I found a Prince Charming

One of the highlights during our one day trip to Universal Studios Japan in Osaka, was the youthful energy displayed by some 20-ish year old dudes somersaulting, bending and twisting on an open-air stage. They got alot of attention from the audience, especially when they are such natural good lookers. What's more, they were quite good in interacting with the members of the floor with rap tunes pulsating in the background. Far to the left of this pic was actually a very retro-looking coupe that ferried them in for a quick show. Truly enjoyed this. 

But the very one thing that made me stood transfixed to the ground watching the whole event, was because of ...............

So KAWAII AND CHARMING!!

I told Chanjie and D-zai (who was standing next to his D-lui), that he was so leng zhai and he was the only guy in Japan that I thought was the most good looking I ever encountered so far,  but they had just looked back at me as if I've got seaweed stuck on my teeth.

I guess.... one girl's handsome is just another girl's ugly. Haha..

...and here's a memory of the いか店 we found in Osaka

This was the tiny eatery in Osaka, near Den-den town that I fell in love with.

Now, what I want you to do is, imagine yourself sitting at the bar in this izakaya, with Blues playing in the background, and dipping your wooden Japanese chopsticks into Osaka cuisine.

And hearing the lady shop owner greeting her customers, 

 (*≧▽≦) "まいど！まいど！”

Food, food and more of Osaka food

Dotombori is a long busy street that sells food, food and FOOD at night! Each building along Dotombori is unique…there’s this hotel entrance with four big pillars that are actually 4 big faces supported on 4 big feet…(go figure, I don’t know how to explain this one) and there’s one that is fashioned in the shape of a ship, the other one has a very big crab that has moving pincers and legs stuck on the front part of the shop.

Osaka is interesting

I can’t exactly put a theme to Osaka, it’s not like traditional Kyoto, nor like modern Tokyo nor even has the picturesque settings of Otaru nor the usual city life of Sapporo. Osaka is a mixture of retro and modern, the good and ugly, posters of murderers at train stations, excellent roadside food, bright neon lights, pachinko centres and business lounges, loud blaring music, rowdy colours, tall modern skyscrapers and weird architectures, stiletto boots and bikini tops, rastafarian braids and dreadlocks, old men and women, jazz music and hip hop, techno art, baroque art..aaaaagghhhh very confusing.

My Japanese language sensei used to advise us not to patronise Osaka streets on our own late at night, as there are bad people who dupe tourists into doing things (that he never really mentioned.) I love Osaka and am afraid of it at the same time. People in all kinds of clothings/makeup/hairdo rushing to their own thing around us. In fact, it was in Osaka that I started to have some culture-shock because Osaka is shocking!

Dotombori, Ebisu, Den-den Town and Universal Studios were among the nicest places I had been to! And the famous Umeda skybuilding is awesome to gawk at night. It made me feel as if I am looking into Stargate’s revolving gate. And the red Ferris Wheel that changes colours in the evening, oh! Gotta love that. Bathing with everyone else in the communal bath in our hotel suite is another thing. Ha ha ha. And nothing beats eating okonomiyaki (japanese pizza) in Osaka.

If I go back to Osaka, it would be for the food…. and Universal Studios.

Dining out pretty cheap! T'was a rate of 2.7 in 2007

Menu in an odd-pretty-intriguing eatery called Ika Tei in Osaka…was quite affordable!!! And the ambience was just nice…fusion of jazz music and chinoiserie hanging from the walls, on the bar, the seats, the ceiling….a middle aged Japanese auntie waitressing…aaaahh…