Osaka was amazing! While I didn't spent much time in this city, I did roam around the streets quite a bit, to eat, to shop, and to embrace the big-city life. Taking the JR Line from Kyoto to Osaka, I found myself roaming around the Osaka Station where two shopping malls engulfed me. But shopping was not the only reason. The other reason was because the restaurants are at the top floors of the malls, and I had to slowly make my way up to grab some lunch... and was I impressed.
Selected Site-Seeing
Heading back down to the station to check-in at my next accommodation also had it's challenges as I continue to shop and browse for various things. That is how shops lure you in, but I did make it down without much wallet damage. And found myself starring at one of the two famous ferris wheels known in Osaka, HEP Five Ferris Wheel (http://www.hepfive.jp). This one lights up red at night and it's closed to Umeda Station, while the other one, Tempozan Ferris Wheel (http://www.japan-guide.com/e/e4010.html) is close to the Osaka Aquarium Kaiyukan (http://www.kaiyukan.com/language/eng/).
Osaka Station is also very close to the Umeda Sky Building (http://www.kuchu-teien.com/english/), known to tourist see the view of the entire city. I didn't get to go to the Sky Building this time, but do have a picture from my previous trip in the evening. I highly recommend anyone to go at night, just because night view is always always better than the ones during the day.
Street Roaming Location 1: Shinsaibashi
First location would obviously be Shinsaibashi, the shopping district at Namba Station. There's so much to shop there, but one store I found catching for me was the @cosme store (http://cosmestore.net/) which sells all the best cosmestic products ranked by Japanese ladies in Japan. It was like a girl's dream, everything was there! And the best part was that it opens until 3AM! Best find ever!
Aside from shopping, there are also lots of food selections at Shinsaibashi, something I definitely need to rave about is the rare cheesecake at Pablo (http://www.pablo3.com/english.html). I had three different flavours, and they are to die for. I'm still craving them to this day. The flavours in the pictures below are 1) original rare cheesecake, 2) green tea cheesecake tart and 3) pumpkin rare cheesecake.
For more traditional Japanese cheesecake, Rikuro's (http://www.rikuro.co.jp/) is something I highly recommend! It's a little different from the rare cheesecake that of Pablo's, but you can't go wrong when it comes to tradition! Please note, Rikuro's is not located in Shinsaibashi, please see the embedded link for location information.
Shinsaibashi isn't all about cheesecake. I also had some delicious udon and inari sushi at one of the udon stores. When in Japan, you should always slurp your udon. I heard it from a tour guide when I was younger. Apparently, slurping your udon loudly signifies to the chef that his udon is very tasty. Talk about table manners, here's something new!
Street Roaming Location 2: Dotonbori
Shinsaibashi isn't the only location that has stores open till 3AM, in fact, just down the street, Dotonbori is the place to be if you want some night life!
If you are daring, Dotonbori is where I tried puffer fish sashimi. Fact #1: puffer fish can kill you as it is poisonous. Fact #2: a chef that prepares puffer fish sashimi must have more than 10 years of serving sashimi experience and must eat his very first plate of puffer fish sashimi that he prepared before serving his customers. Fact #3: more people die eating mochi than puffer fish. Conclusion, it is your choice to whether you choose to eat puffer fish sashimi or not. Take a chance, it's 50/50 anyways. I survived to tell the tale.
Street Roaming Location 3: Kuromon Market
While this location is less well-known and rather far from other areas, Kuromon Market is the place to be if you want some Osaka favourites. Kuromon Market is similar to Tsukiji Market in Tokyo, minus the auction. Here you can try different variety of foods in the Kansai region including: takoyaki, okonomiyaki, and kobe beef. Be warned, you should go here early, as Kuromon Market closes at 5PM! The early you get here, the better and the more fresh the food is!
Extra tip when travelling in Osaka
If you want to tour the city of Osaka, it is worth spending money on a 1-day or a 2-day pass that comes with a metro ticket for unlimited number of metro rides as well as free admission to various site-seeing places including the Umeda Sky Building. For more information: click here.
And that's a quick snapshot of Osaka. Until next time :'(
