Travel to Osaka January 2018

[Khaul]

Hi Everyone,

 

I will be in Osaka next week. It's an academic trip to Osaka University, but I think I will be able to roam around a bit. I plan to visit the Kyoto railway museum on Sunday. Then I will (hopefully) enjoy commuting from my hotel in Shin-Osaka to the uni every day.

 

I am looking forward to visit the hobby shops there. Popondetta seems specially attractive. Do you have any tips about how to browse in that shop? I read somewhere about their good and not so good second hand stuff. Is there any other must visit shop in Osaka?

 

Thanks in advance,

 

Pablo

Edited January 9, 2018 by Khaul

[Ochanomizu]

Hello,

 

Not train related, but I'm often thanked for recommending a visit to the Osaka Aquarium.  

 

Partly train related, a good day trip is to visit  Daikoku-ji (careful, several temples have similar names) Kinkaku-ji and Ryoan-ji temples, in that order, and then take the Keifuku line from Ryoanji to Arashiyama.  There's a large restaurant just near the station to the right of the main exit as you walk out.  After lunch, visit Tenryu-ji temple and then stroll through the Arashiyama Bamboo Garden.  Keifuku is the last line of street trams running in Kyoto.  They have a mixture of old and new rolling stock.  If you have time, and are into photography, you'll enjoy waiting at the level crossing at Ryoanji Station and photographing the variety of trams.

 

Hope that helps.

[stevenh]

More model shops here:

https://modelrail.otenko.com/japanese-trains/model-shops-in-osaka

 

[Das Steinkopf]

10 hours ago, Ochanomizu said:

Hello,

 

Not train related, but I'm often thanked for recommending a visit to the Osaka Aquarium.  

 

Partly train related, a good day trip is to visit  Daikoku-ji (careful, several temples have similar names) Kinkaku-ji and Ryoan-ji temples, in that order, and then take the Keifuku line from Ryoanji to Arashiyama.  There's a large restaurant just near the station to the right of the main exit as you walk out.  After lunch, visit Tenryu-ji temple and then stroll through the Arashiyama Bamboo Garden.  Keifuku is the last line of street trams running in Kyoto.  They have a mixture of old and new rolling stock.  If you have time, and are into photography, you'll enjoy waiting at the level crossing at Ryoanji Station and photographing the variety of trams.

 

Hope that helps.

 

I have to agree about taking a trip to Arashiyama but I don't know what it is like in winter, we went there in spring and it was stunning, we caught the train on the JR Sanin Mainline to Saga Arashiyama Eki and then walked up to Tenryu Ji, after that we walked over Togetsukyo and made our way to the Hankyu's Arashiyama Eki. I almost became a Hankyu modeller due to how beautiful their trains were' their classic styling and immaculate interiors make you dream of a bygone era where railways were revered by the general public, not to mention the service the station master and his staff gave was impeccable.

Edited January 9, 2018 by Das Steinkopf

[Ochanomizu]

Hello,

 

Hankyu is prided for their cleanliness.  You should find they are the cleanest trains in Japan.

[Khaul]

I know, Hankyu trains are also nice and comfortable. A couple of years ago I spent a 10 day vacation in Kyoto with the family. We went to Katsura in a limited express and from there to Arashiyama in the local. I will be commuting with Hankyu and the monorail from my hotel to the university.

[Das Steinkopf]

How about Lake Biwa have you been there yet, it would be a nice excuse to take a ride on the Keihan Keishin to Hamaotsu and then jump on the Ishiyama Sakamoto Line, who knows you could end up falling in love with the Keihan Otsusen just like a number of us here have, who could resist those cute little trains especially the ones with the "wrapping" on them. 

[katoftw]

Sandiway's train and model shop link:-

 

http://elmo.sbs.arizona.edu/sandiway/ngauge/index.html

 

Covers everything you need to know about Kyoto and Osaka.

[chadbag]

In terms of purchasing, remember to do the tax-free when you can (some stores like Joshin and Yodobashi do it in-store -- I guess other's you have to take to some sort of office).  And some places like Yodobashi and Joshin will give an extra 5% off if you do the tax-free AND use an overseas Visa card (but not Cash or MC or Amex).

 

I can vouch for Osaka aquarium.  I've been there a few times.   We were in Osaka (and elsewhere in Japan) for 3 weeks in December until right after New Years.   I took a side trip to Taiwan for 3 days and my family went (again) to the aquarium and loved it.

 

[chadbag]

While my wife and her family have always taken Hankyu, when we go now, since we buy a JR Rail pass, we don't tend to ride Hankyu much, but ride the equivalent JR lines.   But they are very nice trains and we do tend to ride them one stop on Sunday mornings when we are there, as the church services we attend are best reached that way.  But interestingly, this last trip, we took the subway in Osaka a few times (out by Den Den town) and we saw, probably older, Hankyu trains being used in the subway (mixed in with other trains) and even took one a few stops right after New Years.   They were still painted in Hankyu colors and had Hankyu logos on the side.  I  think I looked up and saw that the subway, at least the lines we were on, is run by a company that is owned by the same holding company as the Hankyu Railway (who now also owns Hanshin Railway).   And Hankyu and Hanshin use standard gauge, not narrow.

 

 

[Khaul]

That's very interesting. Most trains in the Hankyu Senri line continue south into the Sakaisuji line. Actually, most of the rolling stock I have seen in the line is Hankyu but there are also some Osaka subway trains. I am taking the Midosuji line to commute to the university every morning. The last few stations do not belong formally to the Osaka subway but to  the Kita-Osaka Kyuko Railway which is a company controlled by Hankyu. A couple of trains in the line belong to Kitakyu and the rest to the subway. The Kitakyu trains are much nicer.