Gardens of Osaka, Japan

Feb 22, 2024

Gardens of Osaka, Japan

Gardens, and a story too

A tiny shelter on the edge of the lake in Keitakuen Gardens

To finish up the last few photos from Osaka, I want to tell you a story about an elderly couple we met. I've shared stories like this in the past since it's a primary reason we like to travel. The photos I have for you are nice too, and they are from in the park across the street from where the story took place. Enjoy!

When traveling in big cities, my wife and I tend to find an area central to what we need and make it a regular stop. The area will always have shopping, restaurants, and public transportation. In the case of Osaka, we chose the area around the building. The tallest building in Osaka and the second tallest in Japan. Harukas

I'm struggling to find a way to describe this building to you. It sits at a busy intersection, with walkways elevated over the streets. On one corner, beneath Harukas, is a maze of escalators leading to the different floors. The shopping area alone covered three or four floors. Small shops lined the concourse, and restaurants were here and there.

We were searching for a drugstore, which Google Maps showed in the shopping complex. We had been up and down the escalators and stairways trying to find this store. But with all the small shops on many different levels, it was impossible to locate this one store.

We were standing in the middle of things, trying to get our bearings. We were looking at the maps on our phones and swiveling our heads like an owl, looking for a landmark. An elderly couple shuffled past us, stopped, and then came back.

It seems almost everyone in Japan speaks some English. My wife and I know a few polite words in Japanese, and that's it. When this couple shuffled back to us, through hand gestures and broken English, they asked if we needed help. Somehow, we got it across to them that we were looking for a drugstore.

The couple looked at our phone maps, looked around, and gestured for us to follow them. Up one escalator, then down some stairs, across the concourse, and then back up two more escalators. I'm sure they were as lost as we were.

They didn't give up though, and helped us find the drugstore. They were so happy to have found the drugstore and left with big smiles of satisfaction. My wife and I were floored by their kindness and perseverance to help us out. There was no stopping them. I mentioned that they are elderly. They must have been in their eighties. Not youngsters. Still, they lit up at the chance to accomplish something for two total strangers. It was so touching.

It's people like this couple who make the adventure of travel so worthwhile. Sure, we would have found the drugstore. It was the chance meeting that made this moment special. It became story-worthy when this couple decided to interact with us and became determined to help. It was delightful to have met them and have this story to share with you.

Catty-corner to the Harukas building is Tennoji Park. Like other big cities, this is a large park in the city's center, like Central Park in NY or Griffith Park in LA. Within the park is Keitakuen Garden, where these photos are from.

At the top. A tiny shelter sits on the lake bank in Keitakuen Garden. I'm not sure what the shelter is for. My best guess is for bird watchers and photographers looking for that special bird.

Below, top. We noticed this type of stone bridge design quite a bit in Japan. The offset of the large stones helps with feeling stable when crossing on foot. It's as narrow as it looks in the photo. Vertigo would set in until I got to the center of the crossing. Best of all, it looks cool.

Below, bottom. This more traditional bridge led from the shore to an island in the park. This was my second attempt to photograph this bridge. This seems to be the spot where people come to feed the birds and feral cats. The guy feeding the birds finished and left. Another person feeding cats noticed me and walked behind me to wait until I finished. Dang, there are some super thoughtful people here.