Tenpozan - Home of Some of the World's Largest...

This past Sunday, Joel, Momo, and I decided to go to Tenpozan, home to one of the world's largest aquariums and Ferris wheels. The aquarium has a "Ring of Fire" theme and has several tanks depicting animals which live in or around the Ring of Fire. Some of the highlights were the penguins, the whale shark, spider crabs, and sea turtle. The tanks were massive, about four stories, and there was a winding walkway so people can get an upclose look at all the different animals. It was a magnificent aquarium but for some reason, I seem to remember the Baltimore aquarium being better. Nevertheless, it was good to get out of the house.

(The aquarium and Ferris wheel.)


(This was a walk way you passed through as you entered the aquarium. For some reason I really like this picture.)



(The furry penguins, regular penguin, and little guys. It reminded me of the movie "Happy Feet" since the little guys seemed to have an attitude.)

(Lots of fish.)

(The sea turtle, just making his laps in the aquarium.)

After visiting the aquarium we went on a ride on the Santa Maria. Why there is a ship connected to Columbus in Japan, I am not really sure. Anyway, it was an hour or so cruise around the harbor and I got to see Universal Studios Japan, a giant red bridge, as well as several transport ships. I was amazed by the size of the ships and the amount of cargo they were caple of hauling. The truck crates looked like legos on the massive ships. It was a nice cruise and part of a package deal with the Ferris wheel. It started snowing while we were on the ship but nothing too heavy. After that, it was off to the Ferris wheel which had an amazing view.

(The Santa Maria)

(One of the boats with freight.)

(A view from the Ferris wheel.)

It was quite the busy day and after Tenpozan it was back to Hommachi and we went to an internet cafe. It was 500 yen for an hour but it was unlimited drinks. However, most of the time I slept. I guess you can spend the night at a cafe for about 3,000 yen, not too bad for a night of sleep. It's cheaper than a hotel but the accomadations aren't exactly the best. After the nap, I had a lesson which went well. It was with one of my favorite students so I had a lot of fun. The night ended when we met Hiroko for Mexican food. It was not the Mexican food I was used to it but it was delicious nonetheless. We had a nice meal and a great conversation. Joel and Momo went home and I ended up going with Hiroko to meet her parents. They just got finished watching a show so we met them at Starbucks. I always enjoy spending time with them and they are the kindest people. Her mom bought me some Starbucks bread and snacks to take home. It was a lot of fun and I went to Kyoto with them on Sunday. Hope everyone is doing well and having fun! Take care!