Tonight we strolled through an area of Osaka known as Dotonbori, known for its vibrant night life, many shops and department stores, and the food! Boy is there a lot of restaurants here, and some have these huge signs outside showing food, animals, and funny characters.
One of the main streets with the large signs.
Even this angry looking guy...
He is known for the motto "No double dipping", which I'm mimicking here.
And the streets and restaurants go on...many streets filled with them. The people of Osaka love to eat!
Today was another treat for animals...literally! We went to see Todaiji Temple and the largest wooden building in the world, the main hall Daibutsuden which has a huge bronze Buddha statue and other statues as well.
One of the guardians of the temple.
The other guardian. I'll mention why the fence later...
Outer area before the great hall.
Daibutsuden, the great wood building.
The large bronze Buddha statue.
One of the smaller ones, there is one on each side of the Buddha.
After seeing these larger than life buildings and statues we headed back to the entrance for...
DEER!!!
This one wanted Michelle's hanky, it wouldn't stop chewing on it.
So these deer are tamed, but not domesticated. You can buy "deer biscuits" and feed them, but some are aggressive and chase you or bite at your clothes if they think you have the food.
The nicer ones will bow to get the biscuits, and if you bow they bow back...
But if you have trouble with them they get aggressive...
And of course...I had to buy this guy...with the little poo that hangs around back side...lol.
BTW, the fences on the statues are to keep the deer out.
On the night of my birthday we had dinner at a place that serves Teppanyaki style meals. This was made famous by the Benihana restaurant chain, where a chef cooks the meals in front of you on a large metal cooking surface.
Little flaming action while cooking the beef!
View from the restaurant, which was on the top floor of our hotel, overlooking Kyoto.
Watching the sun set over the mountains
For my birthday they brought out a special birthday dessert.
In Japan, fresh fruits are considered a specialty since many are imported. Finding fruits in the store will show you just how special, the prices are pretty high with special things like melons going for $50 to $300!!!
So an interesting type of place that exists in Japan is the animal café. These places usually specially in one type of animal and have several of them around for you to go view, pet, feed, etc. There are cat and dog cafes, but also some different ones like hedgehogs, turtles, snakes, and owls. We came across one in Arashiyama and had to check it out, since the thought of seeing and petting owls up close sounded amazing, and it was. Warning, many cute owls ahead...
