Osaka Rock

In this week’s instalment, we explore sumo wrestling ceremonies, Osaka’s food scene, brainstorm for sci-fi stories, and headbang to J-rock bands! Plus, a glimpse into two neighboring cities: Nara and Kobe!

Our first weekend in Osaka, which was basically a tour of izakaya eateries, started with a walk through the Osaka Castle. It's a stunning sight from the outside and the inside. I’m not interested in warfare, emperors, or men who think they are descendants of gods, but I’m a huge fan of the structural design and megaliths that go into creating such incredible structures like the Osaka castle.

One of the walls, which was built in 1624, had a monolithic stone known as “the octopus” and weighs 108 tons. That’s 238,000 pounds!

Now I bet you’re wondering the same thing as me: how did they move such gargantuan stones way back during the Tokugawa era!?
The answer is okonomiyaki!

Yes, with fantastic food, such as the savory Japanese pancake, a man (or woman) was able to perform inhuman feats that defy gravity and physics!!!

So naturally, our next stop was the BEST Okonomiyaki in Osaka.

(It was orgasmic. And as a cook, I’ve got lots of learning to do.)


Later, we made our way to the popular Donburi district. Hulya developed J-Pop fever and I heard a street rapper who sounded much like Nujabes...the nostalgia was really something.

*Donburi at night: not my photo*

After wandering in the afternoon heat, we became hungry again, so we thought we’d try our luck by stepping up the heat even more!

This is when we found a local hole-in-the-wall izakaya bar. These establishments are casual Japanese pubs, similar to a tapas bar or a saloon. We ducked in and ordered some sushi, but we also grilled our own beef tongue stuffed with leeks while enjoying a cold brew.

(that's Hulya's game-face 😛)

By the time night fell, we grabbed our seats at a sumo wrestling match. It wasn’t the national competitions (they were happening in Tokyo and, sadly, tickets were sold out months ago!). This small, local match was for wrestlers who were professionally retired but still active. And I appreciated the education we got leading up to the fights. I knew nothing about sumo, other than it was vaguely associated with the Shinto religion.

But get this! Sumo wrestling dates back to 300 BC, which explains why there are many religious rituals and mythologies associated with it.

In ancient Japan, sumo wrestling was such a revered event that it was held in the shrines themselves. The layout of the arena and the movements the wrestlers make before and after the matches are ripe with symbolism. The outcome of these events was often used for divination, particularly at New Year's, to predict the outcome of the coming agricultural season.

Over time, sumo wrestling’s role in foretelling the “will of the gods” eventually led to its association with politics, too. So we thoroughly enjoyed what we saw in this little sumo arena.
Who do you think won in this final match?

The big guy, Toma, is 230 kg (505 pounds!) — and he actually lost!

At the end of our 13-hour adventure, we returned to our studio after clocking over 20,000 steps.

And if anyone wants to learn more about the variety of Osaka dishes…this local dude is a great library of food info: https://www.instagram.com/p/DHbMp3RvudR/


Now let's take a train to the oldest capital of Japan, NARA.

It’s known as a spiritual city, and the deer with velvet antlers roam the streets freely. It's a cute and fun experience.

Besides that, Hulya and I wandered through the small side streets, chowed down on some freshly made onigiri, and took a break at a cafe to sip matcha latte while developing the new characters for The Mind Hunter sequel.

(everyone may have heard of the sacred "deer" or Nara....but what about the sacred "bee" of Nara! 😆 )

The strangest thing of all was the local family who was taking a lunch break to eat McDonald's next to the famous Nara temple…and they had two pet owls!

A few days later, we set out to discover the city of KOBE. A short train ride south of Osaka. At first, it seems unsuspecting. But there’s a bit more to it than the iconic beef steaks.

And after we got a good dose of matcha gelato (and sampled various sakés), the adventure really kicked off!

But seriously, the Kobe Port Tower had an epic view! It was only 101 meters (compared to Tokyo's 333-meter tower), yet it was still very stunning. And we could see Osaka City way off in the distance.

After descending, we wandered miles through the city and found a posh neighborhood similar to Alta Plaza in SF. We hiked up to the west hills and then explored the largest herb garden in Japan. It stretched up the hillside for miles.

The sun was getting low in the sky, so we took a lift to reach to top of the herb garden!

Descending, yet aga again from great heights, our souls were still feeling elevated, but our bellies needed sustenance. So we followed the advice of a friend and hunted down a unique Kobe beef restaurant. We ate six types of beef, both nigiri style and grilled. Thank you, Sonia!

We ended the adventure by buying a few items unique to that city: various Black Curries to cook at home (I still don’t know why Hulya is obsessed with this) and potato chips fried in Kobe beef fat, which I fully endorse! Plus, we found sourdough shokupan.

In our downtime, we’d have morning powwow brainstorming sessions (often about the details of my sci-fi sequel to The Mind Hunter), and one of the greatest surprises of the week was finally discovering how epic Osaka Expo Park really is!

It took many attempts, but once we uncovered the coveted secret of its one gated entry (charging a whopping $1.50), it became a priceless sanctuary.

It's so peaceful and full of places to explore. It has a spring/flower garden, which looked like the ruins of an ancient castle.

Everywhere we walked, there were flowing streams along stone-made basins...and the looming presence of the Sun/Moon tower they built back in 1970.

The highlight of the week (for food and fun combined!) occured when we went looking for a famous $10$ bowl of ramen. It was underground in the Umeda Metro Station but the endless maze of food shops and Friday night crowds rushing around made it impossible to find. So we gave up, but i saw a sign that promised a really good Unagi (grilled eel)...but it was on the 13th floor above the Umeda station. Regardless, we took an elevator up and discovered the most exquisite traditional Japanese food. The 12-course meal of small dishes was the finest food to date!

(it was sooo good, but we didn't get good picutre, so that photo is the closest thing i could find online)

Then, contrasting that, we took a metro down to a barren harbor district for a truly unique and grungy Japanese rock concert! The Utake band used a shamisen, 2 flutes, 5 drums, and an electric violin.

And with that, we called it a night, and the week was over.

Stay tuned, our adventures in Osaka will continue next week!

Gully “The Gaijin” Traveler!