Twilight Express and Osaka

Day 21 – Twilight Express and Osaka

Osaka

Wednesday, 25 April 2012

We arrived at Osaka at 12.50pm on the Twilight Express from Sapporro.

My upper berth had seemed more precarious than on the Hokutesoi so I wasn’t able to toss and turn as I normally would do during the night. But generally the motion of the train did lull me to sleep, and apart from announcements by train staff, I slept throughout the night.

We were booked for the 8.20am breakfast sitting, the last for the morning. The dining car has a European appearance with lacy curtains and lamps on even in the daytime but the luxurious appearance is undermined by plastic tablecloths. Three wait staff in attendance ensured efficient service. I had a lovely piece of cold salmon in my Japanese set breakfast and endless cups of brown tea. Anthony had scrambled eggs, ham and a tomato onion mix, yoghurt, salad, breads and coffee in his European set breakfast.

The journey has seemed long. It’s been great to experience the overnight train journeys but the ideal I think is to break your journey at regular intervals as we did the last time we were in Japan.

Arrived in Osaka to balmy weather. I think we have missed cherry blossoms as the trees on our way here were already clothed in green.

Subway was straightforward but in Osaka you put your money in first and then make a selection, rather than the other way around. We took a wrong turn after getting out on the street and had to retrace our footsteps, getting more tired and warm with each step.

Our accommodation at the Yamatoya Honten at Nipponashi seems to be in a very bustling part of Osaka. Our room is Japanese style with tatami mat living/ sleeping room, separate Japanese dressing area, wash room with small soak bath and separate small toilet. we were escorted to our room on the 5th floor by one of the staff who sat us down and welcomed us with a wet towel and pot of green tea. After a bath and change into fresh clothes, we were much refreshed and headed out in search of the coin operated laundry in another hotel just across the road from ours. In between washing and drying we found a cafe for late lunch making our selection at a vending machine. I had a vegetable pancake with rice and separate small bowl of soba noodles in broth whilst Anthony had curried beef with rice. Delicious! We both ate for 1050 yen.

We also found a self-serve bar that sold that sold frozen yoghurt by weight and Spent more than we had on lunch – about 1250 yen – for plain and green tea yoghurt for me and chocolate and mango yoghurt for Anthony. Very delicious!

Back to our hotel to use the Internet, then out again to explore our neighborhood by night. Our area seems to be a mixture of red light district with bars, shopping streets and eat streets. There were many many people ranging from the traditional to the more outlandish – a very exotic and vibrant mix.

We didn’t stay out late but returned to our hotel for pot of green tea and Japanese sweet and retired for the night – pillows have those grains we’ve experienced before – firm but not uncomfortable.

	Japanese breakfast on Twilight Express [Map]		Dining Car on Twilight Express [Map]
	Trees already in leaf on the way to Osaka [Map]		Last of the cherry blossoms on way to Osaka [Map]
	My lunch at vending machine cafe [Map]		Anthony’s curried beef and rice at vending machine [Map]
	Our hard working cooks at vending machine cafe [Map]		Frozen yoghurt at Partyland [Map]
	One of the shopping streets in Nipponibashi [Map]		One of many waterways in Nipponibashi [Map]
	Yamatoya Honten at Nipponibashi [Map]		Our Japanese style room at Hotel Yamatoya [Map]
	Our dressing area and washing room at Hotel Yamato [Map]