IT was like entering the surrealistic world of comics. Dining with Japanese, they seem to nod or giggle at almost anything and everything. So when I told them there were tadpoles in my cold gelatine dessert, they hit the floor with laughter.
''No, no, no,'' said our hotel host as she stirred the sticky contents in her tiny porcelain bowl with wooden chopsticks.
''These are extracts from plants grown in this area [Osaka] only. It's our speciality and very nice.'' Yes, I later agreed. Though lacking in taste, what appeared to be, er, tadpoles, did have the cooling and refreshing quality which is a prominent feature of Japanese summertime cuisine.
Sashimi, pickled vegetables, rice, scrambled eggs and misoshiro, all served cold in tiny portions, are available for not only lunch and dinner, but also breakfast.
But for Hong Kong Chinese accustomed to steamy-hot food all year round, three days of summer were quite enough.
After a couple of Japanese meals and plenty of sashimi, sushi and salted fish at the hotel, I decided to venture into one of the many underground shopping malls in the heart of Osaka city to find hot rice and noodles.
One way of getting there from our hotel was simply by walking. But beware, you are likely to be run over by either pedestrians or bicycles if you take to the streets during the peak hours.