OSAKA
You know even if this post doesn't get to the Cup of Noodle part till much later I always like to start my posts out with a photo so that it's not just a wall of words hitting you at the beginning----
Well if I'm being honest its kind of embarrassing because even though I was in Osaka from the 3-8 I really didn't see any of Osaka until the 8th and not much at that. I spent the 3-5 in bed, 6 in Nara, and 7 in Kyoto.
On the 8th Paige and I packed up and got out of the Airbnb and headed for Osaka station. Somehow we got really lost and it took us forever to get there. We then ran around trying to find a Pandora shop so Paige could buy more expensive (sorry Paige but totally worthless) Pandora charm bracelet things to "prove she'd been there" but honestly I think her photos do a much better job. We took so long though because we were trying to find a Pandora store, we were trying to find a day bag check, and we were trying to low key plan our day.
Well in the end we decided to just haul our bags around all day instead of check them. Partially because most of the bag checks were full for the day and also because I found out the station we were heading to for the Cup of Noodle Museum was the same station I would be picked up from to go to the Onsen so I decided to just carry my things and so did Paige.
So finally by 2pm we had gotten to Osaka, found a Pandora shop, and eaten something which was rice, egg, chicken, and soup on the side which was delicious.We then finally made our way to the Cup of Noodle Museum. We got there and this sweet little old lady with a sign on her that literally said "English" approached us and was like can we store your bags for you while you're here? and we were like YES. So that was awesome. The place isn't really that much of a museum, it has a history of the company in products displayed all cool on the wall and it has like an actual history on the wall opposite. It also has a recreation of the house that the original Cup of Noodles guy started it all and then a "theater" where it plays a history of the museum as well as a walkthrough of the factory.
A history in product of the company. A wall to wall display of cup of noodles. The founder's statue out front!
The main event is that you get to make your own cup of noodles! for $3 you get a container and to color on the outside and then they fill it with noodles, add whatever spices and ingredients you want (you get to customize your own cup of noodles!) and then seal it and plastic wrap it for you. You then put it in this like bag thing that inflates with air and hangs around your neck like a weird necklace/bag. The inflation was actually the part that intrigued me the most. It's really well designed. You have this bag and the part that inflates is through the entire thing, it wraps like a U with one side that isn't part of the inflation that you put the cup noodles in. You then inflate the U shape to the point that it becomes a box around the noodles so the noodles are suspended in air basically it looks like and rather than it being inside a pocket within the air chamber it looks like the cup of noodles is inside a single continuous box of air and it's floating in the middle. It's really interesting. It is also so tightly packed that you can't move it or get it out without inflating the rest. I think it's a really really well designed bag thing. It also has the added bonus of keeping your cup of noodles safe.
The make your own process in order :)
We left the place around 3:30 and went to hang out at a Starbucks which I was afraid Paige would get bored but through conversation, phone time, and drinks plus two rounds of Matcha Starbucks (gross) samples we actually got caught off guard by 5:30 when I had to leave for the onsen. I had a really really wonderful time with Paige and I am so glad she came. She is such a kind and nice person and I really like hanging out with her plus she's just so hard working and genuine and I really appreciated that.
We pretty much went full tourist today and that was a ton of fun.
