When we arrived at Osaka Airport, our first job was to get our Japan Rail Pass. If you are lucky enough to ever visit Japan and you want to travel around the country, a rail pass is a must! As we were travelling for 5 months, we weren’t able to buy ours in advance so we had to buy it on arrival for a slightly higher price but it still saved us a fortune.
The city of Osaka is a renowned gastronomist’s dream so the first place to visit had to be Dotonburi with its thriving nightlife and takoyaki filled streets. It was absolutely buzzing and despite being busy, was surprisingly easy to walk around. We hit a takoyaki stall straight away and our first bite of the famous Osaka snack can only be described as extremely tasty lava. Our mouths were burnt to shreds by the molten insides of the fried octopus balls. Lesson learned the hard way – let them cool down a bit before you shove one in your mouth. Once we recovered, we could appreciate the snack and ended up with another tray full as they are sooooo good!!
Next – ARCADES!!!! Paul will be writing a post in more detail about the arcades but for now, just know that THEY ARE SO MUCH FUN!!!
Osaka is Japan’s 3rd largest city and therefore has a public transport network to be jealous of. You can easily jump on a train and get to other parts of the country with hardly any effort at all. We opted for a trip out to the small island of Miyajima and Hiroshima (see other post) and a few hours at the Expo ’70 Commemorative Park. The latter is a large public park which was the site of the Japan World Exposition in 1970. The iconic symbol of the park is the Tower of the Sun which stands at 70 metres high overlooking the entrance to the park and appears to be overseeing the whole area. It’s a really lovely place to walk around and the Japanese Garden is not to be missed. As with most places in Japan, there are vending machines aplenty so whether you are hot or cold, there will always be a drink to suit your needs on every corner.
Anyway, an Osaka highlight has to be the castle. If you can, try and be there for the sunset as the lighting looking out over the Okawa River is a view that is hard to beat and the whole castle grounds become hazy and alluring. The castle itself appears to glow and you can only begin to wonder what it was originally like because it wasn’t the luckiest of castles! It was built back in the 16th century by Toyotomi Hideyoshi to bring Japan together under his ruling. However, after his death in the 17th century, the Tokugawa troops attacked and destroyed the castle, which inevitably ended the Toyotomi lineage. The castle was then rebuilt in the 1620s but was unfortunately struck by lightning and the main tower was burnt down in 1665. The Castle Tower that stands there now is a reconstruction which was eventually erected in 1931. Fingers crossed it lasts!!!!
All in all, I think Osaka has to be on your itinerary if you’re visiting Japan. It’s architecture, nightlife and street food is up there as some of the best in the world and you can also treat yourself to a visit to Universal Studios and the world famous aquarium. For me it has something for everybody to enjoy and I’m already looking forward to visiting again!!!