Japan Part 2 - Tokyo

After a wonderful time in Kobe and surrounding cities, it was time to explore Tokyo. And since we got a taste of it our first night, we were excited to spend more time!!  We made our train in the morning after a sad goodbye, and made it to Tokyo around lunchtime.  We found our airbnb with relative ease and were pleasantly surprised.  We knew that it would be very small...one big room with a separator...two beds and a sectional couch that turned into a bed...quite cozy.  But it was very equipped, clean and super convenient to the train.

After getting our things settled, we were off to find a place for lunch.  Just around the corner, we found a fantastic ramen noodle restaurant that could actually fit us all!!  This was our biggest concern when going to Japan, but this restaurant had an upstairs, and we had missed the lunch hour, so there was plenty of room.  After eating mostly Japanese food for the days with the Marletts, we were confident that eating would not be a problem in Tokyo, and we were right.  The food was fantastic and there were no complaints!!

After eating, we decided it was time to do some exploring.  The Tokyo Tower didn't look too far away, by eyesight or by GPS, so we went off in search of the Tower.  Tokyo has two buildings known for their views, the Tokyo Tower and Sky Tower,  and we thought that we didn't need to do both.  It was such a gorgeous day...clear and perfect 70's weather...that we wanted to take advantage of the day and see one of them.  We only came to Tokyo with one scheduled event, so the rest we were playing by ear...which is sometimes a little scary when we are a party of 7.

Yummy Ramen

Getting to the Tokyo Tower took about 45 minutes.  The kids were great.  We played in a park on our way, and just enjoyed the beautiful weather, clean city and space!!! As we were headed up to the Tower, this woman started running at us with her camera...lo and behold, it was Jackie Welch!!  The Welch family moved to HK from PA when we did...Andy works with Dave and Jackie and I have become tennis partners this last year.  We knew they were visiting Tokyo, as well, but didn't think they would be there the same time we would since they had a different agenda...fitting in Korea, as well.  We laughed so hard that our families "bumped" into each other, yet again, in a city of millions of people. The same thing happened to us in Beijing!! They were headed up to the Tower, so we all went up together...it was such a fun surprise!!!

My friend, Jackie 

View from the top

When we were done with the Tower, we headed back to the airbnb, Andy and Josh went out to get food, while the rest of us got settled, showered and ready for bed. We were exhausted and had no problems falling to sleep.  The next morning we had some high anticipation...we were headed to Denny's for breakfast.  Unfortunately for us, the menu was a little different than we were familiar with...no chocolate chip pancakes or strawberry waffles (or any waffles).  But there was French toast and eggs...and coffee:) Might not have been exactly what we were expecting, but we were grateful for a restaurant that could fit us all together.

The rest of that day was filled with exploring, shopping, and seeking out Japanese pizza, also called okonomiyaki. We started at the Nakamise Market that leads up to the Sensoji Temple. We definitely ran into crowds we were accustomed to in HK.  It was great shopping, and we enjoyed taking back alleys behind the markets to check out the food...which is where we found our okonomiyaki.  This was a great experience for the kids because is is cooked right in front of you and it was delicious!! Once lunch was over, we headed back to our place, cleaned up, then headed back out to meet another of Andy's Gore Associates and his family.  Yagi-san has been a friend and associate for quite awhile, and has been to our home in PA when he has been there on business.  It was great fun to meet his family and enjoy another new Japanese cuisine called Kushiage, which is deep fried vegetable and meats...this may have been my favorite, and I had never even heard of such a thing! Yes, if you haven't figured it out, Japan is known for their food...and we were confirming that with every meal.  We finally got back late, after hitting Electric town on our way home.  The next day was our last in Tokyo...and it was a surprise to the kids.

Fish market

A wee bit cramped in the corner

A stroll through a beautiful park

A night on the town

We woke them up and told them our destination...Disney Sea!  This is one of two Disney parks in Tokyo...the other being just like Magic Kingdom.  But Disney Sea was very unique and was pretty amazing.  We were pretty blown away by many of the attractions and rides, and really had a great day as a family. We even took Sarah on the Tower of Terror...which may have scarred her for life...but we did it as a family.

Ended the day with a gorgeous sunset...

and some new "fans"

We spent all day at the park, had the best weather, and got back tired and happy.  It was a full on day which the kids, and adults, enjoyed thoroughly.  It was a great ending to our week...a trip that won't soon be forgotten.  In fact, I know I am trying to figure out how I can get back!!