Earlier today we went to the Nagoya Aquarium. We had breakfast at a restaurant near our friends Dan and Sayaka’s house. After breakfast we drove to the aquarium in their car. When we got to the aquarium there was a big line but it went pretty fast. When we went in we saw beluga whales and dolphins (seen above and below), they were really cute. The photo below shows Denise, Kiku, Raiden, and I watching the dolphins. 
At 12:30pm there was a dolphin show. The dolphins did really cool tricks like jumping up to balls and spinning around. The dolphin below is jumping so high! One of the dolphins was named Ai which means love in Japanese.
The show was really really really cool. Every time a dolphin did a trick a trainer gave them a little fish. The Nagoya Aquarium has about 500 species of underwater animals. The Nagoya Aquarium opened in October 1992.
This is a sea turtle we saw, I really like sea turtles. But I did not think the tank they were in was a big enough tank. It is sad to see that they are being held in captivity in such a small enclosure.
This is Dan, Dad, Denise, Sayaka, Kiku, and I at the dolphin show. We got good seats and we drank tea, warm lemonade, and hot cocoa. We ate a lot of fries. The warm lemonade was really good.
This is a Giant Pacific Octopus, I think it is in too small of a tank.
These are 2 grouper fish in the tropical fish zone, they are really big.
These are some penguins, the Nagoya Aquarium had Adelie, Chinstrap, Emperor, and Gentoo penguins.
This is all of us outside the aquarium. After the aquarium we took a bus to Osaka, Japan, right now I am writing from our Airbnb in Osaka. We had a great time in Nagoya staying with our friends. Bye!
Month: March 2019
Cherry Blossoms in Nagoya
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Today, our second day in Nagoya, we went to the main park to see the cherry blossoms and the Nagoya Castle. It’s a tiny bit before peak cherry blossom time but the blossoms are still very beautiful. We had scones and donuts for breakfast and then we got on the subway and walked to the park from there. Everyone has picnics under the cherry blossom trees in the park. 
All around the park there are locals on picnic blankets eating and chatting. The park is called Meijo Koen which translates to Nagoya Castle Park . The Nagoya Castle was destroyed after World War II, they rebuilt it but it is not as ancient as most castles in Japan. The symbol of Nagoya is a mythical dolphin. Link. 
If you go to the park on a sunny day on the weekend you will not be able to find a picnic spot, luckily today it was overcast so it was not so busy.
This is a beautiful tulip garden in the park. Do you have a favourite tulip in this picture? I like the yellow ones.
This is me under a cherry tree. I think this tree is really pulchritudinous. Before we took this photo there was a man that took a photo of his four pugs by bribing them with a dog biscuit. The photo was really funny. This tree is the one with the most blossoms that I saw in Meijo Koen.
Here is a close up shot on a few blossoms. The river was very beautiful.
Many of the trees bent over the river creating beautiful reflections. 
In the middle of the river there is a fountain that adds a nice element to the river. From the bridge you can get very good views of the cherry blossoms. In Nagoya at this time of year it is usually about 15 degrees Celsius. We have been in 30 degree weather so it feels pretty cold.
This is the Nagoya Castle, there is a big moat around the front side of the castle. At the top there are 2 of the golden mythical dolphins that I talked about earlier.
This is me and Denise with the Nagoya sign. This is kind of like the Toronto sign in Nathan Phillips Square.
After the cherry blossoms we went to a ramen restaurant called Ippudo, it was really good :). I got a basic tonkotsu based ramen. It was a great day today.
We Have Arrived in Japan!!
UncategorizedFinally we have arrived in Japan! At 11:40 am yesterday we took a minivan from Koh Chang to Suvarnabhumi Airport in Bangkok. We arrived at Suvarnabhumi at 8 pm, then we took a shuttle bus from Suvarnabhumi to the airport we were flying out of called Don Mueang. We had smoothies for dinner at the airport. Unfortunately, our flight was at 2 am so we had a long time to wait. We boarded our flight on time and we took off. I slept for most of the flight. When we arrived it was 9:30 am Japanese time. Our flight landed in Nagoya, a city in southern Japan. We decided to come to Nagoya first because my Dad’s friend Dan Archambault lives there and he invited us stay at his house. When we got to the airport, Dan Archambault drove us to his house but on the way we stopped for sushi. We went to a place called Kappa Sushi. It was really cool there because the sushi came around on a conveyor belt. You could order and they would send it to you on the conveyor or you could just pick up any sushi that looked good from the belt and eat it. Unfortunately we did not get any photos to show you.
When we got to Dan’s house we met his wife Sayaka, and his two kids Kiku and Raiden. After we settled in we went for a walk to a shrine near Dan’s house, it was very pretty because of all the cherry blossoms.
These are the stairs at the shrine. Dan Archambault taught us how to pray at a Japanese shrine. Bow twice, clap twice, then bow deeply and wish something. We were basically the only people at the shrine which made it very peaceful. 
This is Kiku, Denise, and I. Kiku is very nice, she lets us do origami and play with her toys. I made a carrot, a dog, and a ninja star out of origami. Dan, Sakaya, Kiku, and Raiden live in a traditional Japanese house on the edge of Nagoya.
Their family has two cats, one black one and one white one. The white one (shown above) is named Hachi. Hachi is a Persian cat and she isn’t always fond of strangers in her house.
For dinner we went to a restaurant that specialises in Yakiniku: Here is a link to what Yakiniku is. There is a grill in the middle of your table and you order from an iPad and they bring you what ever you ordered and you grill it. We ordered so much because it was an all you can eat restaurant. I really liked their beef steak, salad, grilled squid, edamame beans, fried chicken, sweet corn, octopus balls, and ice cream. I am really excited to explore more of Japan.
Treetop Ropes Course for my Birthday
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Yesterday, I turned 10! Now we are on an island called Koh Chang. To celebrate my birthday we did a ropes course in the trees. There were two courses, adult and child, for adult you had to be 140cm tall but unfortunately I am only 135cm tall so I had to do the kid course. We got geared up with harnesses, helmets, and carabeners and we set off.
There were many obstacles like walking on branches, rock climbing, crawling through little tunnels, or riding nets across the trees. This is me getting on to the net. Before every obstacle you had to hook your carabiner in a new spot. Sometimes unhooking the carabiners was hard but you got used to it. A professional came with us the first time and then I did the course 4 times on my own.
This is Denise about to go on the climbing wall. The climbing wall was not so hard.
This is me after I completed the climbing wall, about to go on the sled. I did the whole course being timed by my Dad and my best record was 3 minutes and 46 seconds.
The Kingdom of Ayutthaya
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Two days ago, we boarded a train from Hua Lamphong Station in Bangkok to Ayutthaya. We arrived an hour later then we were supposed to arrive and the train ride was bad but it was only 2$ for all of us. When we got to the station we took a tuk-tuk to our hostel, which by the way was only 6$ (after our Agoda discount). After we read a little bit about Ayutthaya we were ready to go see the temples. Ayutthaya was founded by King Ramathibodi I. The first temple we went to was pretty close to our hostel so we walked to it. It was called Wat Ratchaburana. In the late afternoon it felt like we had the temple to ourselves. In the middle of the temple complex there was a big Prang. Wat Ratchaburana is definitely worth it in the late afternoon.
This is the prang at Wat Ratchaburana. Wat Ratchaburana was founded in 1424 by King Borommarachathirat II.
This is the view of Wat Ratchaburana’s temple complex from the big prang. Usually you go into the crypt of the prang to see an ancient mural but unluckily while we were there you could not go down because of a power outage. 😢😢
This is the sun peeking out from behind the prang at Wat Ratchaburana.
This is my Mom and Denise at a temple called Wat Chaiwatthanaram. We went there for the sunset because it was recommended. There was a lot of grass to sit on and watch the sunset. Wat Chaiwatthanaram was constructed in 1630 by the King Prasat Thong as the first temple of his reign. Wat Chaiwatthanaram was a royal temple where the king and his successors performed religious ceremonies but it is not on Ayutthaya Island.
This is the sunset at Wat Chaiwatthanaram. It was really pulchritudinous.
This is the prang at Wat Chaiwatthanaram.
The next day at 8am we walked to a famous temple called Wat Mahathat. Wat Mahathat is famous for its Buddha head in a Bodhi tree. It is believed that the Buddha head fell off and then the tree grew around it. Wat Mahathat was founded in 1374 when King Borommaracha I built a temple here but at that time it had another name. His nephew and successor Ramesuan expanded the site in 1384 to build a great temple, and gave it its present name.
This is me standing in front of a stupa (a tower in a temple), at Wat Mahathat.
All around most of the temples are remains of Buddha statues. Some do not have heads, arms, or legs.
These are the huge stupas at a temple called Wat Phra Si Sanphet. Wat Phra Si Sanphet’s stupas were restored a long time ago by putting concrete over the traditional brick. Wat Phra Si Sanphet was founded by King Ramathibodi I.
This is me looking through a window at Wat Phra Si Sanphet.
The last temple was called Wat Phra Ram. It was constructed in 1639. Now we are on an island called Koh Chang and tomorrow is my birthday!!!
Sleeping at Hide and Seek Hometel
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We are having a great stay at Hide and Seek Hometel in Bangkok. We are staying here 10 nights, our longest stay in one accommodation. We are staying here so long because we got a great deal. Hide and Seek only opened one month ago so it is very new which means everything is clean and pristine. It is right beside the BTS SkyTrain, we are at Phra Kanong station. We practically use the BTS every day. We got BTS cards, they are kind of like Presto cards. The bed situation here is one bunk bed, I sleep on the top, Denise sleeps on the bottom. For my Mom and Dad there is a Queen bed. Here there is free laundry (much to my Mom’s delight :). There is a shared kitchen for the 8 rooms in the hometel. There is breakfast included and the food is good. There are 2 desks situated in our room which makes it a good place for doing schoolwork. In the lobby there is games and we found a really really really fun game called Exploding Kittens . We sure are having a good time at Hide and Seek. Now I have to go to bed so I’m signing off until next post. Bye!!
Guest Post (Denise): My Take on KidZania
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This is me and Evan at the courier. At the courier one person takes the cart and the other takes the map. In the cart there are boxes and on the map it shows the places so you can deliver the boxes to all the shops that are on the map.
This is me working as a mecanic and he is showing me how to change a tire and how to put gas in the car.
This is me being a florist. I am picking out flowers to make a bouquet and then giving it to my boss.
This is me and Evan in a tv studio reading a script and a camera filming us.It was really fun.
This is me in the paint studio. You get to have fun with colours and you go into a bedroom and they give you magnets to dezine your own bedroom.
Wat Saket (The Golden Mount)
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For the sunset today we decided to go to a temple that we heard was nice called Wat Saket (Wat Saket Ratcha Wora Maha Wihan), usually referred to as the Golden Mount. We got to Wat Saket by the BTS Sky Train from Bang Wa station to National Stadium station. We were at Bang Wa instead of Phra Kanong because we went to a market near Bang Wa. When we got to National Stadium station we took a tuk-tuk to Wat Saket and started climbing the stairs to the top of the Golden Mount.
This is the beautiful view from the 2nd highest floor of the Golden Mount.
By coincidence, while we were at the Golden Mount there was a monk ceremony going on and the monks invited everyone to join them, Denise and I decided to participate in it. I am blocked by an adult so you cannot really see me but can you spot Denise???
This is the wonderful view of Bangkok from the highest floor of the Golden Mount, it seems like Bangkok goes on forever. I really like this photo because it shows a great view of Bangkok.
This is the gold spire at the top of the mount. It is made from tiny gold tiles that look beautiful at sunrise or sunset.
This is the flag of Thailand. I think it looks dazzling in this photo because of the sunset.
This is a bell that we saw on the way up to the top. I think whoever carved it has really good penmanship.
This is the view of the Golden Mount from the ground. There is a photo of the King Rama X in front. In Thailand they take their kings very seriously and his picture is everywhere! Fun fact: King Rama IX was a very popular king because he always tried to help other Thai people. He ruled for 70 years. King Rama X, the current king, has large shoes to fill!
Visit to Wat Arun and Wat Pho
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Earlier today we visited two temples on the Chaya Phraya River in Bangkok. We took the public boat to Wat Arun and went in to the grounds. Wat Arun is shown in pictures 1-7. Wat Arun was beautiful because all the chedis (buildings in the temple) were embedded with mosaics and beautiful designs. We went to Wat Arun at 5:00pm when it was not so busy. The sunset at Wat Arun was beautiful. Scattered around Wat Arun’s grounds were beautiful little trees trimmed to perfection.
The chedis all had stone monsters holding up the chedi, they were very pretty. Near the top of each chedi there was a window where there was three stone elephants that were looking over Wat Arun.
I really like this chedi because I think the designs on it are beautiful.
This is a picture of one of the stone monsters holding up the chedi.
In this photo you can really see the three elephants. Can you spot the moon?
This photo really captures the presence of the beautiful chedi. Which photo of Wat Arun is your favourite? (please reply in a comment).
After Wat Arun we took a short boat to Wat Pho (pronounced Po) in Bangkok. Wat Pho is home to Thailand’s 3rd longest reclining Buddha. The Buddha is 46 metres (150 feet) long!!
In Wat Pho there are many paintings, I think the paintings are amazingly well painted.
This is a small Buddha statue next to the huge reclining Buddha statue.
This is a statue on the grounds of Wat Pho, he has a really long moustache.
This is a chedi at Wat Pho, not as impressive as the ones at Wat Arun but still very nice.
This is a tiny statue in front of one of Wat Pho’s chedis. I think it looks really nice.
Here is my Mom and Denise in front of one of Wat Pho’s chedis. It sure was a great day at Wat Arun and Wat Pho.
We Have Arrived in Bangkok!! Main Topic: KidZania
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We arrived in Don Mueang International Airport in Bangkok at 10:40pm on Monday the 11th of March. We took a taxi from Don Mueang to our “hometel”, a hotel with a living room and a shared kitchen. When we got there we went straight to bed.
When we woke up we went to eat breakfast and planned our itinerary for the day. Bangkok is very hot so we did not want to be walking around in the sun for a long time. We decided to buy passes for the BTS SkyTrain and we took the train to Chit Lom station we walked to a little but important shrine called Erawan Shrine. It is very convenient that our hometel is right beside the BTS Phra Kanong station. After we looked at the shrine we went in to a mall called Siam Paragon. Bangkok has a lot of malls. We went to a bookstore in the mall and I bought two books, The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time and The Hobbit.
On the 2nd day we took the SkyTrain to Siam station and went in to the Siam Paragon again to go to KidZania!!
KidZania is a mini world where the ceiling is painted like the sky. In KidZania there are roads that go around the city. Only kids are allowed in KidZania and while in KidZania you do jobs to earn the KidZanian currency, Kidzos. Before you go in they give you a cheque that you cash in at the bank. That cheque is worth 20 Kidzos. The first job that me and Denise did was being a mail courier. We put on uniforms and delivered packages to places in KidZania. When we were done we went back to the office and they gave us 8 Kidzos.
This is us doing our courier duties.
The second job we did was working in a Veterinary Clinic. Me and Denise took care of fake dogs and cats, we also got 8 Kidzos from that.
At some point Denise worked as an Optometrist at an eye care centre.
This is me being a firefighter, we drove in the fire truck down the streets of KidZania with a loud siren blaring.
Denise worked as a mechanic at the KidZania mechanic shop. She really liked it.
This is me at the Bottling Plant. It was really fun filling up the bottles with apple juice and sealing them with cool machines and contraptions. 
This is Denise at the KidZania Milk Factory, I think she looks so cute in her uniform.
This is us listening to what we are going to do at the Koh-Kae Peanut Factory. After you got the peanuts ready for going to the store they gave you a little packet of peanuts.
This is Denise working as a Florist at the flower studio in KidZania.
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