I thought I posted this yesterday but not sure if it actually posted.

I wanted to thank everyone from this board - especially Kim Japan - for the very valuable information that was provided before my Osaka, Japan trip.

We had 5 days in Osaka and home based out of the Hilton Osaka. It was a great hotel and an excellent choice for us. We also were very glad we booked the Executive Level rooms.

Here is how we spent our time -

Day 1 - Nara
Day 2 - Osaka (Castle/Aquarium/Pier)
Day 3 - Kyoto
Day 4 - Himeji
Day 5 - Osaka Numba (sp?) shopping area and flight home

I had no interest in going to Japan before the United $400 airfares popped up. I am very glad I had this opportunity and will definitely return in the next few years.

Everyone in Japan was extremely helpful and I was amazed at how easily it was to get around.

This board was very helpful to me before the trip and I just wanted to say thanks!

Theresa

Hi
we're about to do a v. similar trip. Am v. excited! Just wondered if you or any other Japan experts have good Japanese restaurant recommendations around Kyoto, Osaka, Hiroshima and Fukuoka? Not too pricey....

Theresa, am happy to hear you had a good time and may go back. What did you think if the deer park in Nara, if you visited it? How did United treat you?

bkkmei, I can recommend a place in Fukuoka but it may take a day or two for me to find the name of it.

I don't have any specific food places to recommend - only to say that there are tons of restaurants everywhere in every price range. We tried to find things that people recommended but it proved to be too difficult. For example - someone mentioned a tempura place in the Actsy (sp?) building and we remembered it was on the 16th floor. We went up there and there were probably 20 restaurants on the 16th floor.... I was fascinated with all the plastic food that is out in front of restaurants and even surprised that we found a place at Numba to buy plastic food

As far as the deer park - I thought it was wonderful. I was amazed at how friendly the deer were and how many there were. They ignored us because we didn't buy any crackers. They were fairly close to the busy streets surrounding the area and none of them ventured onto the street. It was so nice to have the temples and pagodas all within walking distance of each other. I wasn't sure if I would like Nara but next to Kyoto - it was one of my favorites.

It was funny - we got a map with highlights circled from the information booth and walked around pointing to the map with red circles and people kept pointing us on to the next temple.

I'm so glad you enjoyed your trip. Before moving to Japan, I had no interest in Japan either...but now we've been here almost 11 years with no intention of leaving.

To bkkmei - we had fantastic okinamiyaka (much more like a giant omlet than a giant pancake) in Saijo which is about 20 minutes from Hiroshima. The place was called Qu, and there was no trouble finding it. It's right near the University. (If you are interested I can get exact directions.) Prices were great and I couldn't finish my single, although my husband managed to finish his double.