Dotonbori and Conveyor Belt Sushi

Hey friends! I've been busy most days lately with work -- which of course is super fun. I still can't divulge any details about what we're up to at this point, but with the grand opening to the public in two and a half weeks, we're in the home stretch, and at that point I'll be able to say a little more, and maybe even get a few photos. Up until this point we're still not getting our schedule for the day any sooner than the day before, and our call times are pretty all over the place, so it's been hard to plan anything or get into any sort of routine. That should all change within the next few weeks though, and at that point I'm hoping to get back to learning more Japanese, as it will make traveling and going out that much easier.

A few of us did have a free afternoon and evening yesterday and decided to spend that time venturing into downtown Osaka. I'd been to Shinsaibashi two times already and was ready to explore a different section of the city. Before I left for Japan I looked into some of the most popular places and iconic sights of Osaka, many of which were in Dotonbori, so I looked up train directions and we were on our way. We got off at the Namba station, which sounded familiar, but I didn't think much of it. Jordyn wanted to find a Starbucks, and just a couple blocks away we found one. As we approached it she said "Wait, I've been to this Starbucks before!" We looked around and lo and behold, there was the entrance to the Shinsaibashi shopping area I'd already visited twice before. It turns out that Shinsaibashi and Dotonbori are either right next to each other, or they're the same place, or one of them is a part of the other one, I'm not really sure which. We had a good laugh about it, and we were still able to explore parts streets and shops we hadn't seen. Next trip, though, I'll be more careful to pick somewhere totally different.

Before we realized we were in the same effing place we've already gone to twice

It was the first time I saw this animatronic crab, which is pretty famous in Osaka

WHOOPS, looks like my attempt to take us somewhere new was a total failure. My bad, y'all.

From what I've gathered from my visits there, what my friends have told me, and the internet, Shinsaibashi is a specific street (Bashi means bridge) and basically one big long shopping mall, while Dotonbori is either the whole area or a perpendicular street, known for having tons of dining options, including a bunch of takoyaki and okonomiyaki places. Dotonbori is the place to go when trying to have a delicious, Osaka-style Japanese dinner.

We also found the Dotonbori Canal, which was a pretty cool sight to see. There were some boat tours available, and I think we could have also eaten on a boat, but we didn't end up doing either of those. It was still a nice area to walk around.

We found a six-floor Mega and decided to check it out

Bizarre

I don't understand

There was a big section of crazy underwear that we laughed at for a good five minutes. This particular brand of men's undies is called Black Man

Keepin' it classy Jordyn

Ewwwwwwwww

T-Shart

Idk what this ad is for but I'm loving the awkward family photo

The Glico runner sign is also a pretty iconic image of Osaka

Shinsaibashi got ruhl crowded

Dinner was good but nothing crazy different, plus it was dimly lit so photos didn't really turn out well. It was all-you-can-drink for 1550 Yen though, so we all left the restaurant feeling pretty good ;). By then the sun was setting and the canal was an even better sight to see than before. We also stopped in H&M to do a little shopping before heading home for the night.

Today after work, a few of us were crazy hungry so we had a late lunch at a local sushi restaurant, and hoooooooooly crap, it's gotta be one of the best places I've ever been to in my life. The sushi comes around on a conveyor belt and unless it's some special kind, each plate is just 100 yen, about a dollar. You could just grab random plates as they passed by, or you could order a specific kind and it would come by within a few minutes. We stuffed our effing faces and nobody paid more than 1400 yen. I regret not coming to this place sooner and I'm probably going to come back once a week minimum. I just can't even EVEN, YOU GUYS.

They had an English button, which was quite a relief

There were sooooo many different kinds of sushi available, as well as a few other things like noodle bowls, tempura and other fried things, drinks, desserts, etc. You could order up to five plates at a time (though you could just immediately order another five right after).

After a few minutes a little jingle would play on your computer letting you know what items were almost there

Before

The first one

The aftermath. 

When we were done we pressed the button to get our checks, and someone came by to count our plates and give us our totals to pay up front. I'm sure I'll be dreaming about this place tonight, and I'll be back very soon and very, very often.