24 Hours in Osaka
- Lucy and the lens
- Jun 7, 2019
- 3 min read
For some reason, most of the locals we spoke to in Tokyo, Kyoto and Nara looked concerned when we said we were heading to Osaka. Indeed, Osaka is a bit less tourist-friendly than its famous city neighbours - we actually got lost on the public transit system for the first time since arriving in Japan. However, we struggled to understand everyone's claims that the city is ugly and charmless: perhaps it was because it was cherry blossom season, or perhaps it was because we're foodies and Osaka has one of the most renowned food scenes in the country, but we really enjoyed our 24 hours here!
Osaka Castle
We started our day at Osaka Castle. Built in the 1500s, it sits on a raised stone platform surrounded by a moat that is more scenic than practical these days! I love the tiered designs of Japanese castles, and Osaka's was the most grand in design by far. It really doesn't have a bad angle: the shot below was taken from across the moat in a cherry blossom grove. Even if you don't pay to enter the castle, you can cross the moat and climb right up to the base of the castle, where you'll find plenty of viewpoints and gardens from which to admire its white, gold and green design.
Osaka is known for its street food, and the food trucks were out in force beside the castle moat, where locals and visitors taking part in hanami - cherry blossom viewing - had their blankets and tarps spread out. Grilled squid, takoyaki, tempura, noodles, you name it - we could have eaten away the day sitting here, but we had other things to do!
Walking by the Yodo River
The Yodo is the main river that runs through Osaka, and in spring it's flanked by cherry blossoms. I can't vouch for the views from this river during the rest of the year, but during our visit we really enjoyed getting to see the stark contrast between the pink blossoms and the skyscrapers beyond them. We grabbed ourselves a sakura-flavoured ice cream and took our time strolling the banks in the sun.
Shinsekai
The downtown Shinsekai district is known, surprisingly, as one of Japan's seediest areas. It had a huge gang problem a few years ago, but it's been cleaning up its act and is one of the coolest places to go for a night-time stroll. The street was modelled partly after New York and partly after Paris, and was built in 1912. Today, it's a shock of neon and giant models of the food on offer: a giant octopus points the way to a takoyaki restaurant, and a giant crab signals more seafood delights. My favourite is the enormous blowfish hovering above the street.
Marbled beef dinner
We knew we wanted to try marbled beef while in Japan, and not having the chance to visit Kobe, we settled for its close neighbour, Osaka. Based on reviews, we went for restaurant Matsusakagyu Yakiniku M. 'Matsusaka' is the name of type of marbled beef on offer, and 'yakiniku' simply means 'grilled meat': you'll see this word everywhere in the city!
We chose this restaurant because of its affordable set dinner menu that didn't compromise on quality. We got to enjoy a starter of delicious marinated kalbi beef, a surprising but delicious Korean-style bibimbap, and even some beef sushi - very lightls cooked beef laid over sushi rice! The main course featured four different cuts of beef, from lightly to heavily marbled. You have a grill in the middle of your table, which you use to very quickly cook the beef before eating. The most marbled cuts were so tender they literally melted in our mouths.
The service was so friendly and attentive: this was our anniversary meal, and they treated us to a special dessert of mille crepe cake and matcha lava cake!
Bonus: the cutest donuts in Japan
Find these adorable animal donuts, below, at Floresta Nature Donuts. We made the mistake of turning up right at opening time: because they're a bit fancier than normal donuts, it took about 20 minutes to make them, but it was reassuring seeing them creating these adorable treats fresh on the spot.
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