Miki d'Japan 2 - Part Two: Osaka
After leaving the Ferry "Fukuoka 2", I took a tram and subway to Matsukuri station. Osaka is active industrial and business city. It is not tourist destination, with so many more interesting ones around. Maybe some idustrial reason could bring me here, if I would be CEO of HyperGigaMultiMegaElectronic Global Company. But I came to visit dear friend, and not do any business, so I had time to look around.
Direct from the ship, I went to my hostel, called "U-en", to leave luggage. One problem: I did not print the map. All I had was the name, and that it is 5min walking from the Matsukuri subway station. So typical for me. So, I had a massive task. And it is not Grand Hyatt, oh no. It is small no-hyatt. I remebered this pic from their webpage:
New place, existing since few months only, made to be retro-Japanese, 2300yen/night, so I could imagine it's not much known around. Anyway, I asked few people in the street. Forget it. Some half hour I walked around such streets
Also, I ate my breakfast-it was nice one, pumpkin something with something. Good thing.
So, after half hour I did a right thing. I entered real estate agent, in hope they could have some idea or internet connection, that I'd check myself. Lady was VERY helpful and, after a short search in internet we had address. She pointed out "down the street, 4th street right!". Really good will to help, and genuine effort. Then I found the street, but anyway, could not see the place. Another lady, when I asked for "U-en", went to her car to check on gps locator! But could not be sure, so she said I'd best goto Christian Mission nearby. What I did and the guy there said
"oh,it's nearby, but you would not find" and went out with me. He brought me to the bell of U-en (which was 50m from the car of the lady trying to locate it by sattelite. This I call hi-tech society, James Bond, ha-ha).
Really, I would hard be able to find it myself. And to think I had only name of the place and general idea where to go! In general, japanese people were always of
good-willed effective help, whenever I asked for direction or so. With a smile they'd take me there, if otherwise was not clear.
After lodging I went to the nice bar downstairs, retro style also, as the place was old mill refurbished to be bar and hostel, without much changes in the original building structure. Because of this, hostel had air of mountain hut-quite pleasant and unexpected in such a city. Really good backpacker's base. Also, both the hostel owner and the girl working in a bar below, are very dear ladies. I did some good for improvement of bar-tender's girl English, with having my (morning!) Guinness.
When Keiko and 2yrs young sweet Yuna came we went for the Museum of history.
Nice views from the resting places on the highest floors. This is the Castle of Hideyoshi Toyotomi, somewhat infamous ruler, as it was him who closed Japan for trade with West, isolating it for more than 200 years. Only with the battle near Mojiki, site of which I presented in the 1st part here, this isolation was stopped, by brutal force.
Hideyoshi was not lucky with his ideas, even places like this castle, which was built to last thousand years, in large stone blocks, was demolished only 30 years later, and what we see today is concrete copy. But not less magnificent show of japanese style-I find even this Castle, because of the scale of walls, majestic. Sure, it is kind'a Toyotomi-land, haven for nationalist's teachings-as Hideyoshi is certainly their patron in Japan. It is not much worth to go inside, "exibited" are screens with the story of Hideyoshi. In Poland I read monography about him by A.A. Iskender (good old Russian school), and felt a bit as meeting an old acquaintance.
The castle is somewhat pompous, but...it is meant to be so, no?
One view to contemporary courtyard of the Castle, Osaka:
At the end of our time together, as Yuna had enough of walking around, (and I was to go to see Osaka by night), Keiko took me for a boat tour on the river. Kind of thing we did in Tokyo, only here on much smaller scale. We disembarked and said bye-bye. Curious where we'll meet next time, in which constellation?
I went further, direction Dotombori, night, fun part of Osaka. LOTS of young people, incredible atmosphere-I thought this is comparable to Shibuya in Tokyo. But is order of magnitude lower intensity, really, as I checked few days later.
Anyway, nice. I came back, slept like bear in "U-en", and next in the bowl for me was Kyoto! Finally. One hears about this city, added to the "London, Paris, Amsterdam and Rome" recently, and when one is there...it is justified, this addition, completely.
Next to come, when I find time, please visit here soon: KYOTO
Direct from the ship, I went to my hostel, called "U-en", to leave luggage. One problem: I did not print the map. All I had was the name, and that it is 5min walking from the Matsukuri subway station. So typical for me. So, I had a massive task. And it is not Grand Hyatt, oh no. It is small no-hyatt. I remebered this pic from their webpage:
New place, existing since few months only, made to be retro-Japanese, 2300yen/night, so I could imagine it's not much known around. Anyway, I asked few people in the street. Forget it. Some half hour I walked around such streets
Also, I ate my breakfast-it was nice one, pumpkin something with something. Good thing.
So, after half hour I did a right thing. I entered real estate agent, in hope they could have some idea or internet connection, that I'd check myself. Lady was VERY helpful and, after a short search in internet we had address. She pointed out "down the street, 4th street right!". Really good will to help, and genuine effort. Then I found the street, but anyway, could not see the place. Another lady, when I asked for "U-en", went to her car to check on gps locator! But could not be sure, so she said I'd best goto Christian Mission nearby. What I did and the guy there said
"oh,it's nearby, but you would not find" and went out with me. He brought me to the bell of U-en (which was 50m from the car of the lady trying to locate it by sattelite. This I call hi-tech society, James Bond, ha-ha).
Really, I would hard be able to find it myself. And to think I had only name of the place and general idea where to go! In general, japanese people were always of
good-willed effective help, whenever I asked for direction or so. With a smile they'd take me there, if otherwise was not clear.
After lodging I went to the nice bar downstairs, retro style also, as the place was old mill refurbished to be bar and hostel, without much changes in the original building structure. Because of this, hostel had air of mountain hut-quite pleasant and unexpected in such a city. Really good backpacker's base. Also, both the hostel owner and the girl working in a bar below, are very dear ladies. I did some good for improvement of bar-tender's girl English, with having my (morning!) Guinness.
When Keiko and 2yrs young sweet Yuna came we went for the Museum of history.
Nice views from the resting places on the highest floors. This is the Castle of Hideyoshi Toyotomi, somewhat infamous ruler, as it was him who closed Japan for trade with West, isolating it for more than 200 years. Only with the battle near Mojiki, site of which I presented in the 1st part here, this isolation was stopped, by brutal force.
Hideyoshi was not lucky with his ideas, even places like this castle, which was built to last thousand years, in large stone blocks, was demolished only 30 years later, and what we see today is concrete copy. But not less magnificent show of japanese style-I find even this Castle, because of the scale of walls, majestic. Sure, it is kind'a Toyotomi-land, haven for nationalist's teachings-as Hideyoshi is certainly their patron in Japan. It is not much worth to go inside, "exibited" are screens with the story of Hideyoshi. In Poland I read monography about him by A.A. Iskender (good old Russian school), and felt a bit as meeting an old acquaintance.
The castle is somewhat pompous, but...it is meant to be so, no?
One view to contemporary courtyard of the Castle, Osaka:
At the end of our time together, as Yuna had enough of walking around, (and I was to go to see Osaka by night), Keiko took me for a boat tour on the river. Kind of thing we did in Tokyo, only here on much smaller scale. We disembarked and said bye-bye. Curious where we'll meet next time, in which constellation?
I went further, direction Dotombori, night, fun part of Osaka. LOTS of young people, incredible atmosphere-I thought this is comparable to Shibuya in Tokyo. But is order of magnitude lower intensity, really, as I checked few days later.
Anyway, nice. I came back, slept like bear in "U-en", and next in the bowl for me was Kyoto! Finally. One hears about this city, added to the "London, Paris, Amsterdam and Rome" recently, and when one is there...it is justified, this addition, completely.
Next to come, when I find time, please visit here soon: KYOTO
posted by mikidkolan at 7:04 PM
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