Japan, Here We Come!

Just a few more days and we'll be in Japan. It's really happening! After all these years of wishing and hoping, I'll finally set foot in the Land of the Rising Sun! :-D

All my bags are packed and I'm ready to go... Kumamon Helly Kitty is, too!

It's going to be such an adventure. First, it'll be my first time travelling out of the country. I'm so excited to experience autumn. I live in the Philippines where there are only two seasons: summer and the rainy season. I often complain that it's too hot, even during the rainy season. I'm looking forward to the cold weather and wearing a trench coat. Haha!

Second, I've never been on a train before. We don't have them where I live. We're going to attempt to navigate Osaka's complex train system on our own with the aid of Google Maps and hopefully some helpful Japanese people along the way. Good luck to us.

Third, we're going to explore Osaka and Kyoto by bicycle on a couple of days. I hope the drivers in Japan are friendly to cyclists. But I'll most likely stick to the sidewalks when possible since I'm not that confident in my biking skills. And I hope my knees can handle it. I've been undergoing physical therapy for patella alta these past few weeks. Thankfully I can now climb up and down stairs with just minimal discomfort. It used to be torture.

Fourth, I'm about to put my Japanese language skills to the test. Not that there's much to test since I only know very basic Japanese. I  haven't even finished Pimsleurs's Japanese Level 3 yet. I'm on lesson 13. Still, it will be fun trying to converse in Japanese. "Trying" is the key word here. Hehe... Tanoshimi desu. :-p

Cycling Osaka: Minami Temma Park and Osaka Castle Park by Bicycle

We plan to cycle two parks in Osaka following this 10-kilometer route.

First, we take the train to HUBchari Dinana Matsuya Building (center of the above map screenshot) where we rent bicycles for the day. That is where our half-day bicycle adventure begins.

9:00am
Bike North to Minami Temma Park 南天満公園.
Bike up the park along the riverside until you reach the Osaka Mint Museum.

10:00am
Bike to Osaka Castle Park 大阪城公園.
Explore the whole park instead of taking the usual tourist path from the station to the castle. Ride through the plum grove, the apricot trees and past the fountain. Find a spot to sit and enjoy being in nature.

11:30am
Bike to Saizou 菜蔵 for lunch.

1:30pm
Bike to HUBchari America-mura and return bikes.

We spend the rest of the day on foot checking out Shinsaibashi-suji Shopping Street, Ebisubashi-suji Shopping Street, two of Japan's famous discount stores: Matsumoto Kiyoshi and Don Quijote, and the also famous Ebisubashi Bridge (where the Glico running man is). The we eat dinner at Oretachi no Curry Ya, which is just a short walking distance away.

Has anybody tried cycling through Minami Temma Park and Osaka Castle Park? I'd love to hear your opinions and suggestions, because I'm not quite sure our legs will hold up in Shinsaibashi after a 10-kilometer bike ride!

Cycling in Osaka & Kyoto

I've read many blogs that recommend biking in Osaka and Kyoto. They say it's relatively easy even if you're not an expert cyclist. I'm thinking of giving it a try. The thing is, even though my husband and I know how to ride bicycles, we haven't tried riding on the road with cars before. It's always been in beach resorts. So I'm a little apprehensive about it.

Here's what I had in mind.

CYCLING IN OSAKA

9:00 am - Bike from bicycle rental shop to Minami Temma Park. Explore the park on bikes.
10:00 am - Bike to Osaka Castle Park. Explore the castle grounds on bikes.
11:00 am - Lunch at Saizou. (I wonder if they have bicycle parking.)
1:00 pm - Bike back to bicycle rental shop and return bicycles.

That shouldn't be too hard for us biking amateurs, right? A half day cycling through parks? Now cycling in Kyoto is going to be more challenging. We're only going to be there for one day so we have to make the most of it.


CYCLING IN KYOTO

9:45 am - Bike from Kyoto Station to Gion. Explore Hanami-koji Dori and Shirakawa-minami Dori by bicycle.
11:45 am - Lunch at Oshokuji Dokoro Asuka. (Again, I wonder if they have bicycle parking.)
1:00 pm - Bike to Nanzen-ji Temple. Park bicycles and explore the temple grounds.
3:30 pm - Bike to Philosopher's Path. Ride up the path until the end.
4:30 pm - Bike to Kamo River via Imadegawa Dori. Ride along the river to Kyoto Station.

This one I am more worried about because I also read that cycling in Kyoto can be quite chaotic. One blogger even described it as a "war" between pedestrians, cyclists and motorists. Although he did also say that most drivers in Kyoto are considerate towards cyclists. But I'm not completely at ease about the idea yet. I even tried asking a blogger from Kyoto for advice. I'm waiting for his reply.

What do you think? Should we try cycling in Osaka and Kyoto? Or is that too ambitious of us?