Osaka ( Day 7 ) - A Reflection - Home Sweet Home

This morning, SLing and I woke up early today as we needed to catch the early train to Osaka Station before heading towards Kansai International Airport. Like the first day, it would be quite a tight schedule as we need to board the right train to get to the airport on time. After everyone is ready , we lugged our luggages and get down to subway to catch the train to Osaka Station before moving on to Kansai International Airport. This time, it was quite a rush to get to the airport on time and we made it with the extra charge of the train as we got on the wrong/right train to the airport. We boarded the speedier train in which we had to pay extra for the journey and the right part is that it is going to the airport! Confusingly confused but we get to the airport and that was important. 

From here , we flew 3 ½ hours to HK Airport for transit. Rested there (transit ) for about 2 hours before boarding the plane from HK Airport to  KLIA for another 3 ½ hours. Throughout the flight and transit, I could not help but miss Osaka, Kyoto and Nara. Sure, there was a lot of food I missed out like sashimi, sushi, Kobe beef, wagyu beef, lobsters, sea urchins, fugu, crab legs and so on but they are simply just too expensive for my taste, really. I know, I would get a lot of sticks and brick bat from you people but that’s the way it is for me, actually. As I pondered on what makes me happy in Osaka, I must say that it was the weather and the fun we had as a family. Sure, we do have our good and bad days but it is only natural that we dwell on the good rather than the bad, right?     

Personally, it was a very good trip for me and the family. Though I know that at times, my tempers get the best of me but I try my best to be at my best behavior in which I believed I did fairly well. It is never easy to please everyone but it was really a good trip as I really enjoyed myself. Maybe I am not accustomed to high prices in Japan or any overseas country for that matter. Maybe, this country bumpkin is used to mid-budget lifestyle and so, it can be quite shocking to body and mind system when hit with prices after conversion and so on. Probably too, I can’t get used to that system that I do hyperventilate at times and felt my heart stopped beating for some time after looking into the prices of things. Finally, when I get used to the price, I believe the prices are competitive especially in an advance country like Japan. I guess, it cannot be helped when prices are high in this metropolitan city like Osaka. 

I am thankful, really , for Wei & Jade for including my family ( SLing, SYuen and myself ) in the trip this time. I am thankful that they did the preparations, planning and all the arrangements but being “tour guide” to us, the older folks! I am very sure they could have walked faster and moved a better distance than the older folks but they chose to stick with us and helped us go through the tougher terrain with them too. I am blessed when it comes to food and accommodation planning as we do get good food and good accommodations. To me, the hotel was quite good already as the bed was good and the bath tub was heavenly. ( two thumbs up! )

The strategic location of the hotel also made it easier for us to move about and to get food and so on. With convenience stores like Lawson, Seven Eleven and small marts around, it was convenient and easy to get the essentials. 

I’m also very thankful that it was really a nice atmosphere of travel and there was no  complaints. The only complaint is always the weather is too cold and that too is complimentary as the weather is like that especially towards the end of the year. Thank God for that! It was all a very positive morning and very good travels. I must admit that I do get confused when I looked at the train lines. Thank God for Wei & Jade plus Ryan navigation skills that got us through to where we want to go. So, so blessed by their navigation skills as it can mind boggling I tell you! If you ask me, we would probably end up in Fukushima, Kobe or Hokkaido or some smaller towns somewhere! I am bad at navigations ,man. 

I have also learned that the culture, way of life and ethics in other people’s country are so important too. The Japanese folks have this special way of ensuring that you do what they do when in their country. They are not afraid to tell you off when you cut queue or do not line up. They also have this uncanny look of displeasure when you do the things they tell you not to do. Many a times, I realized that they are honest enough not to cheat you when it comes to your money. They will not take more than what is required and they would return you your change indefinitely. There is strictly a no tipping policy and they adhered to that. That’s the ethical side I wish to see happen in Malaysia,man! It is comforting indeed to see this type of trait in their daily life.

Then, there is this politeness that seemed to look to be too good to be true thingy. My personal  observation is that they are polite but their displeasure is shown when they get pass you. So that to me is quite disturbing. I would prefer you show your displeasure to me than to fake it and then swear the world about me later. Well, just my thinking though.

I like the “clean after food” policy. It is natural to see the locals clean up the place after they have had their meals and so on. That is so cool, actually. We are so used to the messy , greasy and even sometimes, dirty eateries but the locals keep it clean by making you clean the tables after you have finished your meal. I could get used to this and I am fine with this. It is the right mindset to dispose off food or rubbish after meals. 

What I still couldn’t digest are the serious usage of handphone in public transport and the regimented lifestyle. Everyone is looking into their handphones every minute as though it is the only thing/gadget in this whole world. I am aware that tons of information flows/sieve through the handphone throughout the day but it is good sometimes to see our surroundings or even smell the roses at times. I still couldn’t get used to the running or moved hurriedly to get to your train thingy. With the level of efficiency and reliability on public transport, there is no need to rush to work that way. It baffled me that one should risk one’s life by running to the next train line station on stilettos or even high heels! I believe the “rush rush “ mentality doesn’t mean well to the people. It just added another dimension of stress to the people who are already hit with long working hours and stressful working conditions. Maybe, sleeping and resting during lunch hours had helped them de-stressed but it is good to be calm and easy. 

Another observation which I believed was a good trait is that the towns are very clean. There is practically no rubbish being strewn carelessly in the cities and towns unlike some countries/places of interest and towns I have been. Though rubbish bins are not easy to find, nevertheless, you don’t see rubbish anywhere. There would always be a proper place to throw your rubbish away.  That is very commendable and heart warming. Conservation of nature and natural surroundings are equally important. It is good to know that though it is a modern city or township, nature and natural beauty are preserved and appreciated.    

I also like the orderly mannerism too. Like when you are using the escalator , you move to the right to give way to people who may be in the rush to move along on the left. These are already accepted norm of life that are incorporated in their lives. It is also nice to see that even though they may not speak English or shy about their English, they would do their best to help you even if they resort to showing match stick figures or any signs to get the information across. 

That’s why I say it again that whenever I get the chance to travel, places of interest do interest me but my primary interest has always been the lifestyle and the people.  I find it fascinating to learn about culture, history and the general people. It excites me to know why people of this culture react to such acts or what makes them tick or react. These are the interesting traits that I would look for in my travels. 

As I pondered on the days that I have spent in Osaka, Kyoto and Nara, the experiences had been wonderful. Though the Japanese are thoroughly trying to protect their culture and way of life but slowly they are mellowing the lure of inflow of cash through tourism or rather the enticement of the tourism JPY via the tourist pests. Hahahahahaaaaaaa……….life is just a bitch as with all countries when dealing with tourist pests! Hahahahahaaaaaaaaaaaaa………..

On a more serious note, I believe, there is a certain charm, peace and calmness that welcomes the visitors to this country that makes Japan one of the favourite tourist destination. Sure, it is an expensive affair to be entwined with Japan but it is that quality of refinement that entices the people to come back year after year. 

To me, Japan is one helluva expensive place to travel to and to be able to at least be in this land once in our lifetime is already an achievement of a lifetime itself. I am just glad or rather, fortunate to have travelled to Osaka, Kyoto and Nara in this lifetime of mine. It has truly been an experience of great sights, great fellowship and great fun. Once again, THANK YOU, Wei & Jade for making it happen for all of us, the country bumpkins!

What could I have ask for more……. absolutely nothing more!  

Osaka ( Day 6 ) - Delightful Nara

After a leisure day of rest yesterday, bodies are refreshed and I was looking forward for a great day on our sixth day in Osaka, Japan. This morning everyone was early and looking forward for another day of great adventure and I must say that , it was another glorious morning. I guess, the rest day DID have a good effect on the aging body of mine and gave a good rest to the muscles in the body. I guess, what was painful was the ball of the feet but a good soak in the tub and a good rest made a lot of difference. 

Anyway, the morning was bright and lovely with bitterly chilling winds. I was glad that the sunshine was out as if to welcome us into some nice heat and fun. As usual, not to worry anyone, I put on my winters clothes and a heatech inner wear ( to make SLing happy as she was concerned about the coldness! ) to make everyone comfortable with my “coldness”. Like I said, I like the cold weather but I guess, if you travel in a group, you should not worry others as they are concerned about you,right? So, I relented to the fact that there are people who are concerned about my health and well-being. I am so blessed, really. Anyway, as usual, we do our breakfast first knowing that we are going to have quite a day ahead and we are going all out to enjoy ourselves. 

Seriously, everyone was in a good mood too as we are going to Nara town. Probably with the knowledge that this is our last day in Osaka, Japan, all of us wanted to end the day with a big memory of Osaka, Japan and Nara. Well, as far as I was concerned, I was really looking forward to spending a great day out. As usual, after breakfast, we headed towards our “home “ station, Kintetsu-Nippombashi Station hopped on the Orange Line bound for Kintetsu- Nara Station which is a 63 minutes train ride. From here, we would have to walk for about 15 minutes to reach Nara Park. Really looking forward to this walk.

Along the train ride to Nara, we stopped at some interesting trains stations and I soon realized that the scenery changes too. I must also mention and commend the train service providers that the trains were heat simulated meaning that there are heaters in the train and they do keep one warm while commuting in the trains. Special mention too that the trains ARE ON TIME all the time and if you miss one, you’ll be able to catch one more within 5 -15minutes if you are patient enough to wait for the next one and the best part, arrival on the dot!  I guess, I am thankful that Wei & Jade had made plans for Nara even though this was unscripted in our itinerary but it turned out to be a good decision to get to Nara.  So, Thanks, Wei & Jade for the Nara trip as it turned out a pretty cool and good day indeed. 

Upon arrival in Nara station, you quickly realized that the icon of the town is the deer and the park. The weather is just so perfect – cool, caressing breeze and a tinge of great fresh air. The landscape is one of a great mixture of modern building and olden architecture. The government offices are right between the 1970’s -1980’s building and a string of olden Japanese building. It is kinda nostalgic “old feel” yet along with the lovely feel of the ancient Japanese perfecture.

I don’t know what others would think but I think, it is a wonderful setting for older folks like me who just loves that sort of setting after drinking in the modern architecture the whole week. I kinda like the blend of the slightly modern  plus olden setting of Nara. I believe, it augurs very well for Nara. I also quickly realized that the manhole on the streets of Nara are with deer and local flower motives which is quite exquisite, really. Pretty awesome, actually. Soon, our anticipation to get to Nara Park came after crossing the traffic lights, presto! We are in Nara Park. 

Nara Park (奈良公園, Nara Kōen) is a large park in central Nara. Established in 1880, it is the location of many of Nara's main attractions including Todaiji, Kasuga Taisha, Kofukuji and the Nara National Museum. It is also home to hundreds of freely roaming deer.

Considered the messengers of the gods, Nara's over 1000 deer have become a symbol of the city and have even been designated as a natural treasure. Deer crackers are for sale around the park, and some deer have learned to bow to visitors to ask to be fed. Nara's deer are surprisingly tame, although they can be aggressive if they think you will feed them, so make sure not to tease them with food.

Immediately, I bought two packs of deer biscuit or shika senbei which cost me about JPY 200 each out them in my front pocket and I could see the deers moving towards us. Though deemed as wild deers, they kinda look pretty “tame” to me until I was gored lightly by a bull later in my walk. Nope, I did not tease the deer but I guess, it knew I had some food stashed in the front pocket. Yeah, Ryan & Ashley had a great time feeding the deers as we walked round the park. Everyone just had a good time feeding the deers and it was all good fun. I guess, Ashley had the most fun playing with the deers and somehow, watching the locals feeding the deers seemed different. The locals seemed to “talk” to the deers and bow towards them. So, Ashley experimented by bowing to a deer and lo and behold, the deed bowed too. SLing caught it on video and now, as we looked back at it, that  was so marvelous and interesting, really. We walked on in the park and found  Nara National Museum but it was closed and so , we moved along and walked on to the next destination in the park. 

Kofukuji (興福寺, Kōfukuji) used to be the family temple of the Fujiwara, the most powerful aristocratic clan during much of the Nara and Heian Periods. The temple was established in Nara at the same time as the capital in 710. At the height of Fujiwara power, the temple consisted of over 150 buildings.

The temple features several buildings of great historic value, including a five-storied pagoda and a three-storied pagoda. At 50 meters, the five-storied pagoda is Japan's second tallest wooden pagoda, just seven meters shorter than the five-storied pagoda at Kyoto's Toji Temple. Kofukuji's pagoda is both a landmark and symbol of Nara. It was first built in 730, and was most recently rebuilt in 1426. Neither pagoda can be entered by the public.

While entrance to Kofukuji's temple grounds is free and possible around the clock, there are three areas that require paying an entrance fee: The Central Golden Hall, the Eastern Golden Hall and Kofukuji's National Treasure Museum.

Kofukuji's main temple hall, the Central Golden Hall, was destroyed by fire roughly 300 years ago and was not rebuilt in its original size until recently. After many years of reconstruction, the hall was reopened to the public in October 2018. East of the Central Golden Hall stands the Eastern Golden Hall.

Located not far from the Eastern Golden Hall, the National Treasure Museum exhibits part of the temple's great art collection and is an absolute must-see for lovers of Buddhist art. Among the many outstanding exhibits is the three-faced, six-armed Ashura Statue, one of the most celebrated Buddhist statues in all of Japan.Another pair of interesting buildings are the Northern and Southern Octagonal Halls. They both originally date back over a thousand years, and their present reconstructions were completed in 1210 and 1789 respectively. They are not usually open to the public. I guess, looking at the building, I saw the interesting way it was built and once again, the smoothness of the wood carved astounded me. 

We are off again playing with deers and soon enough , we were at another attraction but enjoying our time of walking and snapping photographs with much delight. There were many places of interest we went but I just could not remember their names but I guess, the next one is truly amazing – Todaiji Temple. Like all attraction, they come with entrance fees but we were not willing to part with our yen that day.   

Along the approach to Todaiji stands the Nandaimon Gate, a large wooden gate watched over by two fierce looking statues. Representing the Nio Guardian Kings, the statues are designated national treasures together with the gate itself. The Nandaimon Gate is truly magnificent piece of architecture. 

During the Heian period, the gate at the time of the creation of Tenpyo collapsed due to strong winds. The current gate was reconstructed by Chogen Shonin, who reconstructed Todaiji Temple during the Kamakura period, and is a valuable remains that reminds us of the power of the Great Buddha Hall that has not been rebuilt. It was built in 1199, and was completed in 1203 with the statue of Nio in the gate. It is built in a main building and a double gate in Goma Sannohe, but the lower layer has no ceiling and has a waist roof structure. The 18 large cylinders that reach the attic are as long as 21m and the height of the gate is 25.46m above the platform. It is the largest gate in Japan suitable for the Great Buddha Hall.

The two statues of Nio were completely dismantled and repaired for five years from 1988, and they faced each other from the beginning of the Tenpyo period, and timber harvested in Yamaguchi Prefecture was transported in about one year. As described in the ancient document, it was proved that the image was formed in two days simultaneously in almost 70 days. Very impressive gate indeed. Like I said, I was more interested in the architecture and the wood of the Nandaimon Gate. Truly beautifully made and smooth wood. The enormously huge gate will definitely astound you and make you wonder how can anyone build such a huge gate. When you have walked pass it, you will then be greeted by Sanjaike Pond on your right and more deers while on your left , you will see a small river and deers moving about in the lush forest ; quenching their thirst.  Lying ahead of you is then the Todaiji Temple.  

Todaiji (東大寺, Tōdaiji, "Great Eastern Temple") is one of Japan's most famous and historically significant temples and a landmark of Nara. The temple was constructed in 752 as the head temple of all provincial Buddhist temples of Japan and grew so powerful that the capital was moved from Nara to Nagaoka in 784 in order to lower the temple's influence on government affairs. Todaiji Temple is one of the most symbolic buildings of Tenpyo era culture. It includes many famous buildings such as the Great Buddha Hall, the largest wooden structure in the world, Hokkedo Hall where many impressive Buddhist sculptures are enshrined, and Nigatsudo Hall where the traditional “Omizutori” (Water drawing) ceremony takes place annually. The grounds of Todaiji are so extensive you may need a whole day or more to explore thoroughly. 

We then went on to other parts of the attractions in the park and stopped by at the shrines and temples in Nara Park. Some of the places are just so quaint, green and beautiful. I must admit that I can sit here the whole day and just soaked in the beautiful natural surroundings. That’s what Nara Park does to you. The park just permeates the sense of peace, calm and tranquility despite truckloads of our tourist pest which ( see that I use “which” rather than “who” indicating non-human life form ! ) incidentally does have much of the JPY print in their possession these days. Guess, they do get on your nerves most of your time and they really do not know how to respect the sacred rights of others who also wants to enjoy the very tranquil of the place. I seriously do not know how the locals keep up with the tourist pests but I am sure their tour guides do have to earn their keeps or at least, get themselves out of trouble all the time. 

Anyway, enough of them being a hassle. As we walked down the streets to get back to Nara Station, I noted that there were still a good bunch of olden times homes along the street of Nara Park. I am glad t be able to see how one would live during the ancient times and the houses were quite well preserved though I am very sure, some modern elements had been incorporated in the building construction. I was delighted to have the opportunity to see it. BTW, lunch was at Mamejica Kitchen run by three young ladies in a quaint shop. I thought the ladies were far more capable in handling the restaurant. Some of us had the chicken/pork curry rice while I had the tempura fried shrimp spread with teriyaki sauce. I guess, everything fried or BBQ is drenched or topped off with teriyaki sauce or mayonnaise. Anyway, the tempura fried shrimp rice with teriyaki sauce tasted so good, actually. I wouldn’t know for sure if it was that good or I was too hungry. Yeah, it does get hungry quite fast especially with the weather, the walking and the clowning around.   

All in all, it was a good day outing and it was by far the most relaxing outing ever. It really was a good day and as we end our day at dinner, we were all ready to hit the showers and get some rest before we need to wake up for our trip to get home the next day. That night, my minions, Ashley & Ryan came by the room and gave me a good body massage. Ahhhhhhhhhhh…..it was such a good massage as they took turn to step on my shoulder blades area and back area. Quite comfy and good, actually. So, all in all, it had been a great day and ending up with a massage from the two growing up babies can be quite an experience too. 

Truly , it has been a great day indeed……..