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Location
The Yodo River estuary at Osaka Bay, Osaka Prefecture, Kansai region, central Honshū, Japan.

Dialling code
81.

Population
2.6 million (2005).

Time zone
GMT + 9.

Electricity
100 volts AC, 50/60Hz; flat two-pin American-style plugs are standard.

Average January temperatures
4.9°C (40.8°F).

Average July temperatures
28°C (82.4°F).

Annual rainfall
1,602mm (63 inches).

Cost of Living:

100 Japanese Yen (¥100) = £0.71; US$1.08; C$1.29; A$1.51; €0.79
Currency conversion rates as of January 2009

Special Events:

Shitennoji ‘Doya Doya’ Festival, Jan, festival where two groups of lightly clad (headbands and loincloths only) young men compete for possession of an amulet, Shitennoji Temple
Osaka Sumo Basho, Mar, one of the six annual big sumo wrestling tournaments in Japan, Osaka Prefectural Gymnasium (website: www.sumo.or.jp/eng/)
Cherry Blossom (Sakura), Mar-Apr, the cherry blossom season is celebrated throughout Osaka wherever there are cheery trees. Good places to visit are the Japan Mint Osaka grounds, which are only open to the public for a week during the cherry blossom season each year, and Osaka Castle Park
Shoryo-e Festival, Apr, festival including gagaku court dance and music on a stone stage on the Kame-no-ike pond at Shitennoji Temple as a memorial service for Shotoku Taishi, the temple’s founder, Shitennoji Temple
Aizen Matsuri Festival, Jun-Jul, one of Osaka’s big festivals, this is a Buddhist memorial service during which young women in yukata ride kago up the route from the station to the temple, shouting encouragements along the way, Shoman-in Temple in the Tennoji area
Tenjin Matsuri Festival, 24-25 Jul, one of Japan’s three big festivals (and greatest spectacles) celebrated for over 1,000 years, it includes a spectacular procession of people boarding boats at Tenjinbashi Bridge; an amazing torch-and-lantern-lit parade of some 100 ships and worship barges from the Hokonagashi Bridge on the Dojimagawa River to Enokoshima; and finally a dazzling fireworks display
Sumiyoshi Matsuri, Jul-Aug, ancient summer purification festival starting at the Sumiyoshitaisha Grand Shrine and including a procession all the way to Sakai
Mido-Suji Parade, Oct, parade on Mido-Suni Avenue with 10,000 participants, including colorful floats and a variety of artists and performers joining in the fun
Shinnosai Festival, Nov, festival dedicated to the guardian god of Doshomachi, Osaka’s medicine district, and to Shinno, the divine founder of medicine from China, Sukunahikona Jinja Shrine

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