Lists - Japan series #7

I've just had the most amazing weekend. The past Monday was a Japanese national holiday so I took a three day sight seeing trip. So much has happened that it is hard for me to write one single coherent story about it. As a scientist-in-training, I like the neat concise manner lists convey large chunks of data. The following is a summary of my weekend:

Cities/villages I visited in chronological order:
- Kyoto
- Nara
- Mt. Koya
- Osaka
- Himeji

Places of historical interest:
- Chion temple - Very large bell and entrance gate.
- Kiyo-mizu temple - Drank healing waters.
- Todai temple - Saw world's largest wooden Buddha.
- Kasuga taisha - Walked along the path of 10,000 lamps.
- Okuno temple and cemetary - Strolled in creepy graveyard with hundred of thousand headstones.
- Himeji castle - Climbed to 5th floor without hitting my head on very low beamed entranceways.

Romantic moments shared with V, random tourists, or no one at all:
- Walk in the rain through Maruyama park.
- Sunset at Nigatsu hall.
- Making a romance wish at Kasuga shrine
- Sitting in Japanese garden on top of Koyasan at 5:20 in the morning.
- Standing on the west section of Himeji castle overlooking the city shouting "I am queen of the world" inside my head.

Strange foods I tasted:
- Black sesame soft serve ice cream
- Corn Pretz sticks - be warned: they taste like a can of corn not corn meal.
- Bibim Donburi - items on top of rice still unknown
- "delicious" sauce
- "White sour" flavored sherbert on a stick
- Shojin ryori - full dinner of vegetables including sponge-like rehydrated Koyasan tofu.
- Pocari Sweat ion water
- Takoyaki - octopus balls. (yes, you from the hose have permission to snicker.)
- Chiyo-yaki - savory pancake

Random numbers:
- Unsolicited unbrellas given to me by strangers when needed : 2
- Times strangers said I looked Japanese: 2
- People standing in non-reserved car #3 and in adjoining space next to bathrooms of Hikari train headed towards Hakata at top speeds of 185 mph: approximately 35
- Old ladies sitting on my luggage on that train: 1
- Total hours spent on trains: about 11
- Japanese "talent" seen at Shin-Osaka: 1
- Japanese girls screaming and waiting for him to come off train: too numerous to count
- Sticks of "corn" flavored pretz before becoming ill: 5
- Pictures V took : over 500
- Pictures I took: less than 40
- Number of department stores in Osaka that had Evil Twin #2's favorite dessert: 0