When I was away from home in college, instant ramen is my go-to snack. When I travel abroad outside of North and Southeast Asia, I bring 4 to 6 cups with me, especially on countries where I’m not familiar with their food. When I’m sick and have no appetite, I prefer to eat noodles over rice. Consuming instant ramen has its pros and cons, but sometimes you just can’t resist the umami goodness an instant noodle brings!

The first time I went to Genroku Sushi was with my husband during our trip to Osaka last April. Also known as Genrokuzushi, this is the first ever kaitenzushi in the world – which means conveyor belt sushi restaurant. We already have several of these sushi train restaurants back home, but I waited to try the first and genuine kaitenzushi in Japan.

We stepped into Genroku Sushi Sennichimae branch at 2:45 PM for our (very) late lunch. At that time, we had no idea whatsoever that this was Osaka’s most popular conveyor belt sushi restaurant. Thankfully, the Sennichimae branch had available seats for us, although I wished we were seated in front of the itamae (sushi chefs) so we can see how they skillfully make sushi.

If there’s another shopping haven in the world you need to see, it’s got to be Osaka. From apparel, drugstore products, to food items you can only find in Japan, it’s right at the center of Osaka. Before flying to Japan last April 5, I listed down all the things I wanted to shop for. Majority of these were makeup and skincare since I love to hoard try different products, especially those raved about by beauty bloggers and YouTube content creators.