In October, we had an excellent time when our friends Jamie and Colleen visited us from South Carolina. We had so many adventures I don't even know where to begin. We spent several days in Tokyo and were able to visit Tokyo Disney Sea, The Meiji Shrine, and Odaiba. The kids really enjoyed swimming at the New Sanno....one of our favorite Tokyo hotels. While at the Meiji Shrine we witnessed a traditional Japanese wedding ceremony, the bride was absolutely beautiful and it was neat to see how the ceremony progressed. We made several trips to Odaiba and got lost several times getting there. Driving in Tokyo is sort of like drving in downtown New York City......but all of of the signs are in Japanese. During our adventures we were able to meet some very friendly Japolice when we were pulled over. We still aren't sure why we were pulled over! They didn't speak any English, and when they realized that we were a van full of Americans who spoke little to no Japanese they just smiled, rambled something in Japanese, and let us go on our way. They did point us in the right direction though. There is one advantage to getting lost in Tokyo......we had many many many opportunities to drive over the Rainbow Bridge where we had wonderful views of the Tokyo Bay. We took a day trip to the Yokohama Ramen Museum but found that we all prefer our cheap ramen that we find near the Navy Base. Then, we ended that day by watching the movie "Ramen Girl". I highly recommend watching it if you want to see the museum and learn a little about Japanese culture. We also visited the Mt. Fuji area while the Nix's were in town. We drove on some pretty curvy mountainous roads that were barely wide enough for one car.....let alone two! We visited Yunessun, a natural hot spring water park. Everyone enjoyed basking in giant baths of Green Tea, Coffee, Sake, Honey water, Sea Salt, Potato water, and so many more. The Japanese believe that each bath has different healing properties. We also went to the bath of "foot fish". It is a giant hot tub that you place your feet in and there are hundreds of tiny fish that nibble on the dead skin on your feet........YUCK! This is very popular here in Japan.....for both hands and feet! One of my favorite things that we did with the Nix's was taking a sightseeing boat ride on Lake Ashi. This is a giant crater formed by Mt. Fuji's volcanic activity hundreds of years ago. The area was absolutely beautiful! Unfortunately, even though we were at the base of Mt. Fuji, we weren't able to see it because of all of the clouds. The Nix's stayed for 2 weeks. We ate at all of our favorite restaurants and visited lots of our favorite spots. It was so fun to have visitors! You are all welcome.....just let us know when YOU are up for a visit!
Which way do we go......which way do we go........if only we could read the sign....
Japan really knows children's entertainment....these furry little pandas were all over the place.....you pop in 200 yen and get a 2 minute ride on the giant furry panda!
We look like the locals right?????? NOT! I'm not sure how.....but they all knew that we weren't from Japan!
Our sightseeing boat wasn't quite this cool....who knew there were Pirates in Japan?
Curvy roads ahead! We tried to get some pictures of the Monkey Crossing signs but we were too distracted by the narrow curvy roads........seriously!
Tori gates on the edge of Lake Ashi.....so pretty!
Jamie and Colleen on our tour boat.
This is the entrance to the "Onsen" (hot springs) water park.
We were eathing at Pepper Lunch. This is Jamie's favorite restaurant. They bring your raw meat and rice to you on a hot hot hot cast iron skillet. It finishes cooking at your seat while you stir it. It is really "Oishe" (delicious!)
Look at Colleen's face......she was not diggin' the Ramen. It was very fishy! You pay to try different bowls of ramen in different ramen restaurants. Some were ok, and some were really really bad. I think it would helped if we could have read some of the signs to know what we were actually eating!
Me and Calvin at the entrance to the Ramen Museum. It was set up like a small Japanese town in the 1940's.
A Japanese Bride and Groom at a traditional wedding ceremony at the Meiji Shrine in Tokyo.
Which way do we go......which way do we go........if only we could read the sign....
Japan really knows children's entertainment....these furry little pandas were all over the place.....you pop in 200 yen and get a 2 minute ride on the giant furry panda!
We look like the locals right?????? NOT! I'm not sure how.....but they all knew that we weren't from Japan!
Our sightseeing boat wasn't quite this cool....who knew there were Pirates in Japan?
Curvy roads ahead! We tried to get some pictures of the Monkey Crossing signs but we were too distracted by the narrow curvy roads........seriously!
Tori gates on the edge of Lake Ashi.....so pretty!
Jamie and Colleen on our tour boat.
This is the entrance to the "Onsen" (hot springs) water park.
We were eathing at Pepper Lunch. This is Jamie's favorite restaurant. They bring your raw meat and rice to you on a hot hot hot cast iron skillet. It finishes cooking at your seat while you stir it. It is really "Oishe" (delicious!)
Look at Colleen's face......she was not diggin' the Ramen. It was very fishy! You pay to try different bowls of ramen in different ramen restaurants. Some were ok, and some were really really bad. I think it would helped if we could have read some of the signs to know what we were actually eating!
Me and Calvin at the entrance to the Ramen Museum. It was set up like a small Japanese town in the 1940's.
A Japanese Bride and Groom at a traditional wedding ceremony at the Meiji Shrine in Tokyo.
1 comment:
We had such a wonderful time with the Conways!!! They are wonderful friends and hosts, and definitely know how to show you a good time!!! Everyone who can should make a trip to Japan. It is a beautiful country with so much to do and see!!! Thank you Conway clan for helping us experience so much culture and fun, and make such wonderful memories with you!!
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