[echan15]

Wow thats for the details - I'm gonna print this stuff out so i'll have it when i'm over there - Sound Pals and Takoyaki it is!

Quote:

Originally Posted by Inkmo Ok. last time I'm double posting... hehe I asked a friend and she says that she thinks you can ride the sakaisujisen and get off at ebisu station. That should put you right in the middle of denden town. Remember to check out Sound Pals at least. There is also another store that has a lot of older stereo equipment in a room on the fourth or fifth floor,... but I guess that would be interesting only if you were living in Japan... And if you want to go to Umeda for yodobashi camera, you can get off at the JR osaka station on the loopline, or the umeda station on midosuji. While you're in Umeda, you oughta walk over and check out the Umeda Sky Building. Gorgeous view from the open air observatory there at night.

 

[Inkmo]

cool! Still won't hurt to double check when you get there.... This was gleaned from the recollections of a few folks who aren't in Japan at the moment

An' make that takoyaki, and okonomiyaki! Those are the two most Osaka-ey foodstuffs I can think of. Wait, add a third to the list Kitsune Udon.

And if you make up nort as far as Kyoto, gotta have maccha soba.

 

[Jim_T]

I live in Osaka, and the advice you've been given has been basically right on the money. Denden Town is also called Nipponbashi, and it's the area on Sakaisuji (that's the name of the street and the subway line underneath it) between Nipponbashi Station and Ebisubashi Station. My advice to you, if you have the time, is to basically walk up one side of the street and look in every electronics store you see, then walk down the other side and do the same. You'll also need to take some detours up little side streets to check out smaller shops off the main drag. By and large, everything in just about every store is (magically?) almost the same price. No collusion here, that's for sure

But, if you're lucky, you may wander into a shop that's having some kind of special sale. I got a flawless pair of demo-model ATH-W1000s like that, for 25,000 yen. I also found a great set of Tannoy speakers at a significant discount.
Sound Pal, as mentioned, is a good store, with some headphones on the third floor. Check out any Joshin and Ninomiya stores you see as well (both large chains). The store with the Stax that you can listen to is across from a Ninomiya, next to another good store called Shimamusen, but I think their name is written in katakana, so you may not be able to read it.
Bic Camera is a decent place for general electronics - it's just west of Nipponbashi Station along a major street called Sennichimae. All of these places are walking distance from the city's lower hub, which is called Namba. If you stay in Namba, you'll have no trouble getting around. Visiting Yodobashi Camera in Umeda is also a good idea, if only because it's huge and filled with all kinds of stuff. Umeda is just north of Namba on the Midosuji subway line (4 stops).
Credit cards are fine in most big shops. Some of the smaller ones will want to charge you a 2% fee to use one, though. I think it's illegal to do, but they still ask. Cash is king here, and from what I remember the banks at the airport are regulated so you won't get gouged too badly changing money there.
If you have any questions, fire away!

 

[Inkmo]

Rad advice Jim. My memory is just awful with streetnames. Where were you when I was in Osaka? We could have had a little headphone-geek party

Actually, you were in some of my threads here around that time if I remember right?

There's enough of us that there oughta be a team japan or team gaijin on the boards

 

[echan15]

Thanks a heap Jim - good to hear some advice from a local, though everyone has been very helpful.
Just a couple questions for you - Namba is the main station where trains get in from the airport? And if you know a great ramen place in the area I've love to hear about it heh heh.
Thanks!

 

[Jim_T]

Quote:

Originally Posted by echan15 Thanks a heap Jim - good to hear some advice from a local, though everyone has been very helpful. Just a couple questions for you - Namba is the main station where trains get in from the airport? And if you know a great ramen place in the area I've love to hear about it heh heh. Thanks!

Yeah, Namba is the place you'll end up if you get on a train at the airport and don't get off until it stops

Not sure what your budget is, but if it's not super-tight I'd take the Nankai Rapit (the blue bullet-looking one) to Namba. It's about 1000 yen more, but it's nicer, makes fewer stops, and is faster. It's a 30-45 min trip, depending on what train you get.
As for a great ramen place, I couldn't really tell you. I'm no connoisseur. There's a great Thai-Japanese fusion restaurant in Shinsaibashi, just east of Shinsaibashi Station, that serves really good tom yam ramen, but I guess that's not particularly Japanese. Ah well, ramen is technically Chinese anyway. The place is called Hatena, anyway, and it's next door to Bombay Kitchen, which is an average Indian restaurant.
Look for a couple free magazines when you arrive, one called Kansai Scene and the other Japanzine. They both have maps of the area showing restaurants and such. They'll have some kind of city guide at the airport, and in that you can find a bar or restaurant that has these magazines inside.
When are you going to be here?

 

[MikeDogg]

Where are you looking for a Ramen shop? I live in Shizuoka, but if you're planning on going to Tokyo I know a few (and one REALLY good one, probably the most perfect I've ever had and I grew up in Hawaii). In Osaka, there are a few in the Namba area close to Namba walk. Hey, drop me a line when you get up here and let's have a mini-meet with all the new goodies you buy!

 

[echan15]

Hey Guys - I'm not too sure exactly the dates of my trip yet but i'll drop you a line closer to the date when i do know. perhaps a little headphone shopping and an authentic japanese lunch would be in order heh heh. Thanks again for all the suggestions and advice!

 

[guvnor]

don't forget to pick up some used panties from vending machines

 

[MikeDogg]

Yeah, make sure to let us know!

 

[myself, aka me]

Quote:

Originally Posted by guvnor don't forget to pick up some used panties from vending machines

Apart from one vending machine selling liter cans of beer, and another battery vending machine as well I saw nothing out of the ordinary. The vending machine craziness is more of an illusion. Certainly not common. They're mostly just beer, fags and other drinks.

Damn, I stayed at do-butuen mae. It seemed kinda dodgy. Is it? That's a couple of stations away from nipponbashi I think. I was sick so I didn't make it there.

 

[razer]

Hey sorry for going out of thread...But Trying our Moss Burger in Japan ? I mean, is there a difference in the things they sell? I know that Moss Burger in my country is pretty much the same as that in Japan and i dont know about that in America..

 

[MikeDogg]

It's pretty much the same. The vending machines thing is not really an myth, though the underwear selling is no longer as common since the prefectures are starting to crack down on sales of said items. Now vending machines are starting to offer **** in the way of UMD disks and DVD's. It's a crazy place, but oh so spectacular.

 

[MikeDogg]

Hohoho, I love censored forum posts! Hilarious.

 

[Inkmo]

As best as I know, there are no Mos Burgers in America. Also, they are pretty different from Mickey D's in my book. Most Americans will find the title 'burgers and coffee' curious enough on its own. While you're at it, eat at McDonald's in Japan. The Japanese definition of bacon is rather different from ours in America.