It was our last day in Osaka. I wanted to take it slow and make it a shopping day since we didn't do any deliberate shopping. I woke up earlier than the rest and googled for breakfast. Read on Facebook that Tsukiji Gindako Takoyako was coming to Singapore and reviewers were raving over it so I googled for it and one happened to be within a 5-minute walk from our hotel.
We checked out of the hotel at 11am and followed the Google Map directions and found it underground by chance!
I didn't understand what the lady was saying but William said she was asking us not to eat at the shop and there was only one flavour.
We were not impressed with the bite. The balls were a little crispy on the outside but they were ordinary takoyakis, unlike the Dotonburi Kukuru ones that were distinctly superior than the ones we have in Singapore.
Google told me that besides Shinsaibashi, Ebisubashi is another shopping street that offers reasonably priced apparels. The difference was that Ebisubashi is a long stretch of underground shopping street while Shinsaibashi is an above-the-ground shopping area.
The picture above is a display of winter pants. I wondered what the difference was and went up to examine them. Oh, the interior was a layer of wool to keep your butt and legs warm but the pants looked as slim as our normal pants or jeans. Very tempted to buy but I had no use for them since it was the last day in Japan.
However, I bought two winter jackets as I seldom see one that I fancy and they were reasonably priced, about $80 and $100 respectively. I only own one down jacket which is from the children's section in Uniqlo and I find that too bulky. For this trip, I borrowed my sister's light down and my sis-in-law's trench coats since it was autumn and I felt that perhaps I should have my own cold wear for future use.
We decided to walk up to see what was up there and saw a few Go-Karts on the main road with other vehicles!
And I found the rows of gingko trees along Mido-suji street! However, I found them underwhelming. I had mentioned these gingko trees from my internet research to William when we first stayed in Namba but he didn't look like he thought they looked anything like I had described ie. rows of gingko trees lining the street.
The ones that we chanced upon in Himeji was more dramatic than these anytime.
We walked on and found ourselves back at Dotonburi
The loud and rowdy eating street that never sleeps
I suddenly remembered that we hadn't had the chance to eat at a particular sushi shop despite trying twice. The queue was either too long or it was close to closing time.
There was a good variety and the sushi was fresh. It was a hearty lunch.
We hurried back to the hotel to collect our luggage, thinking that we had ample time to get to the airport.
A huge lesson learnt: Always do your research and planning.
It turned out that Nankai Express to the airport departs at Nankai-Namba Station and we had to walk briskly for 15 minutes from Umeda Station to Nankai Station!
While lugging our luggage and walking at a fast pace, I was terribly worried that we might miss our train and flight. As if that was not stressful enough, we were not sure of how to get to Nankai Station. We had to guess and ask our way there.
We managed to reach the airport 1.5 hour before the departure time but we didn't have time to buy any souvenir from the airport. Sigh.
It was a trip full of memories and stress, often trying to figure out which station and train to board at and alight. Perhaps if Singapore has a more complex MRT system or network, we would not struggle so hard at reading other countries' railway system!
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