28 March 2009

I slept in a little bit later today and got up around 7am. Some of my classmates purchased a wireless router last night, so we all pitched in 300 yen to cover the cost and are now able to share the wireless internet in the lounge. To take advantage of my early rising, I went down to the lounge after I got ready to begin uploading some photos and Skype with my parents. The wireless internet was very convenient, and it was the first time I had access to internet on my computer since the LAN line input isn’t working on my laptop for an unknown reason. So all morning, I uploaded pictures to my Picasa webpage and caught up on emails and Facebooking. At 4pm, we met Don in the lounge once again to begin our day trip to Osaka. He figured since it was a Saturday night, we’d be able to see the “night life” in the Osaka area. To get to Osaka, this once again required the hour long train ride on the Keihan Expressway Line, and it was incredibly crowded. Luckily I got a seat after about 30 minutes since I was beginning to feel motion sick.
Upon arrival in Osaka, we began our visit from the outskirts and worked our way inwards. Our main goal was to see a couple of Tadao Ando’s projects. At first, Osaka was very much like any American city with freeways and high rise buildings. Once we got to the city center however, it was a completely different world. There was a maze of small streets everywhere, and I would’ve never found my way out if I wasn’t with a group. There was an abundant amount of good architecture, and we ended up only finding one Tadao Ando project since the streets were so confusing. Ando’s Galleria project was very amazing, and his simplistic design in concrete was as impressive as always.
Next we decided to grab a bite to eat since all of us were very hungry by that time. Don chose a small restaurant that specialized in okonomiyaki. I ordered the pork okonomiyaki while most of my classmates ordered stir fry noodles. My item costed 700 yen but was actually one of the cheapest items on the menu. After dinner, we proceeded to enter the mile long shopping arcade that rant through the heart of Osaka. Once in the city center, it was unlike anything I had ever experienced before. The buildings were completely lit by advertisements, and it was exactly like you see images of Japan’s cities. The amount of people in that exact location was inconceivable, and everything was embodied in bright lights and hustle of the masses. It was truly and wonderfully overwhelming. Before leaving, Don lead us into a Dohtombori Gokurakushowtengai, which is a indoor imitation of the Osaka downtown area. Everything inside was life size, but on a smaller scale, and they served foods similar to what we could buy on the street. Don said to think of it as an elaborate food court; this I found very interesting. I didn’t really like the feel of the indoor city, but it was definitely a memorable experience since there is nothing comparable to that in the United States.
That was the end of our adventures in Osaka for the night. We had to option to stay longer and explore on our own, but the trains and subway stop running at midnight, and it was already 9pm. It once again took us over an hour to get home, and almost everyone fell asleep on the train ride back. It was another day involving a lot of walking!