Right now I've got a project for Speaking where I have to act as a reporter and report some issue relevant to international students. So I decided, since I want to sight-see anyway, to do a presentation on all the stops on the Keihan line's limited express train (this has the least amount out of all the trains, 12 in total from the middle of Osaka to the far edge of Kyoto). It's going to be like a sightseer's guide. I got most of Osaka out of the way yesterday, ending with Osaka castle, built by the Tokugawa clan before they took over the shogunate. As far as castles go, it was actually pretty small land-wise, but you can clearly see it even from the skyscrapers. And the wall is made of big stones. BIG stones. Stones that easily beat my house in size. I don't know what the British are so hyped up about, Stonehenge has nothing on this place!
Today I couldn't go and take pictures because of rain. I had the house to myself because the grandfather's funeral was today, but I wound up going out anyway. I think the reason I sometimes get murderous rages is because I'm sitting still too long, so I'm going to try to keep myself in some sort of motion (whether physical or emotional). On the note of rain, I hate my umbrella. It's small, it's convenient for short walks, and it doesn't keep my legs dry at all. So I bought a real umbrella, which cost a real 3,000 yen. The prices can manage to stay that high because the only other option is a little tiny one. I've said this before, but Japan really knows how capitalism works.