The best place to go is right inside the Osaka train station, you order by getting a ticket out of a vending machine, then you give the ticket to one of the awesome Osaka Obasan who is cooking, and within minutes you have a steaming bowl of soba... so good.
For my Birthday Yui and I went to a Ghilbli exhibition that showed some background drawings from the animations. Most where done with watercolor paints. So my cake followed a similar theme, thanks to the most talented Yui Takahashi! Look Totoro is sleeping in his hole in the tree
I went to Nara. I saw the worlds largest statue of Buddha in a huge temple. Super awesome. Then I saw some monks light a mountain on fire. Deers are everywhere; I love them, and they love to chase people with food.