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. 

Tuesday: Tokyo Skytree

Keola bought tickets for all of us to see and go up the Tokyo Skytree.

I got this from Wikipedia:

Tokyo Skytree (東京スカイツリー, Tōkyō Sukaitsurī) is a broadcasting and observation tower in Sumida, Tokyo. It became the tallest structure in Japan in 2010 and reached its full height of 634 meters (2,080 ft) in March 2011, making it the tallest tower in the world, displacing the Canton Tower, and the third tallest structure in the world after the Merdeka 118 (678.9 m or 2,227 ft) and the Burj Khalifa (829.8 m or 2,722 ft). It is also the tallest freestanding structure in the OECD, the G20 and G7 countries.

We've always seen the Skytree from afar when we visited Tokyo but never was inclined to actually go to the top. 

It was amazing how fast that elevator moved you up the tower. You couldn't feel it except for the popping in your ears.

The map showed you where Mt. Fuji was supposed to be. Yes, I tried to PhotoShop Mt. Fuji into the photo since you couldn't see it through the haze. 😄

We walked all around the tower to look out at the city.

There was also a glass floor so you could look at the city below your feet. 5 year old RK was afraid at first, but got over it pretty quickly.

The boys favorite thing was probably the ice cream sundaes. There was cornflakes at the bottom which gave it a happy crunch.

KC had to make a wish from up high.

Once that was done, we found tons of shops below the tower.

And yes, there was another Pokemon Center. 😂

There was also a store called the Jump Shop which featured different anime characters. 

Keola had seen an anime called One Piece so the two older boys in the family decided to have fun with that.

And the younger boys had the MOST fun at this play area.

Sarah said it was the best $20 she had spent so far for the boys that day.

It was another eventful day and we had dinner at a place called Ebi Soba which means Shimp Buckwheat Noodles. 

But they didn't have soba.😆 They only had ramen. 

Ah well...

It was good.

And it had been a very good day!

Monday: TeamLab Planets

We took mom for her last trip to Japan in 2019 for a Princess Cruise. We went several days early so she could spend time with her sister, brother and families. On one of those days, we took her to TeamLab Borderless which is a digital art museum. 

To say that mom did not like it would be putting it mildly. All the digitally changing lights and a few uneven surfaces had her discombobulated. On the other hand, Art and I thought it was amazing and super fun! So we recommended doing it with our kids and grandkids. Unfortunately, TeamLab Borderless was moving to Azabudai Hills and in the process of rehabbing it's digital rooms.

We were disappointed, but looked forward to seeing TeamLab Planets instead which was still open. 

Tiffany had ordered tickets ahead of time and warned Keola and Sarah to make sure the boys had a change of clothes (and for none of us to wear a dress).

It's a good thing she warned us. You had to remove your shoes and socks and place them in lockers before moving to a tunnel of rushing water.

Friends had gone to TeamLab Planets the week before our trip and warned me to avoid going through the beginning experience. She texted a blurry video that I SHOULD have paid more attention to. (She'd told me there was an alternate route, but it was too late. I hadn't paid attention to where that might be.) There was even a sign in ENGLISH that I SHOULD have paid better attention to. It was something about elderly people avoiding this experience. Ummm.... Who's elderly anyway?

It was AWFUL! I mean AWFUL! You had this DEEP squishy area that you had to climb through (over?) to get to the other side. I'll bet it would be like climbing over quicksand. There was nothing like this at TeamLab Borderless! 

OK, this was similar to what we saw at TeamLab Borderless and much MUCH better. The colors changed every few seconds and it was mesmerizing. You can see why you shouldn't wear a skirt.

I'll bet the boys would tell you this was their favorite room. They went absolutely nuts chasing and splashing at digital fish that swam under the waters. (And yes, it was a good thing Keola and Sarah brought extra clothes for the boys.)

And this was my favorite experience. It was a mirrored room with lots of live orchids all around us. 

On the way back to the hotel, we saw this gigantic Gundam statue. I read a little about it doing this blog post and think we probably should have gotten off the train for a closer look as Tiffany had suggested. Ah well... it's something we can save for next time.

Back at the hotel, we rested for a bit. I thought I would show you that even though it has a fancy name, our hotel room was super tiny.

There wasn't a good area to hang your clothes, just three hooks by the doorway and one giant drawer below the suitcases to store belongings.

However... the convenient location and breakfast area made up for it. (Uuuummm... you did have to pay extra for the breakfast tickets, but it was reasonable.)

Later that evening, Keola and Sarah put the boys to sleep and Art and I crept into their room to babysit while they, Tiffany and KC went out to see the nightlights of Shinjuku in Tokyo. I spent that time getting a head-start on documenting a few days of the trip on my blog. 

I'd made sure to turn off the sound on my iPad and was as quiet as could be. Art even dozed a little after catching up on his text and email messages.

The next morning, JK chuckled and said, "Grandma, I heard you in our room last night. I could see you and I heard you turning pages." (That's because I had to look at my notes in my journal.) He had thoughtfully stayed quiet so he wouldn't wake his little brother.)

As for the rest of our family, they had a wonderful time out seeing Tokyo at night. We were all a little bleary eyed the following morning but we woke up in time to see more of the city from up high.

Sunday: Shinjuku Gyoen

My Tokyo cousin, (AKA Ricky) is now always very busy with his job traveling out of country. When Art and I brought our children to Japan in 1996, our young kids loved my cousin's fun, cheerful and friendly personality. He was the one person I thought we could meet in Tokyo because this cousin is able to understand and converse in some English.

When I first visited Japan in 1970, I was 21 years old and Ricky was just a few months old and the cutest little baby you could ever imagine. He's now a little older and still as cute as ever.

And now he is my email/text link to the entire family in Japan. He suggested meeting at Shinjuku Gyoen. 

I got this history from Wikipedia:

The shōgun bequeathed this land to Lord Naitō (daimyō) of Tsuruga in the Edo period who completed a garden here in 1772. After the Meiji Restoration the house and its grounds were converted into an experimental agricultural center. It then became a botanical garden before becoming an imperial garden in 1879.

Ricky said he and his wife would bring bentos (box lunches) for all of us. However, he also surprised us by bringing ground cloths for us to sit on, drinks, fruits, gifts, etc. 

Unfortunately, the day was very hot. He'd warned us that this was the rainy season but we hadn't had any rain, just heat.

We all enjoyed the garden walks.

And it was cooler under the giant trees.

Keola had the boys running across the field just to burn off some energy.

We walked until the early afternoon before saying our farewells. We did tell my cousin that we would be waiting to see him in Hawaii some day.

Jon and Sarah took the boys to see the giant Godzilla statue in Shibuya while we accompanied Tif and KC to a department store for them to buy some gifts.

Tif and KC had already seen Godzilla during our trip with them and our son-in-law 5 years ago.

We ate dinner at a restaurant whose name translated to Ginza Bald Heaven. I showed it to mom when we returned to Hawaii and she laughed at such a crazy name for a restaurant.

It was loads of fun and loads of little dishes.

After placing our order the cook would come by and give us freshly fried shrimp tempura and vegetables a little at a time. 

And yes, it was delicious!

It was time to catch the train to return to our hotel.

And that's when we experienced rush hour on the train.

Despite carrying so many people, everyone kept their voices down or were just quiet so as not to disturb others. 

It was also clean with no trash anywhere.

Incredibly, that evening, while the rest of us went to sleep exhausted, Keola went off by himself to experience the lights of Tokyo. He took this photo at Asakusa and made sure to return before the last train closed its service.

He must have inherited Art's stamina. I was totally wiped out.

However, it had been another lovely day.

Saturday: Shibuya Crossing

Keola had read about Shibuya Crossing and wanted to see it. That was our destination for Saturday.

We all had breakfast together on this morning. I was starting to really like having a little bit of rice with a lot of pickled vegetables.

Art and I were heading out to the Shibuya Crossing with Keola, Sarah and the boys. Tiffany and KC went to a Saturday Flea Market at a race track.

We first went to the Scramble Square Skyscraper to get a bird's eye view of the crossing. We went to the 14th floor Observation level and saw how all the pedestrians looked like little ants crossing in every direction. 

This is from Wikipedia: 

Shibuya Scramble Crossing (渋谷スクランブル交差点, Shibuya sukuranburu kōsaten), commonly known as Shibuya Crossing, is a popular pedestrian scramble crossing in Shibuya, Tokyo, Japan. It is located in front of the Shibuya Station Hachikō exit and stops vehicles in all directions to allow pedestrians to inundate the entire intersection. The statue of Hachikō, between the station and the intersection is a common meeting place, which is almost always crowded.

We then waited for Tiffany and KC at the Hachiko statue and of course had to take a photo next to it once they arrived.

The story of Hachiko is a beautiful one of devotion and undying love. Hidesaburo Ueno was a professor at Tokyo Imperial University.

Hachikō would meet Ueno at Shibuya Station every day after his commute home. This continued until May 21, 1925, when Ueno died of a cerebral hemorrhage while at work. From then until his death on March 8, 1935, Hachikō would return to Shibuya Station every day to await Ueno's return.

We then got ourselves organized and did the crossing together. Tiffany did not trust me to get lost or stumble and kept a hold on me just in case.

We've done this before and it's still quite an experience to join the current of people.

We then took the elevator up to a rooftop park and play area called Miyashita Park.

The blazing sun made for an uncomfortable time though you wouldn't know it from the glee the boys showed as they climbed all over this sculpture.

We had dinner together at Kazokutei Restaurant. The cool soba noodles were refreshing. It was a nice way to end the day. I do love those fake food displays because you're able to know exactly what you'll be ordering.

I was looking forward to seeing my cousin on the following day.

Thursday: Pokemon! & Friday: Ueno Zoo

Whenever Art and I traveled with the kids, we would wake early and head out to see as many things as we could possibly fit in for that day. 

This is not how our now grown kids travel. They wake late, have breakfast later and spend their day at a more leisurely pace. We decided up front that we would let them set our schedule and we would be following along. 

It took a bit of adjustment on our psyches, but I think we’ve been very good at allowing them to enjoy each day as they would like. And you know what? It’s rather nice this way too.

Thursday: Pokemon!

We took the train to Ikebukuro and since it was now lunch time, went to the TOBU department store and picked up some box lunches which we ate on the roof top dining area.

We just stood in a line with more people since we figured they knew what would be good.

June is the rainy season in Japan but we'd been lucky so far. Amazingly, it was rather unexpectedly chilly so we stopped at a UNIQLO shop where Art could buy a light jacket.

And OK... yes, we stopped at the ubiquitous DAISO and Seria stores. I don't know how we can manage to find so many things we absolutely will probably need when it's costing us only about 70 cents.

Our grandsons are into Pokémon and learned how to play Pokémon Go on a cellphone. I tried and can’t figure out what is going on. They know the names of an astonishing number of the 1,010 Pokémon creatures there are in Pokémon Land. 

The Pokémon Shop is located inside the Sunshine City Alpa Shopping Complex.  The boys could hardly contain their excitement. We’ve seen a few of the Pokémon stuffed toys in Hawaii, but it’s usually Pikachu. Here, we were amazed at the incredible assortment of toy Pokémon characters that were available. And yes, the boys did come out with Pokémon goodies. I could hardly imagine how they were going to fit everything in their luggage.

Friday: Ueno Zoo

A lot of friends and relatives from Hawaii have gone to Japan this year or are planning to in a few months. My nephew, Barry's wife, Miho who is originally from Japan coincidentally had taken our grand niece and nephew to visit her parents in Tokyo. We thought it would be fun for KC, JK and RK to spend time with their cousins.

Tiffany and KC's room were also on the 12th floor like us. Although it has a fancy name, our hotel room was very small with no closet space (merely hooks) to hold a few clothes and a tiny bathroom. Still... it is located in a very convenient place close to the train station.

As you can see, JK is loving my cellphone because he's able to spend the time on the train playing with the Pokemon Go app. Unfortunately, he kept saying, "You lost again, Grandma." 😆

We had agreed up front that we wouldn't go to see the pandas because there's always a long line to see them.

However, we discovered that the line (this time) to see the mature pandas was not long.

The long line was to see the 2 year old little pandas because it happened to be their 2nd birthday.

5 year old RK got an English map and immediately located animals and birds he just had to see. He was running here and there, wanting to take it all in.

The shoebill stork had a bill that definitely looked like a shoe.

There was something about this meerkat that really captured our attention. He kept looking up and then around and we ended up looking where he was looking until I could finally get a good shot of him.

The five cousins had fun getting used to each other and enjoying the animals they were seeing. As tiring as it had to have been for Miho to watch over her two little children, she kindly kept us company giving us lots of advice along the way.

Here, children could write notes on little cards to wish Xiao Xiao and Lei Lei a happy birthday. They were thrilled to see their notes on the bulletin board later.

On the way out of the zoo, we saw a long long line of people waiting to see the panda cubs.

We passed by a lotus field and Art took this photo of us with our little UNIQLO embroidered bags. It was so convenient for us to carry our little travel essentials. Unfortunately, with two young boys, both Keola and Sarah needed bigger backpacks to carry their necessities.

We decided to separate then. Tif and KC wanted to walk the short distance to Niki no Kashi to get (lots of) little snack gifts for friends in Chicago.

We did pass by a shrine on the way there.

Keola, Sarah and the boys went to a Shinto shrine called Nezu. The Nezu Shrine was established in 1705 and is one of the oldest places of worship in the city. Seeing Keola and Sarah's photos, I rather wish we'd gone with them to see it.

But then... there are so many places to see in Japan, we can save it for next time.

Wednesday: Yokohama’s Cup Noodle Museum

When we went down for breakfast on Wednesday, we bumped into another family from Hawaii and had a fun chat. It turned out that they lived on Oahu too!

Once done with breakfast, we went to a coin laundry just a couple of blocks away from the hotel. There was an attendant there who was a marvelous help in understanding how to operate the machines for a very reasonable price.

We then gathered the troops and took the train to Yokohama’s Cup Noodle Museum.

Tiffany had ordered tickets online for 16 year old KC and 7 year old JK to make their own noodles. KC was an absolute angel helping her little cousin decorate his package and then making their noodles from scratch.

Art and I stood outside the glass window watching them for about an hour and a half. Tif thought this noodle making class was for children but most of the participants were definitely much older and there were even some seniors (and I don't mean high school).

Meanwhile the rest of our crew had gone to World Porters next door which is a shopping mall. They’d gone to an animal petting area where they could interact with sloths, capybaras, chicks, etc. 5 year old RK had a fabulous time!

Once KC and JK were done with their noodle making workshop and came out with their own packaged (which they decorated themselves) noodle creations we all got together and decorated our own cup noodles.

We got to choose what kind of seasoning and ingredients we wanted for our own noodle creations.

The noodles were then packed in inflatable balloon bags to bring home. 

Before leaving we had fun seeing the various museum displays of Cup Noodles across the years.

Once that was done, we went across the street to World Porters’ Jonathan’s Restaurant and were served our orders by robots. That was a lot of fun.

Yup. All in all, a very fun day!