Day in Osaka..walking tour!

We have arranged a walking tour of Osaka hi lites and have to meet our tour guide at 8:30 am.  We catch the early train to Osaka to meet the tour guide. It’s busy on the train this Monday morning..this would not be a fun commute!

Osaka Station is a very busy place.

Our tour guide Taran.  Very knowledgeable.  There are just three other people on this tour.  Victoria from Kiev, Ukraine and Jenn and Matt from Melbourne, Australia.  Really nice people.  



Some impressive buildings downtown.  Here is a museum and the NHK Broadcasting building.  There are 8 million people in Osaka. 

This is the moat surrounding Osaka Castle which is our first stop of the day. We’re just headed onto the property.

Meeting a few characters along the way. These characters are very popular in Japan.

Famous war lord from the 1600’s.  Toyotomi Hideyoshi.

View from the castle.



Beautiful Osaka Castle originally built 1583.



Ramen for lunch.



We visit the Dotonbori Area (known as the bright heart of Osaka) It is the entertainment area.  Full of restaurants.



Dotonbori Canal



Victoria posing as the Running Man (as seen behind her).  Very famous in Osaka representing victory.



Lots of gaudy signage.



This temple was built where people were executed in the 1600’s.  The temple provides a place for people to pray for the souls of the people that died here.



In the temple is a Buddha status covered in moss.  There is a bucket with water and a ladle and anyone can toss water on the Buddha to enable the moss to grow.



My new buddy



Our luck runs out and the rain starts.  This temple was our last temple of the day.



We did 19,170 steps today.  I’m exhausted.  We still had to get the train back to our hotel.  End of a very interesting day.