Assalamualaikum,
in continuation of my previous post, i'll be sharing my second day experience in Osaka, Japan (15.7.2017) today. this post took longer time that i expected haha due to my extreme laziness.
alright, so we start our day a little bit earlier than usual. Since its summer in japan, subuh prayer is at 3AM *gulp* We headed to the famous Osaka Castle 大坂城 (Railway Route : Ebisucho Station - Nagahoribashi Station - Osaka Business Park Station) which is around half and hour from our homestay.
As soon as I arrived the castle's park, the first thought that came to my mind was, why did i come here during the summer T___T Honestly, the lush green trees are quite the same with what we have in Malaysia except for the river surrounding the main tower. but no doubt, I was mesmerised by the extremely breathtaking man made river around the main castle. The river are for protection purpose to the castle. The magnificent castle are also fully protected by a solid stone wall. I hope the photos i took do justice to the real view.
There is actually a cruise operating along the river (Osaka-jyo Gozabune boat). It is also included in the Osaka Amazing 2 Day pass but we missed the last cruise on that respective hour which we have to wait for another long 2 hours to ride it. So, it is suggested if you book your time for the cruise before touring the castle or you'll missed the chance for that day.
Entrance fee for Osaka Castle is 600 yen ((RM23)) per person, but we entered for free through Osaka Amazing Pass for 2 days which Osaka Castle is included in the package.
The garden are the central place for the visitors to view the castle architecture from below while enjoying the famous matcha green tea soft ice cream. There are also various kind of japanese food sold by the foodtruck, unfortunately we didnt managed to find any halal logo in the cafe so yes, minum air mineral sahaja :') These are the views of the castle from Nishinomaru Garden.
As far as i can remember, the castle consist of 7 to 8 levels. The highest level is the observation deck which is usually crowded by people during sunset. im not really sure what am i thinking up there but i literally TOOK A PICTURE OF THE VIEW FROM THE DECK. The buildings are a farther view of Chuo-ku. If only it was winter/autumn or spring that time......
After a tiring journey to the castle, we decided to cuci mata at HEP Five shopping centre. literally cuci mata because everything is ssooooooo expensive. It is actually quite far but we walked from the castle to the nearest station (Tanimachiyonchome Station - Higashi-Umeda Station) and arrived there around 45 minutes later. Guess what, when we were on our way to the mall, I accidentally dropped my osaka amazing pass somewhere along the journey.
That time i almost cry because i can't enter any attractions without that pass T_T Alhamdulillah we walked back along the same route from where we came and i found mine near the Higashi-Umeda Station. SO GUYS PLEASE BRING ALONG CARD HOLDER IF U CAME TO JAPAN WHERE U CAN HANG IT AROUND YOUR NECK BECAUSE IT IS SO CRUCIAL.
u will need it all the time for train pass especially but only if u are clumsy like me lah obviously. if u are confident with yourself then u dont have to XD
These are some of the views i captured on our way from the castle to the mall. it is about 15 mins walk from the castle to the nearest station.
As you can see, there are not much cars on road padahal they are one of the biggest car manufacturers in the world. So guys jom go green like how the japanese do. Cycle to school or work if possible, oraito?
When we arrived the HEP Five Mall, our perut starts to berkeroncong already. With so much hope, we wander around every cafe finding for halal logo. This is where your iman is being tested, hundreds of delicious menus offered here but none of them are halal. Our inner evil side started to bisik-bisik "its okay, as long as there is no pork served"
but guys, halal isnt just about pork free. one of the main ingredient for some pasta or pastry is alcohol or animal gelatin which are also haram for us to consume. So basically we didnt buy anything to eat at the mall.
im not lying guys just look at the amazing food presentation. rasanya bukan manusia je berminat, semut pun XD
A fact guys, onigiri can actually be eaten ONLY IF IT IS MADE FROM SEAFOOD; TUNA, SALMON ETC.
At the HEP Five Mall, there is an obvious bright red ferris wheel operating everyday which we can enjoy the splendid view of the town, Osaka Harbour and if you are lucky, Mount Ikoma. Boarding area will be at the 7th floor of the mall. To be honest i am someone who are afraid of height, but since it is also included in the Osaka Amazing Pass which worth 500 yen so why not lets try something new dearself.
The gondola's glass is quite cloudy so i didnt manage to snap any decent picture of the view. For those who are afraid of height, the maximum position is not really that high so dont worry! i managed to overcome the heart pounding experience hehe
After a looonnggg tiring day, we directly head back home because we were starving. So guys, lesson learnt please bring along extra food wherever you go out from your homestay.
I suggest if you guys wanted to pray asar+zohor sekali, make sure to start your journey a little bit early so that u'll have a lot of stuff to do because asar is at 3 pm. We usually head back home to pray because there arent any prayer room along the journey unless you are okay to pray anywhere.
Will be writing on a different post for Shinsekai because there are still a lot of things to write and pictures to be posted :') and thats all for day two! thank you for reading
Regards,
sara.
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