Osaka

I heart Osaka.  This place knows how to have a good time.  We stayed in a very reasonable hostel, 'Go Osaka!', ate shabu-shabu and drank Asahi beers every night. 

We made a trip to Fandango, a nightclub in Yodogawa-ku to check out some Japanese bands.  But, alas, it was closed when we got there.  Although, we didn't realise at the time and just walked in like some idiot tourists.  The bouncer quickly ushered us out, crossing his arms into an 'X' to signify that we couldn't come in.  For any Westerner visiting Japan, this gesture is important to remember! 

A little disappointed, I went to a nearby Mister Donut shop and stuffed my face with crispy donuts.  Then we went to a little bar where we had to pay 1000 yen just to sit down, but this at least covered our first drink.  The walls of the bar were covered in music paraphenalia and photographs of pissed patrons.  I quite liked the atmosphere, and they had a mini statue of Freddy Mercury behind the bar.  Wish I could remember the name of the place!  Too many Asahi beers, perhaps...

Osaka has loads of subterreanean shopping arcades, a little like Sydney.  I loved it.  I indulged and hurt my credit card and picked up some unique Japanese fashion.  Also, we visited the Umeda Sky Building, which has a glass elevator that goes about three quarters of the way up the building.  To get to the top, however, you need to take an elevator in a see-through plastic tube.  I had a panic attack and cried. No joke.  I am petrified of heights.  It took me about half an hour to work up the courage to get to the top, but I closed my eyes the whole way and then bought lots of touristy souveniers to make myself feel better.  

Underneath the building is the Takimi-koji alley.  The alley is a recreation of a traditional Japanese alleyway, circa early 20th century.  Very cute and quaint, but it does feel slightly like a theme-park.  Still worth checking it out, as there are some nice little shops and restaurants there (if you could afford it, that is...).

Just outside our hostel was a little "shot bar".  It was tiny, but the booze was fairly cheap.  And the owner let us put on our choice of music and even invited Steve to have a jam on his guitar.  It was great, like sitting in a tiny shack in the middle of the big city, safe from the hustle and bustle outside.  Osaka is a place of contrasts - here we were sitting in this run-down little shack, while Hummers and Lamborghinis filled up the streets outside. 


Anyone planning a trip to Japan must check out Osaka.  It's a bit hustle and bustle like Tokyo, but it has something else to it.  The food was fantastic.  The shopping was great.  Maybe it's a little less touristy and more gritty than Tokyo?  I'm not sure, but I will definitely return there one day.  

Nikko

I am so slack.  I had every intention of keeping this up-to-date, but everyday pressures have prevented me from doing so! Anyways, the next chapter in my Japan adventure was our sojourn in the town of Nikko, about 90 minutes north of Tokyo by train.


Nikko is a great place to visit if you want to see some traditional sights, but can't stray too far from Tokyo.  It was very easy to get there by train, and we used our Japan Rail Passes to make the journey.

We stayed at the Nikko Park Lodge, a very cosy establishment on the edge of town.  They served us dinner and free wifi, so I highly recommend them.  Hot onsen pools can be found nearby; we wanted to check them out but went too late in the evening and couldn't figure out how the hell to use them!  I know what you're thinking - how hard is it to use a bath?  But when everything is in Japanese and no-one is around to assist you, it can be very daunting.  Particularly as there are rules to using onsen, which I was unfamiliar with and I didn't want to come across as some Western pig...

There are plenty of shrines and temples to see, including the famed "3 Monkeys" scuplture.
We actually missed this one, due to being lost in the giant crowd that engulfed the shrine that day. But there were plenty of other sights to see, including a bit of shopping in the town. I bought some very cute souvenirs and a second-hand kimono! A fraction of the cost of a brand new one, it's a very classy black kimono featuring a golden pattern of herons and bamboo. I wear it around the house all the time, which my roommates find kind of weird...

My Tokyo

So I've finally got my act together... We went to Japan in May/June, but I'm only just sitting down now to post about my wonderful adventures.

We landed in Tokyo on a Friday night. We didn't get up to much on our first night, on account of being tired due to the long trip. But it was pretty surreal catching the train from the airport through Tokyo... The pulsating neon lights made me feel like I was in "Blade Runner"...

On the Saturday night, we hit Roppongi. I had heard conflicting reports about Roppongi. Some friends said it was awful, some thought it was great fun. We were just looking for a pub to watch the football (correction, Steve was looking for a pub to watch the football), because it was the first game of the season, or something, I didn't really know or care...

Two things I noticed - cheap drinks and lots of foreigners. We met some travellers, mostly young Americans, who didn't seem to mind watching the football with us. Overall, I thought it was pretty fun, until I was nearly accosted by an overbearing Jamaican bouncer from a nearby hip-hop club.  Seriously, I'm not interested now leave me the f$#k alone.  He tried to tell me that they were playing the football in the club.  Yeah right.  Kids, be careful of dudes like this in Roppongi.  From what I've heard, they entice you into the club where they slap you with a hefty cover charge.  If you refuse and try to leave, they sik their 'heavies' onto you and make you pay.  Scary. 

We were staying Akasaka, which was pretty central to all the hotspots - Roppongi, Shibuya, Shinjuku, Harajuku. We went shopping in Shibuya - it felt like I was at a carnival, with flashing lights, music and yelling everywhere. 

My personal highlight was checking out the cosplay kids at Harajuku park. There were Japanese rockabilly punks and kids dancing to Elvis tunes. Some kids were jamming with trumpets and a drum kit, playing "When the Saints Go Marching In". The drummer was wearing a horse head - hilarious.  I wanted to join in.  These kids know how to have good clean fun on the weekends. 

This is what we came for - I always wanted to visit Harajuku park and see the kids dressing up. Hundreds of people gather to watch them there, and the kids seem to appreciate the attention.

Tokyo is definitely a place to get an eyeful of contemporary Japanese culture. We visited a couple of shrines while we were in town, but we mostly saved the traditional sights for later in the trip. This was our chance to see the fast-paced lifestyle in one of the biggest cities in the world - the biggest city I've ever been to, at least.



I was surprised at how easy it was to get around.
I was dreading the subway system, because I had seen videos of people being crammed into the trains like sardines. But we managed to mostly avoid that, as we didn't travel in peak times.

If you're a guitar fan, you must check out Ochanomizu. It is filled with guitar shops for as far as the eye can see. I promised Steve we would check it out, after I dragged him to a million shops in Harajuku. Ahhh...the shopping...it's so gooooood.

I love Tokyo. Will definitely return in the near future...