On Wednesday, we took it a little easier again after such a busy Tuesday in Kyoto. We headed to Osaka, to the aquarium there. It was an excellent aquarium, complete with:
•penguins•sea otters•dolphins seals•sea lions•giant sea turtles•eels (scary!!)•sharks•whale shark•tuna•manta ray•jellyfish•octupi, among other creatures. We spent quite a long while at the aquarium, actually. At the exit of the aquarium there was a seafood restaurant, which we found a little sadistic, especially considering how many excited children were at the aquarium. We proved a bit hypocrtical, however, since we had sushi for dinner! Even the tuna, who was rather cute. Cute, but so tasty!
After dinner, we headed over to the concert hall for a performance of the Pacific Music Festival, where we had a few USC friends playing. Actually, there were also several Northwestern acquaintances, and even someone from my youth orchestra, though for the most part I was unable to see them afterward. Oh well. The all-Russian program was interesting, and I enjoyed the performance. So many talented musicians! The oboists were all excellent. One of them just won a job in the Atlanta Symphony. Although it's true she does not have a Mack sound, it was clear to hear how she won the job. She phrased so musically and with such conviction. Inspiring and depressing at the same time!
Aki was babysitting one of our friend's basses when he went on vacation to China from Japan (Osaka was the last stop for PMF). We had an adventure getting the enormous bass (in its flight case, no less!!!) home from Osaka on the train. It was incredibly muggy that night, poor Theo was dripping by the time we got home. I'm glad I don't play bass. It's truly a beautiful instrument, but so difficult to travel with. Or move at all with. Anyway, that was our day in Osaka. Just two more days to enjoy Japan.
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