Our final two days were low key. We decided to use the Timeshifter guidelines on the way back, where the suggestion was to get up early and go to sleep early. The small challenge was that most things in Osaka open at 11 or 12 and stay open late.
Thankfully the two locations of the “everything store” near our hotel, Don Quijote, are open 24 hours. We enjoyed some shopping with zero crowds before the hotel breakfast opened. We also had a leisurely second coffee at a basement place nearby that had a fun selection of board games.
Most of the model-kit shops are in the area of Osaka known as “Den Den Town.” (電, でん / den, is the kanji with a base meaning of electricity) Soren had a couple of places on their wish list where hours of browsing would be no problem. One store had entire floors for each speciality: mecha, painting and display, cars and planes, trains. Overall Den Den Town felt a little seedy, with advertisements for Maid Cafes and model kits of barely-clothed unnaturally-proportioned human figures.
We ended the day back in Dotonbori. I enjoyed browsing at a used bookstore and we ate at the first place that looked decent, trying okonomiyaki, a kind of savory pancake, for dinner.
(12 989 steps)
It is interesting to wake up early without the pressure of an early flight. For our final day we woke up shortly after 4, leaving lots of time to shower, explore the Osaka Castle grounds (45 minutes away), and still be back for hotel breakfast.
Osaka Castle was quiet and beautiful in the morning. There were no other tourists, just friendly people out on their morning exercise or walking their dogs. An elderly lady approached us to share where a great photo spot was; we would’ve missed it on our own.
We stored our luggage at the train station then made a quick stop back at the Pokemon Center. With no set plan and our afternoon flight already delayed by an hour, we searched for “museum” nearby and scrolled until something jumped out: Osaka City Sewerage Science Museum. An obscure museum related to civil engineering in a different part of the city? Yes!
I loved everything about the Sewerage Museum. There were interactive exhibits, stamping stations, and QR-codes to get more information in English. It was also nearly empty and the person running the front desk was sweet. All this for the cost of the train tickets to get there.
The travel home was fairly uneventful. Kansai International Airport was way bigger than I expected, with rows and rows of different airlines and people everywhere. In Vancouver the staff running the transfer security were weirdly unpleasant. If you want people to prepare properly then perhaps have better signage? Raising your voice in English to the non-English speakers doesn’t help. All I can say is that it’s always going to be someone’s first time going through security in another country, and every airport has different bin systems and requirements.
Now I’m reveling in the greenery and sweet air of Portland.
(23 646 steps)
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