Name: Grace Jendreas

Location: Kansai, Japan

 

One of my favorite things about living in the Kansai Region is always having something new to do. I’m a quick train ride away from cities like Osaka, Kyoto, and Nara, so weekends are always filled with so many fun adventures. I will be highlighting on what a regular weekend spent in the Kansai looks like!

On Fridays, I love to meet up with friends after classes are over to get dinner. There are so many great restaurants near Kansai Gaidai University. You’ll always find a new place to try when you go out. My friends and I love going to this small yakitori place which is right down the street from KGU.

I like to spend my Saturdays in Osaka. There is so much to do in Osaka like visiting one of the many shopping malls, going to the aquarium, seeing the Osaka castle, or trying street food in Dotonbori. My favorite place I have visited in Osaka so far has been Dotonbori because there is so much to do around the iconic Glico sign. There are so many food stands that all look so good, but a must try is Dotonbori’s well known Takoyaki. There are so many stores, karaoke rooms, and pachinko slots to enjoy. After having some amazing food and doing some shopping I love to take my friends to round one where they have arcade games, photo booths, karaoke rooms, bowling alleys, and claw machines. It’s a great place to go on cold or rainy weekends.

 

On Sundays it’s nice to wake up early and catch a train to Kyoto to visit temples and shrines during the day. Kyoto has so much culture and history with shrines, temples, and museums no every street. It is so peaceful walking through the beautiful gardens and intricate shrines of Kyoto. It’s very common to wear traditional kimonos to the shrines. I haven’t been able to yet but I would love to wear a kimono to the shrines in the future.

With cherry blossom season upon us I can’t wait to visit all the shrines with the cherry blossoms. I haven’t gone to Nara yet, so I hope to visit one weekend while the cherry blossoms are blooming. There is still so much to explore in the Kansai Region and I can’t wait to go to so many other places here in the future.