Halloween in Shibuya

I've told you before about the craziness of Shibuya (the busiest crosswalk in the world). Well we decided to check it out on Halloween. It was wall to wall people. Something akin to New Years Eve in Time Square.






It was hard to get pics of people from the front it was so busy you just moved in the sea of people with your hands at your sides. It was AWESOME!

The police were out in full force. This was the first year they actually shut down a number of the streets to vehicular traffic.

What I learned... If you can dress up as something and then make yourself dead you are one cool individual. I saw dead Marios, Pokemons, brides, Playboy bunnies, Disney princesses, you name it, they made it dead. It was incredibly entertaining.

I Love Toy Story!

Power Rangers in Japan made me giggle.

There were plenty of people I just had no words for. There were a few I wish I could scrub from my brain, but my all time favorite was the Ramen Noodles. 

I Just Couldn't Help Myself...

I found these at the 100 yen store (Dollar Store) in the office supply section. I actually did a double take and busted out laughing. (Here you get a glimpse of my inappropriate mind) 

In their defense they were next to these but it didn't stop me from laughing.

Hello Kitty

For all you men out there who just love Hello Kitty and can't find anything to wear to sport your obsession worry no more. Hello Kitty Men Pop Up Store just opened for your trendy pleasure. ROFL...

Impressive

I've never been much of a "back into a space" kind of girl. I can make it happen if I need to but will drive around the block a few times to avoid it (that and parallel parking). I saw this with Scott the other night and I just have to say I'm impressed. When you have carparks this thin you really don't have much choice than to park this way or to crawl through your sun roof to exit your vehicle, which is what I would be doing. Reason #5 why I don't drive here.

Just Say "No"

These billboards are all over the city and they just give me the shivers every time I see them. There is nothing "sexy" about this group of boys. Boys are not sexy! I could be just getting old, but these kids can't be more than 14 or 15, right?!? They need to slap their agent for giving them such a terrible name. However, if interested they apparently have a new album that just released. LOL

Apologies, but Our Stuff is Here!

     I am so sorry I've been absent for the past week. We finally got our sea shipment. WOOHOO!!! Let me tell you 8 weeks is a very long time to live with minimal rented furniture. We were all so happy to have our own beds. Oh how I have missed my bed! The kids were ecstactic to get their toys back. What I would give to have had my phone on me when Lincoln did a crazy dance after seeing his skateboards. It was hilarious! Payton disappeared for two days just playing with all her stuff. Between working on homework and regular life stuff I've been unpacking. I'm trying to keep my house from looking like this for too much longer. I'm sure anyone who as ever moved can relate. This keeps me up at night....

     Here is a stack of the all the boxes I've unloaded so far and I still have 3-4 rooms to go. I can safely say, "we have a lot of crap," but I am grateful for every bit of it. Home isn't a home until you are surrounded with your masses of accumulated junk. :)

         It was a wonderful birthday present. However, anyone that knows me, knows my birthday is jinxed. My birthday misfortunes have never failed me in all the ummm 21 years I've been alive. LOL I was a little stressed when I found out our stuff was due the day before my birthday. I could only imagine the ship going down during a hurricane, maybe just my container slipping off into the depths of the ocean, the Japanese government deciding to keep it in holding for a few more weeks, the possibilities were endless. Well, I am happy to say nothing as bad as all that happened, but they did confiscate some of our good meds. Like Advil Cold and Sinus, Migraine meds, and a few others. How did they find them you ask? Well that's where my crappy birthday comes into play. They randomly select a few boxes to Xray on your shipment. Seriously! I guess, you win some you loose some. Scott just has a few more things added to his "to buy when he goes to the states" list. Give me a few more days and I'll be back to posting as normal. I'll post a few pics of our apartment all finished.

Little Things

     Whenever you go into a restaurant here, be it McDonalds or a small hole in the wall that only seats 6 people (a lot more common than you would think) they offer you these little wet wipes. They are called "Oshibori" which means "to wring." If you go into the nicer restaurants you actually get a wash cloth. It is to wipe and clean your hands before you eat. Did I mention how clean it is here? It's an OCD sufferers dream! In the summer and warmer months they offer you these little wipes cold and in the colder months you can expect them warmed up. It's just another little thing that makes all the difference. Especially in a city of pedestrians when you touch who knows how many potentially germ infested handrails while walking up the ridiculous amounts of stairs here.

Kawagoe Part 2

At one time Kawagoe (pronounced Ka-wa-gô-a), had its own castle. There isn't much left due to the destruction of a major earthquake in 1923 and World War II. 

It was still interesting to see. Ignorantly when I thought about moving to Japan this was the style of home I thought we would be living in.  Not as big of course but same idea. I was very wrong but so wish that wasn't the case. The simplicity in this style sings to me. 

The last few pictures are from another area left standing of the castle grounds. The grounds were fairly extensive. This was a good 8-10 minute walk from the above location. We found this really fun bridge, unfortunately it was later in the day and this place was like a ghost town. So, I'm not in the picture. O'well.

 It was only about an hour away and well worth the trip. It was a fun place to experience. The castles here are so not the castles in Europe that I am used to. I can't wait to explore the rest of them.

Kawagoe Part 1

I apologize in advance this post is going to have to go into two sections. Too many pics to share. The day was also terribly overcast so the sky is really washed out but you get the gist. We had so much fun in this part of Tokyo.

Kawagoe is nicknamed "Little Edo," it shows you a glimpse of 19th century Edo. Edo was the former name of Tokyo dating from around 1600 to the late 1860s.



This particular part of town was once a warehouse or storehouse district. You can get a sense of the kura buildings from the pictures.

They were built from durable timber, with thick clay walls, heavy durable shutters and have tiled rooves.

The street was packed full of people. They had all sorts of stores to shop at from clothing to food.

I did say there was fun shops right?!?

A few streets over from here was "Candy Lane." This little area (and I do mean little, a very narrow street) was just a sugar fanatic's dream.We had to sample some of the candy for ourselves just to make sure it was good. It was, no worries. 

This area also has a ton of little temples tucked away down narrow streets you would never think to venture down. They are so breathtaking. 

Good Times but a Little Soggy

     We took Payton to Shinagawa Aqua Park today. Her brothers have been gone the past 5 days on a super fun school field trip and we only felt it fair she get to do something fun too. Let me tell you this place was a blast! At first I was a little skeptical as we made our way through the fish tanks with teeny tiny fish and plastic Japanese people floating in them. (I'm sorry I failed you and didn't take a pic.) It was strange. They have a very pretty merry go round and that ship ride everyone loves at carnivals for you enjoyment and a little extra money. We came to see the dolphin show. I heard it was good and it didn't disappoint.

     Some of these guys were just ginormous! I'm pretty sure they were some kind of whale, but once again limited Japanese here. Payton insisted on sitting in the front row. Lame mom and dad who didn't want to get wet sat 6 rows back. We gave her some popcorn, a drink and pulled a poncho over her head. She was one happy camper.

Even when she got wet. 

     One of my favorite things was the family corner where every half hour or so they bring out a new animal to introduce. We stayed for the sea lion one. Even though we couldn't understand a darn thing they were saying (aside from please and thank you, we have these words down) it was still entertaining. There just something about an animal acting like a human that tickles your funny bone. I also have to say it's not very often you get to selfie this close to a sea lion. FYI he stunk like fish.  

Overall we had a great time. They had some pretty big fish to take a look at. The jelly fish room was a sight to behold. I'm sure we will find our way here again with the boys in tow. 

Pumpkin Chocolate Fries

You can pick them up at your local Japanese McD's during the Halloween season. Yup, they sound aweful when you first think about it. I was skeptical, but once you really put some thought into it fried and chocolate anything is kind of a no brainer.

We are a Disappointment!

     I really enjoy talking to my Japanese friends who tell me how they see America and I share with them how I see Japan. We really are from two different worlds. One day our conversation was about the vending machines. Apparently America, we are doing it wrong! While visiting the states it is very disappointing to find only soda in the vending machines. "Is that all we drink?" Well, let's save that sticky topic for another day. (Ha, pun intended) When the Japanese go to a vending machine, and they are EVERYWHERE here, they expect a little variety. Anywhere from Coke, to water, to Powerade, to iced coffee or tea. We really need to step up our game. To top it all off most of the time they are around 100-150 yen (about $1-1.50).

Meiji Jingu

One of the things I love about Tokyo is the parks. They are beautiful and plentiful. It's a little chunk of peace in a very busy city. The Meiji Jingu Shinto Shrine is tucked away in a breath-taking piece of Yoyogi park. The first thing you come across is the Torii gate, which marks the transition to the sacred area. Then you walk through the forest of 100,000 trees, which were planted during the shrine's construction.

     The Meiji Shrine was built and dedicated to the Emperor Meiji and his consort, Empress Shoken. There were quite a few people here. I read during the beginning of the year over 3 million people visit the shrine to offer their first prayers of the year.

     We were lucky enough to witness a traditional Shinto Wedding while we were here. (Sorry no pics, seemed a little rude to post someone else's wedding pictures.) It was very beautiful and the clothing was sublime. I am just in awe of the kimono here.

     Our main goal in visiting this site was for a family picture for the in-laws. Let me tell you how inept people are at taking you photo. Makes me not feel bad for all the terrible ones I have taken for fellow travelers over the years. It didn't help that our kids were incapable of smiling normal. Not to mention I was suffering from the flu. O'well this is us a little disheveled and only half focused on what is going on. 

Recycle...It's complicated.

      Aaahhhh! I fondly remember the days when my recycling consisted of barely rinsing out bottles and jars, and depositing taped up boxes all in the same blue bin, to which I would have one of my children cart out to the street once a week.
     Japan has taken recycling to a whole new level. A wise friend stated, "If Japanese recycling had a relationship status it would read, 'It's complicated.'" They aren't whistling dixie. Don't they know I couldn't even get my husband to throw the recycle in the one size fits all recycle bin when it was right next to the regular trash? They are killing me! Here is a bi-fold out just going over the do's and don'ts.

     We have the normal recycle, cans, glass, paper and plastic (we use a lot of this it has it's own big bin) but we have to clean and sort it all. What?!?
     You have to remove the labels and caps from plastic bottles and they go in seperate (yes seperate) recycle areas. You have to remove the labels from the jars and cans. And not all plastic is created equal some can be burned, some recycled some...well who knows what they do with the rest.
   
     That brings me to the combustable and non-combustable garbage. Japan burns about 50 million tons of garbage annually. I'm currently taking an environmental health class for school. I can't wait until I get to learn about how terrible the air is here. So, what is combustable you ask? Well pretty much anything you can imagine setting fire to that doesn't go into one of 50 (slight dramatization) separate garbage bins. They have a small list of non-combustables, but I don't come across them very often.
     I will have to say I do like that I don't have to go very far to dispose of all of my trash. Just a quick walk out my front door to this handy little area. I put it on it's appropriate shelf close the door and little elves come and collect it while I'm sleeping. It's like magic. They are awesome! I'm sure at some point I'm going to get a letter from said elves telling me how I'm not sorting things correctly. I have had friends here who have gotten them. But until then, they are my peeps, and I'm grateful for their magic.