Hannah and me
This past weekend Koen was away in Rotterdam for a boys’ weekend, so I invited Hannah to come to Antwerp for a girls’ weekend! We planned for a delicious Japanese dinner at Osaka (edit – Osaka has since closed its doors after 20 years), followed by drinks at Dogma. The next morning we had a delicious breakfast at Lints, coffee at Caffènation, and then a walk in the Botanical Gardens to see the cacti! A great weekend!
Entering the Yamazaki Distllery
Visiting Nikka in Sendai wasn’t enough, we also wanted to visit Yamazaki to explore their offerings and take part in a Japanese whisky tasting!
In front of Osaka Castle
The Osaka Castle is one of the most famous landmarks of Japan. If you now quickle image search “Japan” you’ll see many images of the castle in the results. Even though there’s not so much to do at and around Osaka Castle, I wanted to visit to see it for myself.
The Instant Ramen Museum
I first heard about the Instant Ramen Museum from our friends Chris and Hannah. They went to Japan for their honeymoon and visited the museum. After I saw photos of them making their own instant ramen from scratch, I knew we needed to go too!
Nara was Japan’s first permanent capital, 710 – 794 AD, and only 30 minutes away by train from both Kyoto and Osaka! There are 8 UNESCO World Heritage sights, 2nd only to Kyoto.
Dotonbori at night
Dōtonbori is amazing! Situated along the Dōtonbori Canal, you can find bright lights, delicious street food, tons of people, and a great energy!
Delicious dinner at our temple on Mount Koya
Koyasan is a Buddhist community located on top of Mount Koya in the Wakayama Prefecture (just south of Kyoto and Osaka). We decided early on in our planning to make the trek up the sacred mountain and spend the night at Kongo Sanmaiin, one of the Buddhist temples.
An American in Antwerp 