大阪 OSAKA

dotombori

The third largest city by population after Tokyo and Yokohama in the Kansai region, has traditionally been referred to as the nations kitchen or the mecca of gourmet food. Historically the commercial capital of Japan,Osaka functions as one of the command centers for Japans economy and trade.

Osaka castle

My year in Osaka was on of the best times of my stay in Japan. I arrive at the kansai airport in early spring, just in time for the cherry blossoms.All the way from the airport I was on a constant lookout for the cherry trees, I was pleased to find that most of the cherry trees are yet to fully blossom. Giving me at least 2 weeks to settle in before going out chasing after the pink petals.




Osaka Castle grounds in Autumn

 


Meeting a lot of students from other countries was overwhelming, there are countries that Ive never heard of before, for example, Benin. We spend the next week getting to know each other while exploring the streets of Nippombashi, namba leading all the way to shinsaibashi and Umeda. We live in this prime location, Uehonmachi, 10 mins from Nippombashi and Namba on foot and 10 mins in the other direction is tennoji. We have access to most of the convenient rail way lines and some of the great sightseeing and historical attractions that osaka has to offer. The osaka-jo /Osaka castle, the naniwa ruins and the shitennoji temple, tennoji zoo and gardens and the museum of modern art.

Naniwa Ruins

At night I use to ride my bike to the Osaka castle, just to watch the stars and climb the high walls and lie there thinking bout life and most of the time nothing. Osaka castle is built on 2 raised platforms and a tall stone foundation , protecting the occupants from attackers. The admission is 600yen to enter, inside it is quite modern with elevators and other amenities. The view from the lookout platform is magical, the castle ground is visible from the top which covers 60,000 square metres.

Next to the castle is Naniwa ruins, ruins of an ancient palace discovered by a local archaeologist in 1957. Now its just an empty green space with   a reconstructed foundation of the actual palace which now looks like a stage. That attracts highschool students pretending to be AKB48. 

Some evenings in search of a quiet spot I would head in the other direction to the shitennoji temple. It is the oldest state temple , was founded in 593 by prince shotoku who supported the introduction of Buddhism  into Japan. Now most of the buildings are post WW2 reconstruction however they try to maintain the original  construction and design. I find the turtle pond quite entertaining and the treasure house veeerrrry interesting. The treasure house exhibits the temples valuables and scriptures including art works and other treasures belonging to the temple. They usually held flea markets and festivals in the temple grounds at least once a month.



When most of my friends shop in shinshaibashi or namba, I decided to shop and hang out in Tennoji. For me its the best place to hang out on Saturdays, its less crowded and all my favourite shops are just 2 minutes from each other which makes shopping even more easier and fun.  Be warned though, that tennoji can get a bit dangerous sometimes with half the homeless population residing near it. The Pachinkos and bars also attract a rowdy crowd, there are rumours of people being bashed here including foreigners. Usually by an unknown group just targeting random passerby.



Glico



Other weekends its a visit to either Nara, Kyoto or Kobe. That's the best thing about living in Osaka, if you get tired or need to get in touch with mother nature or get cultured, just hop on the train within the hour you are in another city. My favourite city is Kobe of course, I find the sea port beautiful and new, like everything was just built yesterday. The restaurants here are exceptional,specialising in sea food and other dishes. 







Osaka people are the best!!! they are very friendly and kind, always there to help a stranger and any lost foreigner. They love chatting to foreigners, asking them where they are from, what they are doing here and so forth. That's something rare in Tokyo, when I first came to Tokyo I felt lonely and scared. Everybody was soo cold, which is not the case but once you get use to the friendliness of the people in Osaka. You will find Tokyo cold, rude and racist. Being a foreigner in Osaka is awesome, making friends and keeping them is no problem. My first Japanese friend was this guy who got curious and started asking me questions about my nationality etc etc in a 7/11. We became friends and hang out often, was introduced to his girlfriend and family. Half the people I became friends with while in Osaka are random people who I meet while walking home, waiting for a bus, riding the train. They are so friendly that it gets scary sometimes, like them trusting a complete stranger is weird. I was on my home once when this lovely old couple invited me in for tea, I was shocked. How do they know that I'm not going to rob them?? or am I gonna get killed. But once you get use to it, its no shock. We had tea, talked for an hour then I head home and after that I always receive the hello's, good mornings, bye bye.

 

Osaka Castle grounds



I have  a lot of fond memories of Osaka, nothing bad. Starting a new life in a foreign country can get tough but I was glad I started off in Osaka before moving to Tokyo. I still feel the difference and long for the days I spent in Osaka. During my breaks I would hop on the train or the night bus and go to Osaka to meet friends and enjoy the laid back lifestyle, the good food and getting in touch with nature and history.