This is where I made my first ordering in Japanese. I had a matcha tea latte which was quite good. I remember that I was very impressed by the japanese politeness.

The theater has the size of an opera house in Europe. To get the tickets is not as easy. If you dont have any good contacts you have to go to the theater in the morning at the day of the show you like to see and get in line at the checkout. An hour before the box office opening is a long queue of people waiting. The performances are played from 11 am to 8 pm in blocks of ca. 90 minutes each with different plays. The program is repeated daily for several weeks. The Kabuckitheater is very text heavy, which the the beginner in japanese language can not understand. The extensive set design and costumes are very worth to see. The themes are old traditions, accordingly, the old hierarchical society depicted.

This is a regular bar for regular people. The entire place is a little worn out, old postcards on the wall, american licence plates and other stuff. You might get some Aussie food here as well, however I never tried. I’ve been here a lot of times, spending the night with expats and local people. The ratio is usually 50:50 – a good mixture!
On the drink menue, you can find a lot of beers from all over the place as well as classic longdrinks and cocktails.
Music is sometimes live but usually from a playlist. Surprisingly, the variety is rather huge – so you never now, what music will be played.

No credit cards!

Better as a view from outside - the inside is a bit dated... like an exhibition from the sixties, which it is.
Mind you, depends on how well you know Japan. If you are travelling through, then more worthwhile.

This is a main shopping area, there are lots of shops ranging from high end brand, boutiques to high street brands. Constant crowd and buzz within this shopping area.

Apparently one of the largest aquariums in the world - this aquarium is really impressive. It is within 5 minutes walk from Osakako subway station on Chuo line. The walk through display of marine life is amazing. The spectacular array of fishes, jelly fish, star fish, rays, giant spider crabs, sea otter, seals, penguins, turtles, whales are all interesting. Try to get there early to avoid the crowd. Definitely worth a visit.

Tempozan Ferris Wheel is located in Tempozan Harbor Village, next to Osaka Aquarium. To get there take the subway to Osakako station on Chuo Line. This ferris wheel used to be the largest and tallest in the world. It is the most technological advanced observation wheel which has coloured lights that provide weather forecast for the next day. The ride cost ¥700 for 17 minutes, the wheel goes round slowly. The view of the Osaka bay, sea, mountain and Osaka city is spectacular from above. Worth a visit.

Kinyru Ramen is located along Dotonbori landmark with a gigantic dragon sculpture on top of the shop. It is open all day, seven days a week.

We sat on a raised tatami in the open air concept. This eatery serves two types of ramen -- it wasn’t difficult to make up our mind on what to order. We tried both the different types of ramen that was on the menu – Tonkatsu ramen and Chasu ramen. When the two bowls of ramen arrived, we could immediately breathe in the aroma of the pork broth. The most important thing about a good bowl of ramen is the broth. The broth was not very thick nonetheless still delicious. The noodle was cooked to the tooth. There were three types of unlimited toppings available at the bar such as fresh garlic, kimchi and spiced chives which you can add as you please to your bowl of ramen. It was a hearty meal.

This restaurant is located along Dotonbori where huge neon signs and giant restaurants signage are displayed. Creo-ru has a takeaway takoyaki (grilled octopus dumplings) stall in front of the restaurant. We bought the takoyaki from the stall and snack along while looking for something else to fill our stomach. We discovered behind the takeaway stall is a sit-down restaurant both operated by the same people.

Inside the restaurant, each table has an iron griddle. Since we had the takoyaki earlier, we decided to try the okonomiyaki (Japanese savoury pancake). We picked the ingredients that we like to go into the okonomiyaki, the staff then prepared the batter for us. We added the ingredients to the batter and cook the okonomiyaki on the iron griddle ourselves which was fun. The okonomiyaki was scrumptious.

Specialising in Giant King kani (crab), this restaurant is difficult to miss: It has a huge model crab on its entrance, moving its legs and claws. Part of a chain Dishes range from crab-suki, crab-chiri, fried crab dishes to crab croquette, roasted crab with salt, crab salad, crab sushi, and boiled king crab. The easiest thing to do, is to order a set meal from the display case outside. This main location is on 4 floors, with some tables offering a view of the waterway.

We took the train from Osaka to Yamazaki, and wandered around a bit until we came to a very dodgy looking railway crossing. The Distillery is very close to the station, and the opposite side of the railway from the station building. There is a small hut in which to present yourself, and then you get a leaflet, I believe entry is free.
An hours tour of the production site, the cellars where the whisky is stored in huge barrels, and a tasting with generous measures was conducted in Japanese, myself and my friend hung around the back of the tour group and talked amongst ourselves. Then of course the tour exits through the ubiquitous gift shop with the chance to pick up some merchandise.
The gardens were lovely and the water in the ponds was amazing clear, the reason why the distillery was sited at this location was the purity of the water.