The Nankai Shiomibashi Line is a short, isolated 1.5 km branch of the Nankai Koya Line in Osaka, running strictly between Shiomibashi Station and Kishinosato-Tamade Station. We asked writer-in-residence Sen 11 to investigate Kizugawa Station in Nishinari, which locals say has a mysterious vibe.
There are mornings like this. You woke up and you are extremely tired and uninspired. It sounds dramatic but it’s true. It’s the type of exhaustion that you feel after two months in a new city, hyper stimulated, sleeping alone in a bed that’s not yours, without your cats.
Osaka is a city that will keep you wanting for more. You can spend all your days out and you still have something to do and to explore. I’m not talking about trips to Hands, Daiso, Uniqlo and Gu! That’s a topic for another day. I’m talking about the buzzing Art scene in the Kansai region. A friend is performing at this cool venue in Namba, another one on a rooftop in Umeda, a couple from Belgium at a record store somewhere in Hyogo!
You receive an invitation for a new art exhibition at Kyoto Museum, another for a noise event at an alternative bar in Kobe and a DM from a curator you just met with a schedule worth a week of art shows and DJ sets all around the city. Nope, you can’t miss that small pop up art show at On End… in Fukushima ward, definitely you’re going to the Takedao Tunnel event. “Yes, I’ll come to Grand Green, Osaka, for the show. Thank you for inviting me.” In a place that can feel extremely lonely, receiving an invitation is something you can’t easily ignore, you say to yourself.
Then you decide to look at your instagram stories for 15 minutes, that’s it, and soon enough your google calendar is full of events scattered all around Kansai. After scrolling for an hour and ignoring all the “ you’ve reached your daily limit” notification from instagram. You spend another hour in bed watching YouTube videos because ‘why not’. Whom I’m even talking to? To the introvert in me, who spent the last two months socializing and taking more train lines than I can remember the names of the people I met.
So I guess this is the introvert who’s writing today. Yes, that’s me! When am I resting exactly? Like a real rest, because the weekly one-hour Onsen in Tennoji “to wash off the noise of the city” is not enough apparently! And how fresh am I gonna look like, when it’s my turn to perform at Compufunk?
A decision was made, today I’m taking it easy. I’m slowing down. I woke up from the bed. I wore my extra large blue Ralph Lauren shirt that I got from a vintage store, near Horie Park, the one I wear on top of my pajamas every time I want to get ‘my guilty pleasure’ coffee from 7/11. Convenient, right? It’s all about convenience here. I got a strong black hot coffee, with a splash of cream, because it’s a cloudy day today and then headed to the 24/7 supermarket to buy some groceries. I need my cheesy mushroom and egg toast and I’m doing it myself.
Fine enough, I’m skipping all the distractions and noisy streets today and I’ll stay around the canal. 10 minutes of staring at the river while everyone rushes to go to work. Another 10 minutes, and then I’ll also go to my office, a built-in closet repurposed into a studio, with custom colorful acrylic art pieces suspended overhead while I type.
13:21 I decided to get another breakfast, because why not? I’m happy to have instant coffee with cream and another mushroom toast. Time seems to be suspended, like my hanging art. I need a goal for today! Something not involving shopping, drinking, eating out, or getting lost in the buzzy streets. Something quiet, different, that will get me motivated to leave the room.
I received a message : “Do you know about this place in Osaka?” with a link to a YouTube video. It was a video of someone walking in a strange place, I’d say. I couldn’t understand what he was saying and the Japanese subtitles didn’t help but it was enough to spark my curiosity. It felt like I was there with him, exactly what I want my readers to feel when I’m on a writing mission. I responded, I’ll go check it out. A thirty-minute walk from my studio, great! That’s not far, and enough steps to help me achieve my daily walking goal.
I checked the weather, it should be clear till 8 pm, then rain in the evening and most of tomorrow. I decided to sleep on it so I lay down on the bed. I woke up from a short nap but with a strange dream. How can we dream in the afternoon? I look out the window, it’s cloudy but not raining. I thought, this is the perfect atmosphere for this kind of adventure.
Let’s do it. Only thirty minutes away, and I’m curious to see how many steps to get there. Armed with an umbrella, half a banana and my water bottle, I’m ready for the adventure. The playlist I prepared for my selector set this Thursday at Compufunk is playing in my earphones, and I’m typing while walking. GPS is on, and spacial awareness activated, it’s almost a straight line from Namba Hotel to there. Where is there? I’ll tell you when we arrive. Of course I’m paying attention to the people around me! I don’t want to bump into anyone, and I’m stopping at each traffic light, very carefully. I realized that whenever I’m walking on the yellow tactile line, I feel some kind of emotional reassurance. An odd thing.
I’ve stopped to get a picture of a red restaurant facade. It’s very attractive to my eyes. I guess it’s an Indian* restaurant because it has a sculpture of Ganesh and it’s called magic spice. By the way, words often attract my attention and give me sparks of imagination for my intuitive writing. Wait, let me take a screen shot of my current step count so I subtract it when I arrive and get the real distance.
“LIFE” is the second word I saw. Life is good when you have a friend to bike with in Osaka. You can say that you’re lucky. I’m feeling the raindrops on my skin; I guess the rain will start sooner than scheduled. I suppose some people enjoy my sarcasm and dark humor, as they should. It’s a lot of guessing, isn’t it?
* I did a google search and found out that Magic Spice is a fusion between Japanese and Indian restaurant in Naniwa ward, and it’s know for serving Sapporo style soup curry. I didn’t had food there to give a honest review but from what I read it is worth giving a try.
I’m walking straight on the yellow line for at least 200 steps or so. Many bikers pass by me, I love that about Osaka and also love seeing so many kids in uniforms walking together after school. It gives me a nostalgic feeling, a peaceful one. I stopped again and decided to change my itinerary. I’m leaving the main road for the quieter streets, and now I’m walking along the train line. We’re halfway to our destination, following the train tracks. I guess not many tourists would walk these streets, it’s so different from Shinsaibashi, Namba, or Orange street.
Perhaps, it’s the weather and the mix of grey and dark blue in the sky, but I’m already feeling that mysterious vibe I anticipated. It feels odd, but not uncanny or sketchy, just beautifully strange. The houses too are dark, and I see many that look old, weathered and abandoned. Now it feels like we’re walking under the rails and it’s getting dark. I’m crossing Naniwa Kita park, it’s like a zigzag garden.
Oh, the music is getting intense and the lights are flickering. Is it because of the …?
Only 5 minutes left and I’ll reveal the purpose of my adventure to you. Suddenly the streets have completely changed and emptied out. Now, the sky is getting darker and darker and I start thinking if it was a good decision to come here at this time. But I’m proud to say that I’m a brave person and writer. I should be.
Ok that’s it, the suspense is over. It took exactly 3230 steps to arrive at Kizugawa Station. This is the place where we’re stopping : the famous “Kizugawa station”. I can feel it, the deep and heavy silence, like time froze a hundred of years ago. Are we even still in Osaka? It feels surreal. I’m hesitating to go inside. Who knows maybe this is a set up and if I step inside I’ll time travel to the past and get stuck there. So dramatic!
I’m glad that I decided to come after sunset. The vibe is even more mysterious in my opinion. It’s such a unique train station, nothing like I’ve seen before in Osaka. I’m wondering what that pink building is all about? It’s huge. There are many abandoned factories in this neighborhood, which gives it “the ghost town vibe”. As I walk around the station, I see a park, some old houses and absolutely no one in the streets. Oh wait, someone is walking a small dog, then two more people appear, walking toward the gate.
No rain, and the music stopped. Just silence and this nostalgic feeling in me. Am I disappointed that I didn’t encounter any ghosts? I check Google Maps, the next train is coming in 10 minutes, and the one after that isn’t for another 40 minutes. As much as I’m enjoying the absence of city noise, I’m ready to hop on the train and go back to my room, eat my red prawn crackers and binge-watch a series of anime. This nostalgia is real but it’s only good for a short amount of time. I sit on the old wooden bench and wait for the train.
At least I’m satisfied I achieved my goals for the day : walking 10,000 steps and writing 1,000 words or so. Should I stay another 30 minutes and write in stillness? That will mean that I will go into an introspective mode which I tried to escape the whole day. There are 4 men at the gate with me. They all seem human to me.
Remember I told you that I would reveal the purpose of my adventure in the beginning of this article? Well, I was looking for something exciting, some thrill. Like seeing ghosts for example. Sure this station is different but it’s the same story: me on my phone, and everyone else on their phones too. That’s how I know that they are not ghosts. Right on time! I see it, the two-car train is arriving. It’s time to go home.
Now we’re riding Osaka’s famous cecal line, the Nankai Shiomibashi line. In the car, it’s the same image you’ve probably seen : everyone on their phones. I’m wondering if they are watching some dumb memes or the news. I guess if a ghost were in the train, it would be reading a book, looking grey and transparent. But who knows really. I remember I watched a Japanese anime with a scene where spirits were riding the subway and they looked all colorful and alive.
Only two stations, and we’re back to the cars and the neon lights. Sakuragawa station?! Ah it’s the same station, I think. Anyway, isn’t it funny that this is the second time I’ve booked the same Airbnb hotel, and for the second time, I got the exact same room: 703? I’m also using an office that has the same number, 703. Sometimes strange coincidences happen. We humans are thirsty for these kinds of events, mystical signs from the universe, a confirmation that we’re heading in the right direction. How many fortune telling situations have I encountered since I’ve been here?
I saw the words “Slow down” written twice in the past ten minutes. “Slow down, you’re doing fine.” That’s a clear sign! Maybe that’s an invitation for you to slow down as well. If you happen to be here in Osaka, give yourself the chance to walk through the unusual streets, far from the noise and all the crowded stores, and catch the signs.
If you visit the Minami area, where I’m staying, walk in the empty streets around the canal. Maybe go to Environment 0g, and discover the alternative scene; you might listen to some ambient sounds or noise, or attend a cool art event. Every night has a different vibe. Unusual, unconventional, odd. I like odd – odd is fun.
I just arrived in front of my Airbnb and suddenly the rain started. There’s a small Izakaya next to it and I’m wondering if I should go for a drink or call it a day. Well, I decided to call it a day, but you should definitely go out and sit in a nice cozy bar around 😉
That was Sen 11.
Till next time.
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