Remembering my earlier report about Kyoto Gosho, I am happy to report that my wife Yoko and I went and the weather was absolutely wonderful. Kyoto Gosho was open to the public for several days, and on Nov 3, knowing parking would be a major constraint, we decided to take the train instead of driving. That was a good call as it turned out. Many thanks to the English Conversation students at the Smith’s School in Kotoen スミス英会話 甲東園 for that advice!
Passing through Umeda we had a peek at the marvelous progress Grand Front is making. It is amazing how Umeda has developed and progressed in the past couple of years, efforts that have without doubt catapulted Osaka into the ranks of a great city. Not only is the now 1.5-year-old JR Station City a wonder in itself to behold, but the 6 or 7 additional buildings surrounding the station, and all hooked together above and below ground, are truly cool. Ample seating space among plants exists everywhere, and couples can often be seen having lunch or sunning themselves while office people mingle with everyone else.
This trend is about to explode when the new buildings open, probably by the start of the next fiscal year. As JR lets more and more of its holdings go to prefectural developments, the better the city becomes for us all. And it will be more fun to hang out there too since the crowds will be divided over a much larger area and will be hanging out in thousands more stores and cafes. Can’t wait!
What a difference from Kyoto Gosho!
Martin Werner Zander
マーティン・ワーナー・ザンダー
Smith’s School in Kotoen 月謝制 Real Monthly Tuition English Conversation School
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