Well my first visitor arrived last weekend which meant it was definately time to explore. First we went to the Osaka aquarium where I saw some really cool things - unfortunately the crowds were a little intense (3 day weekend for most people and the aquarium is a pretty popular place). I saw many fish (obviously!) most of which I`d seen off Australian shores (which did surprise me). The otters, massive crabs, dophins, penguins (from Antartica) and my favourite the sunfish were fabulous - I was glad I got a chance to see them. Next stop we went to the big wheel - basically a giant slow moving ferris wheel where we could view Osaka. Osaka is HUGE we couldn`t see the end of it! After that we decided to go home and have an early night. My visitor was stuffed, and maybe I was a little too!
On the last day of the weekend we got to the ....beach at Isonoura! Seriously the water is warm as toast and I didn`t want to get out of the water. We managed to find the surf shop (there were no waves, you seriously have to wait for a typhoon to get any and then apparently there are some overheads but most are knee to shoulder height). There I made friends and now have a phone number to call when I get my mobile to see if the waves are pumping! After walking around the beach it was time to head into Wakayama city. There we found the castle and took a look inside. When I can figure out how to upload my photos I`ll share these with you! The Samari armour would have easily fit me and the saddles looked REALLY uncomfortable and small. There were some really nasty weapons there too. One that looked like a squewer with fish hooks attached was the worst. The bows were huge - looked like they would have to sit on the ground - which would help with steadying it I guess! The gardens around the castle were beautiful and they had a walkway made of ceder wood - it smelt delicious!
