I thought typhoons were like a cooler version of hurricanes. Of course they’re actually just as annoying and miserable. Today we got caught in Typhoon #18, which means a lot of rain, some wind, supposed train delays (but not really), and more rain. We said goodbye to Tokyo Ken this morning and left on the Shinkansen (bullet train), arriving in Kyoto about two and a half hours later. It was fast.

We’re staying tonight at the Sparkling Dolphins Inn. It looks like there’s a family of four here who live behind the reception. Their kitchen and dining room are our common area, and their spare bedroom is a “dorm” with 10 bunked beds. It’s cheap, the family is nice, and it’s also the only place available in Kyoto tonight since this weekend is “Respect the Elderly” holiday. It’s not really near anything, though, so tomorrow we’re going to move north. I’m hoping for a place kind of like this, just more centrally located.

Every time we change cities, we have to take care to arrange travel and accommodations. This means slogging through websites, looking at locations, getting the timings right, keeping costs low, and bracing for special fun times like riding the Willer overnight bus back to Tokyo. For that reason, it’s a little frustrating when a low-grade typhoon knocks out a day from your Kyoto jaunt. We walked down to the grocery store and back and got soaked, which is why we’re now enjoying being dry with the internet. At least it’s not a high-grade typhoon.

P.S. Have some more photos on Flickr from our trip thus far in Japan!