Osaka

From Jakarta to Osaka!
JAPAN! Wow, who knew we would make it there, and as bad as we both wanted to go, we weren’t sure it would happen.
Well, here we go! OSAKA! We were hopeful we had gotten off at the right train stop near our hotel, as it was late and a long travel day. But we did, and as confusing as the train terminal was, we made it out and found the hotel! The room was very small, but we didn’t mind!
We spent three full days in Osaka, and we walked and walked and walked! Vending machines were spread out around the city, the train and subway system was top notch and the people were amazing! We ventured into small alleyways showcasing the traditional Japanese lanterns, and found ourselves beside a Japanese shrine without even knowing! And this was all on our first day! The temple we stumbled upon was the famous Hozenji Temple, which had a beautiful moss covered Buddha statue situated in the middle of the stone-paved streets. The malls were endless and you could spend days in them, bikers were abundant and the food, oh the food! Who knew that you could eat all your meals at a convenience store and not hate yourself after? In the night time we trekked to Dotonbori, a district in Osaka with hundreds of neon lights and sidewalks aglow with the colours and flashiness one can assume when visiting Japan! We sat in a rotating lift that elevated us high above Dotonbori and got to see the lights from above! After tiring ourselves out we ventured back to our hotel and slept away!
The two main events of our trip was the Osaka castle and visiting Minoo park.
First we visited was Osaka castle, and it was an amazing experience. The castle itself was built in 1583 by Toyotomi Hideyoshi. it is a famous Japanese landmark and has hundreds of years of storied history. We ventured up the small walled stairs with a view of Osaka, and enjoyed the museum that was a part of the experience.
The second main event was Minoo Park. We reached Minoo by taking three separate subway lines and walked past countless vendors supplying deep fried maple leafs. We knew we had to try some, but we waited until we came back down. The walk was peaceful, except for the giant baboon (monkey with pink butt) we saw, but thankfully it left us alone. The signs warning us of pit vipers kept us alert, but nonetheless we reached the waterfalls! After viewing them for a few moments we were on our way back and we sampled the fried maple leafs, they were sweet, and delicious, for a leaf that is!
That is the jist of our Osaka trip, it was also our first experience into Japan, and it did not disappoint!Read more