Mom and Em visit Tokyo Disney Sea

This is the last in the series of Mom & Em's visit. The previous posts are these: Hokkaido, Kamakura 1, Kamakura 2, and Asakusa. Gotta finish posting before Mandie comes!

これはお母さんと妹の日本で旅行の時。前のは北海道と鎌倉１と鎌倉２と浅草。他の妹は今月来るから、その前に終わるのほうがいい。

We had planned to go to Tokyo Disney Sea the day before Mom & Em’s last day in Japan, but Em had a fever and needed rest, so we had a slow day in our far-too-small-to-spend-a-day-in hostel room.

Em hadn’t learned to swallow pills whole so the day was filled with finding things she felt up to eating, grinding pills with honey to make cough syrup and keeping her feeling ok.

The next day we got up and she was feeling much better, so we decided to see how she did at Tokyo Disney Sea.

We road their tram to the part of the park we wanted to get to and were amazed to find that even the handles were Mickey Mouse themed.

We made friends with Pluto immediately after our entrance to the park.

The weather was perfect for roaming Tokyo Disney Sea.

One of our favorite rides was one that soaked you. It felt so good on a hot Tokyo day with very high humidity.

Around lunch time, we ended up in the basement of Tokyo Disney Sea in the Mermaid Lagoon. It was fun capturing the movement of everything in the changed light and to get out of the hot sun for a bit.

The ceiling had fun reflective swirls all over it.

Time to use the flash so I can get the girls on that ride over there.

Smoking fish aren’t allowed on the ride.

Also, no dancing.

Finally a ride where we were able to snap a photo of mom on a ride.

Waiting for the magic carpet ride.

We got on!

The awesome, clothing soaking ride.

The Tower of Terror is in the background. Em was so excited to ride it, but it’s significantly less scary when the narration is in a voice you don’t understand.

Some brand-new Minnie ears watching a show.

Making a hamburger, Disney-style.

Bento Mikoshi and dancing festival foods.

The boat made for a pretty scene.

We stayed until the park closed, riding as many rides as we could. By the time we finally got back to the hostel it was just after midnight and we still hadn’t had dinner. Thankfully the hostel had a pretty good café open 24-7.

The next day Mom and Em flew out, and I began the count down till summer vacation (2 weeks later) when I would get to see them again.

Mom and Em visit Asakusa

After navigating the Tokyo Subway system we arrived in Asakusa and found the shopping area leading up to Kaminari-Mon (Thunder Gate). We had a lot of fun stopping at the random shops to look at things.

Mom got one of these cute little ones for her Christmas tree – not exactly what it’s meant for, I’m sure, but it will make a great ornament.

We tried freshly made dango (balls of mochi with kinako powder on them).

These ladies were preparing the dango for the customers.

The Skytree was playing hide and seek while we were walking around.

Kaminari-mon at the end of the shopping street.

A cute posed shot.

Making new friends.

Look at how crowded the place was!

The Sky Tree came out to play again.

The hand-washing station at Kaminari-mon.

Emi-ya! We found the Emi store. Do you have an Emi to match ours?

After walking around in the rain, we decided on Kaiten-Sushi (the sushi that goes around and you pick what you want). Unfortunately we got there after the lunch rush, so there wasn’t anything going around. But this nice sushi chef took our order and even tried to speak a little English.

More of the many faces of Em.

A Sakura (cherry blossom) tea.

Mom’s new favorite Japanese beer.

Mom & Em visit Kamakura 2

On our second day in Kamakura, we rented bikes and road around Kamakura. It was one of Em’s favorite things on the whole visit.

Our first stop was Hasedera Temple, just a few blocks up from the beach.

I found this little pond interesting. It had the swastika shape, but Japan doesn't use it like the rest of the world, it’s one of the markers for temples or shrines on maps. The lake had that shape.

You can kind-of see it’s interesting shape here.

I’m not sure what these guys are for, but I find the lines and lines of them fascinating.

I loved how green Kamakura was.

Ajisai (Hydrangea)! It was one of my new words while we were in Kamakura.

I’m not sure why the ones in Japan have this different shape, but I think it makes them more photogenic than the American ones that end up being a big ball.

The statues at the temples and shrines have a very interesting texture after sitting out in the weather year-round.

The view, which would have been much better if it hadn't been so cloudy.

At this temple, we found a very cool shrine that went into the mountain. It was a tunnel shrine.

Here it is from inside.

After walking all around that temple, we were hungry so we went for Okonomiyaki and Yakisoba.

The fun of this type of shop is you get to make your own, right on the table.

After lunch we found the beach and played in true Oregonian style, in the rain.

Mom and Em needed combini pics. Mom’s got Ume (plumb) soda.

And Em found an “American Dog.” This growing kid was so-so on

many Japanese foods, but we couldn't ever seem to feed her too much.

After some more bike riding, we made it to Tsurugaoka Hachimangu Shrine.

Some shots of the temple as we walked up to it.

We managed to find ourselves at the temple on Tanabata, so the trees were decorated for the holiday.

I love all the intricate folding that goes into Origami.

A few more shots of the area around the temple.

This was Em’s favorite part of every temple we visited – it was hot and getting a bit wet always felt really good.

The many faces of Em.

But I knew if I waited long enough, I’d get that cute smile.

The fortunes always make interesting photos.

The streamers are hung for Tanabata.

The area near the station had also been decorated for Tanabata.