joshuag

"You only get one, so make the most of it."

Male

Auckland, New Zealand

About joshuag

Budding Member | Member since 20th Jul 09

Marital Status: Single

Activity : photos (83) forum (12) guide (0) blog (6) diary (0) trips (1)

Latest Blog Entry

Osaka - Castles, Big Fish and Depressed Monkeys

Posted by joshuag | 27th November 2009

On my first few days in Osaka, I stayed in a single room in a budget hotel just so I take a break from the snoring I'd been subjected to in the hostels so far. As soon as I exited the train station at Shin-Imamiya in the south of Osaka I knew I was going to experience a whole different side of Japan. It felt a little shabbier, the buildings looked worn down, the people were noticeably poorer and the Pachinko (gambling) parlours appeared far more frequently. Until this point I had only seen two homeless people in Japan (under a bridge in Tokyo) but here they could be found around almost every corner. But this being Japan, I still felt pretty safe, even as I walked down the shady alley ways on the way to the hotel. My room at the hotel was quite tiny with only a single bed, a table with a tv on it, an empty mini-fridge and a stool. It did have an en-suite but it was the size of a portaloo with a tiny shower attached to it. But all of this was expected, not only because this is Japan, but

Continued | Joshua's World Odyssey

Travel Blogs joshuag runs

Joshua's World Odyssey - odyssey (od'i-se) n. pl. od-ys-seys 1. An extended adventurous voyage or trip 2. An intellectual or spiritual quest: an odyssey of discovery