After waking up we headed back to Dotonbori. I had seen a classic NeoGeo video game system, one of only a few classic systems that I don’t own. The price I saw was 9480 yen (about $60). When I got back to the store I noticed a second tag on it that said 50,000 yen! The smaller amount must have been the original price. I ended up not getting it!
We walked around Dotonbori with the kids, getting a jacket for me from UniqLo, a Japanese clothing store. Elizabeth found another Pokémon Center. Diana and I split off from the kids and took a cab to GenjiSoba restaurant, which is highly rated for its gluten free Soba and tempura. It took us a bit to find the restaurant in the tiny alley where he dropped us off. Like the cafe yesterday, this was a small place with seating for about 10-12 people. The food was great and the service was amazing. We sat next to a group from California that included someone with celiac who chose it for the same reason. They helped us navigate the options.
We took the train to Umeda station and walked in the intense heat to the Umeda Sky Building to ride the escalator between the towers and visit the observation deck. We had beautiful views of Osaka.
On the way back we got turned around in the underground maze that exists between the train station and the hotel. I swear we’ve taken a different route every time (not by choice). By the time we got close to the hotel we were exhausted. We picked up dinner at 7-eleven and met the kids in our room to eat. I started having back spasms so decided to call it a day. I soaked in a hot bath to loosen up my muscles before going to bed around 7.
Between the extra walking, carrying things around for hours, and standing / keeping my balance on the train, I’m using muscles I haven’t used in a while so I’m getting sore at night. It’s definitely worth it though. This has been an amazing experience so far. One more day in Osaka and then off to Tokyo for the rest of the trip.
