Osaka Facts

The idiosyncratic mood of this metropolis is perhaps best reflected in its nationally-televised manzai teams: duos who put on bawdy performances in the manner of Abbot and Costello. The flip side is the city's reputation for aggression. Osaka is very safe compared to other world cities of the same size, but to think of it as little more than colorfully rough and ready is to do it a disservice. Rather, it is a source of bubbling cultural energy, beauty and historical richness.

Umeda

The central business district is at the northern hub of Umeda, just three stops south on the Midosuji subway line from the Shin-Osaka bullet-train station. A conglomeration of businesses, deluxe hotels, retail...

...first gained prominence when Hideyoshi Toyotomi, the most powerful lord in the land, built Japan's most magnificent castle here in the 16th century. To develop resources for his castle town, he persuaded merchants from other parts of the nation to resettle in Osaka. During the Edo Period, the city became an important distribution center as feudal lords from the surrounding region sent their rice to merchants in Osaka, who in turn sent the rice onward to Tokyo and other cities. As the merchants prospered, the town grew and such arts as Kabuki and Bunraku flourished. With money and leisure to spare, the merchants also developed a refined taste for food.

Nowadays, Osaka, capital of Osaka Prefecture...