Today was a lot colder than yesterday. We woke up and it was raining. That didn’t stop us from looking around Osaka. We checked out of hotel and while we looked around for the day we left our luggage at the hotel. They lent us umbrellas for the day which was nice of them – good thing we had them too as it was pouring with rain for half the day. We went into the mall again to do some last minute shopping from the day before. Steve bought some sketchers as his shoes were killing him and giving him blisters (luckily we saw a sketchers store which had sizes to fit him!) and Marie and I bought some really nice leather boots. This was exciting as we actually were able to find shoes that fit ☺ We then went and had some pancakes for breakfast in a café. It was pretty hard to find somewhere to eat as most places didn’t open until 11:30. The pancakes were pretty average but the hot chocolate that went with it was absolutely fantastic. In fact, it was the best hot chocolate I have ever drunk! After breakfast I bought a really nice white coat and some winter shorts. You see, I had to fit in with everyone here, so wearing my new winter shorts, my white coat and my new boots I look like a little Aussie Geisha! ☺ We dropped our belongings back at the hotel and then set off to find the Japanese Gardens. This was an adventure as we had to use the train system for the first time. I found it all very confusing as everything was in Japanese (of course), luckily Steve was with us and could figure it out. We took a few wrong turns but we finally made it to the Osaka Castle Gardens. They were beautiful and very neatly presented. The castle looked pretty amazing too.
We walked around for a while taking photos until we couldn’t stand the cold any longer and decided to head back to pick up our luggage and head to Kyoto. Kyoto is another city in Japan and where we will be located for the next three days. The amazing part was that we could catch a train from Osaka to Kyoto for only $5.40 and it only took about 30minutes to get there. Once we checked in at the Gimmond Hotel we headed off to find some dinner. We have walked so much since we have been to Japan – but that’s a good thing since I haven’t been going to the gym! We ate at an Italian place tonight. Marie and I shared a capriciosa pizza and garlic bread and Steve had Carbanara Spaghetti. The pizza was very tasty – the spaghetti was pretty average. I don’t think I have mentioned the bikes here in Japan yet……it is very interesting to watch. Everyone pretty much rides a bike. Bikes are everywhere. You do not need a helmet to ride one and you can just ride on the footpath with the walkers. Bikes seem to have right of way in Japan – none of this give way to pedestrians……bikes just come swooshing past you and you just have to get used to it1 I don’t think I am quite used to it yet. I am just amazed that there aren’t a lot of collisions because seriously people just ride their bikes around corners, through people without any hesitation. I need to make sure that I don’t crash into people when I am riding my bike. People ride their bikes with their skirts and high heeled boots – it’s quite interesting really.
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