Kyoto and Osaka Take Two

Kind of a poorly-executed outing today.
It was the second trip for me to Kyoto and, incidentally, Osaka as well.

We intended to see the Aoi Matsuri (blue/asarum caulescens [plant] festival) in Kyoto today, but when we arrived to the park where the procession leading from the palace was staring, the crowd was already so dense, it was impossible to see anything.

Afterward, we resigned ourselves to go wander a bit and eventually came back to a main street where the matsuri was continuing. After waiting over half an hour, the procession actually started moving, but it was rather quiet and unexciting. It was a beautiful show, but I'm surprised there was such a turnout for an hour of historically-bedecked people quietly walking into the street... nay, hijacking the streets, as the drivers running through the road got very confused and unsure which ways to proceed. The worst part was the giant bus blocking the view of the end of the procession of the saoi-dai girl, who is essentially like Santa Claus is to the conclusion of the Thanksgiving parade, she is the show queen. Or princess, rather. She has to be unmarried and a virgin in order to be selected I believe.

We met someone from Missouri during the parade and he took us, after some gentle nudging from me because of how antsy I was getting having spent so much time not doing anything in Kyoto, he took us to the International Manga Museum.
Manga can be likened to comic books from Japan, typically with adult themes, but not always. The entire show... wasn't what I was expecting, but a very different experience and a neat memory, even if things got a tad rushed at the end.

Then we had to book it to Osaka because several of us wanted to catch this jazz/funk band our defacto tour guide (who lived here and speaks fluent Japanese) was going to go see. Out group arrived at the Osaka station from Kyoto early, but the other group going to the concert also was nowhere to be found.

After an hour or so, the rest of my group left and I wandered Osaka, had some so-so curry and rice for dinner and wandered in to my first pachinko parlor... just as it was closing.
Then I caught a series of trains and taxis back to where I am staying. One direct line closed so I had to wait almost a half hour for the next local train.

All in all, it was still another great day in Japan, but some things could have possibly worked out better.

I will have more updates and pictures tomorrow or so. I'm a little exhausted from the long days, and Tokyo is coming up tomorrow. What a ride that will be!