2019/11/18
Kyoto ➛ Osaka ➛ Namba ➛ Isomaru Suisan
First thing in the morning, we hopped on the train and headed for Osaka! This is our last full day in Japan so we have to make the best of it.
It was around noon when we arrived at Namba station, it was still too early to check in to our hotel but we were already starving. So we decided to go drop off our luggage and go somewhere for lunch.
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In the station, we found this shop specializing in onigiri (riceballs). Since we were going to get lunch in a bit, we only got 2 onigiris to eat for breakfast tomorrow. It was my first time at an onigiri shop, everything looked delicious!
Now looking back at the pictures, we should've bought more than 2 onigiris, the items in the display case at the bottom looked very appealing too☺
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赤垣屋回転寿司 Akagakiya Kaitensushi
After dropping off our luggage, we found this conveyor belt sushi restaurant Akagakiya by a random shopping street near our hotel. Never heard of it but sushi is always a good idea (especially in Japan), so we went in.
There aren't any conveyor belt sushi places where I live so it has been a while since I've had the luxury of grabbing whatever I want to eat once I sat down lol!
Their menu was quite extensive with items you only really see sold in Japan. (talking about you kani miso...)
They even have my favourite candied sweet potatoes! ♥♥♥
We got a good variety of sushi before grabbing our favs again and again. We pretty much cleared out any salmon aburi everytime it rotates by us LOL. ( I swear we left some for others but no one seemed interested so we helped ourselves 🤣🤣🤣
Gochisousamadeshita!
Cannot believe we ate 19 plates between the two of us... Though the salmon aburi was one per plate.
And when they brought us our bill, it was even more surprising was that this wonderful meal only costed 1320 yen per person... affordable and delicious, why can't we have this in Canada!! 😭
photo credits: Akagakiya website
PS: After looking into this restaurant online for the blog, I found out Akagakiya is actually an Izakaya. This location is special where they split it into two, izakaya honten upstairs and the conveyor belt sushi on the main floor.
Talk about convenient, if you are ever nearby or happen to stumble across Akagakiya, definitely check it out!
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After our satisfying lunch, it was time for shopping~~~
We pretty much left all our shopping for Osaka since we had to save luggage space. Now that it is our last day, we can go all out and fulfill our shopping lists :DDD
Read til the end of this blog to find out what I ended up buying!
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磯丸水産 Isomaru Suisan
What trip to Japan is not complete without the obligatory visit to my favourite izakaya???!!?!
If you haven't seen yet, I wrote about Isomaru Suisan the first time I visited in 2016, click here :)
I couldn't figure out which store we visited last time as this area is just packed with shops and restaurants, so we went to the closest one we could find.
As usual, the first thing I have to order at izakaya is the potato salad, and the one at Isomaru Suisan was HUGE!
Is there a trend going on? I think if I visit more izakayas in Japan I can compile a whole blog showcasing all the cool poatato salads LOL!
For some reason, I felt this store didn't have as many items on the menu as what I remembered when I first visited in 2016. Maybe the selections differ store from store? I would recommend finding the Isomaru Suisan building around Dotonbori and going there instead.
Kani misooooo~~ yum!
Another con about this location is that they don't have areas separating smokers and non-smokers. We ate late so the store was not packed but we could still smell the smoke coming from other tables. :(
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Since this was the touristy shopping district in Osaka, many stores were open super late. After our late dinner, we continued our shopping spree! If you want, there are plenty of places to go and things to do all night, you don't need to sleep. Who needs sleep? We're in Japan!!!
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2019/11/19
Sakimoto Bakery ➛ Abeno/Tennouji ➛ Kansai Airport KIX
崎本 Sakimoto
Breakfast at the famous Sakimoto Bakery!
I've been looking forward to this for a long time. They are famous for their fluffy shokupan!
You can choose to either dine in or take out. Sakimoto also offers single slices of bread if you don't want to buy the whole loaf.
For each order, you can choose 4 condiments to pair it with. I was super excited for their jams and spreads, they all looked and sounded delicious!
If you want to read an in depth review of Sakimoto, please click here :)
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難波八坂神社 Namba Yasaka Shrine
After our lovely breakfast, we decided to visit a couple shrines nearby.
As you can see, the Namba Yasaka Shrine is know for it's enormous lion head stage. You definitely won't miss it! lol.
Can you tell the size of it compared to myself? hahaha I love it ♥
Namba Yasaka Shrine's ema also displays two colourful lions' head.
Their goshuin also has a cute lion stamp lol!
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阿部王子神社 + 安倍晴明神社 Abe Ouji Shrine + Abe no Seimei Shrine
Abe Ouji Shrine
Abe no Seimei is the sub shrine of Abe Ouji Shrine. They are connected by a walkway in between.
Abe no Seimei is a popular onmyouji. According to legends, he is the son of Abe no Yasuna and Kuzu-no-Ha, a kitsune white fox spirit, hence why there are foxes here.
In contrast to the larger, more well-known shrines we have visited on this trip, this Abe no Seimei shrine is quietly tucked away in the neighborhood of Abeno/Tennouji.
& ofc can't forget to add another goshuin to the collection :))
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After our visit to the two shrines, we headed to Abeno Q's mall to shop around and make some last minute purchases before leaving Japan QQ
There is a large Ito Yokado supermarket located in Abeno Q's mall, I recommend checking it out. You can find anything you need from food, clothes, cosmetics, you name it! We were stuck there wandering around for at least an hour LOL
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I took the Nankai Rapid express train to Osaka airport KIX and headed to the lounge while waiting for my flight :)
A pretty good assortment of things I found, not bad. Surprisingly the only time I had okonomiyaki and takoyaki is in this airport lounge :(
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Since I didn't want to go all the way back to Tokyo to fly to Taiwan, I redeemed airline points for my flight to Taipei as it is way cheaper than buying the one way.
The only seats left were for the business class so... I guess I treat myself, a perfect way to end our Japan trip!
Since the flight is only around 3 hours, obviously it wouldn't compare to the business class for a long distance flight.
Here's the menu for dinner, you can choose from either Japanese or Western, and of course you know the Japanese styled is the way to go on JAL.
I'm also loving the extensive drink choices!
My seat was 1A (yes, literally the first seat on the plane LOL), so being the first row, I had the not-as-good flip out table from the arm rest, very restricting :(
They prepped my table as if I'm at a restaurant and voila, presented my meal.
There was beef, duck, salmon, and for dessert, Haagen Daz ice cream. It was alright tbh.
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Now its time for show and tell~~~~
Here's all the goodies I bought, makeup, skincare, stationary, food, you name it! There was also a couple things I picked up in Taiwan since I took the photos right before my flight going back home.
♥ Things I recommend ♥
(From top left to bottom right)
Sana - Zubo Labo wipes (great for lazy days)
White Essence toothpaste (tastes like peach LOL, doesn't have a weird taste)
Senka - Perfect Whip cleanser (my all time fav)
Shiseido - Aqua Label products (very hydrating)
Biore - deodorant (packaged in a tube, I hate stick packaging, feels unsanitary)
Sana - Maikohan primer natural beige
Kanebo - Allie UV facial gel sun screen
Sana - Suppin Kinenbi lip cream 01 (moisturizing tinted lip balm)
🇹🇼 I'm Meme - Day to Night eye shadow palette (beautiful everyday colours)
🇹🇼 I'm Meme - Afternoon Tea blush palette (milk tea colours)
Fasio - Powerful Film mascara BR300
Dejavu - Lasting Fine gel eye liner dark brown (does not smudge at all!!)
Sana - Excel Powder, Pencil, Eyebrow PD05
Ohana Mahalo - Frangrance Lip Essence Oil honey
♥ Things I recommend ♥
(From top left to bottom right)
🇹🇼 Peanuts Snoopy portable charger 6200mAH
uni - Advance 0.3 mechanical pencil
Pilot - Frixion Point Knock pen (eraseable pen, what's not to love?)
♥ Things I recommend ♥
(From top left to bottom right)
🇹🇼 Tai Yang Tang - Sun cakes (best imo!)
T.K Food - Salted egg yolk cookies
🇹🇼 Yu Jen Jai - Green bean cakes (rich, smooth, melts in your mouth 🤤
Irvins - Salted egg fish skin
🇹🇼 CH Foods - Nougat soda crackers (sweet and salty, one you start, you cant stop!)
Kibi Dango Azuma - Ice green tea powder (the green tea you get from Azuma in Asakusa Temple)
Tokyo Milk Cheese Factory - Honey & Gorgonzola Cookies (chef's kiss 💋)
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Can't believe it took me this long to finish this Japan blog LOL
Hope you enjoyed reading about my trip as much as I had writing it!
See you again on our next getaway :DD (which is very soon!...)
DAY 8 & 9 - OSAKA - NAMBA | TENNOUJI -> KANSAI AIRPORT KIX - TAIPEI
♥ Please like this post if you enjoyed it, if you have any suggestions, questions or comments please let me know in the box below thanks :)
