2022 ✌️
The first month of 2022 is complete! I hope you all spent a great New Years with family and loved ones. I was back in Japan until a few weeks back which was a blessing considering all the travel restrictions and increasing number of covid cases. I was initially hoping for just 3 days of quarantine but it was unfortunately extended to 14 days right before we were departing the UK… Regardless, all was good in the end because I thoroughly enjoyed my time back home!
After our 2 weeks of isolation, the first thing we did was go to the hot springs in Shiga prefecture. We drove down about 2 hours on Saturday and spent the night in a ryokan where we relaxed in the hot springs, devoured amazing food, and enjoyed the beautiful view. It had been so long since I last had traditional Japanese food so everything tasted fantastic! We also went to another hot spring in Nagano prefecture with my grandparents the weekend after. The drive there took about 5 hours though since the heavy snow from the day before blocked the roads! This place had amazing food as well and dipping into the hot springs after dinner took all of our stiffness from the long journey away.
I also spent a few days in Tokyo meeting up with friends from my undergraduate years. I was hopping from one house to another during my time in Tokyo, and we went around to nice restaurants while filling the 4 month gap we had apart. I didn’t get a chance to visit touristic places in Tokyo this time around, but I definitely enjoyed catching up with close ones from back in the old days :) Looking back I only really got 2 weeks to actually get out and wish I had more time, but overall I’m really happy I got to go back during the break.
It’s been a week since second term started and while I still haven’t fully adjusted back to the rhythm of university life, it’s been going alright so far. I also moved houses just this weekend so having the change in scenery and new flatmates to share everyday with has been refreshing and enjoyable!
I hope you’ve all had a great month and here’s to a new year :)
