finally. sleep.

I had some time to myself yesterday morning and spent it surfing the red and purple subway lines until I found the orchid gardens located south of the Sakae stop downtown. The women working the welcome desk were all smiles when I walked in since my reaction to the entrance display of foliage was priceless. A sweet and rich aroma hit me and I glowed at the sight of the thousands of orchids lining the entryway. The lobby opened up into a temperature controlled green house that housed over 250 species of orchids. Japanese lanterns dangled from the ceilings and sun beamed in from the glass skylights overhead. I made my way outside to find fountains and ponds blanketed with lily pads and an array of exotic trees and plants from all over the world. The grounds are so beautiful that people often come here to get their wedding pictures taken - I had a chance to sneak a peak of a couple brides and their wedding parties.

After a while I ventured out to find an ATM and meet up with Mike for lunch. We met at the Gosiko stop near his school and he took me to an adorable little place run by two old Japanese women. His Japanese has been priceless since it's afforded us the opportunity to pop into various different holes in the wall and speak with the locals. We enjoyed a rice bowl with a stir fry of sorts and some miso soup before heading back to school. I had a chance to see him in action with his kids and participate in a lesson. The facilities here are top notch, but I could not get over the odd tradition of taking your shoes off before entering the actual building. I literally had to take off my "outdoor shoes" and walk around barefoot! Kids have indoor shoes, but I obviously didnt.. even to the bathroom.

I got a chance to party in downtown Nagoya and we ended up meeting a bunch of Americans on our way to the bars. Mike took me to the equivalent of a Japanese BW3 where we sipped on sake and filled up on edemame and genuine teriyaki chicken wings, which they're famous for here. We stopped at a couple night clubs that were swarming with Americans and played lots of music from Rhianna to Jay-Z. The new Kanye has not penetrated the club scene yet, but I was told by one of the DJs that it would be here soon. We danced until what felt like 3 am and I of course drank enough to try teaching a Japanese woman how to salsa dance. She was actually the girlfriend of a former NBA basketball player who lives and works as an assistant coach to a Nagoya team here. I cant remember his name, but he seemed to have a big following when we were out.I finally slept a full evening, which felt amazing. I'm still a bit tired from the fun last night, but I'll have a chance to sleep on the train to Tokyo. I think it takes a couple hours from Nagoya. We'll be there a couple days and then we're headed to Kyoto on Monday. The weather is gorgeous again today, so it should make for a fun weekend.