Waking up to a Banana au Lait

Yesterday a good chunk of my day was spent at Starbucks overlooking Dotonbori.  This isn`t because I was lazy, but just because my feet were incredibly sore from the constant walking and standing.  After the update at the internet cafe I went to sit more and recharge my phone and battery.  I also wanted to look up directions for the Ukiyo-e Museum.  I found out it was closed on Monday`s however, so that was a bummer.  However instead I decided to go the Osaka Aquarium, one of the largest aquariums in the world and one of only 2 (including Atlanta Georgia) to house Whale Sharks.

I hopped on a train and headed out.  I feel pretty confidant about getting where I need to go now through the train system.  The process is:

1.  Google Maps the route and pick train (duh) and screenshot the directions in case I lose signal or something

2.  Maps gives the Station and route so choose the route on the ticket prompt, or, as I found out some machines have you select the station instead of the route.

3.  Pay attention on the train to get off at the right stop, and start looking for the next platform or point of transfer. 

4.  Make sure to keep the stub as you need it to get out.  Luckily I didn`t screw this up my first time and I`ve remembered it since.

At any rate I got to the Aquarium which is right next to the sea, a giant ferris wheel, and Legoland of some sort.  It wasn`t too crowded, fairly similar to crowds I`ve seen in MN for the zoo with kids swarming the popular attractions, but it was a weekday, so it was mostly a mix of Chinese and Korean tourists, with some Western tourists and Japanese families with small kids mixed in.  It was 2600yen, so a little expensive, but there were some very cool things.  First you go up escalators to the top of the building, then spiral down to view the different animal regions.  They had some land animals too including a Coatl, which was pretty neat.  The Antarctic section had an open air area for seals where 3 sides were sealed off (haw haw) and one had a short wall over which you could see straight to them.  They had a constant ice machine running above, dropping flakes every few seconds.

There was a lot more I could talk about but the main attraction was the whale shark tank.  It was massive and as I discovered by going further down many different viewing windows so the crowds weren`t a problem.  There were 2 whale sharks mixed in with a plethora of stingrays, the fish with the gaping mouths that swim in spirals (the ones from Finding Nemo where Nemo says `Swim Together!`) and some hammerhead sharks.  They also had Giant Spider Crabs which are native in Japan and I definitely wouldn`t want to swim near.

After exiting through the gift shop I headed back to the Dotonbori area, this time via `Amerikamura`.  This is a hip area where the cool kids who are into American fashion and culture hang out.  There`s a large (minature?) Statue of Libery on one of the buildings.  This area was super bizarre.  I went into an American antique/curio store and it had things like the California Raisins, McDonald`s toys, and just random stuff.  There was this Spiderman toy I remember from like only a few years back that was mechanical and would fire silly string when you said something.  Target put it on clearance cause nobody wanted it.  And here it was for the equivalent of $180.  There was a center to the area that was like a hangout spot with steps covered in teens mostly, a few people playing the guitar here and there.  The strangest thing I saw, and had to stifle my laughter is, and this one is going to be hard to describe...

A lot of shops in other areas have someone outside saying things like `Hey welcome! Come see this is wonderful!` etc etc.  In Amerikamura, there`s a store that has 3 buff African American dudes who stand outside all day to say things like `What`re you looking at`, `What!?` complete with arm raises with chests puffed out to these skinny Japanese teenagers who walked by.  I circled around a couple times just to verify.  I should`ve asked, but they looked busy acting menacing, and it was pretty crowded.  

After that was my other food item and 2nd Osaka specialty I wanted to get: `Okonomiyaki`.  There was one on the main strip the canal, and I saw a huge line, which turned out to be for a hotdog stand.  Those hotdogs looked amazingly good though, they were actually corndogs.  But any, Okonomiyaki is like a mixture of pancacke and dumplings almost.  Its made with a batter with onions, eggs, cabbage, and a savory ingredient topped with Japanese mayo and a sauce that`s like a light teriyaki barbecue.  It was fantastic.  Each table had a hotplate so it would stay very hot while you ate it.  I downed a couple beers with it and then headed over to Starbucks again. 

My feet once again needing recovery time.  This time I got a `Sakuraful Latte` a Sakura flower flavored drink that was pretty good.  Kind of like a mild cherry, with a definite floral taste.  I lucked out when I got my seat, it was packed and probably draws people watching as the canal starts getting going at night, and also it was one of the few seats with chargers.

I was trying to figure out what I wanted to do, it was still fairly early.  I decided against camping because I was too tired and sore to get to where I wanted to be.  This time I planned ahead and decided to go to MediaCafe Popeyes, one of the most popular chains of internet cafes.  They have deals that start at 10pm so I had time to kill.  I decided to go watch Captain Marvel at a 3D Imax down the way.  I liked the movie, but confirmed I hate 3D.  It made me feel a little sick.

Popeyes has a registration I had to go through.  I was particularly tired at this point so my communication was worse than usual, but I stumpled through getting registered and choosing a 10 hour stay.  Its way more pleasant than the previous experience.  There`s a safe in each stall for personal effects.  I slept like a rock for about 6 1/2 hours.  Snoring from others was pretty light.  They have free drinks and after I took a shower I picked a Banana au Lait, made by Coca Cola.  Its like a hot, mild, banana laffy taffy flavor mixed with milk, pretty good actually.  I would drink it again.

My plan for today is to head out of here at 8:15 when my time here expires, so another hour, and then head to Nara where I`ll spend a day before heading to Kyoto and the hostile room that awaits me.  I`m really excited for Nara, I`m a little citied out and it has more of the cultural things I`m interested in.