Osaka version 2.0 - Day 3

On our third day in Osaka, we helped ourselves to an endless supply of bacon, sausages, scrambled eggs, panjacks with maple syrup and curry rice for breakfast at Teatro before heading to Tempozan to visit the Kaiyukan Aquarium.

Today's weather was fine with plenty of sunshine and a clear blue sky overhead. We took a 10 minute Captain Line Cruise shuttle ride from the jetty behind our hotel to Tempozan, cruising down Osaka Bay. Approaching Tempozan, we could see the distinctive red and blue structure of Kaiyukan Aquarium welcoming us near the dock and the enormous Tempozan Ferris Wheel in the background.

Upon entering the aquarium, we were greeted by a tunnel tank housing an array of tropical marine fish such as damselfish, chromis, angelfish and rays. We then stepped onto a very long and steep escalator transporting us all the way to the 8th floor at the top. The exhibit on this level was the Japan Forest and it housed two prominent displays such as the Asian small-clawed otter and the Japanese giant salamander, amongst the lesser exhibits housing freshwater fish and wall-climbing crabs.

Going down one level, we entered the Aleutian Islands exhibit which housed three extremely playful sea otters which were much larger than they looked on television. They appeared to be having fun lazily floating on their backs and steering themselves with their tail. We were just in time to witness feeding time as the furry critters eagerly awaited their handler to hand out their rations for the morning. They had such animated faces and actions that they seemed almost human as they washed their pieces of salmon and squid in the water before tearing at their tasty morsels one bite at a time.

The next exhibit was the Monterrey Bay and it housed several harbour seals and a California sea lion. These marine mammals swam so gracefully in the large exhibit and appeared to be doing an underwater ballet with their fluid movements. I found the spotted harbour seals more appealing with their plump, rounded bodies. They reminded me of swimming spotted sausages with eyes and whiskers.

Moving quickly past the exhibits featuring the flooded rainforest of tropical South America which was surrounded by a group of Japanese school children on excursion squealing over the gigantic Pirarucu and Pacu, I stopped at the next exhibit: Antarctica; which housed King penguins, Adelie penguins and Gentoo penguins living side by side. The Gentoo and Adelie penguins seemed very active; diving into the frigid water for a swim and then bursting back onto land again, while the King penguins looked regal against the backdrop, standing motionless in the cold, oblivious to the activity around them.

The next exhibit was very large indeed and featured a land area with rocks and trees. This was the Tasman Sea exhibit and housed several Pacific white-sided dolphins. I love cetaceans and was thrilled to see these intelligent creatures up close. It's true that the smile of a dolphin has a profound effect on us. The dolphins raced by so quickly that it made taking a good photo of them an impossible task!

Descending to the 6th floor, we came face to face with a very large exhibit right in the centre which was themed the Pacific Ocean. This exhibit is probably the highlight of every visitor to the aquarium as it houses a myriad of denizens of the open sea which are rarely seen up close. This tank had a school of sardines which moved about as one, bursting through and changing directions abruptly every now and then as they made way for larger fish such as the whale shark which cruised by majestically, befitting its status as the largest fish on earth. Sometimes it looked as if the whale shark was playing tag with the school of sardines. Several other larger schooling fish such as jack trailed the whale shark while snappers and groupers roamed the middle to lower levels. Different species of rays glided by the walls of the tank so gracefully while I swear I saw a large hammerhead snap up a tiny sardine in an instant, leaving behind a shower of silver scales falling through the cyan water.

Separated by a net in the same tank were some slower-moving giants of the deep such as the giant manta ray of leviathan proportions. Despite its behemoth size, this gentle creature is of no harm to humans and appeared to flap its wings as it swam by in a loop, performing underwater acrobatics. Another giant of the deep confined to this tank was the Napoleon wrasse - a huge blue-green fish of the wrasse family with interesting markings and maze-like patterns on its face, and an even more peculiar hump on its head.

As we gradually descended to the bottom of the ocean, we passed by the Seto Inland Sea and found a very shy octopus lying motionless, camouflaging as a piece of ocean rock in the twilight lighting of the depths. We finally arrived at the Japan Deeps and saw a tank full of giant spider crabs with long spindly legs. They looked so fragile as they danced on their long, slender limbs on the sea floor.

The final exhibits were specially designed tanks to house jellyfish so that they do not collide and die. There was an amazing variety of jellyfish on display varying in sizes from as tiny as a ladybird to as large as a dinner plate. These were cleverly illuminated with different colours against a dark background to bring out the best in them.

As we made our way to the exit and into the souvenir shop, I spotted a row of capsule toy vending machines that sold exclusive mini figures of the creatures exhibited at Kaiyukan and instantly knew that I had to get my hands on a couple of these 'gashapons'. Priced at only JPY300 per piece, I tried my luck and bought a total of 9. Luck was on my side as I managed to collect 7 desired minifigures, with only 2 spares. The souvenir shop was very well stocked and I managed to replace a seashell which I had lost many years ago during my big move from Australia.

We left the aquarium and headed over to Marketplace which was a large building housing a large food court and many small shops selling all kinds of souvenirs and knick-knacks. We had our lunch at the food court. I chose a bowl of kitsune udon as I was still feeling stuffed from this morning's heavy breakfast. An interesting point worth noting is that in Japan, you are supposed to empty your trash and carry your used utensils to a cleaning area after finishing your meal.

After spending half a day at Tempozan, we decided to spend the rest of our afternoon exploring the city centre at Namba. We took a JR line train to the city but caught the one heading the wrong direction and ended up doubling our journey time. By the time we arrived at JR Namba station, it was close to 5:00pm and finding our way to Dotombori after sunset was going to be a challenge. I just followed my instincts and decided walking northbound as I knew that we were in the south. We came across a Family Mart shop at a corner and decided to enter a busy side lane lined with brightly lit restaurants patronised by locals on both sides. Following the crowd of work people still dressed so smartly after work, we exited the lane and arrived at a very large zebra crossing. Across from where we stood was Takashimaya and two entrances leading to two separate covered strip malls similar to Shinsaibashi-suji. Lady luck was on our side as there was a sign on one of Takashimaya's windows directing us to Dotombori. However, interpreting the map incorrectly, I took a wrong turn and got a little lost in the huge strip mall which goes on infinitely. Eventually we managed to find our way back to Takashimaya and then headed towards the right direction to Dotombori.

Feeling like I had seen the light at the end of the tunnel, I knew that I was at the right place when a familiar sight greeted me upon exiting the long covered strip mall of Ebisubashi: it was Dotombori with the large mechanical crab above a specialty restaurant diagonally across from where I stood, a Tsutaya bookstore and Starbucks on my right and a H&M store across a bridge. The whole Dotombori street was bustling with activity with both locals and tourists taking to the sights, smells and sounds of this lively place.

I decided to visit Shinsaibashi-suji first since I had already been to Dotombori in April this year. Shinsaibashi-suji is an almost endless strip of shops on both sides ranging from international labels to small clothing boutiques, convenience stores, music shops, cafes and restaurants and we walked like what seemed like miles until we couldn't tread any further and headed back to Dotombori on sore feet for dinner. We found a delightful looking cosy little restaurant with a huge pufferfish hung above the shop front and tucked into a warm, hearty unagi meal with some chicken karaage and gyoza as side orders. If my hiragana skills didn't fail me, and if I was reading the correct signage, I think the name of the restaurant was Tayoshi. The heavy dinner and all that walking must have had a soporific effect on us and we decided to call it a day, enjoying the cool autumn air of the night as we slowly headed home for a good night's rest.

Osaka version 2.0 - Day 2

We awoke to a wet and gloomy morning as it had rained through the night. From our window, the theme park looked soggy. Even the weather forecast on Accuweather did not look promising as rain was predicted for the day. However, I took a gamble and purchased my JPY6,400 1-day studio pass to Universal Studios Japan, reasoning that the wet weather would deter the legions from coming out.

After a hearty buffet breakfast at the bustling Teatro restaurant on the second floor which served 80 tantalising dishes to choose from, we made our way to the theme park. It was a pleasant 5 minute walk across the hotel, down a path scattered with fallen maple leaves in various shades of autumn. The impressive grand entrance archway to Universal Studios Japan welcomed us at the top of the staircase to Universal City. I felt my heart skip a beat as we walked under the archway, through the turnstiles and into the park grounds. Let the fun begin!

We took a leisurely stroll throught the different themed areas of the park. The first attraction we hopped into in New York was T2 Terminator 2 in 3D. The show started with a simulated tour and presentation at Cyberdyne Systems in Japanese so we were clueless as to what was being announced. The visual presentation was rudely interrupted by a live transmission by the Connors exposing Cyberdyne's dark side. Cyberdyne's presentation then resumed and we were led into a theatre for a live demonstration of Cyberdyne's robots. We put on our 3D glasses and the action started. It was an exhilirating action-packed show with superb eye-popping 3D projections, special effects such as smoke, strong blasts of air during helicopter scenes and lastly a free-falling platform. Definitely not recommended for the faint-hearted!

Strolling past the replica old town buildings of New York City, we headed over to our second attraction located in San Francisco: Back to the Future - The Ride. It was a good 20 minute wait to take a wild ride on the DeLorean as this ride appeared to be very popular. To kill time, I took out my Angry Birds game on my mobile phone and started flinging birds around. This ride was a motion simulator and the DeLorean took us on a time travel, but not without the ruthless bumps, shakes, flings and tosses. No wonder the ride attendants advised us to empty our pockets before getting in. It was rather intense indeed! After the ride ended, I felt a bit sick.

We then crossed a bridge and walked into Jurassic Park. This was by far my most favourite themed area of all time as I am a Jurassic Park fan and have been waiting for almost two decades to visit something like this! I unfortunately do not enjoy flume rides and I do not like getting soaked in the cold, so I decided to skip Jurassic Park -The Ride. Instead, I spent a good 30 minutes scouring the souvenir shop for goodies to take home. Just beside the souvenir shop was a snack stand that appeared to be extremely popular with its long queue. The smoked turkey drumstick at JPY770 per piece was their best selling item with almost everybody who queued up munching on one as they left. It looked intimidating but the whiff of smokey goodness was good enough to make you salivate. Opposite the stand was the Discovery Restaurant, built to resemble the Visitors Centre in the movie with its signature conical roof and tall palm trees, giving it that tropical feel. Inside the restaurant was a large T-rex skeleton placed upon a pedestal just like in the movie. Even the murals looked authentic. The only thing lacking was the banner "When Dinosaurs Ruled the Earth".

We left Jurassic Park, briefly stopping to take one final look at the gargantuan archway with its lit pillars, and headed into the next section of the park: Amity Village. This area had a very small coastal town feel to it with white picket fences and sun-bleached wooden structures surrounded by a water feature to resemble the sea. Right in the centre of Amity Village was a huge replica of a great white shark showing its fearsome maw filled with rows of razor sharp teeth, hung by its tail. The entrance to the JAWS ride was located behind this tourist attraction. The JAWS ride was less intense physically, yet still as thrilling with an enormous shark pursuing and ramming the boat, explosions and lots of splash. Since I had a side seat on the left of the boat, I witnessed most of the action up close and got a good soaking.

After experiencing three very exciting rides, it was time to refuel on some light afternoon snacks. We headed back to the New York area and bought a hotdog each from the hotdog stand outside The Amazing Spiderman ride and found some empty benches to savour our warm afternoon snack along a quiet lane decorated with a yellow NYC cab. Even though it was just normal street food, the hotdog was delicious. The sausage was extremely juicy, bursting with flavour while the hotdog bun was warm, soft and fluffy. Perfect for a cool afternoon.

Just as we chomped down on the last bit of hotdog with ketchup and mustard zig-zagged all over the top, a parade was about to start. It was the Halloween Special parade with floats featuring a Masquerade,  Mardi Gras,  Halloween costume party and Rio de Janeiro Carnival. The atmosphere was party-like with loud Latin music featuring brass, percussion and catchy choruses to get you into the rhythm of the parade. Psychedellic floats flanked by performers and dancers all decked in brilliant costumes looking very much like a flock of birds from the Amazon rainforest passed us by.

As the parade moved on, we queued for our fourth ride at The Amazing Adventures of Spiderman. The queue area resembled the office of The Daily Bugle and showed a 'live' video feed of some supervillains besieging the city. This ride was a combination of 3D projection and a motion simulator on tracks navigating a myriad of elaborate physical sets. We were flung around on Spidey's sticky web as the superhero fought his many nemeses, such as Electro, Scream, Doctor Octopus, Hydro-Man and Hobgoblin. We had mist sprayed and hot air blasted onto us to simulate the elements during the show. A most memorable scene was when Hobgoblin threw exploding pumpkins at us, only to have the pumpkins intercepted by Spiderman.

As evening approached, we proceeded to our final attraction: Backdraft. This attraction was placed in a building which resembled a fire station. Inside, we were led to three separate rooms with a display in the centre. The final room was where all the action began. It looked like a movie set of a flammable liquid storage facility. After the warning alarms were sounded and everybody safely behind the barricade, the flames were ignited. The way the set burned made it look like a real fire broke out. The immense heat from the crackling flames added a couple of degrees to the already warm indoor temperature. We were in for a surprise at the final moment when the whole platform where we were standing on fell abruptly, but it was all part of the Backdraft experience.

After our final ride, we took one last walk around the theme park before heading to the souvenir stores near the exit. The shops sold a wide variety of souvenirs ranging from stuffed toys, keychains, clothing and even snacks. One of the snacks which drew my attention was the Spiderman instant noodles. Apart from the colourful Spiderman packaging, the contents also included some thin round dehydrated food bits with Spiderman's face printed on it. The shops were packed with mostly last-minute shoppers cramming their shopping baskets with all kinds of goodies before leaving the park.

It was already dark outside when we made our way towards the exit as the sun sets at 5:00pm during this time of the year. The surrounding area was brightly lit and still buzzing with activity as tourists busily snapped photos at the Universal Studios revolving globe and the park grand entrance. After unloading our belongings at the hotel and freshening up for the night, we headed back to Universal City for dinner at the Universal City Walk - a strip of restaurants and shops adjacent to the entrance of Universal Studios Japan. We settled for omurice (rice wrapped in omelette) at Pomunoki on the fifth floor. The plastic food on display at the front of the shop looked mouth watering enough to beckon us inside. My omurice served with pork katsu and curry sauce turned out pretty well. The portion was extremely generous and it was extremely satisfying down to the last spoonful of rice.

After wandering around at the Universal City Walk paying a visit to almost every shop and prodding around at peculiar products in a Japanese pharmacy, we bought some ice cream from Lawson. Eating ice cream in the cold outside is a good experience for those who come from the tropics. At least the ice cream doesn't melt too quickly. The reduced noise from human traffic and shops closing for the night signalled that it was time to head back to the hotel to wash up and to get ready for another day of excitement.