Osaka revisited

So, we visited Osaka again today. First time with the school, but revisited for those of us who spent time in Osaka before coming here. Of course, we stayed in a completely different part of Osaka, so it wasn't like "Been there, done that!" or anything. We first visited Osaka castle, which was totally awesome!! It was built in the 1500s, has been rebuilt a couple of times due to damage from fire, earthquakes and so on, and is just stunning from the outside. Inside, it's a history museum and really interesting. Unfortunately we couldn't get photos of all the interesting stuff... I got some pics though. The top of the castle has been converted into a viewing platform, and the view was pretty spectacular.

After Osaka Castle, we went to the Panasonic Centre in Osaka. Naturally, we weren't allowed to take photos while we were in there either, but it was totally cool. They have a 103 inch television there, for about $50 000US. So maybe in about 30 years I'll be able to afford it. It was just incredible, the definition on the screen was breathtaking. They have a setup that links your lights, security, air-con, floor heating, and so on to a console that is linked to your TV and has a link to your car. It's completely wireless and totally amazing!!

The Eco-centre of the Panasonic centre is pretty awesome too. In Japan, the government has decreed everyone has to save 1kg of greenhouse gases per day, and Panasonic is bringing out all these incredible energy-saving, low-emissions devices - lightbulbs, fridges, little tiny benchtop dishwashers, washing machines, dryers, even stuff like hairdryers and the like. It's really amazing! Finally, we had to do a quiz to see what we do around home to conserve energy, and how much we were saving. I can't remember my total but it was pretty cool, it was heaps of fun.

The trip back was quiet, nearly everyone slept - the walk back from Panasonic Centre to the bus was fairly lengthy and we were all kinda tired from just being on the go all the time, and in a second language too! We got back to uni just now.

Okay, so that wasn't the lengthiest blog entry in the history of forever. I'm uploading photos taken over the last few days (okay, nearly a week, I've been slack!) so check out my Photobucket to see 'em!

Take care, all, I'll be home soon! (11 days, not that I'm counting or anything!)

Love
Nat