Bisdak Babbles

It’s November and it’s autumn! That’s why I have been missing Japan a lot lately. I may have not tried out outdoor fireplace because I lived in the city. And it’s pretty obvious that kotatsu is more famous in Japan than fireplaces. But I really miss the cool, crisp air. I miss wearing jackets and scarves. I miss eating ramen. I miss the polite Japanese people. I miss a lot of things! Sometimes I consider going back to Japan should an opportunity present itself. I’ll just keep all my memories in Japan alive by going over my photos. Below is a photo somewhere in Umeda area in Osaka. And if I do have an opportunity to go back in Japan, I would still choose to live in Osaka…

I passed by a famous high-end department store here in Osaka and I couldn’t help but take a photo of this very interesting display…

I am now starting the process of detaching myself from Osaka. The first stop: the Yodogawa (淀川) or Yodo River. Here are some photos and please bear with the quality. I only used my phone’s camera and it is not that good. I have no idea why the first picture resulted to this…

the setting sun…

it’s getting dark…

Related post: Yodogawa (Yodo River)

It’s been a while since I’ve posted a photo hunt entry! I’ve been very busy these past few weeks that I didn’t have much time browsing through my photos.

Fortunately, I have lots of photos of bridges so I get to join today. Osaka has many rivers, thus, it has lots of bridges, too. Here’s one of my favorites. This was taken in spring last year after I visited a cherry blossoms orchard. I’m also using this as a header in my other blog, Exploring Kansai.

This one’s also a favorite:

Same with most of the photos in this blog, these were taken using my old phone camera. I used Photofiltre to “revive” the colors.

The Universal Studios Japan (USJ) is just a few stations away from where I live. I’ve lived in Osaka for more than 2 years and I haven’t been there. Finally, last Sunday, Kay and I took advantage of the one-year pass promo at USJ. USJ usually put the one-year pass on sale around November to the first day of February. It was the promo’s last day last Sunday. I thought that most of the Japanese got their tickets way before the last day but I was wrong. The registration hall was crowded and we had to wait in line for more than an hour! It was already running late so we did not have a chance to try a single attraction. But it’s OK. I still have a year to try them all.

Just a glimpse of USJ:

So many things that are made of metal in the photo below.

This was taken outside the Osaka immigration office.

I love autumn and here’s the reason why…

At Osaka Castle grounds, Fall 2007

Since I’ve arrived here in Osaka, I’ve always looked forward to watching the Yodogawa Hanabi* display each year. It takes place on the first or second Saturday of August. I make sure that I don’t miss it because it’s just a few minutes walk from my place. There are lots of fireworks all over Japan during summer but I avoid the hassle of taking overcrowded trains. My experience this year was one of a kind.

We arrived at the river bank at around 6PM (the fireworks usually starts at 7:30PM). At first it appeared to be a fine day…

But the clouds seemed to have come to an agreement to gather in Yodogawa…

At around seven, we had to temporarily vacate our spot for fear of being hit by lightning.
Not long after, big raindrops started to fall so we had to take shelter in the nearby houses. I always bring my umbrella but unfortunately, I left it in my other bag.

We thought that they would hold the fireworks display until the rain stops but we were really surprised when we heard big bangs coming from the river! Yes, they still lighted the fireworks despite the heavy rains. So, we rushed back to our spot, while trying to keep our bags from getting wet. Just imagine running through a crowd of people, with the rain pouring down on your face and eyeglasses!

For the next 40 minutes, Idel and I used our picnic mat to cover just our heads and our bags, while staring at the magnificent display ahead.  As we had predicted, the rain stopped a few minutes before the end of the fireworks display. I’m sorry I still don’t have a digital camera yet so all I got were these lame fireworks display photos using my cellphone:

That small ball of light at the upper left was the moon 花火 -> Hanabi -> fireworks