“I’m 
never gonna live in Daikokoucho again,” Katie lamented. It’s probably true.
We celebrated by having pancakes at Hotel Relief. What a name! Katie and her friend had discovered that within the hotel there was a restaurant called Hummingbird by Very Fancy. We had yummy pancakes served with both whipped cream and ice cream! 2700 yen–where is IHOP?!
We are gradually whittling down our belongings, but it was still a giant pile of bags and backpacks, so yesterday Katie called us a taxi. Just listening to her on the phone is amazing! Between the operator’s broken English and her broken Japanese, a cab was on the way! We moved all our stuff to the street and within minutes he was there. Katie had reminded me not to touch the car doors–it’s a faux pas because they open on their own with some magic button the driver pushes. All of the car seats were covered in white lace.
Katie showed the driver where we were headed on her map. It’s only the second time I’ve been in a car on the “wrong” side of the road. And while the other time was crazier in an Uber in London, this was pretty nuts. It was 5:15 p.m. and there were lots of people everywhere! The driver would give a little toot on the horn and squeeze through.
As we got closer to Nipponbashi, the new neighborhood, he pulled over to look at the pictures on the AirBnb site, since there are No Street Names……….He had zero English but Katie was working the Japanese and got us pretty close. Finally Katie said he could drop us off at a church she was sure was near the apartment. Honestly I was frustrated and feeling a little mad at Japan. It is so unnecessarily complicated! But Katie said she just couldn’t make that sweet man keep looking, so she left me with our pile o’ stuff and went looking for the apartment. Just as she said, it was ahead a couple buildings so we dragged all our stuff to the new building. The host left the key in the mailbox (accessible to the street) with a string sticking out the slot. Pull the string, get the door access card and apartment key….whatever. So we got in fine but that’s the kind of stuff that my last apartment guy said has lead the city to make AirBnb illegal without a certificate.
Katie stayed at the new place and I went back to the other place to tidy up and enjoy what was definitely the best apartment of the trip. On the walk home, there was a group of people announcing stuff with this weird flag and posters. According to google, the Rising Sun flag can be anything from any advertisement to a protest. I could not figure it out. There is always something going on in this spot in Namba. Usually it is a singer; Katie said street music is very controlled here. The other night it was a guy playing Come Together by The Beatles all alone on his electric bass. 
Much to my surprise this morning, Tom and Jerry was on! In Japanese, but still.
I’m not really sure how we would have done it without the overlap day. Even with all the stuff we brought over yesterday I still had two bags full this morning. I lugged that over after getting my 5000 yen key deposit returned and got to the new place around noon. Turns out there is only one key to this place which is crazy because soon there will be 4 of us! Katie left early to spend the day with a friend so she had to leave it in the mailbox for me. Whatever.
Moving always throws me off and sometimes I think I’m not really such a great traveler. The new place is cute and a lot bigger–you know, like doors on the 2 bedrooms wow! But separate rooms really is a splurge here. It’s older like my first apartment. Once I got here this morning, Katie had her stuff strewn throughout the place, which definitely made it feel nicer. I cannot figure out how to turn on the light in my bedroom and the toilet isn’t heated, boohoo. It made me think more about what makes a place feel like home. Maybe one benefit to a hotel room over an AirBnb is that it is very neutral, which maybe makes it feel more homey in some ways.
I knew the best thing for me was to get outside and learn the new area. The building is nice on the outside. It is next to an empty lot, surprisingly. Construction looks like it’s stopped which is unusual for Osaka. Makes me wonder if they will be working after Golden Week…
I could hear kids squealing and noticed on the map that Dojin Park is behind the building. Sure enough, it’s another dirt park with a slide and a few trees. The kids don’t care–they were playing happily. 
Someone had planted the most amazing pansies in all colors. Just a few flowers really does spruce up the neighborhood! 
Within a couple blocks of the apartment is a temple, smushed between stores and buildings. 
Most of the temples and shrines look the same to me. I wondered again if Japanese people feel that way when visiting the cathedrals in Europe.
I headed one block north to find the closest grocery store, but it was a complete Japanese store with nothing I recognized. The cantaloupes were cheaper there however at 1920 yen. I found another store a few blocks further called Foodium haha. They at least had pasta, which will be important with Todd’s impending visit. Cantaloupes at Foodium were 3900 yen.
A couple blocks west and we are in the heart of the tourist area, Shinsaibashi. It was around 2 p.m. when I got there and it was packed! Since today is Friday, I think this might be the big wrap-up weekend for Golden Week! 
You really couldn’t get into the stores, so I didn’t even try. I really just wanted to scope out the area and get a few things for when the kids arrive. I walked and walked and ended up at Triangle Park in Amerikamura, which I had been to before. It was full of people, mostly teens hanging out. 
There were lines for every restaurant wrapped around the street corners and over the bridges. It almost seemed like that was part of the shtick. Like when people go to Epcot Food and Wine festival and stand in lines all day. There was quite a line for this Alice in Wonderland themed store.
I went about 5 feet into this store called Florida–there was nothing in there I’ve ever seen in Florida, so I’m not sure why the name except for the neon green flamingos. 
The whole area was just hopping. Three of these cars went by with steering wheels on the left and the suspension bouncing down the street. They had signs on them like maybe you could rent them? 
At a stand that said Turkish Ice Cream, the guy was cleverly flipping the ice cream and quickly handing it to the kids, first it would just be the empty cone, then just the blob of ice cream on the spoon. They were giggling away–we all were! 
Some of the restaurants have a machine on the wall where you insert your order and money, then go inside to get your food. This one was the first time I had seen a menu posted in English, with helpful stickers about the level of spiciness. Might be worth trying! 
It was really sunny and pretty today, with a lovely weekend in store–mid 70’s and 50/60’s overnight. Should be just right for Todd & Priscila’s arrival and we are really excited! I think it will be a good distraction for both of us. I’m kinda ready to finish up Japan and Katie is feeling nostalgic, so a couple of weeks playing tourist should be perfect!
Photo: Katie having pancakes at Hummingbird in Hotel Relief
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