Wrapping up the trip
We are wrapping up our two and half month trip to Asia and getting ready to head back home to Canada in two days.
After spending a couple of days in Kyoto, we took the train to Osaka this morning. Osaka is Japan’s third-largest city, and there are far more people and tourists here compared to Shizuoka, where we only spotted four or five tourists during our entire one-week stay.
To be honest, I preferred Shizuoka. It felt much more homey, and there were fewer people everywhere.
A Studio Ghibli souvenir
Do you remember that I mentioned I couldn't visit the Studio Ghibli Museum in Nagoya? So instead, I stopped by a Studio Ghibli shop today.
I really wanted to find something for my work desk that would remind me of the magic of imagination and creativity that flows so naturally from the mind of Hayao Miyazaki.
There were so many lovely options, and I would have happily bought them all. But they were quite expensive, and I didn't have much room left in my luggage. So I chose this one:
Crowded Osaka
In the afternoon we went for a walk around Osaka close to our hotel. There are really beautiful food streets to visit. Like long nicely decorated streets where there are various types of restaurants and desert and drink places with unique decoration and vibe all along. It was so crowded but kind of lovely. I usually escape the chaos of the city but I loved walking on these streets.
In the afternoon, we went for a walk near the hotel. Osaka has some beautiful food streets. They are long, lively streets lined with restaurants, cafés, dessert shops, and drink stands, each with its own unique decoration and atmosphere.
It was incredibly crowded, yet very charming. I usually try to escape the chaos of big cities, yet I loved wandering through these streets and taking it all in.
I didn't take any photos from the street as I am not comfortable taking photos where there are many people. But we took this photo outside of the crowded zone where we sat on public seats to take a break.
Getting back to Canada
Tomorrow we change hotels to somewhere closer to Osaka airport so flying to Tokyo will be easier for us. Then we will catch the flight the same day to Vancouver, then from Vancouver to Kelowna. SO there will be 3 flights in two days.
Tomorrow we'll move to a hotel closer to Osaka Airport to make our trip to Tokyo a little easier. The following day, we'll fly to Tokyo, then from Tokyo to Vancouver, and finally from Vancouver to Kelowna. Three flights in two days!
As much as I have enjoyed this trip, I'm starting to miss the outdoor activities back in Big White, so I'm looking forward to being home again :)
I'll write more when I get the chance, but honestly, I don't think I'll have time before we're back in Canada. So I guess my next blog post will be from Big White. 🙂
Well, have a great night and talk soon.
June 22nd, 2026
Osaka, Japan
I got "My neighbour Totoro" set. Cannot wait to put it on my work desk
Gab took this photo when we are going down to the foos street