A Touch of Movie Magic and Special Deer Everywhere: Osaka and Nara

Completely switching gears from traditional Japanese festivals and shrines, I headed to Osaka to go to Universal Studios Japan and see the famous deer in Nara. Osaka is actually super close to Kyoto, so it took no time to get there by bullet train!

Osaka Castle

Did you even go to Osaka if you didn’t go to Osaka castle? Osaka castle is situated in a large park and a moat surrounds it. I was delighted to find a photo opportunity had been set up in front of the castle. You could pose with a samurai figure. The lady took photos on my smartphone for me, as well as on her camera. If you like the photo, you can buy a printed copy. The whole interaction was lots of fun and I really liked the photo she’d taken, so I bought mine! To this day, this is maybe one of the best souvenirs I have!

Most of the Japanese castles double as history museums. It was really interesting to learn about samurai such as Oda Nobunaga and Toyotomi Hideyoshi. The castle has a really interesting structure and great views from the top, so make sure you check it out if you visit!

Taito Arcade Games

In the evening, I explored the Namba area where I was staying. There were so many shops around and I even found an arcade! Tempted by all the claw machines, I wandered in. One game in particular caught my eye, where you have to pick up candy and place it on a ledge that has a sliding bar. Once you have enough candy, the sliding bar pushes the tower of chocolates over for you to win.

The big red wall of Game Taito Station in Osaka with spotlights at night.

I got so close to winning, by all rights the chocolate should have fallen. A lady was watching me and she thought so too. But alas, it was stubborn and I didn’t win. In fact, I actually spent way too much money on that game and got only a few lollies.

An arcade game machine from Taito station in Osaka in 2018. There is a stack of chocolate which can be pushed off by dropping candy onto the ledge.

I tried some of the claw machines there as well. They were fun but frustrating. In Australia, it’s difficult to get the claw to pick up the prize, but once you do it’s yours! Here in Japan however, they are built differently. It’s super easy to pick up the prize, but the grip is very loose and the prize will fall out of your grasp. Because it picks up the prize, it gives you hope of winning. It is a trick, don’t fall for this trap as I did! Overall I did have a lot of fun at the arcade, but I did regret spending so much money there. I am no longer allowed to go to the arcade by myself!

A claw machine at Taito Game Arcade in Osaka filled with blue and white pokemon dragons.

Universal Studios Japan

The next day it was time for some movie magic at Universal Studios Japan, affectionately referred to here as USJ. I’d been to Universal Studios before in America and really enjoyed it, but that one didn’t have a Hogwarts section! I did consider buying fast passes for the rides there as well, like I had done for Fuji Q Highland, but it turned out it wasn’t necessary. USJ has a line for single riders as well, which was amazing! I think the longest time I had to wait for a ride in the single-rider line was maybe 10 minutes. The other line for people going with their friends and families was easily up to an hour.

Now I know the Hogwarts section is very popular, and it’s cool. But my favourite was the Jurassic Park area. They had my favourite ride, the Flying Dinosaur! This ride tilts your seat forward as if you’re being carried in the air by a giant Pteranodon. It was so much fun! I also really enjoyed the Hollywood Dream rollercoaster.

If you love movies like Despicable Me and Spiderman, then you’re in the right place! There were rides incorporating 3D and 4D technology for these areas. I also really enjoyed the Jaws boat tour. For lunch, I did try the very cute Minion burger. A word of caution for cute foods at popular tourist places like USJ and Ueno Zoo though, if it’s cute, it probably won’t taste that good.

USJ has since added some new sections such as Super Nintendo World, where you can fulfil all your dreams of stepping into the world of Mario! I haven’t been to this one yet, but it’s something to look forward to next time I visit Osaka.

The avenue leading to the entry at Universal Studios Japan in Osaka on sunny day with completely blue sky.

A day trip to Nara

When planning my trip to Japan, one thing that caught my attention was Nara Park. It’s famous for having free-roaming deer that you can feed. Whilst there are deer in Australia, I’d never seen one before. You’ll know you’ve reached Nara when you see that everything is deer-themed.

Nara was even more exciting than I had expected. I really love animals, so seeing deer just roaming all about town was amazing. Even better though, you can buy some crackers to feed them! You do need to be careful though as they really like these snacks. You will be surrounded once they realize you have the deer crackers and they may even bite your clothing. Make sure you put your hands up in surrender to show them you have no more food when you’re done, or else they won’t leave you alone!

An important thing to remember is that these are wild deer, so don’t try to touch them and don’t follow them around. They are wild, so there is a risk that they could bite, kick, headbutt or knock you down. Also if you have small children with you, watch them closely. I did see one deer knock down a child from behind (it wasn’t too aggressive and the child was okay afterwards). Some of them are polite and will bow to you though which is super cute!

Todaiji Temple

After seeing the wonderful deer, I decided to visit the famous Todaiji Temple nearby. Todaiji Temple is a UNESCO World Heritage Site and is famous for having one of the largest Buddha statues in Japan. The one at this temple is 15m tall and the architecture of the temple building is really beautiful.

Shopping and Food in Osaka

After an amazing day out in Nara, I spent the evening in Osaka exploring the wonderful shopping arcades. One thing that amazes me about the cities here is that it’s not all surface-level. Shops such as Daiso and Loft extend up over 5 levels of a building and there is a whole world beneath ground level. It was in one of these underground shopping areas in Namba that I delightedly discovered a little craft store. I bought some things there and I also picked up some cute hair accessories. I believe my love of hair accessories started here in Osaka, and since then I now have quite a collection!

Osaka is also famous for having some of the best food in Japan. It certainly had the most amazing takoyaki (octopus balls)! The curry and katsu was also delicious. Since it was summer I also enjoyed some cookies and cream soft-serve ice cream. Everything was so yummy!

Back to Tokyo

Josey Annaleise shows off her new hair bow accessory bought in Osaka Japan whilst looking out the window on the bullet train back to Tokyo.

The next day it was time to head back to Tokyo for one last adventure before flying back home to Australia. Have you ever wanted to try on a traditional Japanese Kimono? Tune into the next blog to read all about it!

You may also like

1 Comment

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *