A Memorable Trip to Kansai, Japan
I had always wanted to take my wife to Japan, and after a long planning, we finally set the trip from September 15 to September 20.
I won't go into much detail about the preparations, as they were pretty standard.
Number of travelers: my wife and me.
Items to bring: visa, flight and hotel bookings, portable Wi-Fi, cash, change of clothes, two suitcases, two 10,000 mAh power banks.
Extra tip: If you're a collector, I recommend bringing a stamp book or notebook. There are many places in Kyoto, Osaka, and Nara where you can get free commemorative stamps. A stamp book purchased on-site costs 1,200 yen, so it's more economical to bring your own.
As for apps: I downloaded Seagull Offline Map, a travel assistant app, and a transit app, but I ended up not using the offline map or the transit app, nor did I download Google Maps as many suggested. I just used a travel planning app to set my destinations and then used Apple Maps to get directions. Apple Maps also told me the fare, time, and which subway exit to use, which was more than enough.
We took Shenzhen Airlines flight ZH9059, which took a little over three hours and arrived at Kansai Airport around 1 PM. The flight route was from Shenzhen to Shanghai and then to Kansai. Next time, I'll fly directly from Shanghai—it's cheaper and takes just over an hour.
After dinner, we strolled around Ponto-cho.
Many people were sitting by the river to cool off. I didn't have much feeling about the Kamo River, except that I usually get bitten by mosquitoes in China, but after sitting by the river for half an hour, not a single mosquito bit me. Amazing!
In Kyoto's evening, after leaving the Kamo River, my wife suggested we walk back slowly. On the way, we stumbled upon Shinkyogoku Shopping Street. There was a perfume milk tea shop—basically a milk tea cup shaped like a perfume bottle, with a dreamy liquid inside. I'm not sure how they did it. We bought one cup, and only one person could enter the store. I let my wife go in while I ate a grilled squid burger outside. The taste was just like lemon tea.
Passing by a Spanish restaurant by the river in Ponto-cho, there was a band playing, creating a lively atmosphere. Many people were watching. We walked back to the hotel.
Still craving the braised pork—I mean, the famous grilled meat (Hong Yakiniku)—I tried asking the front desk if they could help me reserve a nearby branch. The front desk guy was very attentive and called several places for me. After contacting three or four, he finally booked a spot at the Senbon-Sanjo branch about 2 km away for 8:30 PM. This was the first time I really felt the excellent service in Japan.
After booking, we took the elevator back to our room. A fellow traveler from Shaanxi asked us, "Where are you going tomorrow?" "Kiyomizu-dera." "We're going there too. Is there anything we need to ask the front desk?" "Uh, no... we just needed help booking a restaurant." Awkward moment.
With the reservation settled, we went back to our room and slept peacefully.
We woke up naturally in the morning. Today's plan: Kiyomizu-dera in the morning, and in the afternoon, Nanzan-ji for a kimono photoshoot. Let's go!
Before starting our walk, we had breakfast. We bought two rice balls at the 7-Eleven next to the hotel. They have all kinds of magazines and manga that you can read freely—though they're all in Japanese and we couldn't understand. On the way to the bus stop, I saw this.
We took a direct bus to Kiyomizu-zaka and walked toward Kiyomizu-dera. The streets weren't too crowded.
Today we planned to leave Kyoto for Osaka. We took the JR line to Osaka Station, then transferred to Tennoji Station. Our hotel, Tennoji Miyako Hotel (I think that's the name), was right next to Tennoji Station. Check-in wasn't until 2 PM, so we stored our luggage and went out to explore. With the help of a Japanese friend, Mr. Sakamoto, we managed to buy a one-day pass (Mr. Sakamoto was also staying at the same hotel. When I asked the front desk about buying a pass, he was storing his luggage nearby. He saw us at the hotel entrance and asked if we needed a pass. Embarrassingly, I thought he wanted to buy one too, so I explained the benefits of the pass in my broken English. But he was actually trying to help us buy it. Later, he took us to two subway stations and asked several station staff before we finally got the pass).
Mr. Sakamoto recommended this place in Dotonbori as Osaka's best octopus balls. Unfortunately, we were too late and couldn't find it. Next time, we must find this place and try it!
We took one subway stop to Kuromon Market. It's said that food in Kansai is the best, and this market, known as 'Kansai's Kitchen,' is where you eat to your heart's content.
This is a fresh salmon set I bought in the middle part of Kuromon Market for 1,500 yen. It was very fresh and delicious. On the day we left, my wife still craved it, so we came back and bought a 2,500-yen set, but it wasn't as good as this 1,500-yen one. There was a small bowl of rice underneath, and the taste was excellent when drizzled with soy sauce.
There was one thing I didn't photograph: two tofu shops in Kuromon Market also serve very tasty tofu products. Recommended!
After exiting Kuromon Market, we arrived at Doguyasuji Street. There were lots of kitchenware, utensils, pots and pans, and some souvenirs—much cheaper than those sold at tourist spots. On the day we left, we bought a wind chime here. Next to Doguyasuji is Sennichimae Shopping Street, and next to that is Nipponbashi Electric Town. Since there were no Bandai Gundam models, I wasn't interested in checking every shop.
From Nipponbashi, we transferred to the subway to Umeda. We first went to Hankyu Department Store, asked about SK-II Facial Treatment Essence for someone, but the price wasn't attractive, so we left.
Across from Hankyu is Yodobashi Camera. The basement floor was like heaven! The box for the Bandai original Sazabi was huge—much bigger than the ones I've seen in China. Are the Sazabi in China all shrunken versions? The new Switch with extended battery (released in July) was also available. It costs 2,300 yuan in China, but here it was 29,980 yen tax-free, and with an additional 5% discount using a UnionPay card, it came to about 1,800 yuan. Very good deal.
After shopping, we went to find the famous sukiyaki restaurant Hommoyake. The taste was excellent, definitely worth a visit. The only problem was that it was hard to find. I looked around for a long time but couldn't find it. Finally, I stopped a young lady with a Chinese character on her chest and asked where the restaurant was. She didn't know either, but she said, 'Wait here, I'll help you find it.' In the end, she found it and led us to the door.
Today's plan was a day trip to Nara. We took the JR line to Nara Station, then transferred to a sightseeing bus directly to Nara Park, and started walking.
After finishing Nara, we returned to Osaka. We dropped off our things at the hotel and headed straight to Shinsekai.
Today's route: Osaka Castle – Shinsaibashi – Dotonbori.
Osaka Castle is worth visiting. Each floor was quite interesting.
Osaka Prefectural Police Headquarters – a must-visit spot for Conan fans.
Lunch was at Ichiran Ramen.
Inside the temple, there was a red bean soup shop called Meoto Zen. I thought it tasted okay, but my wife found it too sweet. The portion was small.
After eating, we walked south to Takashimaya, but we had no energy to shop. In front of Takashimaya, there was an Edion electronics store. The seventh floor was also a paradise, with various game consoles, figurines, and Gundam models.
I wanted to buy a Sazabi and a Switch, but ended up buying this remote control car for my son.
Today we had to go back. In the morning, my wife wanted to go to Kuromon Market again for more food, so we walked there. I was thinking of going to Umeda after eating to grab a Switch, but after eating, we got sidetracked by a drugstore. By the time we came out, it was 11 AM, so we hurried to the airport.
Time to go home. Next time again.
This is my first time writing a travel journal. I'm not good at writing, so it's basically a straightforward account. Just take it as it is.
Travel journal table of contents: 1. Pre-trip preparations; 2. Day 1; 3. Day 2; 4. Day 3; 5. Day 4; 6. Day 5; 7. Day 6
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