Kansai Gadai by Tessa Wells

Hello, my name is Tessa Wells, and I am currently studying abroad at Kansai Gaidai University in Osaka, Japan. My stay here has already been very exciting, but a day that stands out to me was my trip to Osaka Castle and the city of Osaka. I visited the Castle with two RA’s and other students who live on my same dorm floor. At first glance, I was stunned by the castle. The architecture was beautiful, and considering when the castle was constructed it was even more impressive. Inside the castle was a setup similar to a museum. Each floor of the castle held many different exhibits displaying historical artifacts from the Tokugawa and Meiji periods in Japan. There were many different types of exhibits from letters, to swords, to coins. Reading about each of these artifacts was an enlightening experience. However, my favorite part of the castle was the observation deck at the top. It allowed me to overlook the city of Osaka from a place of such great historical significance. It made me wonder what it would have been like to visit this same castle during the Tokugawa period, overlooking a very different Japan. After our tour of the castle, we hopped on a train to the central city of Osaka. The streets were packed full of both foreigners and native Japanese people. We decided to eat at a Kushikatsu restaurant, which is simply fried food on a stick. It was not very elegant, but it was delicious. They had fried cheese, meat, eggplant, egg, and even ice cream. One of the most interesting things to me about Japan so far is how cheap food is here. Going to a restaurant and eating more than your fill will cost you less than 15 USD. It is really nice, as my stomach is often too big for my wallet. Overall, I am enjoying my time here in Japan so far and I can not wait to do more interesting things as my study abroad continues.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published.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