Osaka- the big commercial city

With my 65+hr work weeks becoming too tiring, I decided to take the departure of my adviser and supervisor as an opportunity to get out of town for the weekend. I took the super-fast Shinkansen train and arrived in Osaka, Japan, 50minutes later (having made one stop in Kyoto along the way). I met up with Ev' at the train station and along with his supervisor, we walked toward where the fireworks festival would take place that evening.

Along the way, we stopped for dinner and beers. I had a delicious sandwich and met 4 more graduate students in Osaka. I tried a locally-brewed beer, on tap, Yuzu. It was one of the most delicious beers I have ever had (outside of the Porter family, which would not be hot-summer appropriate). As we left, I bought another locally-brewed beer (can't remember the name) to take for the road... since you can have open containers of alcohol outside in Japan. We walked, and walked, and walked to reach the fireworks. The long walk and the crowds were both worth it because the hour-long fireworks display was a series of what felt like finale showings. There was also a period of cute fireworks: cats, smiley faces, candy, fish, etc.  Check out the cute video Ev' took!

After the fireworks, Ev', his supervisor, and I walked to the "floating garden:" a circular platform suspended between the tops of two high buildings. As we took the long escalator up, his supervisor informed us that the last time he had been there, he was with an ex-girlfriend. Having been there, I can see why! The entire place is designed for couples: from the little elevated pods for two people (facing the city view), to the "couples area" where you must ask permission to go (a separate deck with a giant heart and private bench). The view of the city lights is spectacular from this vantage point. I think it is the result of Osaka having such a high-density of city buildings for such a long distance. I may never again see anything that compares to it... and I am okay with that :-)

View of the river

They had black lights :-)

The next day Ev' and I met up with J'. I know J' from undergrad; she is now living in Osaka, after having come to Japan for the JET (English teaching) program.  We went out for a traditional Osaka dish (for lunch) and then walked around the shops of Namba. The area was very commercial, with a lot to see. If I lived in this city, I would certainly be spending more of my paycheck each week.

This man is the official commercial symbol of Osaka. 

BUY OUR BEER

Japan has a creepy obsession with looking like dolls with giant eyes. 

E' and I were curious about Pachinko: the game that many Japanese men play for hours. We went to go give it a try. The atmosphere has a very similar feel to Las Vegas slot machines (right down to the heavy-smoking) but the game also has elements of pinball. I do not think either of us completely understood the goals of the game but it is along the lines of: turn the knob the correct amount to shoot the tiny metal ball into the center region, the ball bounces around and you want it to fall into a certain slot, at which point things spin around and you want a certain combination of ? number/symbols. If you achieve this, you win more metal balls. The balls are able to be redeemed for prizes; it is illegal to exchange balls for cash. At one point, more balls spilled out but I couldn't tell you how I achieved this. We quickly lost all of our marbles :-p I still do not understand how to play but admission into this strange land for 100yen was well worth it. No cameras are allowed inside... just like in Vegas... 

Then Ev' and I went to take a ride in the GIANT karancha. It was sunset at that time and the sunset reflecting off of the tall buildings made the view even better. I could see the Osaka Castle from all the way up there-- an efficient way to see a big city in 30 hours.

Viewing the Osaka Castle from up high, basically like viewing it up close...

I love the reflection of the sunset on the sky scraper. 

Then we went for dinner. Poor E' was so starving he was shaking. We headed to a "San Francisco style" burrito restaurant that J' recommended. I figured that I couldn't find good Mexican food in A-T-L so it would be good to try the best in Osaka. It was delicious!