet awesome.
I only barely remember getting back to Bernadette's. I don't remember falling asleep.
But, surprisingly, I woke up without a hangover. I caught the 11:59 train back home, took a shower, then headed right back out to a yakiniku party with one of my students. Zoe, an ALT in a town close by, was there too so we had a grand old time.
Now I'm really tired, though (and so full I think I'll never eat again.) Thank goodness I have nothing to do tomorrow except clean the bathroom and make chili for my lunch this week. Yaaaay for lazy days!
Even though Bernadette and Elizabeth will probably never read this, I want to thank them and nighstar for the great evening out and making my first birthday in Japan very memorable. I think my 24th year on this earth is looking to be a good one. :D