Solo trip to Osaka and Tokyo

In these last few years, I've realised that it is ridiculously hard to organise an overseas trip with friends. If I want to go anywhere it was just easier to buy a ticket and plan it all myself. I get to see only the places I want to see and can do things at the pace that I want to do them. I have been to Tokyo and Kyoto before but in September 2016, I went to visit Osaka for the first time. Here's some experiences I can share with you.

1. Osaka

Before getting to Osaka, I researched extensively and reached the conclusion that I will fly into Osaka and fly back from Tokyo. I worked out that this not only saved time and money but also allowed me to visit a few places between Osaka and Tokyo.  

2. Nara

The deer city is beautiful and full of beautiful temples and beautiful deers. After getting off the super fast train "Shinkansen" I made a dash for one of the largest and most beautiful temples in Japan - the "Todaji". The walk to Todaji is littered with deers that are happy to bow to you for treats. "Senbei" is the food that the locals sell to tourists to feed to the deers, the word means biscuit. 

Todaji temple in Nara

Nara deers outside Todaji

A deer poking its head out from behind stone lanterns

Small gravestones in Nara Deer Park

3. Dotonbori, Osaka

Osaka is basically a foodie city. When you get off at Namba station, you can head towards "Dotonbori", a series of streets and lanes that hold all the most curious and delicious Japanese foods. Osaka is the home of "Takoyaki", "Okonomiyaki", "Kashikatsu" and other delicious Japanese foods. 

I got to Dotonbori at 9pm, when the streets are buzzing with the most excitement and food stalls are plentiful and all open. Some stalls and shops will have lines stretching out before them, but there are only a handful of truly well known stalls that are popular with locals and tourists.  I didn't get a chance to take photos of the places I went to as I was too excited about the foods. Below are a few stalls and restaurants that are photo worthy (not sure about the food as I didn't eat there). 

Dotonbori

Takoyaki shop

Takoyaki - octopus batter snacks

Kashikatsu

Kashikatsu - prawn, ox tongue, shitake, asparagus, scallop fried

4. Kobe

One food item that I've always had on my bucket list is a Kobe beef steak. Kobe is a small town next to Osaka and this meant there was no excuse for me not to visit Kobe and tick off one of the most expensive steaks in the world off my bucket list. I won't go into the details of why Kobe beef is so famous but it should suffice to say that the steak I had was delicious and the eating experience was just as amazing. 

Kobe Steak (Grade 5) - over $300 for three courses

Personal chef cooked a three course meal over Teppanyaki hot plate

Kobe steak cooked on Teppanyaki hot plate

5. Himeji

The word "Himeji" means princess. The photos of Himeji I had seen before arriving at the small city were beautiful and fitting for princesses. Naturally I had to visit the city and its famous Himeji Castle and see it for myself. It was a shame that I did not go during cherry blossom season as I heard that the castle becomes surrounded by pink blossom trees. That's a trip for another day. 

Himeji Castle

Ascent up to the castle

Himeji Castle Garden

6. Osaka Aquarium

I love aquariums and having read that Osaka's aquarium is one of the best in the world, I just had to make time to visit it. No words can describe how great it was but they say pictures are word a thousand words. 

Dory?

Extremely large jelly fish

Dancing spider crabs

Seals

7. Tokyo

This would have been the fifth time I visited Tokyo in the last five years. It's certainly averaging once a year and I don't mind the frequency at all. This time my stay was short and was mainly focused on going to DisneySea.

DisneySea - Pirates of the Caribbean

One of the scariest park rides involving a dropping elevator

One of the most popular rides is inside the Indiana Jones volcano ride

Visitors sit down to watch the nightly DisneySea performance on water

Extravagant performance on water

Stranger

It's been a while since I've done a blog entry. I don't recall why I stopped or what was happening in my life at the time. It's okay though. This was never meant to be a strenuous task and I was only ever going to do it when I had time or was in the mood.

I had forgotten all about this blog until one conversation turned to my road trip up the coast a few years ago. I wanted to see photos of some of the beautiful places I had visited and voila, I'm here.

Bushwalking & camping

I have always loved a good bushwalk but have only recently taken up camping.

Australia is a beautiful country to do outdoor activities in. There are so many beautiful beaches, bushlands, mountains and national parks. Some are so far removed from civilisation that you will be compelled to leave all your city worries behind and embrace the beautiful and serene surroundings around you.

I have completed a few walks now over the last few years and here are a few that I would highly recommend.

1. Bundeena to Otford (1 full day or 2 day 1 night)

This walk is approximately 28km. It is easily accessible by public transport. When I did it earlier this year, we caught the train to Cronulla station and then got on a ferry service at Cronulla Ferries. The ferry takes us to Bundeena and from the ferry stop there is a short walk through some suburban streets until you get to the Royal National Park. From there the walk is amazingly beautiful with a million fantastic photo opportunities of the coastline and cliffs. There are also a section or two that goes through secluded beaches. If the weather is warm, a swim or surf is an option. The group I went with chose to do the two day 1 night option which allowed us to camp next to the beach at a lovely camping spot. The camping spot is about 18km into the walk so you will be pretty tired by the time you get there. However, there is absolutely nothing better than waking up to the sound of waves and having the option to go for a quick swim in a deserted beach.

 

 2. Diamond Head (1 day)

While on a road trip around central coast a few friends and I decided to do a quick bushwalk around Diamond Head. We woke up early after camping in Crowdy Bay National Park. To be honest we were not entirely aware of the entire length of the walk but was only aware that there was a loop option and a one way option. We did the loop which was much shorter as we did not really prepare for the one way option which would have required us to take more food water and leave the car behind. The loop option took about an hour or maybe 2 hours (no body took track of time because the views were absolutely mesmerising). The walk goes along the coast the entire time so that you pretty much have a view of the ocean the entire walk. The loop still goes around Diamond Head and at one point you can even see Port Macquarie (or the next city along the coast). From the signs the one way track would take you all the way to Port Macquarie and could probably be done in a day as from what we could see some of the walk could be done on the beach.

3. Perry's lookout to Blue Gums Rainforest (1 day or 2 days and 1 night)

I actually just completed this walk today.  This was a return track and we camped in the valley (Grose Valley). The walk involved a very steep decent. I would say probably 600m over a few hundred meters. A great workout for your thighs. This walk is not accessible by public transport. We drove to the start of the walk and started the descent aiming to get to the valley in 3hours allowing plenty of rest time. Once you're in the valley, the Blue Gum Forest is absolutely beautiful. These magnificient trees are just so enormous. Friends of mine commented on the Jurassic-park-like feel of the whole place. The walk was absolutely amazing minus the thorny pants that try to rip your flesh from your legs. It is highly recommended that your legs are well covered for the walk to protect your legs from leeches and thorny plants and vines. It is not necessary to bring too much water with you as you can easily get access to fresh water from the creeks or streams coming through the valley. Just follow the sound of water and bring some swimwear along. A camp spot is available, but beware that there are prohibitions against fires as bush fires are common in the area. I prefer camping rather than rushing to finish walks in one day. However we did bump into some people who were finishing the Govette's Leap to Perry's lookout via Blue Gums Rainforest walk. That in my opinion would be an amazing walk. Except we were all doing it in the rain which sort of made it a much more difficult walk than otherwise.

Unfortunately I have no photos available for this walk but I would nevertheless highly recommend it.

Cross promotion!!!

Just started a Mandarin learning blog:

Learning Mandarin @ Mandarincast

To have a look please click the following link:

http://mandarincast.blogspot.com

... oh! that time with the macarons!

Prompted by talk about failed attempts at making macarons I looked for my macaron pictures on the blog. Then I realised that I didn't actually put them up. Shock and horror! 

So this was the time with the macarons:

 

Road trip around Northern New South Wales

Haven't posted for ages. Mainly because I have been busy with work and general drama.

Just came back from a 7-day road trip around northern New South Wales. Traveled as far as Yamba and then out west as far as Mudgee. Camped at National Parks for most of the trip with a motel night in Tamworth on the 5th night. Had the most fun on this road trip and saw some great scenery. Highly recommended!

* I will gradually update this post with photos and captions * ~ watch this space.

Sculptures outside Laguna Markets

Brunch at Wollembi Cafe

The Gate Gallery in Wollombi

Diamond Head National Park

Sunset (We stopped in the middle of the road to take this photo as we hurried to our camp site to set up our tent)

Scenic drive 19

More scenes from scenic drive 19

Sunset from Moonbi Lookout

Best of Mosman in four hours

Mosman is just one of those places that you wish you lived in. If you took a look at the Eastern suburbs trip I blogged about, then this is going to look just as nice. Located just north of the Sydney CBD, Mosman is home to some beautiful beaches and homes. Most of the homes there cost one million and above, due to the beautiful waterfront views and lovely surroundings. I decided that just because I did not live there, there was really nothing to prevent me from enjoying the scenery and have some good food at the same time. 

Mum and I got to the Sydney Harbour National Park at around 2:30pm. The weather looked optimistic and sunny, so I took some scenic shots. 

Unfortunately, by the time I got to The Esplanade, Balmoral at 4:00pm, the weather changed and it got quite cloudy. 

The poor weather only gave me an excuse to head indoors and treat my taste bugs and eyes to some deliciousness.

After finishing our drinks at Bather's Pavilion, I set my eyes on Public Dining Room, which was only about 700m away. I had been to Public Dining Room before and loved it, so it was only fair to go again just to be sure. Again, it did not disappoint. At 6:30pm, I found myself completely relaxed and wishing (for the millionth time) that I could enjoy this lifestyle and neighbourhood more often.