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Next on our list was finding our way to the youth hostel. I wanted to reach there as fast as possible as I was worried about 2 girls carrying bulky luggages roaming the streets late at night. We went to the ticketing machines to try and buy tickets. However, we could not make sense of it even though we had some command of Japanese. It was our first time buying tickets from ticketing machines in Japan too and also with the limited amount of money backpackers have, we were afraid of buying a wrong ticket. Therefore we decided to go to the office to ask.
The staff who attended to us was a junior staff with limited command of English. We got our tickets and we made sure the prices were the same after confirming it was bound for our station. So we thanked the staff and left and as we were walking out he bowed and said "Arigatou Gozaimashita!". We were a tad slow in our reactions and thought for a while if we should turn back and acknowledge his thanks. We decided against it and walked away since we were already halfway out of the door. We felt pretty bad about it though. We got into the train station and the next problem surfaced. Which platform was it? We were eager to get on the fastest train because we didn't want to be too late. We had already wasted about an hour getting our tickets and it was already 10+ at night. Somehow we got on one, and it was pretty fast. (I realised at the end of our trip that we might have been on the limited express Haruka although we were not supposed to.) However, we had to change trains within Osaka city to get to Fukushima station. We decided to get off at Tennouji (天王寺) station because it was a major interchange so we probably could quickly rectify our mistake if we were on the wrong train. Big mistake. Tennouji station is truly a major interchange. All or almost all of the city subway lines stop at Tennouji station! It has 30 or 40 over platforms? We were left with our jaws hanging as we tried to make our way to the right one. We lugged our luggage up a flight of steps, with no escalator or elevator to the platform we thought was the correct one, only to find that it was wrong. In the end, I approached a station staff who looked as if he was preparing to go home. He told us which platform was it and waited patiently for us to drag our luggage down the stairs again before directing us in the correct direction again. We were really thankful, really. If anyone wants to go to J-hoppers from KIX, change at Nishi-kujo (西九条) or Benten-cho (弁天町) station instead. If you don't want to be confused, don't ever change at the MONSTER interchange, Tennouji station! Somehow or other we made it to Fukushima (福島) station. We were pretty happy that there was a lift as well as elevated grounds to lug your luggage up to the ticket slots. Probably because they knew that J-hoppers was operating in the vicinity or that there was a hotel nearby too? We exited the station and to my surprise there were quite a few people around (not the strange ones, pretty decent people) on a Friday morning, 12+am! We tried to follow the instructions given on the website, turning left when you see a Mister Donuts and I wasn't sure about the rest. We turned into another street and kept walking, hopefully seeing some sign of our hostel. We were also informed that if we saw 7/11, we had gone too far. After walking worriedly for some time, we spotted our youth hostel! Yayy! We were so relieved! We had informed the staff beforehand that we would be arriving late, after the time reception closes. Ken-san was there (I think he stays there) and he gave us our key, telling us we had to check in tomorrow morning. Ken-san gave us our key, telling us that our room, a double room, was on the 5th floor. After a whole day on the plane, lugging our heavy luggage around Osaka, we had to lug it up 5 storeys! *claps He gave us our sheets and I told him we would come down for it later. He told me to take the sheets and then he lifted my big luggage up on his shoulders with ease and brought it up for me! I decided to follow him up and put down the sheets before going down to help me friend who was pitifully lugging it up. When she reached the 3rd floor, she put down her luggage and complained that she was too tired. I told her I would come down for her soon, but Ken-san had already put my luggage on the 5th floor and went down to help her! It became a running gag soon after, for she complained that I abandoned her for a half-naked man... She said that when she was so tired, help came in the form of a half-naked man. Lol! We scanned our surroundings for a while, unpacked and washed up. Then we talked for some time and by the time we slept, it was already 2+am in the morning. It was going to be a long day tomorrow... A picture taken of our hostel in the morning:  |
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