Osaka and Shizuoka, Japan

#osaka #shizouko #mountfuji #japan #hollandamericacruise #​Shimizu Port

Arriving in Osaka, we were determined to get to the town centre and soon set off to the underground train system, which in this case once we had worked out how to use the ticket machine, was quite easy.
We soon arrived in the town centre and had an enjoyable walk around this fascinating area, with its bright neon signs and giant advertising sculptures. We even had time for a short river cruise where we had an interesting view of the shops etc. The guide, who spoke in Japanese would keep holding up boards with the explanation written in English and even joked with us.
On the Ebisubashi  bridge, people were copying the pose for an advertisement called  the Glico running man, which is located nearby. Sue, after a few hilarious attempts, managed to copy this without falling over.

An impressive area and a shame we couldn't stay for the night as when lit up, it becomes even more impressive.

Shimizu Port, ​Shizuoka, Japan

Getting up the next day, we were just sailing into Shimizu Port and from our window we could see Mt. Fuji in the distance. At first, this was covered by cloud but by the time we docked the clouds had cleared and we had a superb view of the impressive site. I even had a chance to capture the image for a digital drawing.

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Having had a busy few days, and as this was our last port of call, we decided to just explore the port area. Although this was meant to be a sight seeing holiday, the clothes shops here were so  well stocked with reasonably priced clothing , we could have filled a suitcases. If we ever come to Japan again, we decided to bring one case empty just to fill with new purchases! 
Moving on to the seafront, there was an interesting market selling local crafts etc. After a leisurely stroll,
​ it was back to the ship to start our packing after a fantastic few days exploring so many different ports of call.