Japan - Day 9
Our plan for Day 9 was to visit Manabe Island - in the gulf south of Osaka, near Kasaoka. We were going there because of the large population of cats, outnumbering people on the island. However, when we got to the Kasaoka port, we were disappointed to find out that ferry service to the islands was suspended for high winds. As a cat lover, this was going to be Brooke's special day, so we agreed to try again two days later.
So we pivoted, taking a train back to Fukuyama and the bullet train to Osaka. We decided to do day 11's stuff today.
Just a quick note about two confusing train stations - Shin-Osaka is where the Shinkansen bullet trains go through. Osaka station - one stop away - is the hub for all the local trains. We came into Shin-Osaka and then traveled to Osaka Station.
Our first destination was the Umeda Sky Building - a skyscraper walking distance from Osaka Station.
One of the key features besides the observation deck is an elevator that connects the two towers in mid-air 40 floors up. We could see all of Osaka from the top floor. It was too windy to go to the outside deck so we just ate ice cream and drank sake from the inside deck and took in the view.
We decided to skip Osaka Castle due to time constraints, instead deciding to visit the Round1 Stadium in Sennichimae. This is an 11-story multiplex with floors for everything from batting cages to volleyball, tennis, roller skating, mechanical bull riding, and arcade games. We paid a 90-minute fee for unlimited access and explored all the above (except the bull).
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| View from Art Hotel Osaka Bay Tower |
We wanted to go to Dontonbori Street - the most famous in Osaka, but decided to do it after dark to see all the lit-up signs. Unknown to us, it was only a couple of streets away from Round1. So, we took the train to our hotel - the Art Hotel in Osaka Bay Tower. After a short rest, we headed back to Dontonbori for souvenir shopping.
The Dontonbori area is several blocks surrounding a canal packed with souvenir shops and restaurants (and people). We walked around the whole area and bought some souvenirs. We saw the famous Glico runner sign and even ended up walking by Round1.
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| Famous Glico Runner Sign |
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| Asahi Super Dry - my favorite beer in the whole world |
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| The Dontonbori Canal |
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| The Don Quijote Dept Store |
On our way to Round1 earlier, Bix spotted a pirate sign for a bar called BeeRush. Shellie relented, knowing we needed to eat, so we went to BeeRush. Bix got shut out of the elevator, so took the glass one next to us. We saw him pass us and then get out on the 12th floor, and then he jumped back in!
When we got out of the elevator into a dark hall the chandelier flickered and there was thunder. We found an unmarked door and went indie to a small waiting room and a guy jumped out of the curtains and scared us. He sid he'd be right back and then another lady jumped out of the curtains and scared us again and took us into the restaurant/bar. There were video games and fancy drinks and Italian food - pizza/pasta. It was a bizarre mix, but we had a great time. We got to our hotel late, needing to get up early for Universal Studios the next day.
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| It's BEE - RUSH! |
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