Day 82-84: Kuzuha to Koshien

Day 82: Kuzuha to Taishibashi-Imaichi

Hours walked: 8:45-3:15

Distance walked: 23 km 

Cumulative: 1,820 km

We awoke to a rainy forecast, so we packed raincoats instead of sunblock. But the day turned out mostly sunny, with short, violent bursts of rain that sent us scurrying for our raincoats - only to abruptly clear up two minutes later. 

We walked along the bike path from Kyoto to Osaka all day - Tamar’s route-planning came up spades, and we are totally bypassing a big stretch of highways on city outskirts. We saw some old men pitching baseballs at concrete blocks and bridge pillars. There were strange playgrounds with whales, hippopotami, and other creatures. We played Triple Remembery Interrogations, where one person has to keep three stories straight while being grilled by three interrogators at once. This turned out to be way easier in three languages than in one! Zadie outdid herself during Morning Math, working out all the squares up to 20 x 20 in her head as we walked along.

The only convenience store we passed was deep within the Kansai University Hospital, and they wouldn’t let us in without a mask; since only Sophia had one, she went on a solo hospital shopping expedition. We ate lunch late, since Levi took forever to nap. In the end, Jakob sang her to sleep by chanting the book he’s reading, the Spanish translation of ‘Inferno’ by Dan Brown; he’s trying to improve his Spanish and this trashy page-turner is going better than the emo young adult novel he tried first. He’s building a list of new words but they’re mostly things like ‘misery’, ‘grabbed’, ‘hoarse’ and ‘gunshot’. 

Our rapid pace on the bike path meant we finished pretty early; we took the train back into Osaka and cooked up a big vegetable soup. 

Our companion river

Walking into Osaka

Tova exploring our lunch spot

Day 83: Osaka

Hours walked: -

Distance walked: 0 km 

Cumulative: 1,820 km

A rest day in Osaka, what a treat! We made French toast for breakfast, then Tamar and Jakob went out for a morning date. Levi melted down with her sisters while we did a crossword and talked about the meaning of life, enjoying a babka and coffee. 

Then we went to Spa World, an onsen/pool complex the girls loved during our last visit. Levi got plumped under the water for the first time, was not a fan. We did splash contests, synchronized swim routines, cops and robbers in the water; then relaxed in the onsen. Jakob scrubbed himself all over with rock salt, soaked in scalding camomile tea, and hopped between icy tub and Finnish sauna. 

Afterwards, we made a treasure hunt for some friends who will be coming to Osaka, got seam sealer for our leaky tents, and prepared to continue on our journey tomorrow. 

Japan is good at Halloween…

…and Levi fits right in!

Bonus walking on a rest day

Day 84: Taishibashi-Imaichi to Koshien

Hours walked: 9:00-3:30

Distance walked: 23 km 

Cumulative: 1,843 km

We left the house at 7:30, but lost a half hour navigating a giant metro station, missed one train, and ended up starting our walk at 9:00 feeling slightly impatient. 

Tova’s summary of today: “It was a pretty smooth day! It didn’t rain, I did lots of Remembery Interrogations, and Aurora and Papa both read to me.”

That about sums it up. We took our dear river bike path as far as we could (though it was annoying to pick up the stroller every time we came to a barrier). We ate lunch under a bridge that was under construction. Jakob ducked into Accept Coffee Roasters when we happened across it, where a really intense barista spent like 8 minutes making a latte, measuring everything to the milligram; then, when it was all done, wasn’t satisfied and started all over again. 

We made it to Kobe by 3:30, and relaxed in our apartment which reeks of fresh tatami mat; it’s like a cross between bamboo and cabbage, and really quite pungent. Jakob made a hearty fried rice, and Tamar gave the kids a small prize: edible playdoh! They made a farm animal scene then ate bits of it. 

Excited about bathtime 

Sophia is an obliging reader