I’m not saying that Japan is unduly haunted by the history of aerial bombing that took place in World War II, but in taking the Osaka Train Station escalator down from street level to the subway kingdom of avenue wide tunnels jammed with shopping outlets and eateries I can’t help thinking that if I were to escape an above-ground attack this city under the city would be the place to go. It reminded me of Japantown, the huge underground shopping mall in San Francisco. Clean, somewhat upscale, it doesn’t have the narrow, noisome gloom of waiting under Times Square in New York for the downtown local. It’s like the Japanese are saying if you want to drop the Big One, go ahead, we’ll be down below in a Starbucks enjoying the latest comfort drink…or maybe just grabbing a crafted offering from one of the vending machines—like the Cafe Au Lait-in-a-can that Ella got. A hot Cafe Au Lait, no less, making it hard to hold the can. We poured it into mugs back at the hotel. As far as taste goes, Starbucks couldn’t have done any better.
I like the international flair of the mixed American and Japanese vending machine offerings!
Yes, the vending machine drinks are quite interesting. A “CocaCola” vending machine. “Flat white”, “cafe au lait”, the international language of coffee. Were any of the other ones tea? Or would vending machine tea be a sacrilege? I liked the little chart that told you what coins to use. Wait, it’s 2025, can’t you just tap your phone?
There are machines that offer nothing but tea and citrus drinks. Ella has a pic of two machines side-by-side that would put 7-11 to shame. We tried tapping a Visa card—picture told us we could—but with no results.