TLDR
Osaka is a good intro to Japan, easy to get around and enough to do for 2 days.
Favorite site: Whale Shark at the Aquarium
Favorite restaurant/bar: Space station
First post on the road! This is coming out much later than I intended but there’s just been so much to do and see in Japan that I have procrastinated writing for good reason.
Meenabs dropped us off at the airport early on the morning of the 15th after Abs fed us his version of a Jackie shroff breakfast creation (iykyk).
It felt really weird to be with our single small suitcase and backpack and knowing we were going to be living out of these for the foreseeable future. Weird but also liberating.
At the airport there was a hot second where it seemed we might have a problem checking in (eek). Fortunately it was somehow resolved. Having so many flights from so many different carriers on a single ticket is not something I have any experience with. If something goes wrong I have no idea how hard it would be to fix it!
Airplane movie ratings
Joy Ride: 3 stars
Past Lives: 4 stars
Puss in Boots - the last wish: 2.5 stars
Confess, Fletch: 3.5 stars
We landed in Osaka on the afternoon of the 16th. It was pretty easy to get a train from the airport that took us right to our hotel. Because our hotel was in Osaka central station. By in the station, I mean IN the station. We walked from the platforms to an elevator which took us right to the hotel lobby. Unlike airport hotels, I can safely report that train station hotels do not conform to stereotype. They are totally worth it for the convenience alone since we got around everywhere by train or subway. Japanese train stations and transport are so fascinating that I think I’ll do a whole separate post just about it.
Our strategy to combat jetlag is to seek out the loudest and brightest atmosphere possible. Fortunately Osaka delivers with Dotunburi.
This is what it looked like on a Monday night - in theory the least crowded time of the week. Dotunburi is famous for its lines of food stalls and shops accompanied by huge neon signs. Its not time square but lets just say a giant elmo would not be completely out of place.
The one thing being sold everywhere was Takoyaki. Its basically a fried ball with octopus on the inside and is an Osaka specialty. Neither Su nor I were too keen to try octopus but we saw it eaten everywhere we went in Osaka for the rest of the trip.
The next day we went out exploring Osaka city. Osaka is one of the largest cities in Japan and has a history of being a major port and center of trade. There are quite a few rivers which crisscross through the city that we noticed as we explored the city on foot.
We got a chance to try the other local specialty of Osaka: Okonomiyaki. Its a bit like an omlette or crepe on steroids with toppings from the mundane (green onions) to the surprising (noodles).
Next we walked to Osaka’s most famous monument: Osaka Castle. The castle and grounds were equally impressive.
We didn’t go in (there was a bit of a wait and we’d heard it was a tad overrated) but decided to head to the Osaka aquarium next. The main claim to fame of this aquarium is the huge central tank with a whale shark
This tank was so large that it also held many other large animals besides the whale shark including several large manta rays and hammerheads. The entire aquarium was conducted around this giant tank which was at its center. Very impressive but I did have a bit of mixed feelings seeing intelligent and social animals like whale sharks and dolphins in captivity in still a relatively small amount of space.
Our last stop was this cool video game bar called Space station.
It was a tiny little setup but was almost completely full even at 8pm. They had the oldest of the old arcade game machines to the latest consoles. And the best part was they had a bunch of games to try out for each. I actually got to try out Sega Dreamcast and Sega Saturn - two consoles that were not popular but that I definitely coveted as a kid.
All in all Osaka is a solid intro to Japan. In the next post, I’ll share what really had me hyped for this part of the trip: Super Nintendo World!
KONNICHIWA
Finally got to read your much awaited post ! And it was certainly worth the wait !😍
You start your post with this TLDR 🤔(not being familiar with today’s slangs/acronyms….had to look it up😉) and I said to myself…Really ??!!
Loved the way you’ve gone about writing the post in your inimitable, humorous style, to give us a perfect glimpse of the Osaka city !
Pictures are stunning and their captions so apt !❤️
All in all a good read !👌
Waiting for the ones that follow...
Ah....the octopus, the creature that chased me everywhere on menu cards in Greece. Didn't know that it could be a staple in some countries.
Watched 5 movies in one flight? That's something I'm yet to accomplish. I tend to watch movies in planes in 3-4 easy instalments spaced apart by unsuccessful attempts to sleep.
Ninja turtle ahoy!