The other big city near Nagoya that I really felt obliged to visit while in Japan was Osaka. One must see attraction, as with most cities in Japan, is Osaka Castle. On the day that I visited there was some sort of festival so it was pretty busy with tourists and Osaka-ites alike. I circled around the grounds, but I didn't actually go inside. The castle was pretty cool looking, perched right in the middle of a large area, it was hard to get a good shot from far away because of the trees. Most had start changing colors which was a nice little signifier of cooler days to come.
After the castle, I walked to the Osaka Museum of History, just outside of the castle grounds. It was hands down one of the coolest museums that I have ever been too. It was really inviting, laid out really well with lots of 3D exhibits, mannequins, and videos and sounds and animatronics all melded together in the best possible way. Great experience, even without being able to read all of the explanations. Great for kids too I think, just because it is so visually appealing. Really glad I got to spend some time there. And photography was permitted so I have a few snaps to prove it's awesomeness!
Osaka's most famous claim to fame is probably Dotonbori. Popular at night when all the store fronts are lit up, Dotonbori is a row of shops running along the canal in Osaka. Historically a theatre district (Osaka is also famous for its prominence in Bunraku and Kabuki, two styles of Japanese drama) now it is now a very exciting tourist shopping strip. Probably the most famous sight in the town is the GLICO man. I knew I was close by the hordes of cameras and people posing in flying stances. I was more than gutted to find out that the illuminated sign board has been replaced by a just normal poster with a Japanese actress in the same pose as the running man with the Katakana for GLICO written on her red dress. Turns out the GLICO man is undergoing a face lift with the addition of new LED lights. Read more about him here!
Rest of Osaka later this week. Chao for now.
No comments:
Post a Comment