500th Post

How appropriate that my 500th post on this darling little site would also be my last post of 2009.
We will go forth into 2010, the fourth year of my darling marriage, the fifth year of this darling site, and the tenth year of my life with Craig as of post 501 (FIVE HUNDRED AND ONE).

Here are twelve of my favourite favourite photos from 2009:

January




February




March




April




May




June




July




August




September




October




November




December

This is Craig's excited face

Forgive him.
We have a new car!
His name is Rexy.

Week Fifty-Two

Ostensibly the final week of 2009 as darling little 2010 begins on a Friday.


Sunday
I finally finally saw Ghostbusters. And it was as funny as I'd hoped it would be.
And I have a retroactive crush on Bill Murray.


Monday
Confusion with a parcel from the UK. My darling Kat had posted it just after my birthday but the Royal Mail held on to it for so damn long that, combined with her packing material of tinsel and cupcake tree decorations, I thought it was a Christmas present and felt a right twat for not getting anything over to Scotland for her.
But no, it was simply a belated (grr, Royal Mail) birthday gift.


Tuesday
As Craig was a Gentleman-of-Leisure this week I had to go back to public transport and take the train in to work every morning. This, combined with the change of address, meant that I got to take a completely new (ancient & rickety) train, from a completely new station. And it was pretty much empty every single morning.


Wednesday
Last minute Christmas shopping rush, plus work, equals no time to take a photo so the lens cap ends up in the shot.


Thursday
Work done, desk cleared, phones diverted, instructions left for the cleaners, and we were out of the office by 1pm on Christmas Eve.


Friday
Antique silver for Christmas Day.

BTW, after the infamous year of the pink tool kit? this year Craig bought me an external hard drive.
Admittedly, it is the Mac Time Capsule one I've had my eye on for months but it is still very utilitarian.
I gave him half a plane ride (a voucher for skydiving!).


Saturday
Extended family came around to Trinity for a Boxing Day BBQ slash leftovers feast. When it came time for dessert the children fell upon my gingerbread house and it was gone within minutes.
My Japanese Christmas Cake and Summer Berry Trifle also disappeared rapidly.
I seem to specialise in quick, easy, seasonal desserts.


&



The first time this year I needed sunglasses everytime I stepped outdoors. From 6:45am to 6:45pm.

It's the night before Christmas ...

Paper Doily Garland & Trixie Delicious Plate


My first ever Gingerbread House


Can you tell?





Fresh berries have been bought, peaches & bacon, baked french toast.
All ready for champagne brunch tomorrow.

Day Four: Kyoto to Hiroshima

By day 4 we didn't even need to look for the "English Assistance" button on the ticket machines.


We were catching the train to Inari. Blythe dolls were advertising a University. Kinki University. Seriously, check the bigger version!

Off the train at Inari station Craig and I followed a group of Japanese people wearing backpacks, and a few other tourist-y looking people. A few metres down the road we stopped as we hadn't seen any signs directing us to Fushimi Inari.
I think we had all been following students.
A Spanish lady, a Swedish couple, and a Japanese couple were also lost. A lovely little old Japanese lady who was passing directed us back up the road where there was a GIGANTIC Torii if only we had turned left out of the station instead of right.




It was raining. Which meant that it was actually quite quiet. And lovely.




Poor Sam.




Okay. That's enough of the prayers.



Fushimi Inari Taisha (伏見稲荷大社?) is the head shrine of Inari, located in Fushimi-ku, Kyoto, Japan. The shrine sits at the base of a mountain also named Inari, and includes trails up the mountain to many smaller shrines.
Merchants and manufacturers worship Inari for wealth. Donated torii lined footpaths are part of the scenic view.
Inari is the Japanese kami (spirits, natural forces, or essence in the Shinto faith) of fertility, rice, agriculture, foxes, industry and worldly success and one of the principal kami of Shinto.
Inari appears to have been worshipped since the founding of a shrine at Inari Mountain in 711 A.D.


Kitten!


Torii!










Oh lord, Mo-Vember.


And after a while the rain became a little too heavy and we headed back down the mountain.

It was magical and one of my favourite moments on our trip.


We went back to Kyoto Station and visited Happy Terrace.


Where we had to leave behind our glowing cube. Not cool, Kyoto Station, not cool.


And we wandered across the Skywalk. It was 11 storeys up and Craig took photos of the structural bits and pieces. Getting his structural-draughtsman-geek on.

We had lunch at Katsukura. I rolled my eyes at the other tourists taking photos of their food and now? I find myself wishing I had done the same. Naturally.

And then, the moment that Craig had been waiting for, the Shinkansen!





Things we noticed: there was very little blurring outside the window. We were travelling at 280km/h and yet? couldn't tell at all. Also, there was no countryside to speak of, just varying levels of city/suburb.





The sun set while we were on the train and we arrived into Hiroshima in darkness.