Day 19: The first day in the last city of our trip

Monday March 14th, 2011 by Celine Vincent

While in other parts of Japan the aftermath of the disaster unfolds, the daily life in Osaka just goes on. Therefore, our program can just go on, and we explored some of the cultural sites Osaka has to offer. We even had the weather on our side: the sun never stopped shining and it was warm enough for everyone to take coats and sweaters off.

We started the day with a visit to the Shitennoji temple complex. This temple is the oldest state temple in Japan, founded by prince Shotoku to promote Buddhism in Japan. Besides the temple itself, there was a pagoda, a treasure house, a turtle pond and a beautiful Japanese garden for us to admire.

In the afternoon we visited the symbol of Osaka: Osaka castle. Rebuilt in 1931, it houses a museum that showcases the history of the castle. We learned that its history involved many wars; not quite unusual for a castle. It was built around 1600 on the site of a temple that was destroyed in war, to be used as the center of rule for Hideyoshi. After his death, the castle was attacked and destroyed by the troops of Tokugawa, only to be rebuilt for their use. Unfortunately, lightning struck and the tower burnt down and was not rebuilt until 1931.

Just as everyone was growing hungry, we travelled to Namba, the city’s most famous shopping and entertainment district. It offered something for everyone in our group, since it has attractions such as the fashionable Amerikamura, the Shinsaibashi Shopping Arcade, Nipponbashi Den Den Town for electronics and manga, and the colorful Dotonbori entertainment district. Here, the group scattered to explore the area and to conclude our first day in Osaka with a tasty meal. Only three more days to go before we depart for the Netherlands again.