Yesterday (I didn't blog last night, I was too wiped out) was a day in search of beauty, away from the city's high rises.  Mom and I had seen bananas and apple slices at 7/11 the night before and intended to buy them in the AM, but when we got there, ALL the fresh fruit was gone!  Lesson learned, don't procrastinate on fresh fruit.  So we each got a bag of mandarins in juice, like canned fruit, but in a bag, and I also got peaches in a bag.  Mom got a hamburger and I got yogurt, pancakes and I finally got brave enough to try 7/11's smoothies.  It's a cup of frozen fruit and after you pay for it you take it to a machine, scan the bar code and put it inside the machine and close the door.  The machine pulls it further inside and punctures the foil top and adds liquid, water probably, then inserts a blending device of some sort and blends the whole darn thing!  And big bang boom, I had fresh fruit!  It was brilliant!  Seriously, the 7/11's in the US need an upgrade.

The guys were pokey puppies and we finally got out of the hotel about 11 am, headed for the Gion (pronounced; ghee-ohn) area of Kyoto, known for it's traditional single family homes and waterways lined with trees and moss.  I wanted Mom to see some beauty and see that the Japan from pictures, the old architecture, still exists.  We found it!  It was so lovely and peaceful, the sound of running water, she didn't want to leave. But, leave we did, headed for Nishiki Market, a nearby covered walkway/street filled with food stalls and little shops.  We walked and walked and took in all the sights and sounds and aromas.  I let everyone know that this was lunch, if you see something you want, but it then before we moved on.  At one point I stepped into a shop to look at the items and when I came out Kenji was there but Mom and Leo were gone.  We walked a bit then texted Leo and he said he'd walk back to us.  When he got back Mom wasn't with him.  Huh.  I wonder where she is in this mass of humanity.  I pulled out my phone and the tracking app.  Drat!  Darn thing hadn't updated her location in the last 2 hours!  Probably because her phone isn't "on" when we're out and about.  She's got it on airplane mode.  2 hours ago is probably when we left the hotel.  *face palm*

So we split up to go look for her.  After 5 mins Kenji texted that he'd found her up ahead.  Phew!  As we walked back towards each other I stopped and bought a delicious looking chicken thigh that looked like it had a light teriyaki sauce on it.  When the others joined me we stepped to the side to eat it (now walking while eating/drinking here, there are overhead announcements to that fact).  Mom wasn't hungry yet, the hamburger she had for breakfast was regular size and she'd eaten the whole thing.  Leo didn't want any so Kenji & I polished it off.  Oishi!  I turned right to go back into the market and no one else saw which direction I'd gone and they turned left to go back in.  We got separated again.  Kenji texted and asked where I was, that they had turned left.  I said I turned right and I'd come back to them.  I looked at all the yummy-ness as I went back and found a stall grilling fresh scallops.  If you know me at all you know that scallops are on my list of things to eat for a Last Meal. It was 2 on a skewer and they crushed them with garlic butter.  Oh my!  Yes, please!  But, then the rule of not walking while eating came into play and the women working the stall pointed to a few tables and chairs inside, so I obliged.  The scallops were not just the part of the mollusk that I'm accustomed to, but the whole piece of meat inside the shell.  I was not mad.  I ate the whole thing and loved it!

Back on my feet I worked my way back to the others who had told me they were near Wendy's.  Yes, Wendy's.  I had texted that I could go for a Frosty.  So when we re together again we went inside (ah, air conditioning!) and the other 3 decided they wanted to try the Truffle Bacon-ator, so Mom & I I got in line while the guys secured a table.  Ordering was electronic, on a screen, only.  I had a few false starts, but finally placed the burger order, then went searching for the Frosty.  What to my wandering eyes should appear, but NO Frosty!  What?!  Sacrilege!  You can't have Wendy's with a Frosty on the menu!  I was crestfallen.  So I settled for what was called a Cream Float but the picture looked like melon soda (I've already talked about that in an earlier blog, right?) with soft serve ice cream.  I'd ordered the meal so the whole shebang came with fries.  We all devoured it all (yes, the melon soda was the *right* melon soda) and Mom declared being disappointed with the Bacon-ator, as there wasn't a whole lot of truffle flavor.

We left Nishiki Market with plans to go to the Shrine in the area as there was a specific shot Kenji wanted to get, but not far out of the market my left heel started really bothering me.  I suspected a blister.  So Mom and I went back to the hotel, with the help of a very kind bus staff member at a bus stop telling me we were at the wrong stop for the bus back to the train station, then telling me where the right one was.  Kenji & Leo went on to the Shrine.  Back at the hotel, removing my sweat-soaked sock I found what I had suspected, a blister,  Bah humbug!  Well, we've been walking A LOT and my feet are a lot more sweaty than back home, so I'm not surprised.  We changed into dry clothes and relaxed on our beds for a while.  When the guys got back I went to soak my feet in hot water in the bathtub.  Mom and I had been watching sumu wrestling (yes, more wrestling, Erica!) and when it ended we got dressed to meet the guys to go get dinner.

The guys had a found a couple of options in the basement mall in front of the Kyoto train station.  We looked at the first one, a kastu place, but literally everything on the menu is fried.  Mom has nixed any more fried food for herself, so we moved on to look at the skewer place.  It looked good, so we took a number and waited to be called for a table.  After being seated we were directed to a QR code on the table and instructed to place our order there.  We perused the menu, made our choices and placed the order.  Shortly after our drinks arrived.  Mom had intended to ask for water, but when the server brought the Luster's 3 drinks she figured the 4th person would want water so she brought it along.  How nice!  Kenji and I each had a Shochu drink (another distilled alcoholic rice liquor) and Leo had a watery sweet milk drink that I don't remember the name of, but he liked it.

Mom got a 3 skewer set that came with chicken meatballs, chicken thigh meat and a 3rd skewer that had looked like beef but turned out to be liver.  Yuck!  She ate one piece and discovered it was liver and didn't eat anymore.  Leo had 5 skewers and discovered that his "beef" skewer was liver, too.  Blah!  I had a teriyaki chicken bento box and enjoyed it and the cabbage salad and miso soup that came with it.  Kenji had a karaage (pronounced: ka-raw-gay) bento.  Karaage is chunks of chicken that are breaded and deep fried.  He also had cabbage salad and soup. 

After dinner we wandered slowly around the mall, looking at clothes and housewares.  I found a sock store that had vented socks displayed in front.  I asked the woman working in the shop about sizes.  She had a piece of paper in English that explained the Japanese sizes for foreign tourists to know which size to buy based on what size they are used to in the home countries.  I purchased a pair and if they work well tomorrow I may go buy more before we leave Kyoto.  We returned to the hotel in light sprinkles.