I am staying in a hostel which is, what do you know, full of bloody Aussies! In the international hostel scene I swear we are a veritable plague! Some good people make for some good times however and my first few days in Osaka have been tip top.
Takoyaki
The batter is somewhere between an omlette and a savoury crepe and it is cooked in little round ball shape things while the chef keeps turning it so eventually it becomes a perfectly round ball with stuff inside. Delicious but very hot - be warned.
Chef let me take a photo :)
Okonimiyaki:
You might have heard of these. Basically it is an omelette but with heaps of ingredients in it. Often shredded potato and i dont know what else lol. Different recipes all over different parts of japan.
Yum
Here's a little restaurant I think I took a photo because it looks like a hobbit home :)
*You also drink in tiny little bars called Izakaya. Feels more like a home bar with the host really close & friendly. Drinks & food are great and plentiful. I went to a few of these with the Aussies.
*Went clubbing on Saturday to try it out. Entry was expensive but it covered all drinks which is a nice way of doing it. Clubbing is fun. The Osakans are an excitable lot & love to have a good time. Foreigners aren't exactly new here but some of them still come up to practice their English. Night club overall good bar one thing: They still allow smoking indoors here.
*Sake is more of a wine than a spirit. You can drink it hot or cold. I prefer it cold. Drank lots of this at Izakayas. It's an easy drink to have compared to harsher spirits. Kinda dangerous in that regard. You often see drunk business men and women coming out of their Local having had a very good time. I imagine sake is to thank.
*Vending machines are literally everywhere. You can't walk 500m without passing one. All of them serve coffee, tea & everything else. Some even sell alcohol. About 3/4 of the drinks I don't even know what they are. Theres like milk teas and cans where you can twist the can to release a heating element to heat your drink like hot chocolates.
*Ordering is difficult because of limited Japanese. I know enough to indicate to a menu or read some of the item and say please etc. Havent ran into a situation where I couldn't eat yet most of the time it gets figured out haha. I hate when they throw curveballs like asking me take away, or asking me for what sauce I wanted
