Enoshima 江の島　is a tiny island that is part of Fujisawa City in Kanagawa.  From Tokyo it’s around a 2 hour drive.  We had a nice little day trip there with the kids.  They managed to climb up all the steps that lead to a small cave on the further end of the island.  For a small fee, there is an escalator that goes up to the top of a hill, where there is a lighthouse observatory deck. Otherwise, you can walk up to the temple (in honor of the goddess of music and the atrs) and continue up through a pretty garden and to the observatory. From that point, you can walk balk down towards the small cave. Entering the cave was a bit scary for the kids as it was rather dark. We learned that the waters surrounding Enoshima was believed to be the home of a giant dragon that ravaged the island, until the the goddess known as Benten married him.

Just be warned that if you take the kids down this way all the way to the cave, they will have to walk back up as there is no alternative way out. We had a few complaints going back up, but nothing that couldn’t be resolved with a frosty popsicle break at one of the many cafes overlooking the water.

Lunch was shirasu (teeny tiny white fish that you eat whole), which is popular there. Here is the large okosama lunch set (お子様ランチセト) kids plate with shirasu over rice and topped with a bit of ikura, ebi fry, french fries, sweet egg, yakult and jelly for dessert.

We woke up Tuesday morning and decided it would be a nice day to finally check out Tokyo Disney Sea Resort. We haven’t been there before since we heard that it’s more fun for adults than younger kids. But since grandma is in town, the kids are older now and we can actually travel stroller-free (wooohooo!), we figured it could be a nice change from Tokyo Disney to see recreated 1920’s New York City, Venice canals and Arabian night scenery… and Arisa would still get to see Mickey and Minnie.

For last-minute planning the day went quite well. My friend was kind enough to give me a coupon that she found in the newspaper, making the tickets 4,800 yen for adults and 2,900 yen for children ages 4 – 11. There are usually special discounts coupons lurking about- so it’s good to check the convenience stores or newspapers ads or just ask friends if they know of any.

What made it extra lucky that day was the lack of crowds! We managed to go on a lot of rides, even the usually long-wait-time rides like Indiana Jones, without waiting at all.  The longest wait that day was probably 10 minutes. Even the line to wait for a photo with Minnie was not half as long as the typical wait time to pose with Mickey in his house. We attributed it to the fact that it was a Tuesday and a couple of weeks after Golden Week, so most people were are taking any days of f on the weekday or traveling much after GW.

It was quite an enjoyable day! The kids had fun and there were enough rides for them to go on. Arisa especially enjoyed the Mermaid Lagoon area, where they rode the jelly fish ride which goes up and down. To my surprise, they even rode Flounder’s Fish Coaster, which looked pretty fast. Keiji enjoyed the Aquatopia ride, which look like mini hovercrafts that spin around the water. Although they did say they like Disneyland more at the end of the night as we walked out into the empty parking lot, it seemed that they had a pretty good time.  The one drawback of the day – strong winds. So the evening show and fireworks were cancelled.  Other than that, it was a lovely day indeed.

In the States we know her as Hello Kitty, but here in Japan she is Kitty-chan and she can be found at Sanrio Puroland (pronounced pyuroland, but I’m not sure what this means).  It’s an indoor little “theme park”  but there is really only one ride, which is similar to Disneyland’s Its a Small World. Puroland mostly has different shows. There are 3 or 4 different mini theaters in there with performances of about 20 – 30 minutes long. The most impressive one was a show with Kitty-chan performing as Dorothy in the Wizard of Oz. It was a collaboration with the Takarazuka Theater Group, which is famous in Japan as an all-women’s theater group and at each of their performances they do a very elaborate revue of Rockettes-style dancing and grandiose costumes – think feathers, sparkles and plenty of headgear. And yes, Kitty-chan was dressed in all this Vegas splendor. There is also a small parade twice a day and Kitty-chan’s house, where you can have a photo taken with her. The crowd is mostly parents (or mothers) with their young daughters, but Yuki and Keiji managed to enjoy themselves enough as well!

There are more Halloween options lately. We went to the Omotesando Halloween event. There is some sort of stamp rally where you go to shops, collect stamps on a sheet of paper then hand it in for some treats.  We were a bit late, so instead we headed straight to Omotendao Hills where there were some short performances like a clown and magician. And you could have your photos taken.  Kawasaki has their yearly parade in La Citadella, but we didn’t get a chance to go there this year. Instead, my in-laws took the kids to a small Halloween event for kids in Harumi Triton Plaza. Can you guess their costumes this year?

Hakone has been a popular weekend getaway spot for Tokyoites and for that reason, Yuki and I have never been there before. I happened to see a special deal for the Fujiya Hotel in Miyanoshita, so I insisted we check out this popular place at least once in our life. The place was one of the first hotels in that area to cater to foreign dignitaries and celebrities visiting Japan, from the early 1920’s. The hallway was adorned with lots of black and white photos of  their guests, including John Lennon, Charlie Chaplin, various royalty, etc.  The facade of the hotel is lovely and the rooms and surrounding gardens are quite spacious. Being in the Western-sized room I sort of felt transported back in time and imagined how it was for people back them to travel to Hakone from Tokyo or perhaps from Yokohama where the ships docked. I’m sure the Western environment was a relief for the tired, homesick guests. Parts of the hotel could really use some renovation, though. The layers of paint on the walls reminded me of old Manhattan and Brooklyn apartments, revealing the many years the building has been standing. Each room has onsen water running in the bath. I’m not sure about other rooms – the tub in our room was clean, again sort of reminded me of an old Brooklyn apartment, so it didn’t exactly make me feel like it was onsen water. The public bath is rather small as well, so not a place to go if you are looking for an onsen experience. I was disappointed that we couldn’t wear the yuaktas outside of our rooms…which is a pretty typical feature in other onsen hotels. Perhaps I’m being overly critical. The kids had a blast though. There is an indoor heated pool next to the public onsen area i

n the hotel. The French restaurant in the hotel seems quite popular for their curry, but unfortunately we didn’t get to sample the food there. It’s definitely an interesting place to visit and take some photos, but for an onsen experience in Hakone, there are probably better overnight options.

We didn’t get to go to the Museum of Modern Art this time around, but it’s one of the places I hope to take the kids on the next visit. I’m all for encouraging kids’ boundless imagination and creativity. We’d go when Keiji when he was just about 1 1 /2 years old and it was always very enjoyable for everyone.

I’m very grateful that Auntie Jackie and Grandma insisted we take the kids to the 5th Avenue FAO Schwarz. The last time I went there was when the store was going through some financial difficulties so the store was scaled down and seemed sparse, from how I remember it. I was pleasantly surprised to find that the store is still quite magical and things are so delightfully displayed.

Ever watch the movie Big? If you did, then I’m sure you can recall the scene where Tom Hanks and his friend play the giant piano on the floor inside FAO Schwarz. The piano is still there. And there are many newer things: apart from the blocks, trains, specialty stuffed animals like life-size dragons and dinosaurs, there are other novelties like a place where you can build your own Jim Hensons muppet of your own, a studio where you can choose from a selection of clay items to paint and have it glazed and baked in a kiln, a doll section of all makes and sizes and dream houses, a lovely princess section where bright and sparkly tulle and tiaras line the walls and areas dedicated to the long-loved brands like Barbie, Lego, Hot Wheels. The kids were literally all over the place for hours.

To get there by subway, take the N or R to the 5th Avenue station. If you have a stroller, you’ll need to be prepared to walk up quite a few steps.