Chapter 26

While I was in South Korea, I flew to Osaka for four days. I still dream to visit the whole country but I’m so grateful for this head start.

4 days were enough to visit Osaka, Universal Studio, Nara, and spend a day in nature.

Day 1 – Exploring Osaka

The Osaka Castle

My itineraries usually start with the main monuments, so we headed straight to the Castle. It’s surrounded by fortifications and located in a park I would have loved to visit if it had not been pouring rain.

The Castle was built in 1583 and later destroyed by an attack. It was rebuilt in 1620 only to be struck by lightening and destroyed in a fire again. It was finally reconstructed in 1931, survived the war, and got renovated in the late 90s.

The five floors of the Castle hosts a museum of Japanese artefacts and you are able to look at the view over the park, the garden, and the city from the last floor.

Entrance fee: 600 ¥

Shi Tennō-ji and its five stories Pagoda

Founded in 593 to support the introduction of Buddhism in Japan, Shi Tennō-ji is one of the oldest temple in the country. Like the Osaka Castle, the Temple was rebuilt several times.

You can access the treasure house, and climb to the top of the five stories pagoda.

Entrance fee: 300 ¥ (inner precinct), 300 ¥ (garden), 500 ¥ (treasure house)

Tsūtenkaku and Shin-sekai

In the afternoon, we took a walk around the street that surrounds the Tsūtenkaku Tower.

Shinse-kai means New World and was created to resemble Paris in the north of the neighborhood (hence the resemblance to Paris’s Eiffel Tower), and New York in the south.

Built in 1912, Tsūtenkaku is supposed to look like the Eiffel Tower on top of the Arc de Triomphe. Like the Osaka Castle and Shi Tennō-ji, it was also reconstructed after being destroyed (by a fire). It was the highest tour in Asia back then.

The area is one of the poorest and most dangerous in Japan, but is popular due to the nostalgia feeling it brings, and its aesthetic.

We took a stroll around, had some Takoyaki, a beer, and put coins in a machine to get our fortune predicted.

Dōtonbori District

Dōtonbori is one of the main attraction is Osaka. It’s a very busy, noisy, crowded, colourful street full of shops and restaurants. Such an overwhelming feeling to stroll around. The center point of this street is renown for its large luminous billboards on buildings, notably the Asahi one and the Glico man.

Day 2 – Universal Studios

One dream checked out of the bucket list! Although, I have mixed feelings about the park.

As a huge Harry Potter fan, my main motive to visit Universal was to finally see the closest thing on Earth to the Wizarding World. It was our first stop in the park.

Harry Potter Park

You slowly enter the Harry Potter Universe by walking along pine trees and Hagrid’s Cabin. At some point, you’ll reach Hogsmead.

I could not believe my eyes! It was exactly how I had imagined it and beyond. Core memory. The decors felt authentic, it was detailed and vibrant. The experience felt real enough.

You get to visit Ollivanders, Zonkos, and Honeydukes, buy butterbeers or wizard robes.

And then, you see it. The Castle. Hogwarts. Home.

Again, I was struck! It was huge, high and impressive. It wasn’t a real stone magic castle, but it was definitely Hogwarts! My heart was beating so fast seeing it. The lake and the pine trees around contributed to the feeling of realness and being isolated in the Magic World.

The Harry Potter park has two rides:

Flight of the Hippogriff is a quite short ride around Hagrid’s hut. I enjoyed the ride but it wasn’t fast or very sensational.

The second ride is Harry Potter and the Forbidden Journey that takes you on a 3D journey around the castle. It lasts 5 minutes and you get a bit of movement. I enjoyed it just fine.

The Super Nintendo World

The Super Nintendo World is another highlight of the park. You must download the app and book a slot to visit it the day of your arrival.

Again the park is breath-taking and the details are remarkable. If you are a Mario Bros fan, you’ll go nut for sure.

We went on the Bowser’s challenge ride where you sit in a cart and compete in a race wearing 3D glasses. I’m not a big Mario Bros fan, so I got confused on how to play and got overwhelmed with sensory overload.

Another of the attraction is a Yoshi train that gets you around the park.

The rest of the park

We also explored the worlds of Hollywood, Despicable Me, Jaw, Spider Man and Jurassic World. The rest of the park is just as impressive as Harry Potter and Nintendo World. Just the walk around is worth the visit.

Notables rides are Hollywood Dream and the Flying Dinosaur where you literally fly on your belly the whole ride. These two are the main roller coasters of the park, and way too scary for my liking.

The Jurassic Park ride takes you along a boat tour in a river, and ends with a thrilling drop where your butt leaves your seat and you get splashed on the arrival. Super fun!

I also liked the Minion Mayem ride which gives you a bit of movement.

We didn’t do any other attractions due to waiting times or some attractions being either closed or scary.

My take is that the park in itself is breath taking, and a treat for pop culture lovers. I think the park is very focused around enjoying the universes, the decor, and the atmosphere.

I did not enjoy the rides and attractions that much, as I found the two roller coasters were absolutely terrifying, and the other rides rather mild in terms of sensations (I’m kinda comparing with Disneyland Paris where I feel there are more approachable roller coasters).

We were expecting to run the whole day to do the whole park, but we were actually done by 5pm. If you are a Harry Potter fan, and a Nintendo fan, and loves roller coasters, you might feel tight on schedule.

Practical information: it was very easy to reach by transport, queues can get very long but there are single riders options. If you are a Nintendo fan, try to book your slot as soon as you are in the park.

Day 3 – Short trail to the Minoo Park and its waterfall

On day three, I took a trail through the Minoo Park to spend time in nature.

A short train ride from the city, this large park is covered in hills, forests, and water streams. Japan Guide points that its specifically beautiful in the fall.

Once you exit the train station, you’ll find signs guiding you towards the trail right away. You’ll first cross a lovely neighbourhood, traditional houses, shops, and a temple. You’ll slowly enter more nature, trees, and streams.

It’s quite a straight flat 30-45 minutes to the waterfall (although I somewhat got lost and took a detour).

I sat at the waterfall for a good hour, resting, and meditating. I really adored that place.

I also stopped at a lovely coffee place along the way. The inside of the coffee had a rich classical decor, but I sat outside, under the shadow of the trees.

Day 4 – Nara

Nara is such a beautiful city and truly worth visiting! It’s a 50 minutes train ride from Osaka. It shortly was the capital of Japan in the 8th century until it was moved to avoid the growing influence of Buddhist monasteries on the government. Hence, the city is filled with history and monuments. It’s also famous for its deers walking freely around the town.

The main monuments to see are at a 15-20 minutes walk from the train station.

The Kōfuku-ji Temple

Established in 710, the temple is famous for its five stories pagoda and the Central Golden Hall.

The grounds also holds the National Treasure Hall where you can see the Ashura Statue, famous in Japan, and my favourite piece in the museum, the Thousand-Armed Kannon**.**

According to Kōfuku-ji official website, the name can be translated to “He who perceives the sounds of the world” and symbolizes Buddhist compassion. Kannon hears the complaints and attends to them with all its eyes and arms.

The rest of the museum is filled with impressive national treasures. You can found out more here.

The Todaji Temple

This temple was the most impressive I got the chance to see so far and I will never forget it. Rightfully it’s one of the most historically significant Buddhist Temple in Japan. It’s also one of the largest wood building in the world (and it’s original form before reconstruction was even larger).

We headed there after visitng the Kōfuku-ji Temple, walking our way across a park, petting the deers, and visiting souvenir shops. You enter the Temple through a massive wood arch.

The main hall hosts a Great Buddha statue flanked by two Boddhistava.

We only had half a day in Nara so we probably missed a lot. Still we enjoyed it and it’s truly a jewel to visit.

I adored Osaka, and I felt I got to see a good share of the city and its surroundings in four days.

‘Til next time Japan!

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Chapter 26