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The Best Views of Osaka on Osaka Metro:
Osaka’s Top Nature Areas in the Rainy Season

Tsurumi Ryokuchi Park, officially known as Tsurumiryokuchi Expo ’90 Commemorative Park, was the main site of the International Garden and Greenery Exposition in 1990. Home to a number of facilities including a camping and barbeque site, sports center, and a hot spring, this massive park is a great place to have fun and relax. The central gate is directly connected to Tsurumi-ryokuchi Station.

The best thing about Tsurumi Ryokuchi Park is its gorgeous flowers. In addition to the popular Sakuya Konohana Kan Conservatory which houses rare plants from around the world, you can see flowers in full bloom all over the park. Hydrangea, water lilies, and lotus are all in season in June and look exquisite in rain. A field full of blossoming Petunia with a windmill in the backdrop is a sight to see. And, if you’re lucky, you’ll see fireflies glowing in the gardens at night.

Read more about Sakuya Konohana Kan Conservatory here
Bizarre and Grotesque Carnivorous Plant Exhibition

Shirokita Park is located about 16-minute walk from Taishibashi-Imaichi Station. The park is famous for its Iris Garden where locals and visitors from afar come to see 13,000 irises in 250 varieties as well as beautiful hydrangea blooming alongside irises. Great for family outing, the park is visited by lots of fans.

Nagai Park is conveniently connected to Nagai Station. The park itself as well as the Nagai Botanical Garden on site are well-known as an urban oasis full of greens.

In June, the Hydrangea garden is at its peak and the park usually opens early at 7:30 in the morning to allow visitors to enjoy lotus and water lilies at its best as well as the distinct morning air specific to this season.

Osaka Museum of Natural History located within Nagai Park is popular and has dynamic exhibits year-round.

Read an article about Osaka Museum of Natural History here
Dinosaurs and Insects and Plants♪At Osaka Museum of Natural History

Read an article about teamLab Botanical Garden Osaka here
Ins and Outs of teamLab Botanical Garden Osaka in Nagai Park

Last but not the least spot to introduce today is Sumiyoshi Taisha Shrine, perhaps Osaka’s most famous shrine. The nearest Osaka Metro station is Tamade Station, about 15 minutes away on foot. Or—I highly recommend this route—from Tamade Station, you can walk 5 minutes to Tsukanishi Station where you can transfer to Hankai Tramway that brings you to right in front of the shrine as you enjoy the acquaint, local scenery. Carefully manicured shrine grounds is picture perfect especially for weddings; in fact, you might encounter a procession of traditional Japanese wedding while visiting the shrine.

The best feature of the shrine is definitely the bright red Taikobashi (arched bridge; literally “drum bridge”) over a pond. Merely crossing this symbolic bridge is said to bring purification and get rid of bad luck. The bridge appears in the works of novelist Yasunari Kawabata, a literary Novel Prize winner, and a passage from his work is inscribed in the literary monument near the pond.

Taikobashi bridge looks elegant in rain during the day. At night, the illuminated bridge grows fancifully above the pond.

We hope you enjoyed a tour of Osaka’s best greeneries, splendid even during the rainy season. We mainly talked about parks in this article, but many traditional Japanese sceneries can be found around the city as well. Perhaps you can grab your favorite umbrella—or take advantage of a break in the rainy season—and go on a stroll.