Wednesday: Harajuku and Meiji Jingu

It was scheduled to finally rain at 4:00 PM on Wednesday. This is Japan's rainy season. We'd brought ponchos and umbrellas, but so far we hadn't had rain. It was amazing! 

Tiffany and KC had been looking forward to going back to Takeshita street in the Harajuku area.

Takeshita Street is full of gachapon (toys in capsules), accessories and clothing for mostly young people, fun foods, crazy shoes, etc. We'd come here 5 years ago with Tiffany, Ed and KC. Tif and KC were looking forward to sharing this experience with Keola, Sarah and the boys. Sure enough, the boys loved the gachapon shops.

BUT what Tif and KC really wanted to experience again were these gigantic colored cotton candy. The boys were absolutely mesmerized watching the fellow twirling, adding flavored colored sugar and twirling until this gigantic creation was made.

The fun thing is that the cotton candy wasn't sticky when you took a piece of it. It was like eating sweetened air. Two were bought to share among eight of us and I admit we loved every flavored airy mouthful.

Lunch was at McDonalds. We had to have McDonalds just once to see what it's like there. Art and I had a Teriyaki Chicken Filet-O which was very good and I understand you can't get it in the U.S.

It looks like Sarah had an Egg and Beef Burger.

Tif and KC had Spicy Chicken McNuggets and introduced us to Shake Shake fries. These were really awesome, crispy fries that you put in a bag, added spices and shook shook. And yup. It was definitely good. Very good actually. 

Tif and KC went off to explore Takeshita Street. 

Keola and Sarah wanted to see the nearby Meiji Jingu as my cousin, Ricky had suggested.

This is from the Meiji Jingu website:

"Meiji Jingu is one of the Shinto shrines in Japan, with the vast land of the forest, located in the middle of the megacity, Tokyo.

Once you step into this precinct, you will forget that you are in the hustle bustle city, and will find Japanese traditional scene amidst greenery nature.

It was established in 1920, to commemorate the virtue of Emperor Meiji and Empress Shoken who took the initiative to make a foundation of modernized Japan."

Here, Keola is showing his sons how to purify their hands before entering the Shinto shrine.

We were just in time to hear drums at the shrine striking at 2:00 PM.

We then went to an area where you could get an omikuji (fortunes).

The boys shook the bamboo box to get a number. You'd then find your fortune or words of guidance in the drawers with the corresponding number.

RK's message read: 

The spacious sky

Spans serene and clear

So blue above,

Oh, that our soul would

Grow to become so open.

JK's message read:

Even while yielding

To its constraining form,

Water too can pierce

Entirely through the hardest rock,

such is its enduring strength.

We then walked over to the area where people had posted their wishes on a votive tablet under a tree's spreading branches.

Keola bought a wooden tablet for us to all write our wishes.

JK wished that people would not have to struggle.

RK wished everyone would be kind.

Sarah hoped for good health and enjoyment of life's riches for all.

Art and I wished happiness for everyone.

Keola wished for all of us to be back together again in Japan in two years.

We then went back to Harajuku where Sarah wanted to take the boys to the Cat Cafe because 5 year old RK loves cats.

Unfortunately we then discovered that RK is allergic to cats. We began seeing hives around his nose and his eyes were irritated. He was unhappy to have to leave the cafe.

However, he did cheer up when we met up with Tiffany and KC who told us there was an IKEA at Harajuku which we could walk to and have a ramune (sort of a sparkling sweet citrus) ice cream cone. The cone cost just 50 yen which is equivalent to 35 cents.

It all ended sweetly and RK's hives and sniffles disappeared with it.

And you know what? Rainy season or not, it did not rain as forecasted.