Speaking of tourist attractions in Osaka,
what comes to mind?
・Osaka Castle
・Dotonbori
・Shinsekai (Tsutenkaku)
・Universal Studios Japan
・Tempozan (Kaiyukan Aquarium, Giant Ferris Wheel)
・Umeda Sky Building
You may have thought of these areas.
This year also saw the Osaka-Kansai Expo.
I am sure that many of you have been to Yumeshima, where the Expo was held.
When going around them,
almost all of you use JR, private railways, subways, and buses.
I “hiikun” am from Osaka. Through this blog site,
I have introduced various Osaka landmarks (especially lesser-known places).
For example,
Last summer I submitted the article about the ferry.
And this time,
as with the ferry,
I will introduce a trip to some of the most fascinating places in Osaka with the lesser-known means.
Here it is.
Hankai Railway.
It is the only streetcar running in Osaka.
Even though there are many attractive places along the line,
I decided to write about this topic because
it is a means of transportation that is not well known to tourists.
This article is intended for the following people
・People who want to explore Osaka in an unusual way
・People who wish to visit lesser-known places.
By reading this article,
you will notice the attraction of traveling by tram and
the splendor of the places
along the Hankai Railway line.
Please read to the end.
Thank you for your cooperation.
What is Hankai Railway?
Hankai Electric Railway is a streetcar operated by Hankai Electric Railway Co.
This tram line departs from the stops at the Tennoji Ekimae stop in Abeno Ward, Osaka City, and the Ebisucho stop in Naniwa Ward, Osaka City,
to the Hamadera Ekimae stop in Nishi Ward, Sakai City, Osaka Prefecture.
It owns two lines,
the Hankai Line and the Uemachi Line.
It is a subsidiary of Nankai Electric Railway, a major private railway company, which connects Namba, Osaka to Kansai Airport, Wakayama and Mt.Koyasan.
According to the official website of Hankai Electric Railway Co,
Hankai Electric Railway Company was established on December 1, 1980 (Showa 55).
However, including its predecessor era, the tram has a long history of more than 120 years.
Locals call it “chin-chin densha” or “chinden” for short.
More than 120 years have passed since the start of operation,
It is used by many locals as a means of commuting to work and school.
The fare is 240 yen for adults and 120 yen for children.
It does not make any difference whether you ride one section or all sections.
On the occasion of this trip,
I purchased a one-day pass (700 yen) here.
Please remove the actual date and time of use.
Please present this ticket, which has been shaved, to the driver when you get off the tram.
Note, however, that if multiple dates are cut off, it will be invalid.
It might be better to cut it down at the time of use to avoid mistakes.
I, hiikun, also scraped it just before boarding.
Please refer to this page for details on purchase locations and precautions.
Let’s use this convenient and affordable one-day pass
and visit attractive places along the Hankai Line.
Places of interest along the line
Here are some of the places I, hiikun, have actually visited.
A place I had decided to visit for a long time,
A place I suddenly felt like visiting at the time,
The number of such cases varies.
I began my journey at the Shin-Imamiya Station stop.
Located directly below Shin-Imamiya Station on the JR Osaka Loop Line.
As you can see, during the daytime on weekdays, the train runs every 30 minutes.
I got to the stop earlier than I thought I would…
I came to the Ebisucho stop, the starting point of the Hankai Line.
At the same time I arrived at the stop,
the tram arrived.
I rode this to my first destination.
“Coffee Rumba”
The first place I visited was Coffee Rumba, a traditional Japanese coffee shop called “Kissaten”*. *a traditional Japanese-style retro café where people enjoy coffee, tea, light meals, and a calm atmosphere. It is also called “Junkissa”. “Kissanten” doesn’t serve alcohol.
Why did I choose this coffee shop?
It is actually located in a very interesting place.
Please take a look at this photo.
Kitatengachaya stop.
This coffee shop has an entrance inside the stop.
From being able to enter the coffee shop right after getting off the train,
it is a coffee shop that is quite popular on social networking sites.
But looking at the photo here,
don’t you think something is wrong?
The entrance is closed by shutters.
I, hiikun, made an mistake.
Coffee Roomba is closed every Wednesday.
The day of our visit, November 19, was a Wednesday.
I should have checked the business days in advance.
Moreover, bad things do continue to happen.
I planned to get a red seal (Goshuin) at the shrine I planned to visit later.
I realized that I had forgotten to bring my red seal book, which was the most important thing.
After much consideration, I decided to return home to get it.
The bad luck continued further.
While I was thinking what to do,
I missed the upbound train to Ebisucho that arrived by chance.
Nankai and Osaka Metro Tenkaichaya stations are located in the area
which is located a few hundred meters west of the Kitatengachaya stop
To return to pick up the red seal book,
from there, I went home.
I brought my red seal book and returned to the Emisucho stop again.
We began our trip more than an hour behind schedule.
I gave up on stopping by Coffee Rumba.
To visit Tenjinomori Tenmangu Shrine,
I headed for the Tenjinnomori stop.
*I visited Coffee Rumba the next day, November 20.
It is truly an old-fashioned coffee shop.
I love the retro look of the building.
The restaurant is surrounded by a very relaxed atmosphere.
Please visit the inside to see for yourself.
It will surely please people who love “Junkissa”.
*By the way, there is also an entrance and exit on the other side.
Coffee, tea, juice, or other beverages,
Light meals such as sandwiches, pancakes, toast, etc,
The menu is quite extensive.
English menus are also available.
It is open from 7:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m.
Coffee Rumba has “the service time”.
If you can come before 1pm,
you can choose from a special set menu.
There are 10 kinds of them!
When I, hiikun, visited,
it was already past 2 pm.
The service time was already over.
And I wasn’t hungry.
I ordered this item.
Mixed juice (￥600).
The sweetness is not too sweet.
I feel the original flavor of the fruit.
As I was drinking.
it reminded me of mixed juice
that my mother made for me when I was a kid.
This mixed juice has a gentle taste that makes you feel nostalgic.
Mixed juice is said to have originated in Osaka.
I was curious and looked it up on the internet,
A coffee shop located in “Janjan Yokocho”, a shopping street in Shinsekai, Osaka, in 1948（Showa 23）.
It was invented by the first owner of Senariya Coffee.
If I have a chance, I would like to visit some of the best mixed juice shops in Osaka City.
With that in mind.
I enjoyed Coffee Rumba’s delicious mixed juice to my heart’s content.
Tenjinomori Tenmangu Shrine
I gave up visiting Coffee Rumba.
My first stop was Tenjinomori Tenmangu Shrine.
It is two stops away from the nearest Coffee Rumba. the Kitatengachaya stop.
Located right in front of the stop.
It takes less than a minute from the stop to the shrine’s torii gate
The main deity is Sugawara Michizane, the god of learning.
The temple grounds are covered with 13 large camphor trees.
It is surrounded by lush greenery and a very calm atmosphere.
It is worth visiting this shrine just to see the camphor trees.
Although my stay lasted only a few minutes, I felt purified in body and soul.
For a shrine in a residential area,
the precincts of the shrine are more spacious than one might imagine.
However, photography is not allowed on the premises.
There were the signs posted everywhere prohibiting photography.
Accordingly, we refrained from taking pictures inside.
Please visit if you are interested.
Sumiyoshi Park
The next destination is Sumiyoshi Park.
Without messing with my smartphone,
Without thinking,
I waited for the next train
by listening to the chirping of birds that are probably relaxing in the camphor trees in the shrine.
Here it came.
Let’s head for the Sumiyoshi Torii-mae stop,
nearest to Sumiyoshi Park.
The tram departed from Tenjinomori stop.
Passing under the elevated Nankai Koya Line.
the tram entered a section of track that is used in combination with a public road.
To a little past the Sumiyoshi Torii Mae stop,
this condition continues.
It is a scene unique to streetcars.
Whenever I, hiikun, take the Hankai Railway,
I like to sit in the rearmost seat and enjoy the rear view.
I arrived at the Sumiyoshi Torii-mae stop.
I, hiikun, am behind…
The main gate of Sumiyoshi Taisha Shrine.
Even though it was a weekday, many people visited the shrine.
I saw many foreign tourists.
I visited Sumiyoshi Taisha Shrine after lunch.
More details to follow!
A little further west from the Sumiyoshi Torii-mae stop,
there is Sumiyoshitaisha Station on the Nankai Main Line.
There are quite a few people like me, hiikun, who visit Sumiyoshi Taisha Shrine and Sumiyoshi Park by Hankai Railway.
However, the overwhelming majority of people seem to use Nankai Line.
It takes about 10 minutes from Namba and is located in a very easy-to-visit area.
Passing under the elevated Nankai Main Line,
what spreads out before us is Sumiyoshi Park.
As you can see, it is a very large park.
There are baseball fields, tennis courts, playgrounds, and even a gymnasium.
It was also a weekday afternoon .
There were not many people in the park.
This allowed me to take me time to explore the park.
A river flows through the park.
There is also a pond.
The leaves are reddish in color.
The scene is very autumnal.
Wild birds were also resting their wings in the park’s pond.
The water in the pond was muddy, though,
I saw a carp swimming.
In this park,
several restaurants were lined.
On this visit,
I did not eat here
I found an interesting store.
I would love to visit if I have the chance.
It is almost time for lunch.
Let’ts head to the restaurant where I made a reservation in advance.
Sosaku Kushi-Age Gen-Gen-En
It is almost time for lunch.
Let’s head to the restaurant I reserved in advance.
Nankai Sumiyoshitaisha Station.
To the right of it…
there is some kind of old station-like building.
In fact, this building is,
Sumiyoshi Koen Station on the Hankai Line.
There used to be a train running from here to the Tennoji Ekimae stop.
The tracks led from here to the Sumiyoshi stop on the Hankai Line, about 200 meters away.
Unfortunately, it was about 10 years ago, in January 2016 (Heisei 28)
At the same time the section from Sumiyoshi Park to Sumiyoshi was discontinued,
This station building was also closed.
In fact, I had lunch at a kushikatsu restaurant located in this building.
Sousaku Kushi-Age Gen-Gen-En.
English menus are also available.
The exterior is very stylish.
You can see the parking lot in the back.
There was a station and railroad tracks in that vicinity.
Let’s go in then.
I had the creative kushiage lunch (￥1,580-).
You can add one fried horse mackerel or chicken cutlet or croquette to the ingredients on the picture.
Add 220 yen for rice and red miso soup,
For an additional ¥600, you can get a bottle of beer and a small bowl of appitizer.
I hiikun chose the fried horse mackerel.
It is really a beautiful fried horse mackerel.
It whets the appetite.
The outside is crispy and the inside is fluffy.
It is served with salt for a refreshing taste.
This is tofu.
This is the first time I have ever eaten tofu as a skewer.
It would be very difficult to fry soft tofu in this way.
However, as you can see, it is really beautifully served.
The sesame batter is addictive.
This is squid.
The pepper coated on the batter enhances the flavor of the squid.
This is a white-fleshed fish called “kisu”.
It is one of my favorite white fish.
It is an essential ingredient for kushikatsu and tempura.
I usually take it with salt.
Wasabi mayonnaise was also good.
The most indispensable seafood item for kushikatsu is shrimp.
Larger than expected,
The meat was plump and satisfying.
This is a green onion.
The leeks were delicious without the characteristic smell of green onions.
Also, this miso sauce does a good job.
Even those who do not like green onion can enjoy it without any problem.
I had never seen broccoli skewers before.
It was served with a small amount of salt.
It was also delicious.
I also ordered the following two additional items.
Lotus root and eggplant.
You can also taste the original flavor of the vegetables, though.
This miso sauce enhances the flavor of the vegetables.
These are the items I had for lunch.
All were delicious.
Personally, I liked the vegetable skewers.
Without damaging the original flavor of the vegetables,
it was really carefully prepared.
It was also a perfect match with the miso sauce.
I would like those who don’t like vegetables to try them.
The owner alone was in charge of cooking and serving customers.
He served one dish at a time.
The timing of finishing the meal and being served the next item was just right.
If you have a chance,
I would like to visit this restaurant next time at dinner and try other food items including meat kushikatsu.
Thanks for the food. Gochisousamadeshita.
After dinner, dessert is a must.
Let us come to the next place.
Wa Coffee
There are several sweets stores and coffee shops around Sumiyoshitaisha Station,
This time I visited Wa Coffee.
It is located in a somewhat inconspicuous location.
First, let us introduce the process.
From the Sumiyoshi Torii-mae stop, proceed in the direction of Tennoji.
After a short walk,
you will arrive at the Sumiyoshi stop.
Here it branches off toward Tennoji and toward Ebisucho.
Go right to Tennoji.
Go left and you will arrive at Emisu-cho.
This parking lot is the remains of the railroad tracks to the Sumiyoshi Park stop.
Following this path leads to the Sumiyoshi Koen Station Building, which houses the kushikatsu store I mentioned earlier.
The map shows this.
I apologize for the inconvenience.
I failed to photograph the exterior of the restaurant.
While the store is open, though, you will notice the cake store right away,
The building is so inconspicuous that when the shutters are down, it is hard to believe it is a cake store.
I arrived before the restaurant opened at 12:45,
I passed by the store without noticing its existence.
If you are wondering what the restaurant looks like,
Please visit Wa Coffee’s official Facebook account
Or, please refer to the information on each gourmet website that introduces Wawa Coffee.
The following is a list of items I had in the store.
Apple tart.
Ice cream was also included.
I wonder if is it limited to eating and drinking in the restaurant.
The apple tart is excellent.
Cookie dough tarts are usually hard.
It requires a little force to cut.
But this apple tart doesn’t require any effort.
It is so soft that it can be easily cut.
The dough has just the right amount of sweetness and savory flavor.
The sweetness and tartness of the apples combine.
It tastes good.
You can also eat it with ice cream on top.
It tastes even better.
I hope you will give it a try.
I also got a cinnamon doughnut and a cafe latte.
All three dishes were delicious.
All the snacks and drinks I had were delicious.
I have no complaints about that.
However, when visiting this restaurant,
here is what you need to know.
First of all, the number of seats is very small.
There are three counter seats near the entrance of the restaurant.
There are only perhaps a couple of tables in the back of the restaurant.
Almost all the seats were filled as soon as the restaurant opened.
For eating and drinking in the restaurant,
It may take a considerable amount of time for the food to be served after ordering.
Female owner makes confections, prepares drinks, serves customers, cleans, etc.
She does all the work by herself.
It just happened to be so.
There may be other employees.
However, when I hiikun visited,
the female owner of the restaurant worked alone.
After the opening, customers came to the store incessantly.
Most of them appear to be locals.
While preparing food and drinks for in-store consumption,
she also handled take-out customers.
Therefore in my case hiikun,
it took about 50 minutes from the time the order was placed to the time the item was served.
I didn’t mind because I wasn’t in a particular hurry.
If you are in a hurry,
you can take it home and enjoy it at home or at a nearby park such as Sumiyoshi Park.
The restaurant was good enough to make me want to visit again.
Next time I visit, I would like to try other cakes and cookies.
Please stop by if you can spare the time.
Summary
The article is now longer than I had expected.
So I will end here once and for all.
Let’s look back at the itinerary so far.
Shin-Imamiya stop
↓
Coffee Rumba (actually visited the following November 20)
↓
Tenjinomori Tenmangu Shrine
↓
Sumiyoshi Park
↓
Lunch at “Sosaku Kushi-Age Gen-Gen-En
↓
Dessert at “WaCoffee”
I ran into a little trouble along the way.
But that’s what traveling is all about.
I enjoyed continuing our trip on the Hankai Line so far.
In Next Article,
I will show you the second part of a trip on the Hankai Line.
There are many more attractions along the line, including Sumiyoshi Taisha Shrine.
As time permits,
I toured the places I was interested in.
Please read the next article as we will bring you a report on that event.
See you then!
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