Our final destination was Tawaramachi station, but we paused in Ueno station for lunch because it's a large station with some restaurant options. S took us to a soba shop where Mc got cold soba noodles for the first time (they come on a slatted wooden box and you dip them in a cold broth) and a bowl of rice with kakiage on top (vegetables dipped in tempura batter and fried in a mass), while I had cold soba with teriyaki chicken. S had to leave because Y-chan was suddenly and randomly inconsolable, so while she pushed his stroller around the station, Mc and I tried to figure out what the teapot on our tray was about. We tried to ask A-kun, but he was very busy constructing things of napkins and table accoutrements. The men sitting next to us (who were having a very fun lunch consisting of mostly sake), overheard our musings and explained that it was the water that the soba had been boiled in. When you're done eating, you pour it into your bowl and drink it and it is very good for your health. Generally in Japan, "Very good for health," is code for "This tastes terrible," but we tried it and it's actually quite good, especially if you mix it with a little of your dipping broth. S came back, Y-chan was appeased with an Anpanman juice, we finished lunch, and found our way to Tawamachi station.
Kappabashi Dori is also known as Kitchen Town and it's where you go to find all the extremely realistic plastic food you see in displays outside restaurants. When you go to this street you will see kappas everywhere - a kappa is a mythical Japanese creature that lives in the water and will try to drown you (this was to keep kids away from dangerous waters). Kappas have an indentation on the top of their head shaped a little like a bowl, and if their bowl is full of water from the river/lake where they live, then they can walk around on land and harass you. If a kappa is harassing you, try tricking it into dumping out it's water (for example, bow deeply and the kappa will bow in return, spilling his water) which renders them immobile. No, they don't have anything to do with kitchens, why would you think that? Anyway, I imagined the streets being lined with shops with very cheap plastic vegetables in bulk in bins, so you could essentially just fill up a basket with play food. That is not the case. All the food is sold in display sets that are very expensive. And realistic! There was a can of beer with ice on the sides that I would have sworn was real if it wasn't so hot out. You can buy little pieces of food, like life-size pieces of sushi stuck on a magnet, but those run about $10 each, which seemed like a lot for a magnet to us. However, it's worth a look because the fake food they sell there is amazing. Also, only a small portion of the shops sell plastic food. The rest sell kitchen accoutrements from things to set up your new restaurant to things to complete your home kitchen. We bought an ice tray that makes perfectly round ice cubes the size of marbles. S bought her kids an ice tray with dinosaur shapes and also got a set of hashi oki (chopstick rests). It was quite a good time and we enjoyed it very much.
*SuperNova Travel Tip: Japan is super safe. You do not need to bring a money belt to Japan (although if you've read my other travel writing, you know I don't take a money belt anywhere because there's nothing so awkward as fishing money out of the waist of your pants). When I lived in Japan, I once accidentally left my wallet in the basket of my bicycle when I went into a shop, and it was untouched when I returned in a panic. S had a stroller with several bags of stuff in it and when we would go into the crowded shops, she would just leave it outside the shop. I'm not saying you should do stupid things, but it's one of the very few places you will travel to where you can breathe easy in crowded places (which is good, because all places are crowded places in Japan).
We had tickets to a baseball game in Tokyo Dome City at 6:00pm, and instead of ditching us to head home with the kids, which would have been perfectly reasonable, S took us all the way to Tokyo Dome City and just arranged for N-sensei to meet them there with the car. She also brought a bag of fan gear for us to use at the game. We took a group photo outside the stadium, and then the happy, thoughtful, wonderful N family waved good-bye and headed home.
Tokyo Dome City is a resort/amusement park built up around the Tokyo Dome. If you don't already know, baseball is Japan's number 2 sport, right behind sumo wrestling. Mc is a huge baseball fan and so of course we had to see a game while we were there. Even if you are just a sort of baseball fan, you should go to a game. It's crazy. First of all, cheering is very polite. If you are a fan of the away team, then you sit in your designated section. Then ONLY the fans of the team at bat are allowed to cheer. Secondly, cheering is organized. There is a band and flag wavers and specific songs and chants and hand motions. (Just look around you and find someone who clearly knows what they're doing and then do that. They are very easy and you will catch on quickly). Thirdly, there's the beer wenches. Very pretty Japanese girls wearing girly baseball uniforms running up and down the stands with a beer keg on their back. When you wave one down, she will kneel next to you and pour your beer. Fourth, besides the beer you buy from wenches (about 800¥ each), everything in the stadium is about the same price you'd pay outside the stadium. I had a gyudon bowl and Mc had curry katsu and they were only about 500¥ each. They even have a sort of conbini/fan store and again, drinks were what you would pay at any conbini. Fifth, you never know what you'll see. Sure, there was a baseball game, but there was also Ronald McDonald. And then there were the cheerleaders because obviously baseball needs cheerleaders. And the Giabbit (the mascot for the Giants is an orange rabbit, so he is the Giabbit) and his sister. Drawbacks: the seats are very small. I am 5'9" and when I sit back in the seat, my knees touch the back of the seat in front of me. If you go see the Yomiuri Giants play, they are the number 1 team in Japan, so when we went it was very crowded and hot. It was uncomfortable.
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| Yebisu Beer Wench (be careful who you flag down or you may end up with a lemonade wench by accident) |
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| Baseball cheerleaders |
In the end, the Giants lost 2-0 to the Chunichi Dragons and while it was uncomfortable, it was worth going. At the very least Mc got a cool Yomiuri Giants hat and I will cherish my small, garishly orange stuffed Giabbit. We found the train station without issue (generally I would confidently tell you to follow the crowd, but the crowd might be taking the subway, so you should bolster following the crowd with looking for signs) and we even managed to not get on a rapid. As we exited the train at S's station, I heard Mc blow out a big sigh behind me. When questioned, he told me that he almost lost his wallet (he was carrying all our cash). Apparently, as we started to walk off the train, someone tapped Mc on the arm and when he looked back the person gestured at his wallet on the seat. Did I mention Japan was safe?
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