This took 1 year in the making. I have been slacking off a lot, but since I just renewed my domain (and it isn’t cheap), I have to make the most out of it. So, here goes a series of throwback posts on our Osaka/Kyoto Autumn last October 2017 with Azure Laagans – starting with Day 1!

Touchdown Kansai Airport

On Day 1, it was just myself, Mhealler and Hannah since Rhys was flying in from Singapore and would be arriving the next day. For the three of us, this was our second time in Japan together. The first one was in Tokyo last February.

We immediately accomplished our post-landing tasks such as 1) Withdraw JPY from the ATM, 2) Rent a mobile WiFi, and 3) Buy tickets for the train to Osaka. While going through all that, we were also busy taking photos already.

We hopped on the train without eating breakfast, even though we were hungry – because we wanted to eat real Japanese food outside the airport. Our AirBnb was located around the Denden Town/Namba area so we went straight there, left our bags in the coin locker at the train station, and hunted for food!

Food stop 1: Breakfast at Nakau

For breakfast, we ate at a Nakau branch near Namba station. This is a well known chain in Japan, much like Yoshinoya and Sukiya. While the food here is affordable, the taste is still superb! That’s no surprise because everything in Japan tastes good!

We walked around Denden Town a bit. Denden town is kind of like Osaka’s version of Akihabara – where you’ll find a lot of anime and gadget stores. Since this was early in the morning, most of the shops were still closed. So we just walked around to familiarize ourselves with the neighborhood.

Here’s a photo of Hannah and her new-found boys. Help her pick who to swipe right! Haha.

On our way to Dotonbori, which was nearby, we passed by one of those shopping alleys Japan is known for. This specific one was specializing in kitchen and food items. One shop that caught our eye was this store that sold keychains. These are not your regular keychains as they were replicas of FOOD! I regret not getting these as souvenirs for my friends at home – it would be hilarious to have a fish dangling on your backpack or with your keys!

My kind of Dotonbori

Dotonbori is Osaka’s busiest area with all of the shops and tourists gathered in one place. We got there before the stores opened and the crowds arrived so it was surreal seeing that place so empty! I highly suggest you go visit early in the morning, if you’re not there to shop but just to feel the place without the usual chaos, and take photos, which is exactly what we did.

We went through the small alleys that branch out from the main Dotonbori area and found this really Japanese looking one, complete with lanterns and that oriental vibe. We had to take photos!

This was the first time for me to try out my phone’s Portrait mode which was a thing back then. So apologies in advance for the tacky blurry background shots – they don’t look as good because phones can do this so much better now.

Abeno Haruka’s Observatory

Our next stop was a free view of Osaka’s skyline! If my memory serves me right, the actual observatory had a fee which we weren’t really willing to pay – so we settled at an open area on the floor where the queue to the observatory is. You already get a nice view of Osaka from here – so we got what we wanted without paying for it!

Food stop #2: Lunch at a Family Restaurant

Family restaurants like these are common in Japan. They serve both local cuisine and Western-influenced dishes and the price is not so bad either. We decided to have our late lunch here because we wanted different things and this was one place where we could order them all.

We went window shopping after this. We noticed that “berets” are a fashionable item in Japan (from watching Terrace House) and we tried to convince Hannah to buy one! Here’s a photo of her trying it out – and it does make her look a bit more Japanese!

After a few hours of walking around, it was time to head back to Namba station.

Food stop #3: Dinner at Trattoria D’Italia

We couldn’t decide on what to eat for dinner but we stumbled upon this interesting Italian restaurant in Namba. I know how good pasta and Italian dishes are in Japan, just from watching anime and Jdrama – so we decided to give this a try. True enough, this was one of the most memorable meals of the trip! The escargot was to die for – literally! It was so good that up to this day, I find myself craving for it.

The pasta and the pizza were both delicious, too! If I stumble upon another branch of this restaurant somewhere else in Japan, I wouldn’t hesitate eating there again. So far, I’ve only seen this in Osaka.

There’s always room for desserts: Gelateria Marghera

After getting our bags from the coin lockers, we stopped by a gelato place on the roof deck of the mall near the station – they were almost closing when we got there but they accommodated us as their last customers for the evening. It was the perfect way to end a fun first day in Osaka!

It was raining when left so we bought plastic umbrellas, in true Japanese style, as we walked to our Airbnb to settle for the night.

Mhealler had to pick up Rhys at the airport, so Hannah and myself called it an early night!