Osaka Part 1: Arrival

It had been almost 2 years since the last time I visited Osaka. My memories of the city still felt crystal clear, but I felt it was time to stop living in memories and booked a flight ticket from Misawa airport. My boss was kind enough to drop me off at the airport and surprisingly the flight only took an hour and 40 minutes. I had completely forgotten about the heat in Osaka until the moment I exited the airplane doors and it hit me like a face full of fist. At that instant, I understood exactly how a microwave worked.

I pursued to grab my backpack and headed for information and there I was politely well.....informed. The bus ride to Tenoji took over an hour due to Osaka heavy traffic. Nonetheless, I was overly happy with the fact the bus was blasting A/C at maximum capacity. I was chilled. Arrival at Tenoji came to a surprised because I was listening to music and did not hear the intercom. The fact that everyone was quickly exiting the bus gave hint that this was the only stop on-route. I descended from the bus and once again grabbed my bag and marched towards my train. Eagerly, the heat flocked to my body and attached itself in the form of sweat. I was feeling nasty. You see.... as I left Aomori, it was 20 degrees and raining and therefore, decided to attire myself with pants and a short sleeved shirt. This was a total mistake as pants was a ridiculous call for someone carrying a 15kg packpack.

After 40 minutes of sitting on the train from Tenoji to Yamatokoizumi, I was dumbfounded that everyone around me were also in pants. I guess they must have adapted to the heat and therefore had a built in resistance. Either that, I've just become a sweaty pig over the years. I looked out the window and what I saw was exactly how I remembered it. Nara had not changed much in 2 years. Actually, it hasn't changed much from the 1st time I visited which was 8 years ago in 1999. I inserted my train ticket, exited the station, and scanned the parking lot. The taxi drivers noticed my backpack labeled 'traveler' and flinched. Soon I found Casey in the K-car waiting. I greeted him with a, 'Jyeah dong' and hopped in the ride and we split for home.