Week(end) Three: Kyoto

Locations: Nijo Castle, Kiyomizu Temple, Higashiyama, Yasaka Shrine

For my third Sunday in Japan, I took a day trip to Kyoto with three other undergraduate students in my lab. The best part about living in Osaka is its proximity to local cultural hotspots; Kyoto is a cheap, 40 minute train ride away from where I live.

Many of our destinations on this trip are planned for my November visits to the city, when the leaves change color. Regardless, the sights were still very picturesque, and we had an extremely enjoyable day overall.

After an hour-long trip involving a train transfer and a subway transfer, we arrived at Nijo Castle (Nijo-jo), which was the residence for the Tokugawa Shoguns in the 17th and 18th centuries.

Outer moat of Nijo Castle

The Kyoto Exploration Crew

The lavish Karamon main gate to the interior castle grounds

Ninomaru Palace, where the Shoguns took care of their shogun business (no photos allowed inside!)

Ninomaru Palace Garden

Looking out over the grounds from a spot along the castle walls

Afterwards, we took the subway to Kyoto Station, where we had lunch on one of the upper floors. Delicious tempura, even if it was a little expensive! The actual layout of the station is very impressive, as giant open-air stairs and escalators cut through the center of the 14-story building. I didn't get any pictures this time around, but maybe next time!

After lunch, we started walking towards the historical Higashiyama district, but before we arrived there, we stopped by a small traditional-looking house for a lesson on wagashi-making (traditional Japanese sweets, especially popular in Kyoto). Our particular set of sweets that we made were essentially small balls of sweet red bean paste enveloped by colorful sweet dough. We made 3 different kinds: one shaped like a flower, one shaped like a colorful maple leaf, and one resembling a little ball of pine needles.

Our instructor was a really nice old man who has been making these sweets for almost 40 years. His expertise was clearly visible; the speed and accuracy with which he worked looked like magic! It took us a solid hour to get through the lesson, but it was ridiculously fun and the results were worth it. Afterwards we enjoyed the extra "flower" we made with some homemade matcha tea.

Enjoying our handcrafted sweets with some bowls of concentrated matcha tea

The technique seemed difficult, but in the end we all felt like master sweets-crafters!

With bags of sweets in hand, we continued to climb up the eastern slopes of Kyoto city towards the historical district. Midway up the mountain, we finally arrived at Kiyomizu Temple (Kiyomizu-dera), a large Buddhist temple dating back to the 8th century (although the present buildings were constructed in the 17th century). Since it was a holiday weekend, the place was extremely crowded with local tourists. Nevertheless, we were able to enjoy the awesome architecture and views!

The temple is most famous for its large wooden balcony with a beautiful view of Kyoto city and the nearby wooded slopes. The entire structure is built out of wood, and not a single nail was used in its construction! For a temple of that size, it really felt impressive!

The entrance gates to Kiyomizu temple

 One of the many beautifully decorated temple structures

 Kiyomizu's famous balcony (packed to the brim with tourists) overlooking Kyoto city

Catching glimpses of the temple through trees while exploring the temple grounds

As the sun set, we descended from the temple and strolled through the historical Higashiyama district. It was packed shoulder-to-shoulder with tourists, so at one point we ducked out of the crowd to take a break and enjoy some local matcha ice cream!

In the last rays of the sun, we walked through Yasaka shrine (Yasaka-jinja), one of the most famous Shinto shrines in Kyoto. It's composed of multiples buildings and a multitude of smaller shrines connected by paths and surrounded by trees, which almost made it feel like a little "shrine park".

Finally, we ended the day by returning through the Gion district, famous for its Geisha performances. The area is also a huge center for restaurants and souvenir shops, and is home to the "Udon Museum", a restaurant which has a unique type of udon for nearly every prefecture in Japan. We chose this as our dinner spot and had two small bowls of udon each. I tried their Osaka and Aichi udon, which were both pretty adventurous for me. The Aichi udon had a small clump of dried fish flakes, and the signature ingredient of the Osaka udon was beef intestine. Nevertheless, I finished both of my bowls and even considered them somewhat tasty!

Walking through the busy Higashiyama district

Buildings of the Yasaka shrine under an emerging moon

A delicious end to a successful adventure through Kyoto!

Week(end) Two: Osaka

Locations: Umeda Sky Building, Tempozan, Namba

For my first solo excursion in Japan, I chose to stay closeby and explore the city of Osaka. Downtown is only a 20 minute train ride from the station by my apartment, and most of the sights are easily reached by the cheap and extensive metro system. However, since most historical sites (like the castle) are especially attractive during autumn foliage, I decided to save them for my weekend excursions in November. In this trip, I visited only indoor/urban attractions.

My first destination was Umeda Sky Building, not far from the central transit station in Osaka. It's an impressive building best known for its rooftop terrace with views over the city. It definitely didn't disappoint!

Umeda Sky Building may not be the tallest, but it's still an impressive structure

Rooftop view towards Toyonaka and further inland

Rooftop view towards Osaka harbor, and Kobe further along the coast

Osaka isn't actually too dense with skyscrapers; though 3 times bigger than San Francisco, its skyline isn't nearly as impressive. However, the entire city area is very dense and has an urban feel, unlike the sprawling suburbs found in a typical American metropolis

Escalators from the 35th floor to the rooftop go across the middle gap in the building

Apparently couples often go up to the top of the building and leave a heart lock on the railing!

A small "forest" park right next to the Umeda Sky Building

Afterwards, I took the subway to Tempozan, one of the many small islands in Osaka harbor just off the main coast. Tempozan is a small coastal stretch of local tourist attractions, featuring a giant ferris wheel, a small bustling marketplace of restaurants and shops, and the famous Osaka aquarium. After a lunch break in the marketplace, I spent the next 3 hours exploring the vast aquarium, best known for its enormous 4-story central shark tank with two whale sharks.

A brief, people-less moment in Tempozan

The huge Osaka aquarium (a lot of which consists of the giant shark tank)

The path through the aquarium starts at "sea level", with this adorable river otter habitat

Ye olde anchovy tank (a must for any respectable aquarium)

It was difficult to capture the color of the reef tank; just imagine it being a lot more dazzling than this

Giant four-story shark tank, containing... lots of sharks. And rays. Basically, fierce lookin' stuff.

Even a tank of this size seems just barely enough to contain their huge whale shark

Aquarium guides specifically via DS. Heck yeah!

Derp?

Can't leave Japan without a hug from a Japanese spider crab!

Okay but the spider crab habitat is seriously terrifying to look at

Masters of hypnosis, eaters of dreams and happiness

But then a seal pressed up against the glass from above and gave a silly smile, so happiness returned!

The sun was starting to set as I exited the aquarium, so I hurried over to the ferris wheel to catch some views of Osaka city bathed in orange. Surprisingly, despite it being sunset time on a Sunday night, there wasn't any line at all.

Looking out towards downtown Osaka from the top of the giant ferris wheel

Apparently some cabins include a snuggle buddy...

Sunset over Osaka port

I spent the rest of the evening in the Namba area, the main dining and entertainment center of Osaka (the other "center" being the area around Umeda central station). I made the stupid decision to not orient myself as I exited the enormous Namba station, and simply follow the general flow of people. After 15 minutes of walking through a multitude of subterranean walkways, I finally passed through one of the several dozen exits out of the "station".

My destination was Dotonbori, a canal-side street filled to the brim with shops and restaurants, considered by many to be the heart of Osaka. I knew that Namba station was south of the canal, so I was hoping the main flow of people was heading north towards Dotonbori. Unfortunately, the ENTIRE neighborhood near Dotonbori turned out to be a massive shopping district, and I quickly became lost in a sea of people walking in every possible direction.

Finally, after a full 60 minutes of aimlessly walking around, I found myself on a bridge over the canal. Exhausted and hungry, I let myself be stopped by a pair of waiters advertising for a shot bar, and struck a deal with them. If they could suggest and direct me to a nearby ramen restaurant, I would return afterwards and reward them with my patronage. This plan succeeded, and afterwards I used my regained energy to further explore the area and locate the Space Station video game bar, operated by an American. Fortunately, my sense of direction proved to be better this time around, and I was able to finish my day with a few games of Super Smash Bros Melee!

The canal by Dotonbori at night
(thousands of swarming shoppers are seen crossing the pedestrian bridge)

I didn't take a photo from the video game bar, so have this google image of it instead.

Overall, my first solo excursion in Japan: a resounding success!

Week One: Schlenking and Shoyu

Locations: Toyonaka, Osaka

My apartment in Osaka consists of a single corridor with a kitchen alcove, a bathroom, and a personal room. It feels small, but it's equipped with basically anything I would need, including a washing machine, two closets, a table, and plenty of storage space. In true Japanese spirit, it's space-efficient! It's pretty nice to climb up the small wooden steps to the elevated bed at the end of the day.

All stocked up on snacks and late-night meals!

(Later that week, I'd add eggs, juice, and vegetables to my fridge collection)

My very first morning in Japan consisted of paperwork and lab tours. The group has around 30 people divided up into three rooms, so I only remembered a small fraction of the people I met. After handling some general logistics, I met up with Saito-san, my project leader, to discuss my research plan for the next three months. Luckily for me, it's very similar to my work in Berkeley, so it won't feel too unusual. The rest of the day consisted of more introductions and presentations, and it didn't feel long before nighttime had already arrived, and I left for home early due to my jet lag.

The next day, I decided to take a scenic loop around campus and get a better idea of what Toyonaka (the city that Osaka University is located in) looks like.

My apartment building from the outside

Walking down a quiet canal-lined alley out to the main road

Wider suburban neighborhood closer to campus

Forested mountains form the backdrop for most of Osaka

The other suburbs of Osaka line the foothills of the nearby mountains

The main gate to Osaka University

Trees, bikes, buildings, and anything else you could possibly want out of a university campus!

The chemistry building: my new "home" for 3 months

The Japanese work week is Monday through Saturday, so for the remainder of the week, I spent the majority of my time in lab. Most people arrive at 10am and leave anytime between 8-11pm. We eat lunch and dinner together in the various campus cafeterias. While Japanese is generally the only language spoken, there are two other exchange students in the lab besides myself, and my project members also have a pretty good knowledge of English.

On Saturday night, the other students in my lab room invited me to have dinner with them outside of campus in a small ramen restaurant. Apparently one of them got a recommendation for it, and when they make group excursions to a new place, they agree on a rating for it. The rating consists of matching it to a chemistry journal, with level of impact corresponding to taste. After my mind-blowing bowl of shoyu ramen (I decided to start simple), I proposed my own rating of "Nature". The other members agreed that it was at least above average, maybe JACS-level. If 50% of ramen in Japan is like this, I really should consider staying here more permanently!