Explore Osaka

JR Kansai Airport Rapid Service: Shin-imamiya Station to Kansai Airport Station

15 May 20229 May 2022travelingpersecond

The first eight days of the new year, still tightly binding both eyes. Revenge for my frozen body last night during the New Year’s Eve celebration at Dōtonbori Canal by the warmth of Hotel Kaga blanket was something I considered draw. But in the end, only a thing was able to force my eyes not to close anymore, i.e Air Busan BX 123 flight at exactly 11:00 am, because as usual, for international flights, four hours before flight time I will start my journey to the airport.

Almost seven o’clock, I jumped up, grabbed a hotel’s white towel, bathroom amenities and immediately headed out of the room to shared bathroom at the end of corridor. Hotel Kaga’s bathroom is quite spacious for a backpacker. In the form of a two-part space, i.e a partition with glass and a sink and a bath capsule with a warm shower. Long time under a warm shower is my bad habit, because warm water is very effective in expelling fatigued leg muscles which is my main asset in every trip….Yup, especially if it’s not for walking tens of kilometers throughout the adventure.

After taking a shower, I nonchalantly crossed hotel corridor only wrapped in a towel and flip-flops. Making some passing hotel guests look surprised. “Ah, I only met once with them…. Let it go,” I thought, starting to be fun.

In the room I immediately cleaned up, put on a t-shirt with a black long john, cotton trousers to keep my body temperature, a pair of boots and started packing all my things into a blue Eiger 45L backpack which I borrowed from a friend at work (too bad, just borrow a backpack) .

I went down to the lobby using elevator and immediately handed over my room key at reception desk.

“Thank you for staying at our hotel. Have a nice trip, Sir”, a receptionist who was still the same, on duty from last night, smiled as she handed me the deposit money.

“You’re welcome. Very happy to stay at Hotel Kaga …. A good hotel”, I casually answered. “See you, Sir”.

“See you”, he waved his hand and was still smiling.

I headed back down street towards Shin-imamiya Station, the station I first landed on when I entered downtown. That’s the only station closest to my hotel and Nankai-Kuko Line train which goes to Kansai International Airport (KIX).

The five meter wide alleys began to wriggle, leaving the remnants of last night’s New Year celebrations. I quickly walked through several alleys without enjoying the atmosphere, I’ve passed it a few times though. Taking a copy to Abiko-suji Avenue, I arrived at Shin-imamiya Station within five minutes of leaving the hotel.

Entering the station gate, my eyes immediately looking for ticketing vending machine. I got it easily. A ticket worth 1,060 Yen was finally in my hands and I immediately docked at e JR Kansai Airport Rapid Service platform.

The airport service train arrived on time, I entered one of its carriages and shortly after sitting down, the train sped away. I returned to enjoying the trip again like when I first took the same train when I arrived in Osaka. The first sight that be presented was the atmosphere of a densely built urban area in Nishinari, Sumiyoshi and Suminoe City Districts. After crossing Yamoto River, the atmosphere changed to an area of agricultural land in Kishiwada and Izumisano areas. Then the train crossed the ocean in Osaka Bay after a bit of climbing an overpass in Rinku Town. After crossing sea bridge along five kilometers, the train arrived at Kansai-Airport Station.

As soon as the train stopped at platform, I immediately jumped out of the carriage to departure hall of Kansai International Airport, the winner of Skytrax’s Best Low Cost Airline Terminal in the World.

One of the first destinations upon arrival at the airport….Yes, money changer.

Dōtonbori Canal: Failed New Year’s Countdown

13 May 20229 May 2022travelingpersecond

“Hi Sir, have fun and enjoy the New Year’s Eve”, the friendly receptionist with glasses managed to guess my intentions when I was about to leave the lobby of Hotel Kaga.

“Hi, you know that….Hahaha….You too, Sir. See you”, I lightly joked.

“See you, Sir”, the receptionist was still smiling.

I started walking on street with the ambient temperature near zero degrees Celsius. My face froze as I followed my swing of steps towards Dobutsuen-mae Station. For the third time I passed Saka-suji Avenue.

“Tonight there will be a lot of drunk people on the streets”, I thought reminding my logic to continue to be careful even though Japan is a safe country.

My Enjoy Eco Card was still effective until that night to explore underground alleys of Osaka City. Now I was driving with Osaka Metro Midosuji Line carriage to Namba Station. I purposely put Dōtonbori Canal as my last destination in Osaka City and I cleverly placed it during New Year’s Eve celebrations.

“Surely there will be lively”, I excitedly thought.

The train I was in was full. Some of them were not Japanese faces. Surely they were travelers who intended a same thing as me, enjoying New Year’s Eve. My journey to Namba Station went very quickly because from Dobutsuen-mae Station there wasn’t a single station which I passed. I would be there in ten minutes.

Exiting the gates of Namba Station, I walked along Mido-suji Avenue. Keep heading north. My estimate was that it would only take ten minutes to reach Dōtonbori Canal. But it was been twenty minutes I still haven’t arrived.

“Wow …. I must have strayed”, my face began to wry.

I ventured to ask a traffic policeman who seemed to be on guard on a side of sidewalk.

“Sir, do you know where is this place?”, I opened my phone and showed a neon Glico board with a picture of famous running man.

He kindly smiled and nodded while joking excitedly “Oh…There….There”.

“Thank you very much, Sir”, I waved as I walked away from him.

“You ale welcome”, the policeman looked around again.

Ten minutes of retracing the path I had taken earlier, I saw several groups of European tourists heading in a direction. I was sure that was where I was headed. I followed that group of tourists. Sure enough, they were also headed for Dōtonbori Canal.

The Dōtonbori Canal at ten o’clock was already lively. The body of canal was filled with tourists, while restaurants and bars seemed to be full. Rich tourists would prefer to wait for New Year’s Eve from restaurants and bars which offer warm air. But I decided to wait for it at the bank of canal, wandering around here and there, trying to enjoy the atmosphere even though I was distracted by freezing air of Osaka.

An hour passed as I walked along each side of canal, then I took my place under the bridge, hoping to find some warm air. But in vain, the air had fallen below zero degrees Celsius. When I couldn’t stand the freezing air, I rushed to a Takoyaki stall. I deliberately queued, waited for order, and ate it for a long time in front of stall to get exposure to warm air which gushed from stall’s stove.

Almost half an hour I took advantage of that situation to manipulate cold temperature. Until finally I kicked myself out because the queue of buyers started to get crowded. I returned to the canal half an hour before New Year’s countdown.

As I struggled back against the cold on a side of the canal, I heard faintly familiar language and accents.

“Ngenteni kene wae cah, ra sah adoh adoh (just waiting here, bro, not too far)” a fainty setence was heard, it was Javanese Language.

I looked back, four men and two of them with long hair were sitting on the side of canal, holding a large bottle of alcohol. It was indeed an effective way of fighting the cold. It reminded me of a alcoholic drink I had because I bought the wrong one at Narita International Airpot on other day. But I haven’t given up, I won’t drink it.

I continued to endure the growing cold. My hands started to go numb. But I tried to stay calm. Until finally five minutes before the countdown arrived. Tourists began pouring in along the sides of canal, restaurants and bars abandoned. Everyone hoped there would be an elegant fireworks display. Until the time came, the count really began.

“Tennnn….Nineeee….Eightttt….”, the count was getting louder

“Threeee…..Twoooo….Oneeee…..Happyyyy Newwww Yeearrrr”, but everyone felt silent for three seconds.

The atmosphere of Dotonbori Canal remain quiet, nothing special. Fifteen minutes later it was still the same, quiet.

“Ah, failed miserably”, I was getting annoyed.

Other tourists began too complain. There would be no fireworks display. Until finally ten young Japanese took the initiative to acquire the atmosphere by climbing bridge railing. They took off their clothes and left their underwear in freezing cold. Then one of them started screaming.

“Threeee….Twoooo….Oneeee”, while swerving jumping like a beautiful jumper with their head plunged into the water first.

“Byurrrrr…”

Then the same behavior began to be carried out by their friend who was ready and standing on bridge railing. Counting to three countdowns, his turn jumped into the water. And the show stopped until the tenth person. At least what they did could cure the disappointment of all visitors to Dōtonbori Canal.

By one o’clock in the morning. The air which initially felt warmer because of the crowd of hundreds of visitors was finally disbanded. The temperature quickly cooled back as visitors began to leave the Dōtonbori Canal. I started going from that place towards Namba Station.

A few minutes later, Osaka Metro took me back to Dobutsuen-mae Station. I was very lucky that my Enjoy Eco Card (One Day Pass) was still valid even though it had passed the expiration date, which was 00:00 am. Maybe this would be a bonus from Osaka Metro for New Year celebration.

Until Dobutsuen-mae Station, then I left it at a brisk pace. Saka-suji Avenue was deserted, even my steps was marked by an incident of a drunk driver who stopped his car in the middle of road until several people tried to push him to side. At an intersection I turned along with hearing a greeting“Helloooo….Happyyyy Newwww Yearrrr, Sirrrr”, a man was riding a bicycle with his right hand holding a bottle of alcoholic drink.

“Happy New Year, sir”, I replied to show friendliness.

Until finally my steps arrived at Hotel Kaga. I felt relieved that I came in hotel safely without less anything. The receptionist was still faithful to his duties, waiting for his desk with discipline.

“Are you happy, Sir?….Good luck for you in the new year”, he smiled at me.

“Sure, Sir…I hope so for you”, I replied. “It’s time to sleep”.

“Yeah….Heve a good sleep, Sir”

I left him for the lift, it took me to third floor. I unsteadily stepped into room. Entering the room, taking off my boots, pulling up the folding bed, and without taking a shower, I immediately threw myself down and quickly fell asleep.

Meanwhile, the bottle of alcoholic drink which had been swallowed by accident two days ago was gracefully standing on a small table in my room. Yess, I didn’t touch it on New Year’s Eve. That means, the alcoholic beverage bottle adventure ended early that morning. Because by noon I would leave Osaka and heading to Busan.

South Korea, I was coming!

Channel No 63 Hotel Kaga

11 May 20229 May 2022travelingpersecond

That night was New Year’s Eve. This was the first time I would enjoy New Year abroad, Osaka to be exact. Inevitably I had intended to enjoy how lively Osaka night was on New Year’s Eve Countdown.

But it was only 5 p.m when I finished very late lunch menu. I left a home-based restaurant whcih stood in an alley in America-mura, after enjoying its chicken ramen.

Now I have a intention which I must fulfill….Yupz, SLEEP.

I couldn’t hide my drowsines after only sleeping at Kansai International Airport for four hours all night. I myself didn’t want to attend New Year’s countdown without fresh face that night.

“See you America-mura”, I jokingly thought as I stepped out of an alley and began to step at Mido-suji Avenue towards Shinsaibashi Station. It was almost six-thirty in the afternoon when I started boarding Osaka Metro to Dobutsuen-mae Station on Midosuji Line.

From Dobutsuen-mae Station, I continued on walking along Saka-suji Avenue to reach the inn. I slowly entered Haginochaya area and soon arrived at Hotel Kaga.

“Hello, Mr. Donny. So afternoon you arrive”, male receptionist with glasses lightly greeted me then stood up from his chair and swiftly took my blue backpack.

“Yes, Sir. Osaka is very interesting, so I will regret it if I come back to hotel too early”, I caught backpack he handed me.

“I think I should sleep to prepare myself for New Year’s Eve tonight”

“Yes, that’s a great idea, Sir”.

I asked permission to immediately entering the room after he gave me a key. I already paid the hotel fare that morning when I left my backpack. I took a quick step towards lift whose doors were already open because someone was using it, then slid up to third floor. As soon as I arrived at the room, I immediately hung up my winter jacket, took off my boots, lowered my backpack, pulled the folding mattress and threw myself onto the mattress.

A single room I booked a month before departure.

Zzzzz……..Zzzzz…..Zzzzz….I quickly drifted off to sleep because of my tired body and sleepy eyes.

It was a little past nine-thirty when I automatically woke up. That’s how I am, if there is an intention to wake up at a certain hour then without even turning on the alarm then I will wake up automatically at that hour. I rarely miss, maybe this is a remnant of my childhood habit when I often got up long before dawn to study. #discipline

I still felt lazy to get out of bed and continued to be comfortable with warm room. Keep imagining how uncomfortable it would be to travel outside where the temperature was almost zero degrees Celsius. I grabbed the TV remote beside me, I just realized that before I went to sleep I had turned on the TV. Practically the TV was watching me when I sleep, not me watching it.

Want to watch Japanese TV shows….Beware with its surprise!

Of course I didn’t know what was being said on every Japanese television show. All I know was a reality show about romance, quizzes with prizes or guessing some cases and events on the evening news. I continued to explore further until channel numbered above 40. Several sporting events as well as flora and fauna began to appear. Now the channel was at 60. I kep exploring….

61….62….

I was suddenly shocked when I entered CHANNEL NO. 63. How not, it is an uncensored adult film channel. My God, what was this…..I would try to skip it, moved on to the next channel. Not long ago moved, for some reason this hand was always curious to press the shortcut to CHANNEL NO. 63, then tried to resist and switching to another channel again. Gosh….Then switch again to CHANNEL NO. 63…..The “Black-White” battle seemed fierce in my mind. Until finally didn’t feel the time was showing nine o’clock.

It was about time I went to New Year’s celebrations with Osakans and other tourists out there. I had read the announcements at many stations that afternoon that Osaka Metro’s operating hours would be extended well past the early hours of the morning. That was good news and I didn’t have to break into my pocket to find a taxi when I got back.

I put my boots back on and put my two jackets on to fight the cold. Remember when I accidentally drank alcohol at Narita International Airport?. Yups, that alcoholic drink was still there and only one drink less at that time. I put it in my winter jacket pocket and I used it as a precaution. I have to be prepared if temperature outside got too extreme in the middle of night….WHO KNOWS?….But hopefully I won’t have to drink it again until my adventure in Osaka was over.

Goose Feather at Namba Parks

7 May 20224 May 2022travelingpersecond

Leaving Osaka Castle via Uemachi-suji Avenue , I headed for Tanimachi 4-chome Station. Passing rows of red-maple trees planted on each side of road, then head to station entrance which was located at the feet of mighty Osaka Museum of History.

“Enjoy Eco Card” (another name for One Day Pass in Osaka) for 600 Yen made ut comfortable and easy to got in and out of station without having to hunt a ticket at automatic vending machine when you wanted to use the services of Osaka Metro. I just tap the card at ticket collecting gate and enjoyed traveling around Osaka as I please.

Taking Tanimachi Line and changing to Sennichimae Line at Tanimachi 9-chome Station, my journey stopped at Namba Station after traveling three kilometers and in fifteen minutes.

Arriving at the eighty-five year old Namba Station, I exited towards Namba City. Namba City is a very large shopping center in this area.

Stepping in corridor after corridor in Namba City made me interested to stop by and saw some of UNIQLO store’s winter jacket collections in a side of magnificent corridor. An interesting funny story happened to me again here. This was the result of my cheap winter jacket I was wearing. This second-hand winter jacket from Pasar Baru (a market in my town) sheded soft goose down from its inside when I tried on a UNIQLO winter jacket in dressing room. Suddenly, after I came out from fitting room, a female attendant took a broom and dustpan to clean that goose. She just smiled at me when was putting the winter jacket back into display case. Even though, I thought I wouldn’t be able to afford it, I was still determined to try it. How could I not think a thousand times to buy it if a winter jacket was priced at 12,900 Yen.

To forgot about that embarrassing incident, I hurriedly left the store and rushed to Namba Parks. This time I started to be amazed because the access to Namba Parks kept me on indoor pedestrian path, even though Namba City and Namba Parks were in different locations. The indoor corridor continued to south and was directly connected to Namba Parks.

After walking less than two hundred meters from the exit gate of Namba Station, I finally arrived at Namba Parks. The cool garden was designed at the top of shopping center with a contour made of steps like a terrace. I should have visited this park at night because there were a lot of lights installed which would definitely light up at night.

A side of Namba Parks, the park above the mall.

Namba Parks itself is also integrated with a shopping and office complex located in Naniwa City District. In the park, I only took thirty minutes because I wanted to visit Americamura soon to see the shopping and entertainment area from a different perspective.

It was already half past two in the afternoon, I started to leave Namba Parks via original route when I came to Namba Parks.

Tom Cruise and Osaka Castle

5 May 20224 May 2022travelingpersecond

You know this this “Handsome Role” right?…

The picture is a scene from the movie “The Last Samurai”, when Captain Nathan, played by Tom Cruise, honorably fights with the leader of Samurai, namely Katsumoto, played by veteran Japanese actor Ken Watanabe, against the soldiers of Emperor Meiji who are trained by American Army. The background of this war is “Modernization vs Feudalism”. Emperors glorified modernization and Samurai maintained tradition.

Those are just a few of many heartbreaking mosaics that made Japan’s history when it transformed from a conventional country to a modern one. One such mosaic is Boshin War, a civil war which left a mark of destruction and was recorded in this historical place which I visited.

Yups….This is Osakajo….People call it as Osaka Castle or Osaka Castle.

—-****—-

On 09:50 hours, I stepped on the platform of Tanimachi 4-chome Station, then exited through one of its gates where Osaka Museum of History and Hoenzaka Iseki proudly stood in station’s courtyard. My steps continued to be connected on Uemachi-suji Avenue with red maple tree decorations on both sides.

Its strong history made Osaka Castle be my first destination in the city with a nicknamed “Manchester From East”. I really didn’t want to delay and lose my first glance at king’s palace which is more than four centuries old. The distance is only six kilometers from Kaga Hotel where I stayed and the availability of Osaka Metro line to it made it so easy to access this destination.

Did you dare to introduceing yourself to her?

Not long in walking, I arrived at Osaka Castle, through Otemon Gate to be exact. Otemon Gate itself is on east side of palace, while on its west side is provided Aoyamon Gate. Like an ancient palace, this place is surrounded by a wide canal nearly a hundred meters long as a form of defense.

Passing a bridge, pedestrian path began to direct every tourist to enter a side of Otemon Gate. It began with a door made of two towering steel sheets. After that, plastered walls which made from fine andesite, some of which were left intact with a length and width of almost five meters.

Soon the second gate greeted. The gate with a size larger than the first one was nicknamed Osakajo Tamon-yagura which was composed of large, intact and sturdy wood. Through this second gate, tourists would automatically enter palace area which had an area of not less than six hectares.

In some fragments of its history, it’s told that this castle was destroyed by fire due to the Boshin War in 1868. Now the Boshin War itself has been illustrated by Tom Cruise in the preambule at the beginning of this article.

I arrived at southern courtyard, call it as Osaka Castle Park. This is where tourists gather and enjoy the elegance of castle made by Toyotomi Hideyoshi, the leader of Japan’s Sengoku Period. I took time to take pictures with old samurai role in castle grounds. Even to got rid of loneliness, I often have fun posing behind a group of tourists who were taking pictures. Grinning horses, jumping, waving or whatever I did. Sometimes it made one of that group pointed at me while laughing after seeing their photos in their digital room. Seriously acute.

After an hour of enjoying Osaka Castle, I decided to sit down and enjoyed the Ikayaki which I bought from one of many food truck which was neatly lined up in east courtyard. A portion of Ikayaki was priced about 300 Yen. Ups, do you know Ikayaki?…. It was a large grilled squid seasoned with mirin (Japanese seasoning).

The original samurai armor is usually in black colour, right?.

Finishing in eating Ikayaki, or at exactly 10:30 am, I started to leave Osaka Castle area and planned to head to Naniwa City District.

Where would I step?………

Magazine, Osaka Metro and Osaka Castle

3 May 2022travelingpersecond

A quarter of an hour to nine….I left Kaga Hotel in Nishinari City District after leaving my backpack in reception area. I rushed to Dobutsuen-mae Station. But first, I had to stuff something into my stomach before arriving at station. Since midnight last night, when I arrived in Osaka, I haven’t eaten a bite.

I decided to look for the nearest convenience store. On the way to station, I found a FamilyMart on the edge of Saka-suji Avenue. I won’t be munching on onigiri again for breakfast. I’ve been bored since two days ago routinely chewing that food. Finally I chose a cup noodle and immediately took the queue in front of cashier. Waiting my turn, one by one, FamilyMart customers completed their payment. I only reflexively followed forward when the queue in front also advanced, but actually my eyes never looked ahead.

Cashier : “Hello”

I still didn’t budge.

Cashier: “Hello”

I still thought thar it was the turn of someone who queueing in front of me

Cashier: “Helloooo….Sir. You…..Sir”.

Me: “Oh it’s my turn, sorry” The cashier just smiled when he saw my face was red with embarrassment. Damn….She and the queue behind me were grinning in unison because they caught me staring at a corner of a shelf with many adult magazines neatly arranged. Luckily the cashier didn’t offer me to buy the magazine….I was embarrassed.

This kind of thing is common in Japan…..

After paying, I headed to a dispenser. Pour hot water into cup noodles and took a corner of that convenience store to eat it.

Cashier: “Helloooo Sir, eat outside, please!”

Ohhh….I was embarrassed, expelled out again, even though I was avoiding cold air outside. In the end, I still ate my cup noodles while standing in front of minimarket while chilling happily….My fate.

Moments later, I were eaten all my noodles until there was no gravy left. I continued to the north. Arriving at the intersection of Abiko-suji Avenue, I immediately headed underground through one of gates belonging to Dobutsuen-mae Station which is on the south bank of main road.

Me: “Hello, How can I get a One Day Pass, Sir”. I made sure not to buy it too long like what happened two days ago in Tokyo.

Security Officer: “Doko e ikitai desu ka?”, apparently this man couldn’t speak English.

Me: “Osaka Castle, Sir”.

Security Officer: “Hooooohhhh….”. He didn’t even know

Me: “Osakajo”.

That security officer then smiled nodding and ushered me through a corridor and then he pointed to an automatic vending machine.

“Arigatou Gozaimasu”, I told him. Even though if you are looking for a machine like this, I can too. Is the One Day Pass sold separately from the machine, that’s what I meant…..Hmmh.

Never mind, I started hitting that automatic vending machine button. I could smile with relief because this machine was not as complicated as the one in Tokyo. I put in a 1,000 Yen sheet, pressed the “ENGLISH” button, continued to the “CARD” button and finally I found the “ONE DAY PASS” button for 600 Yen.

That night was the first overseas New Year’s Eve for me. I purposely bought an One Day Pass because I was going home after midnight, after New Year’s Eve Countdown of course.

Now I was getting ready to take Osaka Metro. It was also my first time experiencing subways in Japan after having only tasted surface trains nine times in a row since my arrival in Tokyo.

I started at Midosuji Line and then changed to Tanimhaci Line at Tennoji Station. Drove north for five kilometers and within fifteen minutes, I finally arrived at Tanimachi 4-chome Station in Chuo City District.

I immediately exited through the exit gate where Osaka Museum of History building and the historical landmark Hoenzaka Iseki are located. From there, I continued along Uemachi-suji Avenue towards Osaka Castle which was only one kilometer away.

Hoenzaka iseki, 5th Century warehouse building in Japan.

I arrived at Otemon gate of Osaka Castle

Let’s exploring Osakajo…..

Go to Shin-Imamiya Station from Kansai Airport Station

1 May 202223 April 2022travelingpersecond

I already have a ticket worth 1,060 Yen to go to Shin-Imamiya Station in Naniwa City District. Meanwhile, time continued to move away from the dawn. I was still standing on one of platforms, waiting for JR Kansai Airport Rapid Service train to arrive. On another platform, a train with a futuristic design was parked waiting for its scheduled departure.

Haruka Express Train bound for Kyoto. It costs 3,400 Yen one way. Interested?….

Not long after, the conventional model train slowly but surely slowed down entering platform from northeast side. Within seconds, the metal wheels squeaked against steel track and came to a complete stop in front of me. An officer immediately docked at the front of the carriage and stood watching towards the rear end of train. After all passengers got out, he waved at me and directed me to enter the train. Maybe he had been observing me as a foreigner who lookedhj a little different from most passengers.

I entered the first carriage and took a single left seat near the door. Fifteen minutes to go to seven in the morning, when JR Kansai Airport Rapid Service started speeding away from Kansai Airport Station. Heading north towards downtown.

Not long after the train was running, the first spectacular view appeared from carriage window. The vast expanse of Osaka Bay decorated with a tinge of dawn became a beautiful charm to welcome my first morning in Osaka Prefecture.

After four kilometers, the train crossed a steel bridge which straddled the bay. Then passed under a flyover which stretched along the beach in Rinku Town area. The combination of the calmness of bay, the tinge of dawn, the situation of half-dark streets and city lights which have not been reluctant to go out, beautify the rhythm of my morning journey.

The sight paused for a moment at Rinku Town Station. The train had to drop off and picked up some passengers.

Leaving Rinku Town Station, the train continued on Nankai-Kuko Line. The Nankai-Kuko Line itself is a train line which starts from Kansai Airport Station in the south and ends at Namba Station in the north with a total length of nearly fifty kilometers.

Far away from Rinku Town, this time the scenery changed to a stretch of farmland located around Izumisano Town. The agricultural lands were combined with several small landing house complexes owned by residents. At some point, several medium-sized apartments began to appear. Meanwhile, dry rivers looked neat with guardrails at its edges.

Expanse of agricultural land and housing.

Within thirty minutes, the train began to enter the densely built urban area, in Nishi City District to be exact. There was no more agricultural land there. The view only contained housing, apartments, offices as well as health and shopping centers.

This time I myself would not complete the trip until the last stop point, namely Namba Station. I would stop at Shin-Imamiya Station, one station away before arriving at Namba Station.

I got off at Shin-Imamiya Station at fifty minutes of JR Kansai Airport Rapid Service train ride. I immediately left Shin-Imamiya Station on Abiko-suji Avenue. Then turned right, headed south down an five meters wide alley. After walking for three hundred meters I arrived at Hotel Kaga.

Along the way to Hotel Kaga, I walked with great confidence without needing to ask anyone about hotel location because I really understood route to get there from the map I brought.

I entered Kaga Hotel which was predominantly brick red in color. Greeted by a friendly male receptionist. But it was still too early to be able to check-in. I really only meant to leave my backpack and immediately explore Osaka until evening.

But to speed up the check-in process later, I decided to pay in advance. After receiving a receipt and placing my backpack in reception area, I finally left the hotel which costed for 1,800 Yen per night and headed straight for Osaka Castle.

Overnight at Kansai International Airport (KIX)

29 April 202223 April 2022travelingpersecond

Arriving at Kansai International Airport (KIX), Osaka.

I descended Peach Aviation with flight number MM6320 via manual ladder. Then I was taken using Narita apron shuttle bus to Terminal 2 building. Finally, I arrived in Osaka and stepped onto airport which had won “The Best Low Cost Airline Terminal in the World” in Skytrax version.

Since this was a domestic flight, of course I didn’t need to be busy dealing with immigration. I stepped on the floor of Terminal 2 building on exactly midnight. I think it would be better if I immediately looked for a place to close my eyes for next five hours. I also felt very tired because from the morning when I checked out until the afternoon I walked around Tokyo carrying a 6 kg backpack. The expensive transportation costs didn’t allow me to put my backpack in hotel first when exploring Tokyo. Because of course it costed a lot of money to just go back and forth to hotel just for taking a backpack in hotel when you want to leave Tokyo. As a result, I had to carry my backpack wherever my feet went until I arrived in Osaka.

My instincts were very quick to find the best seat, I was now in an area on west side of Terminal 2 building which was quite. Four chairs without armrests made the perfect treat for that evening. Not thinking long, I immediately acquired one of them, made my backpack as a pillow and I quickly fell asleep on it.

Zzzzzz…..The remain, I didn’t know what was going on around.

—-****—-

Greekkk…..praakkk…..Buughhh…..Kraackkk.

I gasped and suddenly woke up. Sitting with a headache, I saw clearly a group of tall and beautiful Chinese girls were already sitting in front of me. Two of them noticed me who was in a disheveled condition, then smiled. It was impossible for me to continue sleeping in front of them. Looked like they just landed and out of nowhere.

The clock needle was still perched at number four. That means I’ve slept even four hours. I drank the remaining mineral water. And in an instant, that girls were busy with their respective devices.

I immediately took out my toiletries pack and put my thick jacket into my backpack. I immediately went to the toilet. Entering the airport toilet in the morning was a strategy to enjoy clean toilets because usually the cleaning service just finished cleaning it and no one had used it yet.

Sure enough, I was the first to enter the toilet that morning. Extraordinarily clean, regarding to the cleanliness of public facilities in Japan, no need to ask, they are the experts. That morning, for real, for the first time I used a toilet with a full of button control panel . I put my backpack on clean toilet floor and started my morning activities in it. I guessed, I was too long because of the preoccupation with trying to operate all kinds of button next to the toilet. I pressed no less than ten types of button, from the flushing/sound button to the warm seat button. Not hard, almost 40 minutes I mastered the toilet.

Oh, Donny….All the way to Japan just to try the toilet….Damn

After brushing my teeth in front of the sink. I started to prepare myself to head to the city. I immediately looked for the whereabouts of train station. Following an instructions, I was directed to a free shuttle bus to transfer to Terminal 1, because train to downtown was there.

I boarded to free shuttle bus. Traveling a distance of about 2 km and less than ten minutes I arrived at Terminal 1 at exactly six in the morning. I started hunting for train tickets.

“Which train must I take to get the cheapest price to Shin-Imamiya Station, Ms?”, I asked to female clerk sitting at ticket sales desk.

“JR Kansai Airport Rapid for 1,060 Yen, Sir”

“Okay, I take that”

Not long after, JR Kansai Airport Rapid Train arrived. I immediately entered one of its carriages which was dominantly silver with a blue color, then sat on one of its single seats. Less than five minutes, the train departed. That’s how Japanese trains awere, never late and always on time.

15 minutes later…..

I was so surprised that its carriage passed through a giant iron bridge which straddled the sea. All my life, I just found out that Kansai International Airport (KIX) is located in the middle of the sea, 5 Km from the nearest mainland in Osaka city. Wasn’t this a wonderful experience?……

Peach Aviation MM6320 from Tokyo to Osaka: 15th Airline

27 April 202223 April 2022travelingpersecond

My departure time for East Asia Tour Volume-2 was only a day away. There was still one stage of my itinerary which was still scattered and unfinished, i.e the deadlock of my transfer mechanism from Tokyo to Osaka. Three months ago, I wasted a cheap bus ticket from Tokyo to Osaka for 5,700 Yen just because I kept thinking and looking for other options. Some time later when the weekend came, the price of bus fare increased to 9,700 Yen. While the Shinkansen ticket price reached 14,000 Yen.

It mean that apart from the bus, the Shinkansen was also impossible for me to choose. The bullet train was too expensive for my pocket. Inevitably, I have to go back to rummaging through information about Japanese transportation.

I started tracking how many commercial airlines which Land of Rising Sun owned. Previously, I had booked one of their airlines to move from Kaohsiung (Taiwan) to Tokyo, that airline was Vanilla Air. But this airline in fact set a fairly expensive price for Tokyo to Osaka route, around 10,130 Yen.

From my persistence in exploring cyberspace, my mouse touch found another LCC (Low Cost Carrier) airline belonging to Japan, namely Peach Aviation. The airline’s attributes rely on a combination of orange and pink colors, forming a pale orange color known as peach. I started looking for a route. Finally I found Tokyo-Osaka route for 7,150 Yen, a slightly cheaper price than taking the bus, Shinkansen or Vanilla Air.

—-****—-

Preparing for take-off with Peach Aviation MM6320.

The incident of delay and accidentally drinking alcohol became a bad memory before I left Tokyo. However, I started to smile when my flight number was mentioned in airport announcement. I started queuing in line. I began to imagine the beauty of Osaka Castle in every second of my queue. Until I arrived, my boarding pass and passport were checked by a female ground staff who was very young.

“I’m sorry, this is not your flight. Your flight will be depart 30 minutes later”.

“Are you sure?”, I half asked.

“Yes, sir. This flight is MM320 and your flight is MM6320, almost similar”.

“Oh God, I’m sorry. This is my wrong”, I slapped my forehead while trying to hide my embarrassment.

I stepped back from the queue and sat in one of empty rows of seats that had been left by prospective passengers to enter the plane. I was still watching the queue until the last person entered the plane. Now I was back waiting….

30 minutes later…..

Unmistakably, this was my flight, I made sure flight number information on the LCD screen was correct, then I matched it with the same number in my boarding pass….Yup, this was MM6320. I immediately entered the queue. Then at the queue gate, I gave my boarding pass and passport to be checked by one of ground staff. Finally, I was allowed to enter the plane.

The cabin dominance with a peach color made the room so cheerful, slightly reducing my fatigue in struggling with delays. Every cabin crew was so quick to help passengers put their luggage into luggage compartment. Several times, a flight attendant didn’t hesitate to take off her shoes and stood into a chair edge to push some large luggage and tidy it up in luggage compartment.

After preparation, Peach Aviation MM6320 began to crawl towards runway accompanied by a demonstration of flight safety procedures by cabin crew. Moments later the flight captain asked for permission to take off. Shortly after, the Airbus A320-100 sped away from Narita International Airport from Terminal 1.

The sky in Tokyo seemed to be clear that night. I didn’t feel any turbulence during 1 hour 35 minute flight. Osaka is Japan’s third largest city, 500 km in west of Tokyo. Throughout flight, most passengers prefered to close their eyes, but I still turned on the reading light because I was interested in the abundance of tourism information which contained in Peach Aviation’s inflight magazine. I took pictures one by one of that tourist information sheets, I needed it while in Osaka. Apparently my activity was noticed by a flight attendant from behind. Even at one time she came to me.

“Do you still reading, Sir?” .

“Yes, Ms. I need some information from this magazine”.

“Oh ok, Sir. It doesn’t matter. I just make sure”.

She smiled and sat back in her flight attendant’s seat at back. Even after that, I made sure that throughout the flight I never turned off the reading light. On 23:53 hours, flight captain started talking into his microphone to simply announce that the plane would soon be landing at Kansai International Airport Terminal 2. All passengers rushed up, got ready and tidied up every seat. The cabin crew continued to check back and forth according to safety procedures for landing process.

I still didn’t know about actual conditions down there because I was sitting in aisle seat. I was able to feel when the plane began to lower and occasionally rocked to stabilize its position. Until finally the smooth pounding of plane’s wheels informed me that Peach Aviation had touched the runway of Kansai International Airport, in Terminal 2 to be exact.

There was no welcoming aerobridge, all passengers must descend the stairs and be picked up by Narita apron shuttle bus to the terminal building.

Arriving at Kansai International Airport Terminal 2 on midnight.

That night, I decided to spend the night at Kansai International Airport Terminal 2 and would leave for downtown on the next day.

Alternatives for airline tickets from Tokyo to Osaka can be found on 12Go or the following link: https://12go.asia/?z=3283832