When You Wander

I made it!

I’ve officially been in Osaka for 24 hours. Below are my honest, first impressions and observations of the city that I now call home.

Green Tea Flavored Everything!

Green Tea Gelato was our dessert on the plane. Little did I know, this was a clue to how huge green tea flavored items are in Japan! I’ve since seen green tea kit-kats, candies, potato chips, and what looked like milk and yogurt. I hope I can get on the green tea train soon because the gelato wasn’t exactly my favorite thing ever.

Tea AND Coffee!

Moving here, I thought my coffee days were over and that I’d have to morph into a tea girl. I’m happy to say that in modern day Japan, tea AND coffee are both widely acknowledged. Above is a picture of a street near my apartment. On the left (red awning) is a coffee shop. On the right (green awning) is a tea shop. So great to have options! One thing I will note, I did order a medium coffee from “Xpresso” and it was a much smaller medium than you get in the U.S. However, it was only 250¥ ($2.14) which is cheaper than a medium coffee at Starbucks.

People are Nice, but…Don’t Smile?

This is one of those first impressions that may very well end up being inaccurate over time. But so far, this is my take on Osakans.
I’ve been doing a lot of walking to explore the area. When I am about to cross paths with someone, I will look up at him/her and smile. But no one, I mean no one, reciprocates and smiles back! At first I thought that maybe people aren’t as friendly as I had been told, However, now I’m starting to question if it’s more of a privacy thing? Maybe people here just prefer to mind their own business on the go? I’m not sure. Regardless, I am happy to say that on the few accounts I’ve had to speak up and ask someone for assistance, I have found him/her to be super nice! For example, this morning I was in a store looking for make-up removing wipes. I couldn’t figure out which ones they were, so I asked a woman for help. She did not speak any English, but I tried to mimic wiping the make-up off my face and she understood. She completely stopped her shopping and walked me over to the correct area of the store and showed me where the wipes were that I needed.

When You Take a Number, You Don’t Have to Wait in Line!

I had to go to the Naniwa Ward this morning to finalize my residency in Japan. Once you turn in your paperwork, you are given a number and told a wait time. For me, the predicted time meant how long it would take to get my Japanese address printed on my residency card. My number was 832 and I was told about 45 minutes. Like any waiting area, there were plenty of seats to make yourself comfortable. Now…the cool part! In the U.S., generally if you leave the area and are not back when your number is called, you lose your spot in line. But not in Japan! As they call a number, if the person is not present, they post the number on a screen. At one point there were six numbers on the screen for people they’ve called who were not there. But then, whenever someone returned and saw that his/her number was on the screen, he/she could immediately go right up to the counter. I honestly thought this was such a great process and felt that it also made it less stressful. For instance, what if you had an hour wait time, but were on a time crunch to run a few errands? You could run those errands and not stress about needing to get back before your number is called!

Squat Toilet Encounter

Not even 24 hours in Japan and I already have encountered my first squat toilet. To be honest, I thought they were a thing of the past, especially when constantly hearing how modernized Japan has become. I guess there are still a few traditions the Japanese like to hold on to though, squat toilets being one of them!

As I was leaving the Naniwa Ward, I noticed the public restroom sign and realized it wouldn’t hurt to go to the restroom before walking back to my apartment. Sooner than I anticipated, I came face to face with this…..toilet. Now, not only will I argue that this is already a challenge in it’s own, but it’s still a mystery to me on how a woman can master the squat technique so that nothing runs down her legs. Not to mention, it was 40ºF this morning and I was wearing leggings, long socks, and boots, none of which are easy to move out of the way… Therefore, I think I am justified in saying, not today squat toilet, not today. I hope the first time that I truly have to face you, it will be when I’m wearing a dress and flip flops!

Vending Machines, Everywhere! (But not for food).

Literally, every block! And they don’t just sell water and soda. Most of them sell different types of coffee, hot or cold. There are also machines that sell cigarettes and tobacco, and others that sell beer. Fun fact: Drinking alcohol on the street in Japan is perfectly legal!

My first vending machine purchase…. Melon Cream Soda! It did not disappoint!

Supermarket: Nightmare or Wonderland?

Although I wouldn’t call myself a picky eater (anymore), I’ll admit that I’m not the fondest of seafood. Lucky for me, Japanese supermarkets seem to be set up similar to the U.S. in that they have a designated fruit & vegetable section, meat section, seafood section, etc. Since I cannot read any of the packaging, this definitely makes it easier to identify what I’m buying. However, in addition to the typical supermarket sections as listed above, there is also a LARGE section of what I will call “mystery items.” This section consists of pre-packaged, individual meals, as well as freshly cooked items that you can package yourself (see pictures above). I will admit that I spent almost an hour lurking this part of the supermarket. I was on a mission to find something for dinner, but it was so tough to tell what was meat vs what was seafood, I finally ended up gambling on what looked like a mini package of meat and also bought what looked like a bowl of noodles with vegetables. To my relief, the meat ended up being chicken. The noodles also had a surprise broth underneath them so I mixed it all together to make a pretty decent soup!

Success. Dinner was tasty and cheap! Only 208¥ ($1.78)!

I thought this carb mix might have snackage potential…until I realized there were little, dead critters inside. Ugh.

Win. I love grapefruit anything and found this grapefruit-flavored alcohol to try for only 115¥ ($0.98). Yum.

Who Needs a Dryer When You Have a Balcony?

Yes, this is a single photo of one apartment building, but this sight is literally everywhere! Clothes hanging on the balcony seem to be the drying method of choice. I haven’t had to personally deal with this yet, but so many questions are running through my head! How long does it take? And what if it’s raining?!

Shower Thermostat is Genius!

So I think this thermostat actually affects the temperature of all water in the apartment, but it is mainly adjusted for taking a shower and it is kind of AMAZING! All you do it put the thermostat up to your desired temp before you hop in the shower. (It’s in Celsius, by the way). Then when you turn the shower on and turn the hot knob, the water will get as hot as you set it to. And the best part…it STAYS that hot until you’re done. No running out of hot water and no dealing with lukewarm water not getting hot enough! LOVE.