Namba
It seems like you are always stumbling upon a shrine in Japan, but we made a visit specifically to Namba Yasaka Shrine. This place is a little unique with the lion’s head building.
Namba Yasaka Jinja (難波八阪神社)
The shrine is located just a few minutes walk from Namba station heading west. It is not a big complex, but famous and always has a few visitors checking it out. I also spotted a digital touchscreen guide on site, in multiple languages which was a first for me at a shrine.
Due to the bombings during WW2, the complex was rebuilt relatively recently. People come here to wish for good luck on exams and their work, and they can buy trinkets and good luck charms as well as make small donations.
The main event is the giant lion’s head, which is said to suck up evil spirits.
For just a few hundred yen, one can buy ‘omikuji’ which is a fortune printed on a piece of paper. If you happen to draw an unlucky one, you can tie it up and leave it at the shrine. Not a bad business for the shrine, they just have to clean them up once in a while:)
The shrine is free to visit, but most people toss a coin or two into the collection box when they make a prayer/wish. Maybe they get a few drunk folk heading through at night, since it is near the many bars and nightline in Namba.
Namba Namban Lunch
We got lunch at a local joint in Namba, which was relatively quiet during the middle of the day. The streets seemed to be filled with delivery trucks bringing in kegs and cases of liquor, prepping for another night. However, there are some nice cheap eats and I grabbed a ‘Chicken Namban’ lunch. This seems to be a pretty popular dish in Osaka, and is basically fish and chips, made instead with chicken. The tartar sauce is mixed with a vinegar too, but instead of chips you get rice, salad and miso soup. Sometimes the simple comfort foods really hits the spot.
Dotonbori River
Namba is most famous for the Dotonbori street with the famous colorful store fronts and the Glico man. It’s probably best experienced at night for the many bars, eateries and shops.
Shinsaibashi
We took a nice walk after lunch through the Shinsaibashi Shotengai (shopping) street. Even during poor weather, the street is covered for many blocks and has a bit of everything from small local shops to some department stores. Most Shotengai have a retro feel to them, where family run business owners lived above their shops and managed their stores below. Some of the more famous ones like Shinsaibashi have been modernized a lot, with Starbucks, big department and brand stores taking over. You’re still never too far from a ramen shop or takoyaki place though.
Interestingly, one block over from the retro feeling shotengai, is a modern high end shopping street with the usual luxury fashion brands and such. I guess the equivalent to Rodeo Drive in Socal. This is where Tesla has a showroom, with a Model Y on display. M said she misses riding in our car.
EVs?
Surprisingly, there are not enough Teslas on the road here, and a general lack of EVs in Japan in general. My guess here is that the Japanese giants like Toyota have been slow to transition, and there is a general distrust of American cars in Japan. While Japan is the 3rd largest car market in the world, it is dominated with domestic brands, with a pretty sizable market of cheaper and smaller ‘K’ cars which tend to only be Japanese brands as well. I would expect EV charging at home is a bit more challenging too, most people don’t have garages in the city, and pay for parking. Car commuting in the cities is pretty rare, while most families seem to own a car they only use them on weekends. Still, if some tower mansions wise up and install a few chargers, they might become more popular. I see one or two Tesla Model 3s a day, but maybe we’ll see an explosion of Model Ys coming soon.
