Rihga Royal Hotel Osaka

... ended up dropping the money to ride the green-car for the Shinkansen (basically the first-class for the express-train) because I didn't want to sit in a smoking car for 4 and a half hours. All in all it was a pretty cool experience. A little more roomy than the normal Shinkansen (which is already very nice) along with free drinks!

Upon getting to Kyoto, Jack picked me up with his friend who was there for the afternoon, and we walked ...

... be doing so but I've decided not to other than to state that I'm simply not impressed by this type of upscale product. I just don't see the value. I was more impressed with the Apple store that was in the same district. I guess that I'm simply a provincial 'otaku' (geek)...

For our two days here in Osaka it seems like all that we've done is
eat, walk around, and sleep. In a city like Osaka with such great food,
life doesn't get much better.

... at Steak Ron, delicious Sakuyaki at Hariju and more helpings of takoyaki/okonomuyaki/yakisoba.

S teak Ron
1-10-2 Sonezaki Shinchi, Kita-ku | Umeda, Osaka

Hariju
1-9-26 Nishishinsaibashi Chuo-ku Osaka

Takontetsu (Pizza Ball House)
1-9-20 Maru Bldg Umeda 1 Chome

... spend with them.

-----
NIGHT #2:

Our second, and final, night was spent with Haruna, a 21 year old college student. Her loft apartment was very small, but she graciously hosted us. We were very thankful. She gave us a guided tour of the old city, plus threw an autentic takoyaki (octopus balls - no, not those kind!) party for us! How's that for native flare! We enjoyed talking about travel, language, music, and ...

... deck, which is a really sleek and modern area with a cafe and interesting seating all the way around the 360 degree panoramic windows.

From there you can make your way to the roof for a really spectacular view.

Anyway, we spent quite a while there and ended up eating at the fancy restaurant there with an amazing view of the city.

After Umeda, we were getting pretty sick of our packs and decided we should find our ...

... Aussies & Kiwis", en svenske, en kanader, et par briter... Vent! Det høres ut som.. Kan det være? Lyden av bergensdialekten varmer i hjertet. Det ble senere klart at damen hans var fra Steigen i Nordland. Etter over 3 uker uten tegn til nordmenn var dette en hyggelig overraskelse. Vi snakket sammen i flere timer og kom frem til at vi hadde en felles venn i Norge... Hamdi! Resten av båtturen var veldig fin. Jeg brukte et annet fergeselskap på denne ...

... Still nice, but well and truly overrated. Other than that, the centre tank was good. A fairly sparse mix of sharks and other tasty fish, in a very bland, characterless giant glass box. And since we simply wound around and around it on the way down, by the 30th time we viewed the tank, I was positively sick of it, and was looking for the exit. We made it to the ground floor, and into the ...

... with lots of people playing instruments, juggling, break dancing, playing soccer, playing tennis, singing, the list goes on. And the best part is that this is just around the stadium, it`s not in a building. Osaka is a very peaceful place with a lot of tourist attractions and plenty of ways to have a good time. In a few days I`ll head over to Nara for a day, the old ...

... of small subsistence farms without electricity or safe drinking water. Medical care is almost non-existent. The state of education is dismal. There aren't enough schools, and the existing ones are often in terrible disrepair. Illiteracy is rampant. Many children don't even finish elementary school, and only a small fraction ever make it to junior high school. That's where PEPY Ride (http://www.pepyride.org) comes in ...

... matting). Marita called it the Cursed Tatami Mat Room. Apparently all the previous flatmates that had stayed in that room, befell a case of bad luck in their relationships and ended up breaking up with their partners. The room had remained empty for some time. Hmmm, I wonder how it would have affected Dave's state of affairs, if any. Having previously found out that TimTams were readiliy available in Japan, Dave had to change the present he was giving to ...