I had the privilege to visit Japan for 6 days and 5 nights, visited some places in the Kansai region, 関西地方 (kansaichihou), which is located at the Southern-central region of Japan’s main island. I visited three areas in the Kansai region, namely Osaka, 大阪 (oosaka), Kyoto京都 (kyouto), and Nara, 奈良 (nara).
Japan is easily accessible since I am studying in South Korea. My flight from Busan's Gimhae International Airport to Kansai International Airport only takes 1 hour and 20 minutes. At Kansai Airport, I purchased a Prepaid LTE Sim Card with 1GB data valid for a period of 30 days and the ICOCA Prepaid Card which is really convenient when using the trains, subways, and buses.
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| Kansai Airport |
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| Prepaid LTE Sim Card & ICOCA Prepaid Card |
My lodging will be an apartment in a residential area very close to Namba, 難波 (nanba), which is one of Osaka’s major city centers.
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| The clean and pleasant basement of Namba Station |
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| Subway Map |
From the map, we can see that there are many places to visit around Namba. The most famous places would be Shinsaibashi, 心斎橋 (shinsaibashi) and Dōtonbori, 道頓堀 (dootombori). Shinsaibashi is a shopping arcade with many retail stores, boutiques, and department stores, while Dōtonbori is a heaven for food lovers.
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| Shinsaibashi |
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| Impressive building with Zara and other shops |
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| Uniqlo and H&M |
At Shinsaibashi, I ate Ramen, 拉麵 or ラーメン (ramen) for my late lunch. As I walked around, I noticed many shops that sell Matcha Ice-cream, 抹茶アイスクリーム (matcha aisukuriimu), something that I ate a lot in Japan.
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| Ramen at Shinsaibashi |
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| Macha Ice-cream |
Shinsaibashi and Dōtonbori are connected. Once reaching an area with a massive crowd, I can see Ebisu Bridge, 戎橋 (ebisubashi), which let me get across the Dōtonbori canal. Here, there are many restaurants and shops, as well as the famous Glico Man sign and neon lights.
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| The famous Glico Man and Neon light at Dōtonbori |
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| The view from Ebisu Bridge |
For Dinner, I walked around at Dōtonbori and ate anything I find interesting and looks delicious. I ate Takoyaki, たこ焼き (takoyaki), a famous food in Japan and even more famous in Osaka.
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| Takoyaki shop recommended by tripadvisor |
While walking around Dōtonbori, I luckily came by a restaurant called Akaoni, 赤鬼 or あかおに (akaoni), a Takoyaki restaurant honored by Michelin. This shop uses raw octopus, unlike most of other Takoyaki shops, which uses boiled octopus. The shop is a pleasant small shop, with just a few tables. The atmosphere and food are nice, the price is reasonable as well. After walking around abit more, I return to rest for another long day.
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| Takoyaki restaurant, Akaoni |
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| Honored by Michelin |
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| Takoyaki with cheese and Yakisoba |
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| Okonomiyaki |
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