11/12 - The Runaround along Shinsaibashi

We woke up late this last full day in Osaka.  Our feet needed the extra rest.  Can you think of pulsing feet?  That's close to the feeling we had even with a night's rest.  The morning shower was welcome, even though it was extra cramped and it was hard to move around in.  There were no more passes to use today, so we would be on our feet again all day again.

We walked down the Senbai [船場] section of Shinsaibashi [心齋橋], south towards the main Shinsaibashi-suji [心齋橋筋] stretch with the major shops.  The Senbai section felt more like the local neighbourhood shopping arcade.  We walked 3 blocks south and realized that we weren't all that far away from the Hearton Hotel in Shinsaibashi.  We could have literally rolled our luggage with relative ease from the hotel to the guesthouse the day before.  That would have saved hundreds of dollars in post-Japan physio on H's back.

H's first order of the day was to find breakfast.  N just wanted to shop until lunchtime.  It wasn't early enough to qualify this meal as breakfast, but it was also obviously not late enough in the day to have all the shops open.  H was really getting "hangry" so N picked a McDonald's in Shinsaibashi-suji.  Unfortunately, we just missed the breakfast menu by 5 minutes.  H ordered a Ebi Filet burger.  Think Filet-o-Shrimp.  H took a coffee with his meal, but he felt the Canadian coffee tasted better.

After the quick meal, we walked out to the 24 hour Tsutaya bookstore just tucked behind all the famous, currently unlit, neon signs right on the other side of the Dontobori Bridge.  Just as in North America, this bookstore is complete with Starbucks.  Eat your heart out Chapters.

This is when H had a sudden No. 2 calling, if you know what I mean.  Don't you just hate it when you travel and you desperately need a toilet.  Grr.  N remained in the bookstore while H searched out an appropriate WC.  H remembered that there was a public toilet just by the Dotonbori [道噸堀] Bridge.  So he stepped out over there and was about to go in when he spotted a disgusting mess.  He didn't even have to get that close to the toilet to see it.  There was no way he was going in.  So he ran back to the McDonald's to see use their toilet.  The one toilet there was occupied.  Just wait a few minutes and it should become free, right?  The guy was in their for 10 minutes.  He must have reading the newspaper or the most recent copy of a "cream" mag.  10 friggin' minutes.  H was starting to hop up and down at this point.  He ran back to Tsutaya and realized that there was directory near the escalators that revealed a men's WC on the 3/F.  Relief!!  How do you say that in Japanese?!

from the room of Danny Choo

After this runaround Shinsaibashi-suji, H rejoined N in the Tsutaya bookstore.  H came across a copy of Otacool.  He follows a blog by Danny Choo, who was the brainchild behind this book on otaku and their otaku rooms from around the world.  Being in Japan, buying a Japanese book is over 50% cheaper than buying it back in Vancouver.  So H instantly lapped up the book.

We walked back up north to Nagahori-dori to the Tokyu Hands department store.  It's a very popular department store in Japan.  It has also a very large DIY and crafts section in the store that attracted N's interest.  We bought some items that would be very hard-to-find in Canada.  We figured that if you even found the same item in Canada, it would be 50% 100% more expensive back home.

After grabbing a few more souvenirs at various shops, it was time to go get some grub again.  There was sushi place that we had passed.  You can't miss the place because it has a giant dragon wrapped around a large red sphere hanging up as their logo.  We decided to partake in what they had to offer.  This place was one of those classic conveyor belt sushi places.  It was mid-afternoon and well after lunch, so we got a seat right away.

They had tea on tap in this place too.  Just get your cup and press it against the button.  Voila!  Hot tea pours right out on demand.  You've gotta love that cause you can never have enough tea in a restaurant.  No need to ask the server for a refill.  Awesome.

Used to think that conveyor belt sushi would only have sushi, but this place had their desserts, napkins and other stuff on the belt.  So if you wanted to take dessert early, there would be no issue.  Or if you needed extra napkins, just pick it off the belt.  There's even dessert spoons in a little cup that come around from time to time.  Just hope the people before don't pinch it before it gets to you.  Otherwise, you'd have to wait until the next round of goodies.

There was some more traditional sushi, but there were also some strange ones.  The one is black pepper meat was not my favourite.  Some things are best not served with rice and seaweed.  In the end, we did pretty well and demolished at least 20 tiny dishes of sushi and dessert.  The proof was in our stack of plates at the end.  Unlike most conveyor belt sushi places, this place did not charge by the plate.  It was all you can eat for under ¥1,000.  That was a deal in a major tourist and shopping district.  I wonder if that was the happy hour price?

Our feet were already pretty pooped from days and days of walking.  So we headed back to the guesthouse to rest and pack up our belongings.  Back there, we borrowed the guesthouse owner's one computer to look for a large onsen in Osaka that was recommended by one of N's Hong Kong friends.  Her friend had actually been there and posted her photos of the place on Facebook.  So we had to go check it out.  N found the name, address, and directions.  We had our evening plans laid out for some good old Japanese R & R.

11/11 - Umeda Sky Building and the Floating Garden

We left Namco City in search of the Umeda Sky Building.  We had to snake our way again past the massive department stores in this part of town, including the enormous Hankyu [阪急]department store/train station complex and Yodobashi Camera (huge electronics department store).  Then just past Yodobashi Camera, we had to follow the very long underground passageway to Shin Umeda City.  Who was the brilliant person who decided to put this huge complex on the other side of the railway tracks?

After walking for what seemed like forever on our already tired feet, we arrived at the foot of the Umeda Sky Building, a pair of towers connected at the top by a huge platform complete with observatory.  Again, we were fortunate to have the Osaka Unlimited Pass and gained free admission to the Floating Garden observatory 173m in the air.

The elevator didn't take us up all the way.  Part of the fun is to take the escalator that takes you up in the between the two towers.  This may be the world's highest suspended escalator.  Certainly, it seems like the scariest to any one with vertigo.

Not only was there the outdoor observatory, but there were other things on display up top.  There was one area where there were student projects on sustainable and healthy living.  There were some interesting, if not truly practical, concepts.

There was also a room with an interactive projected display in the middle of the room.  When you sat on the benches on the side, your motion on the benches could change the display on the floor in the middle of the room. 

Outside on the actual observatory platform, it was quite blustery.  However, the nighttime views of Osaka were beautiful.  I don't think our pictures can really capture the entire atmosphere.  In addition to the views, the whole platform was bathed in black light that lit up little parts of the floor in different shades of green and purple.

On one side of the platform was a special lovers' seat.  It was a simple red bench in the middle of an area with a lit up floor.  The light tiles would constantly change colours and form different patterns, like a heart.  All around the area were lovers locks hanging along the railings.  It seems to be a popular thing in Asia to buy a lock as a couple and lock it somewhere special.  H has also seen the same phenomenon in China at many tourist attractions.  However, the area was tightly guarded and was locked out to the general public.  It seems like you would need to reserve the bench and pay a fee for the right to snuggle at 173m in the air.

And, of course, there's the view.  Regular price is ¥700, which is almost half the price of Vancouver's Lookout at Harbour Centre's $15 admission.  So the view is well worth the regular price of admission.  You could see in all directions.  The city views to the south and east were beautiful.  Views to the west were of Osaka Bay, and to the north was the river and the lower lying northern burbs.

We came down off our 173m high back to the ground and back underneath the railway tracks to the main part of Umeda [梅田].  It was still early and H needed additional clothing because we had extended our stay, so we went to Uniqlo and bought some stuff.  Then on the way back to the subway station, we saw a Kinokuniya bookstore[紀伊國屋書店].  This is quite possibly Japan's largest bookstore company with stores overseas as well.  N couldn't resist picking up a few books here - 3 manga and 1 budget tracking book. 

By this time our feet were truly, truly done for.  We trudged our way back to the guesthouse from the subway.  Our feet kill!!!

11/11 - Gyoza Museum

Back on the subway to Umeda [梅田].  We went topside and it was now completely dark.  We snaked our way past a department store or two to find our way to the Namco City building.  If you're not familiar with Namco, they are a big video game producer.  Their most famous title would be Pac-Man.

Our destination, the Gyoza Museum, was atop several stories of a video game arcade.  Again, these food museums tend not to be actual museums, but really a food court that is dedicated to a specific dish or cuisine.  In this case, it is the common, but oh so varied gyoza.

Gyoza [餃子]is the Japanese name for what is essentially Chinese dumpling (known as jiaozi in Chinese).  There is a lot of variety in the way these dumplings are stuffed and cooked.  So we arrived at the Gyoza Museum with high expectations.  The very first stall was right at the top of the escalator.  We were greeted instantly by the worker there.

After a few exchanges between N and this worker, she asked us if we were Chinese.  It turns out that she is a Chinese international student studying Japanese in Osaka.  She said she was from Liaoning province in the Northeast of China.  She was very excited to meet other Chinese in Osaka.  So obviously, we had to order something from her.

The Chinese student gave us our number for our order and we found a table in the seating area.  N suggested we split duties and find some more gyoza.  So we both went to a couple of stalls and ordered a gyoza dish from each one.  Here's the very short skinny on each dish. 

Ironplate Pan fried gyoza from the Chinese girl's gyoza stall.  H thinks it was pork, but we don't remember now.

Here's fried gyoza covered in loads of green onions (aka. negi gyoza).  Plus, that was drenched in soya sauce.

Fried mayonnaise gyoza.  We're assuming that it was pork inside too.

A very oily pan fried gyoza.  This was too oily from what we remember.

What special gyoza is this?  N says it was a cheese gyoza garnished with broccoli on the side.

[All photos, especially of food, are courtesy of N ... naturally]

Overall the Gyoza Museum was worth the visit.  There was way more available than just these 5 dishes.  Now that our tummies were full, it was time for one last destination for the evening.  Our feet were tired, but we were pressing on.

11/11 - Tsutenkaku Tower & Shinseikai

We were out to squeeze the most out of our Osaka Unlimited Pass on this, the last day of its use.  We took the subway down to the Shinseikai area of Osaka.  We got out at Ebisucho [恵美須] station.  Shinseikai [新世界]literally means "new world" and was the buzz of Japanese modernization in the early 20th Century.  Nowadays, it's more of a older neighbourhood with a sketchy reputation.  However, there was one attraction that brought us this way - the Tsutenkaku [通天閣]Tower.

Now, I probably wouldn't have come to this tower if it weren't for the free admission.  And after having been up and down the tower, I probably wouldn't return again.  It was likely a great attraction back in the early 1900's when it was built, but the tower is not all that tall and gives a modest aerial view of the surrounding environs.

On the way up in the dark, dark elevator, you are greeted by elevator attendant and the starry night sky on the ceiling of the elevator.  Etched within the full moon in the starry sky is a strange image. As we would later discover, this is Billiken, the God of Happiness.

In one view, we can make out Spa World, a giant spa and hotel facility that claims to feature spas and onsens from around the world.  On the website, Spa World looks promising and fun.  However, the admission is quite pricy and we had decided not to bother going.  Besides, it wasn't the most unique spa in the world.  Our Taiwanese guesthouse lady mentioned to us that Spa World had become somewhat sketchy.  Sex workers knew that many foreigners would visit Spa World and she said that these workers could be found frequenting Spa World.  I don't know how true that rumour is, but the price alone kept me away.

On the other side of the tower, you could see the nearby Tennoji Zoo.  That was also free with our Unlimited Pass, but we weren't interested in seeing a zoo here in Japan.  The aquariums are much nicer :)  In another viewpoint, you could just see endless towers and buildings layout across southern Osaka.  I can see where Osaka's reputation of being a gray and bland concrete jungle comes from.

One of the big draws of Tsutenkaku Tower is the wooden idol of Billiken [ビリケン], the God of Happiness.  Many visitors apparently rub the soles of his feet for good luck.  Both soles were well worn and Billiken was in desperate and obvious need of a podiatrist, especially his right foot.  H, for one, refrained from touching the soles of idol.  He's just not into that kind of stuff.  Although he did go through that hole back at Todai-ji in Nara... oh and the caution tape is not there most of the time as far as I can tell.  There was a youth event going on in the tower that decorated the place in police tape.

[side note:  apparently Billiken has American origins that I discovered through a Wikipedia search]

The other thing we came across in the tower was a vending machine with a strawberry yogurt drink that N remembers having many years ago.  She couldn't resist popping a few hundred yen in the machine to sample this drink.  H bought one too of another flavour.  N really liked hers, but H thought his was really sour and bland.

Nightfall was upon the city and we were eager to get some food.  Tonight's dinner mission - The Gyoza Museum in Umeda.