Ebisubashi at Dotonbori, Osaka

Iconic 26-metre Dotonbori canal bridge linking Shinsaibashi-suji and Ebisubashi-suji.

Ebisubashi, sometimes nicknamed Hikkake-bashi or "the picking-up bridge," is one of Osaka's most recognisable landmarks. The 26-metre span crosses the Dotonbori canal and connects Shinsaibashi-suji Shopping Street on the north side with Ebisubashi-suji Shopping Street on the south. Each day more than 200,000 people cross it, drawn by the giant Glico running-man billboard on the southern bank and the crab, octopus and dragon signage that line the waterway. The bridge has long been a meeting point and people-watching spot, with a history stretching back to the early Edo period when Dotonbori was developed as a theatre and entertainment district. Its current form dates from the early 20th century, and it remains the unofficial centre of Minami, the southern half of central Osaka. Visitors gather here day and night to take photographs, watch the river boats pass beneath and soak up the neon-lit atmosphere. For first-time visitors and long-time Osakans alike, Ebisubashi is the natural anchor of any trip to Dotonbori. It is less a destination in itself than the crossroads from which the whole neighbourhood unfolds.