Osaka Day 3

No time for breakfast this morning - we had to leave the hotel soon after 0700 so that we could be at our meeting place for our bus trip by 0750. We successfully caught the train from our nearest station (Shinsaibashi) to Namba where we disembarked. Namba station is huge. We had to find Exit 7 (there are 32 exits)!
After a short walk we found the meeting place for our Himeji Castle bus tour. There was also a Seven 11 convenience store close by so we bought some sandwiches and coffee. These convenience stores are everywhere and they are fantastic - as you will discover later!
It took maybe 1.5 hours to get to Himeji Castle. It is a World Cultural Heritage Site and the most famous Japanese Castle. We were fortunate that a volunteer guide was available to take us and 2 young German girls on a private tour for 90 mins. What luck!
We then went to a restaurant for lunch which was included in the fee. Wow, it was just delicious! We have to admit that we didn't find out what dishes we were served, but suffice to say, but it was amazing!
We then went to some Onsen Baths, however, all we did was sit with our feet in some very warm water outside the baths. Onsen bathing will come later (in private!) The last stop of the tour was a magnificent lookout of Osaka.
We arrived back at our Hotel without any dramas by train and made a hasty visit to the local Seven 11 store where we found a cold bottle of Italian white wine, which we enjoyed with our left over food from a couple of nights ago .
3 days in Japan and we both love the place. Shops and people everywhere, but it is a vibrant, exciting and safe place to be. Tomorrow is our last day in Osaka. We will chill a bit and prepare for the next part of our Japan adventure - bike riding in the Shikoku region.Read more