We’vemainly been kicking it close to home the past few days as to not push Ellie’s boundaries (or our’s) too much with all the new surroundings. New house, new room, new crib, new food, new people, a whole lot more Japanese language, etc. It’s actually been really nice taking things a little slower this trip and spending a lot more time at Aya’s folk’s house during the day. But after a few days, we were all ready to go out for our first major outing. Our destination was going to be the Ghibli Museum about an hour away.
TRAVEL ANXIETY
The good thing about having a Japanese wife is that you get to travel to the other side of the world and visit her family. The bad thing about having a Japanese wife is that you get to travel to the other side of the world to visit her family.
I love when we are able to travel to Japan. I really, really do, but a 12 1/2 hour direct flight to another country always proves to bring a certain level of anxiety. But now, having a toddler who is going to sit on your lap for 12 1/2 hours doesn’t just bring mild anxiety, it’s downright nerve wracking!
INTERNATIONAL PLAY DATE
One of Aya’s friends, Kame-chan, just happens to live only 30 minutes away by train. They have been friends since they were in middle school and now they both have kids. And with her living so close to Aya’s parents, it was time for Ellie to have her first international play date. Since Ellie had to miss Japanese School this month, I thought this could be a great substitute too. Kame-chan’s son, Koutarou, is only nine months old and is just a crawler. So Ellie and her rambunctious almost two-year old self, plus a crawler, two languages and some good food should make for a pretty great afternoon, right?
DINNER AT THE BAR
Tonight we had dinner out at a neighborhood bar, which is very different from the bars we know here. There are no TVs, pool tables, juke boxes, and dart boards. You take your shoes off and sit on the floor and eat all kinds of things they call “bar food.”
AROUND TOWN
With Ellie finally a little more normal with her sleeping, and us a little less on edge, we decided to head out on the town to explore a little more. We didn’t want to have a full nap again, just a catnap stroller nap and going out would work perfect. We were going to check out where the main train station was located and then head to a shopping area to hit one of Aya’s favorites, the 100 yen shop. It’s the Japanese dollar store.