Sofia Costa

Osaka is Kyoto's louder cousin, and proud of it. I went to Dotonbori at dusk, when the signs switch on one by one and the canal starts doubling everything. In the morning the same street is half asleep, and takoyaki is the only thing awake. I preferred it then. The light was mine.

At Kuromon Market I ate grilled scallops standing up at noon. Shinsekai at night is retro neon and fried skewers. Nakazakicho hides tiny jazz bars in old wooden houses, the kind with six seats and a wall of records. Breakfast one day was soufflé pancakes in Shinsaibashi, which wobble when you look at them. I ended a night at Osaka Castle, which looks best reflected in the moat. Arrive hungry.