Osaka on a rush hour

Lapinlahden Lukio ja Kuvataidelukio did a field trip to Osaka along with the lukio of Vieremä. For some reason I was one of the adults to attend to the trip and in all the devil behind the whole project. On our trip there was 26 students and 3 adults. If not anything else, even a dumb guy like me learned how to count to 26 during the trip. This is a personal text so I will leave the others aside. They will comment on their own if they will.

Queuing-chairs outside the restaurat where useful during
the qolden week.

Our trip coincided with one of the Japan's biggest holiday seasons, The Golden Week. Locals had about 10 days vacation, which in Japanese standards is something that will not happen every day. This guaranteed that there was  a lot of people everywhere, all the time. For example in the restaurants this ment that there was seats outside for people queing. On the line you had change to think about your order.

Do you need a passport?

My own preparations went as usual. This means, no preparations. I did check my passport when we had the dates of the trip and it was ok for me. As the time went by the day before the trip occured. I snatched my passport from the closet and encountered a slight problem. In many places in the world the passport must be valid for some time after the trip is done. Well, in my passport, there was only few days of validity after the trip. This ment that I had to check every source of information from embassy to different travel agencies. Since it was sunday, I did not get definitive information if I was good to go or not.

After the golden week it was a bit more quiet

For this problem there was a solution - Express Passport. Well, you need a photo for that. It is not a problem, exept in sundays. Every place was closed and you can't procede with the application without a picture. Fortunately I did find a self servivce photo booth that was open also in Sundays. I went to take the picture, but it goes to inspection before you can use it. I contacted the company inspecting the pictures and they informed that they'll start working at 9 AM next morning, which was the same exact time that I had to apply the passport if I wanted it to be delivered to the airport in the same day. I asked from the photo company if it would be possible to inspect my photo first thing in the morning and possibly a few minutes before 9 AM. This was ok with them.

At the next morning a little before 9 AM we were on our way to the airport. I had my laptop ready on the bus. I got the picture codes well before 9 AM and I had my passport application ready many minutes before 9 AM. It was possible to keep track of the process online and I did also call to the police to make sure that the passport will get to the airport on time.

At the airport we dropped our baggages and all others prepared for security check. In the meanwhile I dropped by to fetch my new passport. I wasn't even the only one. I went for the check in counter to update my new passport and joined the others.

If one would double check things beforehand, it would save from unnecessary panic. Still, I do not recommend it. Well begun is half spoilen. Did I learn anything? No. I had a similar problem in my next family trip.

What does rush hour mean?

At this point I will refer to one of our students. As we arrived to Osaka, if we had used my way to tavel, we'd all be lost and confused. However we where prepared. Found the train easily, bought ICOCA to everyone and where on our way.

A Japanese rush train. No bad.

On the train for Osaka there was a few people at the morning in addition to us 29 travellers. One of our students said that it was crowdy, because everyone did not have a place to sit. Yeah, right. A few days later we waited a train from Kyoto to Osaka. I didn't expect any problems. As the train arrived, I went in first and after few students it was clear that the whole group will not fit in. I was of course the one that didn't know where we were going. The teacher with the map was the last in line. She yelled me the direction and the doors closed.

Luckily in the civilized countries (and also in many other places) the internet is working. I got directions via whatsapp. On the way the same student that had complained about the rush couple of days earlien was within a talking distance so I had to tell her that now it starts to be populous. In reality, it was still far from Mumbai's local trains morning trafic. In Japan you could move, in Mumbai it was impossible. A true rush hour for Finn anyway.

Osaka

Tekken

For me, as you can imagine, a true gem. Easy to move, organized, modern. Not a strict grid plan but easy to navigate. With subway you'll get just about anywhere. There is a local prank though: the maps on the subways are not aligned to north. I don't know why but as you walk up from subway half a mile in the wrong way, you start to think that you have lost it. The stations are huge, so if you navigate with faul logic, you will end up in the wrong place. As you wrap your head around it, with a bit of concentration you'll get shortcuts under many large crossroads.

There is more to see in Osaka that you can go by in few days. There is of course the usual. For me one of the unusual was the arcade, and not just an arcade but an old one. Some of the games where older than me. Like the Pacman. There was also many of the classics of my childhood such as Tekken and the games you band moles or crocodiles with a club. Yes, there is a huuuge acvarium, Universal studios and so on in Osaka, but only to see these games was overwhelming. Let alone that you could actually play them. A heaven for 80s' child.

Not much of ruins left in the Expo Momorial...

Then the dropback. Many years ago there was an accident in a amusement park in Osaka. Due it the park was eventually closed. While we were planning the trip there was still information that the park would still be abandoned. Eagerly I went for it with a few students. Naturally in these situations I told the others that it might go south. And it did. The park had been emptied and it was cleaned to be only a park. Now you can find it on Google as Expo Memorial Park, but by time we went it was not there. For the locals it might be a great palce, for a Finn it is just a park. A huge disappointment, but sometime it goes like this.

I am not keen to fishes or aquariums, but I would quess that the local one is as big as anywhere. There are a lot of tanks, a lot of different fishes. There is a lot to see for couple of hours, even if you are not very interested in it. I you seek a downside, even the huge tank looks a bit small for the whale. Eighter, I don't like the idea that there is possibility to touch sharks and stingrays. On the way after two hours you start to think that it will never end. It did and it is worth a visit.

Because of the Golden Week, every place was packed full. For example to the aquarium you had to queue for the ticket, and then queue to get in, and then queue to get from tank to tank. I will never mind a Finnish queue, ever.

How was it?

Honesty, great. All the time I was like a fat kind with a bar of chocolate. An awesome experiense every second.

Sushi even looks a lot different than in Finland. And the
taste is awesome!

For me the food is of course a big deal. As I have a list of extraordinary things I have eaten, it got longer. If I'd had to pick something up, it would be sushi. The ones you get in Finland are something that slightly resemble the real stuff. The local sushi is overwhelmingly simple, fresh and tasty. About food I will write separately (perhaps also in english).

Then the knifes and chopsticks. At some point I had to text to my wife that there is no more room in my backpack. As a guideline I as told to throw my clothes to the trash as you can get new ones from home too. I did my best. I bought a lot of chopsticks, matcha cups and brush. And a knife. There was a store just for knifes. Most probably many stores, but one was enough for me. A store full of knifes. My credit card was crying over its harsh future as I went in.

Knifes... a lot of knifes...

Well not exactly. I was quite reasonable. As you could find a knife from about 30 € to 2500 € I was able to hold myself back. I went to the store in three different days and at the end I bought only one basic one for a test. The better knifes are sharpened to only one side and it is uncommon for me. So I bought one basic knife from the higher end for about 80 € to test it. As I am now able to tell the experience, it is the best knife I have ever had. My son actually nearly cut off his finger washing it. I had to buy new chopping boards and sharpener on the way but I have no regrets. Next time I'll go to Japan, my budget for knifes will have 4 numbers.

One experience from the scale of life today was to meet one of my friends in Osaka. She wasn't involved to our trip in any way but noticed from Facebook or Instagram that I was in Osaka and contacted me. We did meet breafly in a local mall where there was a bug exhibition. No real bugs, just big plastic models for the kids (and adults) to look. In reality it might be the closest thing to a real bug for most of the kids. The nature in Finland is a bit closer than in Osaka. My friend knew this and she with her husband and family is welcomed to see real bugs in Finland.

In the shopping street there is something for everyone.
If you can walk long enough...

About the flight

A few word has to be said about the flight since I don't like it at all. Japan is suprisingly close to Finland. When you look it on normal map, it seems longer than it is. About the same distance than to Bangkok. I tought it would be a lot more.

Straight flight with Finnair was fine in every way. I also got a glass of shampange, thanks to a friend working for the company. On the other hand the food on the way back was something horrible. Not even bad, but I don't think it was food in the first place. For this I informed my friend, so hopefully no-one will ever see that same dish again.

As a plane A350 became my all time favourite. From the travellin companions I got also noise canceling headphones which helped a lot to the anxiety caused by the flight. From that experience bought ones myself and tested those during the flight to Vietnam. I can't listen to music with those or sleep but it helps calming down.

To Japan again?

Absolutely! As soon as possible.