"Sometimes even the right is wrong
They are turning my head out
To see what I'm all about
But I have no doubt
One day, the sun will come out"
These words from the song "Lovers in Japan" by Coldplay (listen up from the link below if you don't know this song) aptly capture some of my feelings during my 8 days trip to Osaka.
Being an Anime fan from a very young age, I had been waiting to visit Japan for quite a while now. The shower of cherry blossom on characters (Sakura in Card Captors), the inter-twining of Man and Nature, as heroes and /or demons (Dragonball Z) and the various traditional things such as the ryokans (inns), tatami mats, sitting on the floor on your knees while eating - I really enjoyed seeing and experiencing all of this. I stayed in a hostel in Osaka with traditional Japanese rooms - small but sufficient which I would highly recommend (Hotel Toyo at Shin-Imamiya), and then in an Airbnb at Shin-Osaka. (Airbnb is a still not a completely accepted concept in Japan and hence most owners like mine are new with little info on how to run an Airbnb house. Please do your research before you book)
My mostly solo trip to the land of the rising sun had me "turning my head out" at several occasions not sure what was wrong and what was right- the first one while using a futuristic toilet commode even before I had done my immigration (see image). I am yet to fathom some of the features out there!
The other area which drove me nuts was how complicated the public transportation map looked (see below). I had the option of choosing a day pass, a 2 day pass, a 5 day pass, a wide area pass, a limited area pass, and repeat all these options for more subway companies! Only later would I realize that in Japan you have way too many options, which is a great example of personalization, but well for the uninitiated like me, it's just plain confusing! So to keep things simple, I would just ask the station manager which train to take and hop on it.
Towards my fourth / fifth day I finally figured a few things about the public transport which I am quite proud of :P. I'm sharing these as tips here:
1. Public transport in Japan is not cheap and messing up train stops can be heavy on your pocket. My tip is to take a day pass only if you plan to do more than two stops from your origin else it is not worth it
2. There are over 5 metro / subway operating companies with a separate network of stations and most day passes cannot be used interchangeably. My recommendation is to take the non-JR - Nankai one which in my opinion had the most conveniently located train stations.
3. There are at least 3 different types of trains at each platform - Locals (most frequent stops), Rapids ( stopping at all important stops) and Special Rapids (stopping at only the most major stops). More often than not, you will be fine taking a Rapid or a Special Rapid
4. Before figuring out which train to take (rather the platform number), see the name of the major railway station you are heading towards on the subway map and go towards that one. When in doubt, always ask the station manager
As a preferential vegetarian, I must say that finding food options was not that easy. For seafood lovers, Japan is indeed a paradise, but for me, I discovered something called a vegetable Japanese curry - which was delicious! It tasted like vegetables cooked in Maggi masala as thick gravy and was served with white rice. Having found this, it became my regular meal for most of my stay. The other thing that I was surprised to find is that Japanese chocolate is super yummy so do give it a try! (I'm not exactly sure of the reason, but even the average off the shelf chocolate / chocolate bread / chocolate milk was really good quality stuff!)
The Shinto shrines of Japan are the most extraordinary and mysterious places I have been to. Apart from their architecture (such as the Torii gates), I am amazed by the things such as Omikuji which are pieces of zig zag paper tied on a rope or around sacred trees or rocks. (See here for what each of these function as in a Japanese shrine - http://www.japan-guide.com/e/e2059.html). Probably the most visited shrine is the Inari shrine in Kyoto. Indeed it is a surreal place with the several thousand Torii gates creating such a wonderful image and the hike to its topmost point is indeed totally worth it. The other place in Kyoto I will recommend (but sadly couldn't go) is the Arashimaya bamboo grove where I hear that you lose yourself a completely different world. I hope to cover this and several other experiences such as the meeting a geisha, taking a sento (hot water public bath) and more in my future visits to this extremely unique and intriguing country.
No story in Japan is complete without mentioning the cherry blossoms, which I am lucky to have seen during their peak season in April (completely by chance!). These tender white and pink flowers look so pretty growing in bunches on brown branches and have a way of cheering you up (cherry blossom viewing is an important part of the Japanese culture and is known as Hanami). Luckily for me, my hostel owner told me about this place that I had not come across on TripAdvisor recommendations called Yoshinoyama - a place where several small hills were covered in different shades of pink cherry blossom trees. I am still mesmerized by how pretty the actual sight was (see below).
Funnily enough, now that I am back in Mumbai / Pune, I cannot help but appreciate the bright orange colored Gulmohar that grows so quietly in our backyards. It is true that travelling enables you to appreciate the things that you always knew existed back home. Sometimes I wonder how hills of Gulmohar trees would look like in their full blossom- I hope to find such a place someday!
Here's my itinerary in early April (also added a few places I wanted to cover) for those interested:
Day 1 - Arrive in Osaka, orient myself to public transportation and chill at hostel (Hotel Toyo)
Day 2 - Take the train and spend half day in Nara (play with deer and complete the temple hike), followed by the happening Dotonbori / Namba streets in the evening
Day 3 - Take the train to Uji and explore the temples in the area. Don't forget to have the green and black tea ice cream. Cross the bridge of Uji river and hike up the Mount Asahi
Day 4 - Explore Shin Osaka area and Osaka areas including the Osaka Castle and the Umeda Sky building
Day 5 - Visit Kyoto and the Fushimi Inari shrine (hike to the very top and back) and the Arashimaya bamboo grove
Day 6 - Hike up to Yoshinoyama - the pink hills (to the highest 1000 trees called the Oku Senbon)
Day 7 - Head to Mount Koya for an overnight temple stay at a Buddhist monastery
Day 8 - Witness the morning rituals of the monks and then head back to Osaka. Remember to buy chooclates from Royce before boarding your flight back home
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