My Family Trip To Osaka, Kobe, Kyoto and Wakayama, Japan - part 1

I have been to Tokyo when I was a little girl and I have wanted to visit Japan again after so many years. So I planned a family trip to Osaka, Kobe, Kyoto and Wakayama. We went in March during the spring time and the weather was very cool and nice. We took the Air Asia flight and followed a tour group. Even though it was a short 6 days 4 nights trip, we were happy to visit many interesting places including Universal Studios Japan.

On our first day, we visited Hakutsuru Sake Factory which is a brewery housed in an old warehouse. Hakutsuru Sake Brewing is located in the Nada district of Kobe, a leading sake production center known throughout Japan. This area has high quality spring water and cold winters which are ideal for brewing sake. This place is like a museum that illustrates the different stages of the brewing process with life-size models. There was also sake wine tasting for tourists.

Our next stop was Kobe Mount Rokko where there was an observation deck for a breathtaking panoramic view of Osaka Bay. I loved the scenic view very much.

We had a delicious meal for lunch and I realized that Japanese food is usually saltier than Malaysian food but the taste was good.

After our lunch, we went to nearby shops for some shopping. We saw lots of cute Rilakkuma and Hello Kitty souvenirs, bags and plushies.

After our shopping, we visited Osaka Castle which is one of Japan's most famous landmarks and it played a major role in the unification of Japan during the 16th century of the Azuchi-Momoyama period.

To see the Osaka Castle, we needed to walk a distance through a beautiful garden. We were lucky to see cherry blossom flowers blooming even though it was in March. We were so happy the cherry blossoms bloomed earlier this year.

These were other beautiful flowers that captured my attention.

In the late evening, we headed to Shinsaibashi-Suji Shopping Street for some shopping. This is located in the heart of Osaka. There were lots of department stores, souvenir and fashion shops. Free Wi-Fi is available along Shinsaibashi-Suji Shopping Street.

We did not buy much here because our Malaysian currency was low and most things seem to be expensive after the conversion. We could probably get similar things in Malaysia at a lower price. So it was mostly window shopping.

After a tired day, we had delicious steamboat dinner and checked into FP Hotel South Namba for a good rest. For part 2 of my blog post, click HERE. To read my Universal Studios Japan post, click HERE. Thanks for reading.