Osaka day 2: sick already

I woke up this morning feeling absolutely awful. There was thick phlegm, and I had chills and a headache. As such, I decided to stay in all day.

Everything is smaller here so far; but I think that makes sense as in larger cities, there's only so much space, right? The food portions, the stores, bathrooms, even the grocery store food is. Again, not much happened to I'll stop here.

Osaka: Arrival, Move-in, Accidental Hanami

Although having been in Tokyo for my orientation, it was a whirlwind of errands and travel and exhaustion. I woke up at 6 the morning of the 2nd, partially due to jetlag but also fear of missing a train. An hour from Musashi-sakai station to the Tokyo JR station, then took the Nozomi train to Shin-Osaka... Since I had only taken the other ones before, I expected it to be a four hour ride, but it was just 2.5 hours. Technology, right!? It was unexpectedly crowded, however, and I ate riceballs the whole time.

I arrived much earlier than I expected, around 10:30. I was not allowed to check in to my dorm until at least 13:00, so I put my stuff in a coin locker. I passed a poster in the station indicating great hanami (花見) spots. Hanami literally means "flower seeing," and is the tradition of going to see and enjoy the beauty of flowers. And, having been told to do this during orientation, I was looking forward to it; at any rate, it would be cheaper than going to the aquarium or shopping.

However, my picture was a blurry phone picture, the characters coming up unclear. I could make out a few; 天, for example. Or was it 大? I regretted not taking a better picture. I looked at the map for about ten minutes before spotting a sign that indicated 天保山; it had the right first character, and three... I didn't bother checking with my map as my image was probably far too blurry. I studied the map and went my way. Perhaps this is my own fault, for packing a lot to begin with (I only brought a weeks worth of clothes per season I'll be here, it didn't seem like much!) but travelling with luggage makes me into a very awkward person. I feel out of place, and like I'm in the way of people who are taking the train to get to work; especially since I had a heavy rolling one. Without it, I felt so much freer, like I could somehow fit in more easily. Is this low self-esteem....? At any rate, I took the train ride, made the transfers, before realizing that I was at the stop for the Osaka Aquarium, which I had been to last year. Maybe I had chosen the wrong area...?

However, because I didn't see any signs for the location (just signs for the ferris wheel and aquarium, both of which I plan on coming back for!) I stopped to ask the police officer. I wonder why I am able to understand his Japanese and like, no one else's so far? Maybe he spoke slowly for me and I just suck at the language hahaha! orz He points me down the road but instead of turning towards the ferris wheel, he told me to go opposite; he seemed confused when I asked for the park (I suppose they don't have a name for it, as it turns out to be very small) but I told him I was here for hanami and he gave me the directions.

At first, there are just a few trees; I wasn't sure if I should expect a small, flat park, but it was a hill, which small fence. The first few cherry blossom trees were pressed up against a navy blue building, but to me, it only provided contrast. If I may speak in cliches, it was the delicate pink-white petalson the navy blue; spurts of nature in a busy, commercial area... The weather is nice and sunny, but not hot; it's warmer than Tokyo was, but... it seemed fitting for a nice day like this to be my first hanami experience.
Isn't it beautiful? There are more shades than I expected! The white-pink seems to be the most popular, but the light pink is my personal favorite.
I followed the path; it was very lovely. Whenever the wind blew, the petals fell delicately. I always thought it was an exaggeration that the falling flowers looked like snow, but it really did. I had trouble capturing it, though. After turning a corner of a hill, I appeared at what was definitely a small path area; however, it was lined completely with cherry blossom trees. It was stunning; there were several small groups, families and couples all sitting beneath them, enjoying the weather and the flowers and each other. I felt a little awkward; was there something I was supposed to do? But I just picked a nice spot and sat down to eat my lunch--green tea and tonkatsu sandwich. It was by the bay, so the wind was somewhat salty; but it felt too good to be true--both flowers and sea! Although a family was barbecuing, it was quiet and peaceful; people were respectful of each other's space. Someone even was napping in the calmness. I don't know, it was exactly what I imagined hanami to be like, although I wish I had someone to enjoy it with me, be it friend or Rudy.

A few hours later, I finally went to my dorm and moved in; I paid and was introduced to the facilities. It's a small but cozy and clean; I'm pleased enough. Other than that, I did nothing much besides buy some groceries and hangers for my closet; it was a lovely walk through the park near my school, complete with lake and cherry blossoms. I was a bit rushed, since I was feeling ill and it was getting dark and I wasn't sure of my way back (proved by my getting lost on the way back). I then fell asleep.

About

Hi, I'm Hannah. I like lolita and science. I'm studying chemistry, and although I've spent most of my time in environmental and organic chemistry, I have a deep interest in spectroscopy and sstronomy. In my spare time, I enjoy dancing, photography, crafts and reading. As such, follow me as I (hopefully) grow as a photographer as well! Unfortunately, I'm no writer, so please bear with me.

As of April 1st, I am living in Osaka, attending Osaka University as a special researcher for about five months. Hopefully, this blog will be updated everyday, and hopefully will also follow my future world travels.

I guess I'll update this as I go along, but for now, let's get started!