Lake Biwa Fireworks

Last night, we went to see the fireworks over the south end of Lake Biwa. The show lasted an hour, and was amazing. We took some photos -- maybe someday we can post them here! The display included 10,000 fireworks, and last year 300,000 people came to watch.

I don't think this was an exaggeration! Renee and I took a local train from Kyoto to the fireworks, and people were literally pushed into the train to fit! When we got there, we went down to the lake shore surrounded by other people -- literally tens of thousands. There were a few foreigners here and there, but not many. We managed to push our way close enough to the show so that I could see the surface of the lake if I stood on my toes. The fireworks were pretty tame at first, but by about 15 minutes in they were very impressive! People were standing so close to each other that it was like going to a sold-out concert.

We got to practice our nihongo (Japanese) on the way back, because we couldn't buy a ticket for the return trip, and we didn't know which train went to Kyoto. Renee managed to ask someone which train to take, and we were again packed up like sardines into a train and headed back for Kyoto. Like the DC Metro, you have to insert your ticket to leave a platform, too, so when we got to Kyoto we were stuck! Fortunately, the attendant at the gate was friendly and spoke English -- we were able to buy our tickets there without penalty. Whew!

Work seems to be going slow, but well. I'm... rusty? In any case, we still don't have Internet at home, but in good news, I'm finally going to get my first paycheck tomorrow! That's a relief!