After an early rise at 6 a.m., I eased my way into the morning with a dip in the onsen before preparing for the journey to our next city. I must be plain about my sleep quality last night: tatami mats may just not be for me. Nonetheless, I am glad to have tried the experience, and a 1-night stay was the perfect opportunity to give it a shot. No pressure to continue if it didn’t work out.
The shinkansen bullet train that runs from Odawara (a stone’s throw—or a few subway stops—away from Hakone) to Osaka bolts across the Japanese countryside at a staggering 177 mph, covering over 250 miles in barely over 2 hours, and would do so even faster if not for intermittent stops along the way. This gave us just enough sitting time to try out some Japanese snacks and drinks acquired from a pre-boarding plundering of a nearby convenience store. (I became reacquainted with those little chocolate-filled koalas from the 90s, while Paresh found some rice crackers that tasted like Bugles.)
With the shinkansen in the rear view mirror, we trekked through a long indoor/outdoor market area on the way to drop our luggage at our new Airbnb. We quickly noted a shift in orderliness: in Tokyo, the “walk on the left” mentality seemed ingrained in the populace with military strictness. But the streets of Osaka are unadulterated chaos. One minute we were on the left, the next on the right, oftentimes bobbing and weaving through sequences of crowds with no apparent allegiance to structure. Add luggage to the mix and it’s a recipe for a stressful slog.
We had time to kill before we could officially check in to our new digs, so we located a nearby conveyor belt sushi restaurant, Sushiro, where we could grab some sustenance. The concept has always intrigued me, but I have never managed to seal the deal on a trip to such a place. This lunch was just stupid fun. With the touch of an iPad at our table, various sushi rolls and other bites came flying down the conveyor track to our table to be quickly devoured. Highlights included the omurice sushi (cute), corn tempura sushi (interesting) and anything having to do with rice malt (delicious). I suspect we won’t be surprised to end up here again.
Likely sensing that I’d evened the score in the quality of our food and beverage finds, Paresh pulled a rabbit out of his hat that may have secured him the runaway victory for this trip. Bar Ista (get it?) is a specialty coffee cocktails bar (as well as coffee roastery) located half a mile from where we are staying in Osaka. The shop is run by Fumiaki Nozato, a multi-time champion on the world stage in the competitive coffee cocktail program. Anyone who knows me well will know that this type of place is such a collision of so many different passions of mine that it wasn’t a question that a trip was necessary. (To his credit, Paresh’s eyes lit up when he found this place and knew how obligatory a pilgrimage would be.)
Our initial attempt to visit the bar was dashed by a broken water main that prevented them from opening. But after a casual stroll through Nakanoshima and a short trip through Dōtonbori, we saw that they’d posted the all clear on their Instagram page, so we quickly headed back. I’m ever so glad we did.
Nozato’s menu is a thoughtfully crafted love letter to coffee and mixology that blends reimagined classic cocktails with beverages that tell stories about various parts of the coffee trade. His signature cocktail, a world championship-winning masterpiece called “Elements,” tops a base of campari and coffee with distinct sections of cream, rose, raspberry and hibiscus, creating a different cocktail depending on which side you sip on from the glass. My first drink, “Making a Story,” also an award-winning creation, used different flavoral and aromatic pieces to represent the different stages of coffee production as it makes its way from farm to cup. I could have nerded out here for hours—no, days. Ista may join Sushiro on the (apparently growing) list of places that require a second pass during our stay in Osaka.
With my head still spinning from our once-(twice?)-in-a-lifetime visit to Ista, we resumed where we had left off in Dōtonbori, a district famous for its nightlife and appeal to tourists visiting the city. I use this moniker far less derogatorily than I feel I would when describing a location in the states. The area certainly pulls few punches when it comes to over-the-top overtures for attention and business from visitors. But it is anything but spurious. I grabbed a few skewers of chicken yakitori that were grilled right in front of me. Paresh opted for a meal from 7-Eleven on the way home. I would say “settled,” but that feels like an unfair slight. True to its reputation in Japan, 7-Eleven has provided us with some of the better bites we’ve had, and this certainly won’t be the last time we visit one.
Tomorrow, it is time for Super Nintendo World and Donkey Kong Country World at Universal Studios Japan! This day has been the centerpiece of our trip plan ever since we discovered its existence. But more on that tomorrow. I’d better get to bed so I can make up for some of the time I lost on the tatami mat.
Where the Waterfalls Mean Home 