While I’m far behind in reporting on general life around here I must recap on our most current adventures across the big, big pond to Japan as a family. This was a milestone trip for us because it was our first real international travel together as a family and as Bryan said, it was confidence boosting in many ways. The girls were definitely exposed to a world and lifestyle much different than our own. They handled all of the various modes of travel extremely well and for the most part were on great behavior throughout the trip. Reese started off really experimenting with the foods and differences but once she was sick, I think the need for comfort of home and familiarity outweighed any new experiences for her. And I get that. But overall, I’m impressed with the things we saw, did and ate. I would do the trip over again…although I’m good getting over this sickness we have all gotten from it.
So, our Thanksgiving was quite a bit different this year. There was no turkey dinner, or sides, or pie, or get together at all. We had our bags packed and were headed to the airport around 8 am on Thanksgiving morning. We had no issues with departure and were able to enjoy the Alaska lounge for a few hours before boarding our flight. We were able to get coffee and food, stretch out and relax in a more peaceful environment, and the girls love their pancake printer. At noon our flight to Japan boarded and we occupied the four middle seats. We got blankets, and pillows and an accessory pack and two meals were served on the plane. Although our 10-hour flight boarded at noon we made sure not to sleep so that we were more than ready to go to bed once we got to our hotel in Tokyo. We landed at the Narita airport at 4:30 pm their local time, the next day. We spent much longer in the airport than we would have cared for, first through customs and then they couldn’t find our umbrella stroller that we had checked in Seattle so we had to file a claim form with the airport. We got our bags and boarded the Narita Skyliner train for Tokyo. This was about a 40-minute train to one of the subway stations in the city and then we got on a short bus to our hotel, Hotel SAILS in the Taito area of Tokyo.
Checking into our hotel was a good feeling as it was now the middle of the night Seattle time. We had two separate bedrooms, a little kitchenette, a big bath and shower and washing machine. The hotel staff were very friendly and the hotel room was very clean and even had robes/jammies for us to use. After getting settled in we were fast asleep….and then up at the early hour of 4 am.
It took us a little while to adjust to the time difference and for several mornings we were waking up no later than 6 am. And one thing I had read prior to the trip is that businesses start normal hours but many restaurants, museums and other places don’t open until 11 am or so. Even after taking our dear sweet time that first morning we were dressed and out the door by 8 am. Every day was sunny and surprisingly warm for late November. Most days were in the mid-60s and one day even got up to about 70. Glorious! And not a drop of rain! The girls were walking on their own two feet for about a ½ mile to a breakfast place near Ueno Park that had the fluffy souffle pancakes I’ve read and seen. We got there right as they were opening at 8:30 am and got two types of pancakes and a prosciutto toast (and a slice of chocolate cake for Brooke). The food was very good and the staff were friendly and the girls made several in the café laugh as they tested out the bidet in the bathroom, giggling through paper-thin walls.
From breakfast we continued on foot through Ueno Park which was a great adventure. The park was beautiful and we stumbled upon a koi fish market, a bunch of families going to the zoo together, some lovely walking paths, a little playground, some street food that we got to watch and try these little hello kitty bite-sized waffles, and a pop-up Christmas market where we got some photos taken. From there we went to Ueno Station to activate our 72-hour metro cards and took the subway to Shibuya Station. Shibuya Crossing is apparently the most pedestrian traveled intersection in the world. I was expecting a bigger area but we crossed and then shopped at many stores in this area. The girls got to try their hand at Gacha machines for the first time (little toy vending machines) and a claw machine. It became a good lesson for counting money during the trip. We explored Miyashita Park where Bryan watched the end of the Texas vs Texas A&M game and then we grabbed a late lunch/early dinner that was super filling at the all-you-can-eat MoMo Paradise, which is a shabu shabu (hotpot) style place. The girls did great, Reese tried some udon in the broth, meatballs and potstickers. Brooke stuck to rice. Both girls finished the meal with ice cream. We were stuffed and tired already by this point so we explored the Sanrio (Hello Kitty) store some and then took the train home to our hotel for sleep.
On our second day, Bryan and I each got out for a run from our hotel, venturing north towards the Sumida River, with views of the Tokyo Tree over the river in the sun, which was very nice. We had breakfast at our hotel and then headed to the subway station for Ginza, the ritzier area of Tokyo. We headed first to Tokyo Station to find some great ramen underneath the station at Ramen Street. This was an interesting place, a basement filled with many, many highly acclaimed ramen restaurants. We didn’t know what we were doing but chose one that looked good and used a ticket machine to order our food, got a ticket and then waited just a few minutes for a table. It wasn’t long for that or our food but long enough that Brooke fell asleep on me and slept on me all through lunch, all while eating super-hot ramen over her. Mom skills. Reese even enjoyed the thick ramen noodles in the broth that we made a bowl for her. From here we explored Character Street in the station as well but managed to get out of there without buying anything. We headed west and our next stop was a four-story toy shop that I had read about where you can try out all of these toys before buying. This was a cool place and we were able to pick out a few Christmas presents for the girls and birthday presents for Brooke.
Moving on, we headed by subway the short distance to Azabudai for our timed entry at the teamLab Borderless museum. This visual art interactive museum was very cool and I knew the girls would love it. You explore yourself, moving through whatever rooms you want to all of these visually amazing displays with lights and crystals and various elements. There was one room the girls could slide down and there was another room that you could color your own sea life and then a machine would bring it to life on the wall and ceilings. Super cool experience. We headed from there back to our hood by the subway and managed to get tuckered-out Reese to a local izakaya (Japanese tapas of sorts) of a variety of grilled meat kabobs, tempura, and veggies. Yum!
Monday, December 1st was our day at DisneySea. We left the hotel around 7 am and took two subways and the Disney train to get to the line at the entrance a little after 8 am. There was already a hefty line waiting. The park opened at 9 am and we were able to get in not much after that. The park was beautifully stunning and so clean. The attention to detail was super cool but navigating the rides and lines was something else. You have to do a lot of it from your phone which is a little frustrating. We were able to get on one ride right away and booked a rollercoaster for Reese and Bryan right after that. We were off to a good start. Brooke and I headed to Ariel’s Lagoon to enjoy some of the smaller kiddo rides and then we moved on to the Arabian Coast area. We rode a double decker carousel and had a few rides booked with timed entries in the afternoon and were still trying to get the very exclusive access to the Frozen ride for Brooke so we decided to get lunch while we could. For lunch we decided to wait in line in the Mediterranean Village for a lunch that would be more ideal for the girls. Once we got a table, Bryan and I were able to order a four-course holiday special adult meal that was interesting, beautiful and enjoyable while Reese got a Mickey Mouse kids plate of pasta, meatball, and dessert and Brooke a margarita pizza.
After lunch we headed to the Finding Nemo ride that we had booked and this was a fun ride. We then set out back towards the back of the park, first going on the Sinbad ride and then it happened, we got Elsa. We hurried over to the ride and skipped the 180-minute line and it was a very fun and magical ride. We went on Rapunzel’s Tangled ride next which was quite lame and then Bryan and Brooke went to the Tinkerbell ride while Reese and I went to the 3D Peter Pan ride, which Reese said was her favorite. After this, we had done most that we could. The Indiana Jones ride was unfortunately closed and the Toy Story and Tower of Terror lines were too long. We took the electric train to the American Harbor and explored the US Columbia ship that they had. We took in the lights and had hoped to stay for the show and fireworks but it was still two hours before that would happen and we were still not time adjusted. Reese had fallen asleep in the stroller (yes, SeaTac had still had it and had it shipped to us the day after we arrived) and Brooke fell asleep on me as we were exiting the park. We got back to our hotel and both girls continued to be passed out and the parents had survived.
The next day we could tell that Reese was feeling a little under the weather but not a full-blown sickness yet. I went for another beautiful run along the river and we took some time getting ready in the morning. We then set out by subway again to explore another area of Tokyo, Yogogi Park and Harajuku. We first got off at Yoyogi Park, explored an interesting children’s playground and then got a kid-friendly lunch of burgers and hotdogs and milkshakes at a place next to the park called Arms Burger. From there we walked to the north edge of the park to the Yoyogi Pony Park where they have a free and open pony brushing and riding session everyday starting at 1:30 pm. We got there a little early, bought a drink from the ever-present vending machines, and met another mom with her two kids from Australia (an English speaker!). Then the girls each got a turn to brush and pet the pony before riding them around the corral. The girls would love to ride horses more, both were so happy and content on them.
From there we walked through the park to the Meiji Jingu shrine. We had promised the girls to rent bikes from the Yoyogi Park Cycle Center for their adjacent cycling field for kids but we had to walk all the way around the park to get there and after coercing them (and carrying them) the 30-minute walk we get there to find it closed for some sort of cleaning/renovation. Major bummer. We walked back into Harajuku which I had heard was the hipster area of Tokyo. There were a lot of coffee shops and some narrow streets but we did a little shopping but were mostly tired, in need of food and a good night’s sleep. We settled on dinner at a basement restaurant on one of the main streets for gyukatsu which is essentially a good steak, lightly coated in panko and then you finish searing it on your own little skillet. This came with rice, miso and cabbage and an assortment of dips, sauces and spices which was very fun to kind of explore how you liked it and fun to cook it. After dinner we headed home for our last night in Tokyo.
On Wednesday we woke up, packed our bags, and were greeted with the first cloudy morning and some very light mist. We checked out around 9 am with all of our bags and stroller and took the train to Toyosu in Tokyo as I had purchased tickets to the KidZania there. I was very excited about this experience and so were the girls but Reese was now full-blown sick, very low energy, lethargic and had chills. She still wanted to go and was a trooper up until we were just about to leave at 2 pm. This was such a fantastic experience though. Each girl got a job sheet schedule and first got themselves open with a bank account and a debit card where they deposited the 50 KidZania dollars they were given to start.
They then proceeded to try their hand at a variety of jobs of their choosing that each lasted somewhere between 30 minutes and 1 hour and could earn more money doing each job. They were each a baker and made fresh, delicious croissants, then a lab scientist and made a yogurt drink they got to enjoy, then they signed up to be a makeup artist and loved this (although they did have to “fix” Brooke’s eyeshadow), then they were flight attendants and were assigned the food and beverage service and I was a passenger. Reese hit her limit at this point so she cashed out with Bryan and I took Brooke over to the hospital to be the eye surgeon which was certainly the most entertaining to witness from the hospital window. They then withdrew their money with their debit card from the ATM and could shop at the KidZania department store to leave with a goodie.
We got our bags back and headed to the bus to go to Tokyo Station to catch the high-speed train to Kyoto. We had assigned seats and I was grateful that Bryan had actually been on this train before. It took about 2 hours (I think) to travel all the way to Kyoto, only stopping three times on the way. We arrived at the Kyoto Station around 7 pm, then took the JR rail to the Nijo Castle stop and had an 8-minute walk to our new apartment hotel. This was a very cool apartment. We again had two bedrooms, which is great when traveling with kids. We had a nice big bed in a big bedroom and the girls had some pretty comfy mattress that were on the floors. We were again given jammies and house shoes for our stay. We had two more toilets with bidets and a huge jacuzzi tub. The coolest feature was the living room/kitchenette that had a table inlaid in the floor with cushions and a temperature control to heat the floor for your feet under the table. Loved this! Reese was so tuckered she went straight to bed which meant we had to go out to bring dinner back. I managed to find a ramen shop offering takeout but that was quite the experience because once I was back home, I realized that the noodles weren’t cooked and the broth itself was frozen solid so we had to do a little kitchen work to get dinner together, thankfully the girls were already asleep.
Our first full day in Kyoto was Brooke’s birthday. I had picked up some donuts for her to have that morning. The girls were really wanting an easy day, Reese was still quite sick and Brooke was just wanting to hang with her. While they soaked in the jacuzzi, I explored the nearby market which was super close to our apartment and very cool. I was in search of a pizza lunch for Brooke to bring back and some slices of cake for her birthday. Managed to find both after some time but didn’t have cash so Bryan went out exploring and to buy the cake later that day.
That afternoon we finally got the girls out to explore the nearby Nijo Castle, which Brooke immediately fell asleep in the stroller for. We then went back to the local market to a kimono store and the girls each got a beautiful kimono and sandal set from a very nice lady. We went to dinner for Brooke’s birthday at a place that specializes in tempura dishes and very cheap food and beer and it was so much fun. They sell all pieces by the price so we tried a bunch of different skewers, a bunch of tempura shrimp for me, a bunch of $1.50 beers for Bryan, the girls enjoyed the soda that they got, the fries, the edamame, and rice and tempura sausage. We headed home to sing to Brooke and have the slices of cake we got earlier. I think Brooke enjoyed her birthday just fine.
We had two more days in Kyoto and Japan and the weather was still much the same, Reese was slowly getting better, but I think both girls were starting to miss their home, their foods, their bed, etc. But we were still having fun. For the first day we set out on foot to explore the Nishiki Market. This was like the market next to our apartment hotel but much, much bigger. Reese tried a snoopy pancake with peanut paste filling and a cup of strawberries with chocolate fondue and Bryan and I tried some scorching hot octopus fritters. Literally burned the inside of my mouth on these. We also got some chicken skewers a la 7-11, if only our 7-11 were anything like the ones in Japan. We then got two e-bikes for rent with kid’s seats on the back, one for Reese’s size and one for Brooke’s size. We set out on a 3-hour rental and headed north along the Kamo River to the starting point of the Philosopher’s Path. This pedestrian/biking narrow street winds along a little creek lined with shops and was just really peaceful and idyllic. We stopped first at the Nanzen-Ji temple and then continued through Maruyama Park and into the tangled web of neighborhoods in east Kyoto which are cool and highly photographed but weren’t maybe the most bike friendly. We then headed back west to drop the girls at our apartment for a warming soak in the jacuzzi while I returned the bikes. Bryan picked us up a huge sushi platter for dinner and KFC for the girls, lol.
And on our last day we didn’t really know what we were up for but Bryan picked out a cool adventure setting out north of the city to take the cable car and ropeway up to Mount Hiei. The views of the city and the large Lake Biwa were magnificent on this sunny day and we caught our first dusting of snow on the ground at the top of the mountain. Brooke learned that she actually does like hot chocolate, just not when it is so hot. We made our way back to our place for the girls to have one more soak in the jacuzzi before we set out for our last dinner in Japan, to grill our own meats yakiniku style. This was fun and Bryan certainly enjoyed all of the red meat. Girls did great again, eating and coloring and sealed the deal with really the first ice cream of the trip.
Sunday was our day of departure but I was really wanting to get out for a jog so I set out early morning in the brisk but beautiful weather towards the northwest part of town, hoping to be able to see the Golden Pavilion. It was a 5-mile round-trip run and the entire journey up to the temple was slightly uphill. Unfortunately, the gates were not open until 8 am and so I couldn’t see the temple from the street but I enjoyed the scenery on the way back, nonetheless.
Back home, showered, packed up, breakfast eaten, and we started our epic adventure back to our house in Seattle. Light rail to Kyoto Station, Shinkansen fast train to Tokyo Station, subway to Nippori Station, Narita airport train to the airport, wait for the gate to open to check our luggage, 9-hour flight “overnight” to Seattle, light rail to Beacon Hill Station, bus to home. Ahhh. I had access to the lounge in the Tokyo Airport but only for two of us and Reese was starving and really wanting to go. We decided to do something we rarely do, split up. Reese and I enjoyed the lounge and Bryan and Brooke went to go get pizza and ice cream. Both of the girls I think needed a little distance from each other and enjoyed the solo time with each of us so this was actually a win. Reese and I enjoyed the peace of the lounge for a little bit and then all reunited for the flight. Flight was super smooth and had no issues other than only sleeping for a wink, but the girls probably got a good 7 hours of sleep in.
Happy to be back and happy for the memories and experiences. Japan was a very cool visit and some place I would visit again. We felt safe, comfortable, and in awe at many times. It’s a beautiful country and exceptionally clean. Reese would also now like a bidet for Christmas!
—
Chelsea
