This morning Nick and I got up bright and early and took the Osaka Loop Line to Osaka Castle, one of the oldest castles in Japan. We meandered through the massive gardens and park that surround the castle before attempting to cross the two moats. Yes, two. This was a serious castle, haha. We loved the serenity of the Citizens' Forest and took many photographs of the trees, hedges, fountains and pathways that were all over the park. We loved the moat walls and the ancient and almost mystic feelings that came with the majestic views of the still water and giant walls that protected the castle...juxtaposed with the incredibly modern skyline, the outer and inner moats stood tall and firmly against time and progress.
We crossed both moats and entered the castle grounds. The castle was 8 stories tall with bright green roofs and glittering gold leaf dragons and gargoyles adorning every nook and corner. Canons stood to either side of the main doors and the main grounds overlooked the moats, all of the park and much of the city in every direction. It was breathtaking.
We went inside the castle, which had burned to the ground multiple times due to wars and whatnot, to see what was inside. The Japanese had renovated the interior of the space to include 7 stories of museum exhibits about Osaka Castle, Hideyoshi Toyotomi (the ruler of Osaka Castle) and many awesome looking artifacts. We saw some fantastic samurai costumes, helmets, treasure chests, swords and muskets, etc. We went to the top of the castle and took pictures of the views from the rooftop. It was stunning and we enjoyed our time there.
We left the castle through the (gigantic) main gates and returned to the Osaka Loop Line. Our next stop was Osaka City, the main downtown section of Osaka. We left the train station to be visually bombarded with gargantuan high rises and incredible feats of architecture. Triangluar, cylindrical, soaring skyscrapers raced up into the sky, each one more massive and impressive than the last. We gazed upward while walking around for several hours until our necks hurt. We couldn't believe the ingenuity and futuristic designs Osaka had to offer. There were buildings that took advantage of space in impossible ways - one building had a HIGHWAY running through it. As in, the highway was built first, many feet above ground level. The building captured the space above and below the highway; the architects had built around it so the roads ran through it. It was inspiring, to say the least.
We went to check out the HEP 5, a giant mall with a ferris wheel on top of the building. Unfortunately the ferris wheel was closed for renovations. We were midly disappointed but we were consoled with delicious don-katsu and don-buri for lunch. We had fried pork cutlets smothered in fried egg, onions and sauce over rice with plenty of tasty miso soup. Yum yum. We have been so happy to enjoy authentic Japanese cuisine.
After lunch we began to walk to the Sky Building and Floating Gardens. We wandered throughout the city getting to the Sky Building. On our way we saw many more interesting buildings. We drooled over Maseratis and Ferraris as we passed by their showrooms and checked out the giant Hank Yu department store. We found more covered walkways full of shops and found a pet shop full of cute puppies, kittens, parrots and...monkeys? Owls? Goats? Yes, along with ferrets, ground squirrels, exotic turtles and more. We were floored that you could purchase a MONKEY for a pet, but hey, it appears anything goes in Japan.
On the way to the Sky Building we got a little thirsty and went in search of a place to grab a quick drink. We found a tiny little udon (noodle) house that was open near the Sky Building and went in. We were told we needed to order food to get some drink so we snacked on some white rice mixed with a raw egg yolk doused in a sauce made of soy sauce, sweet rice wine, and sugar. When the chef realized we were not ordering a full meal...he brought us one anyways...for free. He told us that they made their own udon in house and created their own curry sauce. The curry had several spices and tangy fruit mixed in. It was unbelievably good. They didn't even have metal silverware...there were only wooden chopsticks and whittled wooden spoons. We quickly and happily slurped up the curry udon even though we were still pretty stuffed from our late lunch. It was possibly the best thing we've tried on our trip.
After much adventuring through downtown we reached the Sky Building. The Sky Building is actually two 570 foot towers that are on the outskirts of downtown. On the top is a circular ring that creates an outdoor roofdeck for both buildings. There are "floating" escalators that crisscross from one tower to another and lead up to the ring. We spent the evening up there, outside, over 500 feet up, watching the sun go down over Osaka and taking some amazing twilight and night photos of the town as all the lights turned on. We loved it up there and felt as though the experience of watching the sun go down while watching the city bustle around us was a perfect way to spend the evening.
We left the rooftop eventually and checked out some of the things the Sky Building had to offer. They had many observation decks and comfy spots for spending time inside. There were restaurants and cozy cafes. There were also interactive rooms that had interesting benches that were hooked up to big circular television screens in the floor. Depending on the weight or movement on the benches a variety of sounds and lighting effects were made. It was a lot of fun. Nick and I literally bounced in our seats to make music and waves of multicolored light wiggle across the floor. Only in Japan, right?
After many more photos we returned to the ground to see the stunning Sky Building fountains shooting rainbow lit water. We took even MORE photos and then hopped on the subway to get back to Namba. We liked Swing Sushi so much last night we decided to go again tonight, and once again we were stuffed and incredibly amused with our dinner. Now it is off to bed after a full and exhausting day. Tomorrow we leave Japan (it's too soon!) in the late afternoon. In the morning we are planning on going to some Buddhist temples and shrines...it should be fun!
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