Osaka Day Trip - Ichiran Ramen, Hampton Court Cafe, Osaka/Umeda
To be honest, my money was gone so quickly - faster than I could ever imagined. The thing with my money was, that I didn't know I wouldn't be getting my pay in April. Basically, I will get paid for my work in April in May. But, I missed the information and thus didn't prepare enough money for my rent and living expenses in May.
Sadly... with so much shame and guilt... I had to ask money from my parents. Long story short, my parents sent some money to my junior (from middle and high school) who's now studying Japanese in Osaka. She got the money ready, and I went to meet her and get the money in Osaka.
This post is not going to be about how sad I am about the whole money this, so rest assured.
So, my day trip to Osaka started with going to Umeda Station from Hankyu Karasuma Station. It took around 40 minutes, but it was very enjoyable because I really missed Osaka and I was able to get some sleep on the train.
Because my kouhai was going to her language school (which was my ex-short-term-language-school back in 2015), we promised to meet at around 12.30pm at the school. So to kill time, I decided to eat brunch around Umeda. I googled, walked around, and found Ichiran Ramen Umeda. It was still early, so the shop was very quiet!
When you enter the shop, you will immediately be greeted by the ordering machine! Insert the money, click which dish you want, get the ticket for the meal, and then get the change.
Then when you walk to the dining area, you can see this board. This will show you which booth is available for you to dine. The green one shows availability.
I felt so relieved. Solo dining became less awkward with this kind of personal eating space (even though I'm already used to & like eating alone)!
Next, you can customize your own ramen! Or even add things!
I think this chain ramen shop really stands up to its popularity. The ramen was amazing. Probably one of the best ramen I've tasted so far. The broth especially was outstanding.
They also provide tap water especially for you!
You won't really see the staff, but they will be right in front of your booth. You can communicate directly without looking at their faces, through the hole in front of your booth where they will pass you your ramen, etc.
Just simply lovely experience. Very nice for solo diners. What I liked about this system is also the ease, especially for non-Japanese speakers. They have English menu and you don't have to talk to another person to order! Very convenient and fast.
I was so full from brunch (felt like lunch), and went to do a little bit of karaoke at a Jankara nearby. I didn't have much time, so I only took the 30 minutes one.
Too shy to sing without the original singer's voice, I didn't really sing in the end. Tried singing KPOP but then at that moment I was slapped by the bitter truth that I have not a single idea how to sing my favorite KPOP songs. Sad. I felt so betrayed by myself.
As usual, I like being early. I walked from Umeda to Tenma and reached Ogimachi Park at around 11.30am.
I bought some chips and cafe au lait on the way (hehe) and just chilled there until 12pm. Ogimachi Park and Tenma area are the places that I remember the most. When I was studying in Osaka, my friends and I visited Ogimachi Park a lot. Like, a lot. SOOOOO many memories.
Then I walked to my old Japanese language school, waited outside like a sick stalker, but then went to a 7/11. I think that one was new, because back in my days, that 7/11 didn't exist. Wow. And yeah, I missed Tenjinbashisuji the shopping street!
After meeting my junior and got the money (it really felt like an illegal transaction lol we both mentioned it), she recommended me to visit a cafe near the school. The place's called Hampton Court Cafe.
I was not hungry, so I only ordered cake and a latte. They didn't have the cakes on display at that time, so one staff came to me with all the cakes. I chose strawberry shortcake.
This cafe had very old Victorian house feel, and this faint rustic smell. Very nice for people who like this type of decor!
Commenting about my orders, I loved the sponge cake! The sponge was so soft and the cream had the perfect amount of sweetness and softness. Plus, many slices of strawberries!
As for the latte, it was pretty normal but the interesting point about the coffee was the cup they used! At first I thought, what's with this bowl. Not exactly sure how to drink it, I drank it like how I drink soup.
The toilet was also cute!
It was raining, but I still went to visit Sakuranomiya. It's an area that reminds me of a lot of things - those days in 2015. I often played at my friends' apartment (they all lived in the same dorm, in Sakuranomiya) and so I pretty much knew the area. Also because I got lost a lot. Going there made me remember stuffs, and I felt terribly lonely, knowing that there is no more place for me to go back and hang out and to just randomly go to the 100yen Lawson to see the cute male staff or buy ice cream.
Most of my friends have gone back to Indonesia and some other in Japan are either in other cities, or busy with their study. So much memories came back to me. I really missed everyone. I wished to go back to those days.
I didn't go all the way to the dorm they all used to live in. I just crossed the bridge where usually we all would complain about the summer heat while walking. And then I turned around and just... reminiscing every spots and every conversation.
Especially this spot. Because during summer of 2015, there would be this one old man who just randomly lay down half-naked like he was at the beach. Everyone called him the "merman".
Anyway, leaving the dark atmosphere aside, I went back to Tenma Station (I wished I went to Sakuranomiya Station instead of Tenma!!), and took the train back to Osaka Station. There, I just kind of explored and looked at the this green 'park' in Osaka Station.
I was trying to find a cafe, but stumbled upon Tsutaya the bookshop instead!
I bought a book, then immediately went back to Umeda Station because I had appointment with 2 of my coworkers to eat dinner together.
This is the end of this post. My Osaka trip ends here. It's boring. My main purpose was to get the money, so I did and that was it. Haha. Sooooo... the story about my dinner will be in the next post! Too bad the pictures are darker and more gloomy. Blame the weather!
Sadly... with so much shame and guilt... I had to ask money from my parents. Long story short, my parents sent some money to my junior (from middle and high school) who's now studying Japanese in Osaka. She got the money ready, and I went to meet her and get the money in Osaka.
This post is not going to be about how sad I am about the whole money this, so rest assured.
So, my day trip to Osaka started with going to Umeda Station from Hankyu Karasuma Station. It took around 40 minutes, but it was very enjoyable because I really missed Osaka and I was able to get some sleep on the train.
Because my kouhai was going to her language school (which was my ex-short-term-language-school back in 2015), we promised to meet at around 12.30pm at the school. So to kill time, I decided to eat brunch around Umeda. I googled, walked around, and found Ichiran Ramen Umeda. It was still early, so the shop was very quiet!
When you enter the shop, you will immediately be greeted by the ordering machine! Insert the money, click which dish you want, get the ticket for the meal, and then get the change.
Then when you walk to the dining area, you can see this board. This will show you which booth is available for you to dine. The green one shows availability.
I felt so relieved. Solo dining became less awkward with this kind of personal eating space (even though I'm already used to & like eating alone)!
Next, you can customize your own ramen! Or even add things!
I think this chain ramen shop really stands up to its popularity. The ramen was amazing. Probably one of the best ramen I've tasted so far. The broth especially was outstanding.
They also provide tap water especially for you!
You won't really see the staff, but they will be right in front of your booth. You can communicate directly without looking at their faces, through the hole in front of your booth where they will pass you your ramen, etc.
Just simply lovely experience. Very nice for solo diners. What I liked about this system is also the ease, especially for non-Japanese speakers. They have English menu and you don't have to talk to another person to order! Very convenient and fast.
I was so full from brunch (felt like lunch), and went to do a little bit of karaoke at a Jankara nearby. I didn't have much time, so I only took the 30 minutes one.
Too shy to sing without the original singer's voice, I didn't really sing in the end. Tried singing KPOP but then at that moment I was slapped by the bitter truth that I have not a single idea how to sing my favorite KPOP songs. Sad. I felt so betrayed by myself.
As usual, I like being early. I walked from Umeda to Tenma and reached Ogimachi Park at around 11.30am.
I bought some chips and cafe au lait on the way (hehe) and just chilled there until 12pm. Ogimachi Park and Tenma area are the places that I remember the most. When I was studying in Osaka, my friends and I visited Ogimachi Park a lot. Like, a lot. SOOOOO many memories.
Then I walked to my old Japanese language school, waited outside like a sick stalker, but then went to a 7/11. I think that one was new, because back in my days, that 7/11 didn't exist. Wow. And yeah, I missed Tenjinbashisuji the shopping street!
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| my favorite katsudon in town!! |
After meeting my junior and got the money (it really felt like an illegal transaction lol we both mentioned it), she recommended me to visit a cafe near the school. The place's called Hampton Court Cafe.
I was not hungry, so I only ordered cake and a latte. They didn't have the cakes on display at that time, so one staff came to me with all the cakes. I chose strawberry shortcake.
This cafe had very old Victorian house feel, and this faint rustic smell. Very nice for people who like this type of decor!
Commenting about my orders, I loved the sponge cake! The sponge was so soft and the cream had the perfect amount of sweetness and softness. Plus, many slices of strawberries!
As for the latte, it was pretty normal but the interesting point about the coffee was the cup they used! At first I thought, what's with this bowl. Not exactly sure how to drink it, I drank it like how I drink soup.
The toilet was also cute!
It was raining, but I still went to visit Sakuranomiya. It's an area that reminds me of a lot of things - those days in 2015. I often played at my friends' apartment (they all lived in the same dorm, in Sakuranomiya) and so I pretty much knew the area. Also because I got lost a lot. Going there made me remember stuffs, and I felt terribly lonely, knowing that there is no more place for me to go back and hang out and to just randomly go to the 100yen Lawson to see the cute male staff or buy ice cream.
Most of my friends have gone back to Indonesia and some other in Japan are either in other cities, or busy with their study. So much memories came back to me. I really missed everyone. I wished to go back to those days.
I didn't go all the way to the dorm they all used to live in. I just crossed the bridge where usually we all would complain about the summer heat while walking. And then I turned around and just... reminiscing every spots and every conversation.
Especially this spot. Because during summer of 2015, there would be this one old man who just randomly lay down half-naked like he was at the beach. Everyone called him the "merman".
Anyway, leaving the dark atmosphere aside, I went back to Tenma Station (I wished I went to Sakuranomiya Station instead of Tenma!!), and took the train back to Osaka Station. There, I just kind of explored and looked at the this green 'park' in Osaka Station.
I was trying to find a cafe, but stumbled upon Tsutaya the bookshop instead!
I bought a book, then immediately went back to Umeda Station because I had appointment with 2 of my coworkers to eat dinner together.
This is the end of this post. My Osaka trip ends here. It's boring. My main purpose was to get the money, so I did and that was it. Haha. Sooooo... the story about my dinner will be in the next post! Too bad the pictures are darker and more gloomy. Blame the weather!
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