California - Day 2

Today , my mother and I hopped on a bus and went to Japantown. (Kiiiiiind of pointless, but it was fun!!) I have never seen so much Hello Kitty paraphernalia in my life. I'd also never seen a Zen monastery before. That was cool.

I'm amazed how clean and spiffy a city San Francisco is. All the buildings are occupied, every residential street looks colorful and picturesque, the people are dressed to the nines. Even the homeless! One gentleman I saw had a fedora, and one woman had leopard print tights. Oh, Maryland, you did NOT prepare me for that.

I'm putting up some pictures so those who aren't of Facebook can see what I've seen. 

This is at the Japan Center in Japantown. The inside of the building behind it is really just a mall, but there is a peace garden in the middle, and that's where this pagoda is. 

I'd never seen a Zen monastery before, and this was right on the edge of Japantown when we got off the bus. 

50 Shades of Gray in Japanese! I was so tempted to buy it, but I really didn't want my host family finding it and thinking I had a fetish thing going. Probably NOT the best way to make friends, especially in a considerate and modest culture. 

I know this is out of order, but this is the view of the Rockies from my seat on the airplane. I'd never seen them before, and I was glued to the window like a six-year-old for the last hour of the trip. 

And finally, the view from our room. I will never get tired of hearing a city breathe.