Trip down to Kyushu

On Wednesday this week I came back from my trip down to Kyushu to see some friends, mostly in and around Kumamoto and Fukuoka. It was nice seeing old faces again before I start work next week but I might have been a little too ambitious by traveling down only 2 days after having arrived in Tokyo. I feel like I've spent the majority of last week just traveling on trains, busses and planes. Wednesday night when I came back to my flat in Tokyo, I'm pretty sure I crashed within an hour and slept for a solid 12 hours.

The trip was still worth it though! I went on a road trip with one of my friends from Kumamoto and also got to enjoy a few very, very nice dinners including some very traditional "bbq" (see above) in a tiny restaurant somewhere in the mountains.

Back in Tokyo, I finally went to see my workplace and met my colleagues for the first time. Everyone seemed really kind and it was nice having lunch with one of my co-workers and my manager. I absolutely love the area around where I work too; so many fancy restaurants, brand shops and tall buildings, it automatically makes you feel more motivated and $$-driven in a way. You can't not think of all the shopping there is available in Tokyo...!

Today then I just felt like going for a walk and getting some fresh air, so I headed to one of the many parks in Tokyo. I'm still avoiding parks like Ueno and Yoyogi because of the mosquito issue (actually, they might still be closed, I'm not even sure) but this traditional garden was perfect to catch the last few remaining sun rays of the day. :)