Osaka & Kyoto

Part II

By [ E ]

May 13^th, 2016

Traveling south

After 3 days in Tokyo, our plans had us traveling south to Osaka for the food and Kyoto for the sightseeing. When planning out this part of the trip, I was surprised to see that Osaka and Kyoto were only 35 minutes apart by train. This allowed us to stay in Osaka for 3 nights while taking a day trip to Kyoto.

SHINKANSEN 新幹線

Traveling in Japan was a breath of fresh air. Make sure to purchase a Japan Rail pass ahead of time. Ours came in handy for traveling within each city as well as traveling between cities. The train stations are massive but well organized. Getting from Tokyo to Osaka via bullet train only took 3 hours at an average of 160 mph. It really makes me hope that high speed rail catches on in America.

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The St. Regis

A Hotel? Yes, a hotel. I’m posting this because this place was integral in helping us find and make reservations for the restaurants we wanted to eat at. The service at this hotel is amazing and I don’t say that lightly. The first night, we called down and asked for a good udon restaurant. They came back and had 4 different options for us to choose with the telephone, map, hours, and cuisine of each restaurant. Certain restaurants will only take your reservation if you speak Japanese so being able to have a butler book it for you was great.

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Osaka

Our day in Osaka began with a trip to Osaka Castle and ended with street food at Kuromon Market. Osaka castle was a bit dark and dreary without the cherry blossoms that Jason captured only a few weeks before. Nevertheless, the walk through the castle grounds gave us a nice history of Osaka that we hadn’t known previously.

KUROMON MARKET

Yvonne was on a mission. Osaka is known for Takoyaki and Okonomiyaki. We found both of them at the Kuromon Market in the heart of the city. Since it was a Saturday afternoon, the market was bustling with tourists and a few locals. We made sure to walk through most of the market before settling in on which food stand to try.

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Octopus, tofu with salmon, omelet, vegetables

Kaiseki 会席

This was our most unique meal of the trip. Shien was first opened in 1953 and features the traditional Japanese multi course dinner, kaiseki.

Kaiseki is a type of art form that balances the taste, texture, appearance, and colors of food.

Our meal began in a counter-style tea ceremony room where we were served matcha tea. We then ascended up to our private dining room where our multi course dinner began. From the very first dish, you could taste and see the care and attention that was given to every detail. There were new flavors and textures that just don’t show up in western cooking.

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The Bamboo Forest

Our schedule for the trip mostly consisted of an early morning start (the sun rose at 5am) and a late afternoon nap followed by a nice dinner. Our day trip to Kyoto began this way so we could avoid the crowds. The Bamboo forest was worth the early start as we got to experience the short hike with only 3 other people there. The orange and green colors in the forest almost made it feel like fall.

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Fushimi Inari

After the Bamboo Forest, we made our way to the Fushimi Inari Shrine. Located at the base of Mount Inari, the hike begins as you walk through the first torii gate. You pass through thousands of these orange gates through out the hike up the mountain. Each torii gate is purchased by an individual or a company which can be identified by the inscriptions on the back. The hike itself is nice as you make your way through the cool forest. As you get higher and higher up the mountain, the tourist crowd will start to thin out.

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Kobe Beef

Let me preface this by saying that if you want to continue enjoying regular beef the rest of your life, do not try kobe beef. Kobe beef has extra fat that is marbled throughout the steak that gives it an incredible texture and flavor. Our chef at Kobegyu Steak Ken made sure that we knew medium rare was the best way to have the steak.

To start, he sautéed a handful of sliced garlic in some oil. He then made sure to save the garlic infused oil for grilling the steak. A little salt and pepper was all that was needed to bring out the best flavor. To finish, he fried up some rice and combined the small slices of kobe beef to it.

Travel Buddy

The food was amazing. The sights were spectacular. The best part about the trip was being able to share the experience with someone else. Happy 3rd anniversary to Yvonne and hopefully we’ll have many more adventures to come!