Day 1- Arrival In Osaka, Japan
After flying all night, we arrived in Tokyo only to immediately board another flight and make our way to Osaka, Japan. Osaka would be our home base for the next four days of travel, but we really had no idea how much ground we would cover daily, but we were about to find out.
Although we had been told we would spend all of the first day out and about, I really didn’t know what that actually meant. It really means you are not going to the hotel, you are not going to freshen up..but you are immediately going to take on a shrine, shopping and walking. Be prepared.
Sumiyoshi-taisha Shinto Shrine (Sumiyoshi Grand Shrine)
Sumiyoshi Grand Shrine was our first stop after getting off the plane and getting our butts on that nice bus I described above. Wow, what an intro to Japan. Sumiyoshi is the name of the shrine and also describes its architectural style, meaning there are over 2000 more Sumiyoshi style shrines in Japan. This large shrine in Osaka is the head of all Sumiyoshi shrines in Japan. To get into the shrine, we were taught the traditional manner of cleansing ourselves and participated in the ritual. It felt good to be included in the cultural aspects of the area and we were able to watch respectfully as both our guide and others prayed in front of the one of the main shrines. You can read about the history and architecture of the shrine on this LINK if you click it.
Check out my slide show of pics from our visit to the shrine:
Finally, one of the largest (original) trees from the shrine. Since most Japanese buildings were built of wood, lots of the shrines and castles have burned over the years and been rebuilt. But this tree has stood the test of time.
Pokémon Center Osaka and Lunch
Yep, back on the bus and this was our next stop after the shrine. The visit to the Pokemon Center was two-fold. One, it got the kids to their first (but not last) Pokemon Center early in the trip and it allowed them to find lots of various places to eat on the streets inside several buildings around this busy, expensive shopping expanse in the Umeda area of Osaka. When I say expensive, I’m not kidding. I immediately spied one of the trendy outdoor gear shops I would see around Japan (Arcteryx) and crossed a very, very busy street with hundreds of my new friends to check out the store. The only thing I really wanted was an Arcteryx Japan hat, but at just over $100 American, that was out of my budget for the day. Too bad, and off we went for another visit to somewhere else.
Japanese Arcade Visit
As an adult, I think visiting a Japanese Arcade would have been super cool in the 80’s when I was a kid or very super cool if the arcade had the latest and greatest Japanese Anime video games. There’s much I don’t know in my old age….and my kids tell me that the grabber games are the THING now in Japan, thus those games apparently are up to date and modern.
What the arcade had was six levels (floors) of various older games and one floor of picture booths. The first three floors had more and more expensive “grabber” games…..like the ones you use the claw to get a prize, but it always slips and you get nothing. And with most of us exhausted, staying around this arcade for more than an hour was a test of patience and how much money each kid had to spend. My own kids probably spent more than $35 dollars trying to get a shark/kitty, but just ended up dropping it every time. In the end, later in the trip I just bought one for my daughter because she was obsessed with going and finding the grabber games to try to get her shark/kitty.
Hotel
After walking around the shrine, the various outdoor venues in the Pokemon Center Area and then to and from the bus to get to the arcade, I was fried. I was ready for dinner and some A/C in the hotel room. The hotel and the area around it are well set up and it turned out to be an enjoyable stay. As adults, the HelmsMistress and I had our own room (paid a bit more for it) and the kids were either three or four to a room with each room having a private bathroom. Within the hotel was a restaurant, but in the immediate area surrounding the hotel was a McDonald’s, donut shop and several stores for sundries. The breakfasts served each morning at the hotel were a mix of western breakfast food and a large selection of traditional Japanese breakfast food…yes very different than what we might eat in the west. But that’s why were were here, to experience the culture and learn. I slept great this first night and I’m thankful that the morning starts for this trip were not too early, allowing us to get some needed sleep and get organized each morning.
Day One in Japan complete, Day Two would be just as packed.
Heat and Humidity in Japan: When we were visiting Japan in July, it was hot and humid. I don’t think I was mentally prepared for just how hot and humid it would be, but we quickly learned that we needed to have cold water/drinks with us and take advantage of the air conditioned bus when we could.
Visiting Japan has been a dream for the family for a long time. We’ve done lots of traveling with our kids and will continue to travel with them. We’ve already got our next couple extended trips in mind. This trip to Japan was done under the auspices of our local school district in conjunction with EF Educational Tours. This is one of several companies that run student specific tours led by teacher and chaperones with local, expert guides who lead the tours in-country and can act as translators as needed.
Want to know more about this trip or travel with kids? Ask us in comments!
Other writing in this Japan Travel Series:
Travel With Family- A Summer Trip To Japan- 1
Discover more from Live Free 2 Travel Slow
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