Bridges, Bikings, & Marriage Shrines

I've been crossing stuff off my list of "to-do's" and reluctantly starting to get into all my paperwork for going home. We had a seminar last week in Kyoto to discuss all that stuff, which turned into a nice long weekend for me! Jun, Becky and I were going on a road trip to Awaji and Shikoku!




Friday night in the city was as usual, a long late night of dancing, drinking, and karaoke-ing with JETs, singing our hearts out & then listening to the birds singing as the sky grew brighter... There was a "biking" (all-you-can-eat buffet) along with 2 "nomihodai's" (all-you-can-drink" parties at a rooftop beer garden and the other at a karaoke booth which all 16 of us squeezed into. We met a friendly drunk Japanese woman who was "beautiful in drinking".

It was pouring rain in Kyoto early on Saturday morning, but Hide drove me bleary-eyed to meet up with Jun and Becky. However, our drive southwest to Awaji was gorgeous and we left the heavy clouds behind us as we drove over the Akashi-Kaikyo Bridge (the longest suspension bridge in the world)!!!



We were on our way to the Onokoro Shrine, a relatively small and humble shrine (with an enormous torii gate!) in the middle of the small island of Awaji. It is apparently famous as a place where single people come to pray for marriage! Jun generously threw her coins into the offering boxes and reverently prayed to meet the love of her life. I also threw some coins in and prayed at the shrine- for Jun to get married soon, of course!!! ;)

***NOTE: This was and has been Jun's plan for many many months (not my idea!), so finally Becky and I decided to indulge & accompany her. Curiously enough (ha ha?), I received a random text message from a special someone on my phone as I walked under the giant torii gate entrance to the shrine....