Any way you slice it…
After the nice break in the clouds yesterday, the skies prepared themselves for the evening to come of rain. We started out morning once again shopping for more bento deliciousness.
Today was also the first of several jaunts on the Shinkansen. Alas, as much of a speed freak I can be, had to rein that in, as the JR Pass we have doesn’t cover Nozomi service (the fastest service). Either way, we made out way to our Hikari train. Being the food obsessed people we are, and with our train not at the platform yet, we killed time inside one of the konbini and amassed more snacks.
Supposedly you can add water to these potato sticks to make mashed potatoes Takoyaki-flavored potato sticks 
Have I mentioned I love trains?
Once our train arrived, we settled in for the relatively short 40-minute ride to Himeji station. En route, we noshed on our breakfast bounty.
Thanks to my friend for finding one with noodles! Beef, rice, noodles, lotus, chicken, kabocha, egg, pickled veggies Octopus and other seafood Pot of all the chocolate (3 layers!) Strawberry Pot (same as yesterday’s, but pristine)
Upon arriving at Himeji, we made the straight walk to Himeji castle. (I wonder if it’s just conincidence or did they design it this way, as Todaiji was a straight shot from the station too).
We spent a bit of time in the neighboring gardens, looking at their bonsai exhibits, partaking in a simple tea ceremony, and chilling in a bamboo garden. After this we hiked back to the castle. We had to swap to slippers, which makes walking on the steep stairs within a challenge.
The mascot of Himeji Castle! Splendid surroundings at the Lord’s house Bonsai Tea ceremony How to perform the ceremony correctly 
Chilling The various plants you can find at the gardens Inside the castle 1F, was MUCH darker than this Nook inside the castle Shrine at the top floor of the castle Rebuilt roof and statue Framework of the castle Closeup Medium shot
With the castle and its grounds thoroughly explored, we walked back to the station, by now, in the rain. Of course, the walk wouldn’t be complete without stopping for more snackage, this time, my friend getting some freshly roasted chestnuts and my other friend getting mini cake puffs.
A half-hour train ride into Kobe and Sannomiya station brings us to the best part of the day, dinner! A slightly confusing, but short walk to our restaurant, Misono. This was certainly the best meal so far on the trip, and a heck of a view to go with it! We had a good debate on which beef was better, A4 or A5 (A5 is the fattier of the two, and was my preference…definitely fatty but doesn’t linger like o-toro tuna might.). Any way you slice the beef we had tonight, it was melt-in-your-mouth good.
Dinner with a view Appetizer, beef and onions Seafood, scallops Scallops, final dish VEGGIES! Our chef working magic Seafood platter Salad Very happy people with their meats! Onions and greens Lobster Abalone BEEF! Lobster head miso soup Honeydew, cheesecake, vanilla ice cream and raspberry sherbet
And with that, our time in Osaka comes to a close. Tomorrow we set off for Hiroshima. Thanks for reading!