Rooftops & rain in Osaka

This is always my favourite window view, I love him so much, it’s just the best way to start the day.

And my favourite days on this tour are our free days, where the four of us plan our own route and launch off to see and do our own activities. First on our list, after a later than usual start, was the Umeda Sky Building. A fascinating bit of architecture, particularly the glass escalators and the rain held off long enough for a roof top view.

That was the end of the rain holding off though. Didn’t matter. We had the best day. We started here with the idea of working back to our evening go-cart adventure. Yes that’s right go-carting on the Osaka city streets! We have been warned by the proprietors to journey by train only. All other forms of transport being subject to traffic congestion causing tardiness that would void our booking.

To ensure this did not happen we started our day far out and worked our way in. Osaka Castle was next. We were all excited by the prospect of this magnificent building.

We did not know it is a museum inside. I mean it’s very interesting but a modern central stairwell around a lift with museum exhibits on eight floors is not what we were expecting. We climbed all those stairs, the lift queues were prohibitively long, and walked around the top open floor, nice view of the keep. 

There’s an eating hall on the grounds where we gratefully sat our weary selves down for a spell before pushing off into the rain for a spot of shopping at the king of $2 shops Don Quijote.

My friend Jo told me, get in the lift, go to the top, shop each floor (seven in total) on the way down otherwise you’ll get overwhelmed. And so that’s just what we did much to the chagrin of Mike & Geoff who had had enough shopping half way though the 7th floor. 

It was raining pretty hard by the time we were done shopping but no contact from the go-carts to say they were cancelling so off we trotted, we were just a 15 minute walk away by now having spent the near getting ever nearer, to arrive in plenty of time. 

The thing to do is to get dressed up when you go-cart in the city and, as we are nothing if not things todoers we chose our costumes … Pooh & Piglet for Mike & Me, Spider-Man & Mini Mouse for Sandy & Geoff & then we were off racing around the streets of Osaka in what was an extremely damp brilliantly fun experience we will never forget.