Sunday 13 May 2012

Osaka (May 12-13)

The difference between Japan and all the other countries I have been to in Asia so far is that Japanese are able to invent a toilet with integrated water tap. It’s not a revolutionary invention but at least someone invested some brain power. In other countries some guest house rooms didn’t even have a hook at the wall to hang up a towel. This is definitely equal to zero brain power.

Yesterday I was lucky to catch one of the last trains from Kansai airport to the city because the flight was one hour delayed. I left the plane running to be in a front position of the immigration queue. It was a good decision to push to the front because the queue turned out to be huge. If I hadn’t been able to catch the train, I would have had to pay a real fortune for a taxi. Someone told me that in the vicinity of more than 100 euro! Unfortunately when I arrived in the city, the subway was already suspended, so I had to pay 20 euro for a taxi to my guest house. Thank you Air Asia! No wonder that the taxis are so expensive, the drivers are wearing suit and tie and the cars are real limousines. I felt ashamed to put my dirty backpack on top of the white seat cover. Ok you get a bit more for your money but do I really need a TV (in Japanese) in the taxi? I think only millionaires would be able to afford watching a whole movie inside the taxi.

The guest house is really nice. The rooms are Japanese style with bamboo floor and there is a common area with free Wi-Fi, bar, etc. The showers and toilets are immaculate! Yesterday night I met a German guy and he seemed to be overwhelmingly happy to meet another compatriot. He told me that he hadn’t met any German since he started travelling two weeks ago. That is really impressive because in other Asian countries you meet Germans every day. In fact, the traveller scene here is very different. There are only few real backpackers and the proportion of Westerners is way smaller than in other countries. It’s not surprising because the money you spend here in week or little more would be enough to travel a whole month in Thailand or Cambodia.

Osaka itself is a big and modern city. There are only few real sights such as the castle but for me the travel experience is simply walking around, trying the amazing food and observing the people. There is so much to discover! Today, in one of the pedestrian streets I was interviewed by a Japanese TV channel. They were asking the typical questions such as how long I have been in Japan, if I like it, etc. I think they wanted me because I look so strange to them J. Today the streets were quite empty because it’s Sunday. I had the impression that half of the city is gambling. They have gambling halls with slot machines everywhere and this seems to be one of the favourite weekend activities.

The weather today was very good but it’s quite cool – day temperatures of around 20°C and 12°C at night. Compared to the places I have been to before, this is very, very cold!

First day conclusion: I like it! Tomorrow I will head to Nara, only 40 km east of Osaka. It’s a world heritage site with a lot of gardens and temples.

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