Konichiwa Osaka

Our last morning in Tokyo was a leisurely start... Ryan and Willow went out to get their last chicken and rice breakfast, and after packing and some chill time, we checked out pretty much at 11am on the dot. We were headed to Osaka on the shinkansen (bullet train) so made our lives easier and hopped a 10 minute taxi to nearby Tokyo Station. It was easy enough to buy tickets for the 2.5 hour trip (not cheap, but so much more convenient than a flight). The trains leave around every 20 minutes, so before we knew it, we were off and away! Too easy, considering there was no planning involved.

On the shinkansen!

The trains are so long - 16 carriages and what felt like half a kilometre considering we had to walk to the first 3 carriages which were for non-reserved seats. A couple of stops, and then we were hurtling past a snow-capped Mount Fuji (didn't see that in the silhouette we saw the night before!). Bound for Osaka, a security officer stopped by mid-way through the trip and asked us if we were a family and insisted he take a photo of us. Thanks security man! I guess security officers don't have to be assholes when the general population is so respectful and well-behaved.

Soon enough we arrived in Osaka, and having skipped her nap, Willow was a bit moody once we arrived and decided she didn't want to get off the train, so we had to scoop her off the train so that the shinkansen could stick to its strict timetable. We had booked an Air BnB near Namba station, which was just one easy subway ride and a 4 minute walk away. Easy peasy Japanesey.

Safely into our apartment, which had TWO double beds (such a luxuriously roomy unit in Japan), we settled in and recharged our batteries (our own, and our phones and laptops). Then we were ready to hit the town for some exploring and in search of some good food. A five minute walk away from the famous Dotonburi  area, we dived in head-first into the sensory overload experience. Bright flashing lights and people in every direction, this is the Osaka that I remembered. I stopped in a busy plaza area with Willow while Ryan went in search of some more cash (not necessarily an easy task in Japan, and yes, they still love cash). When Ryan came back, I realised the big screen I had been watching was suddenly screening the very spot we were standing in, so Ryan took Willow over to where the camera was filming and the Japanese girls were waving back to Willow, saying (I assume) "Kawaii". It was hilarious.

Famous!

So we wandered along the Tombori river, soaking up all the sights and sounds and smells, and decided on somewhere for dinner. This little place specialised in yakitori (basically meat on skewers) so we had a bunch of them, and also some little jars of wine! Very special. Then we retired to the "new hotel" for an early night.

Little wine jar

The next morning was a beautiful day, so after Ryan and Willow came back and had their chicken and rice breakfast, we set off for the aquarium near Osaka Bay. The aquarium, Kaiyukan, is one of the biggest in the world, and since Willow has loved the aquariums she has visited so far in her little life, we were all excited about going. It is an awesome place - I was expecting it to be like the Sydney aquarium where you walk through the tube that is all around you, and you do at the start for a short while, but then you take a massive escalator up I don't know how many levels, and gradually walk and wind your way back down via 15 tanks that house sea life from different areas of the Pacific Rim, the highlight for most being two whale sharks in a 9m deep tank.

Jellyfish

I thought it was awesome, and Willow got to find Nemo and Dory!. I loved how you could walk through and see the different fish at different depths... and thank goodness for the Great Barrier Reef tank. At least we will still be able to see it somewhere in the future. After a few hours at the aquarium, we were starving so went to the food-court at the Westfield equivalent next door for some lunch. Gyoza and ramen - happy days.

Gyoza and ramen

Just get the elevator down the stairs, they say

After a long journey back (Ryan trusted Google to give us a route with less stairs, he was wrong - it is not helpful when the signs to the elevator point you down a flight of stairs) we made it back to Namba and then organised to meet up with Steve, my good friend's brother who lives in Osaka who we last caught up with here in 2010. We caught up in a place for some good takoyaki (octopus balls) and learned a lot about his life in Osaka and what it's like to live here. I had mentioned I loved okonomiyaki (Japanese pancake) so Steve took us to an awesome place in Umeda up high in a skyscraper. It was hilarious seeing us walk in and the waiter give us English menus, then Steve later order in fluent Japanese. Two okonomyaki later, cooked on the hot plate in front of us, and we were full and happy. What an awesome introduction to Osaka.