Finally gotten a chance to visit Osaka with dad! It was my first trip to Japan and i was all excited and nervous to meet up with my relatives for the first time. We travelled by JAL economy class (finally, no more budget air!:P)
We arrived at Narita Airport (Tokyo) around 4pm plus and transit to Osaka Kansai Airport. By the time we reach Kansai Airport, it was already 7pm plus. The moment we reached, we proceed to Softbank for rental of SIM card and then we proceed to Dai-Ichi Hotel (located at Umeda) by the limousine bus. The journey from the airport to the hotel took about 1hour plus. So for the first night, we did not have much time to explore Umeda as it was already close to 9pm when we gotten to the hotel.
Luckily there were a few restaurants still open after we checked in to the hotel. We had our dinner at this restaurant that served Takoyakis and Okonomiyakis. We ordered only Okonomiyaki, Yakisoba and some non-alcoholic Kirin beer for dinner. The waiters at the restaurant were polite and friendly. They served our order pretty fast too!
After our dinner, we went to explore the underpass that was just beside our hotel. This underpass leads to a few railway stations. As Umeda/Osaka station is the busiest in Western Japan, they have four different railway companies like Japan railways (Shinkansen - bullet train), Hankyu railways, Hanshin railways and the subways. Yes i know, complicated right? Four railways in one location can be really confusing. During my 6 days stay in Osaka, I couldn't figure out which railway leads to which locations. Tsktsk :P I am lucky that my dad is a Japanese and he know the way pretty well. If I were to travel alone, I think i could get lost anytime!
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| Japan has really cool vending machines! |
| The hot grills (Teppan) for Takoyaki and Okonomiyaki. |
I couldn't drink alcholic beer so I ordered alcohol-free Kirin beer. :P
Yaki Soba - means fried noodles. It is served with bite-sized pork, cabbages, onions, ramen and flavored with yaki soba sauce. It has garnishes sucha as Aonori (dried seaweeds), Katsuobushi (dried bonito) and Beni Shoga (Shredded pickled gingers).
Okonomiyaki(left) - Japanese pancake made of flour, eggs, cabbages, green onions, pork bacons, octopus, shrimps. "Okonomi" means whatever you like or whatever you want and "Yaki" means grilled or cooked. Okonomiyaki is said to be originated in Osaka and its known as "Osaka soul-food".
Hanshin Umeda Station (Hanshin Railways) - Their ticketing machines are unique!
These are the four railway routes that bring you around Osaka. I was pretty much confused with the different kinds of railways offered in Osaka. Shinkansen, Hanshin Railways, Subways and Hankyu Railways.
Tobacco vending machine! How convenient!
Midnight snacks that I got from the vending machine - Yebisu beer and Japanese crackers while watching some entertainment programme on TV. :)
This pretty much sums up our first night in Umeda. Stay tuned for more updates on my Osaka trip! :)
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