Golden Week 3: Tokyo

We traveled to Tokyo on the Shinkansen, or high-speed bullet train, which everyone should ride at least once if they visit Japan. We stayed at a ryokan, or traditional inn, that had a great location in central Tokyo. We spent our first afternoon exploring the modern side of Tokyo, checking out cool boutiques and browsing Omotesando Hills, a high-end mall built by famous Japanese architect Tadao Ando. We spent a little time taking in the famous Shibuya crossing that evening, which is supposed to be one of the busiest walkways in the world.

We started day two at the beautiful Rikuigen Garden. Afterwards, we met a friend at a wondrous place called Namja Town. It is owned by the arcade maker Namco, and in American terms, can be likened to a cat-themed Chuck E. Cheese's on steroids. We had fun exploring and getting treats as adults, so I can't imagine how fun it is for kids! For dinner we had tomato ramen, which merges the deliciousness of ramen with Italian flavors: fantastic.

Day three was meant to start in Asakusa, one of the historical areas of Tokyo, but we stumbled upon a Bandai building while walking from the train station. We couldn't resist snapping a few shots with the cartoon characters. Asakusa itself was very touristy but still lots of fun. The soon-to-be-opened Tokyo Skytree, Japan's new tallest building, snuck its way into several of my shots.

After Asakusa, we took a relaxing walk through the East Gardens of the Imperial Palace. Finally, we met some new friends, who we learned were in Tokyo at the same time as us. We got Chicago-style deep dish pizza at a new place called Devil Craft Pizza. The pizza and craft beers were fantastic, and I highly recommend it for anyone in Tokyo who is craving something American.

The 2011 Miki Hardware Festival

Miki is really only famous for one thing: tool production. So the Miki Hardware Festival is the biggest event of the year and supposedly draws thousands from around the prefecture. Since moving here, I have been on the lookout for a Japanese hatchet. Several years ago, outdoor brand Snowpeak started carrying some, and I was intrigued by how different such a common outdoor tool could be. Recently, a very cool company, Best Made Co., got on board the Japanese Hatchet train and also started carrying a handsome Japanese hunting knife. I was hoping the tool festival would be my chance to find a blade that I could carry forever.

I was disappointed. While there were countless tents selling tools, none of them seemed premium. There was in fact only one tent selling premium hunting knives, but they didn’t really have any hatchets. The wares at every other tent were not so different from what I can get at the local hardware store.

In general, the festival had a fun, blue collar feel. We had a good time, ate some good food and bought some local vegetables. I still have my spending money, so maybe I’ll have to save a little longer for the Snow Peak or Best Made Co. hatchet. I love the idea of buying a quality tool that my kids might use some day.

Traditional blacksmithing demonstration

Creative Marketing

It a country ruled by fads, companies have to get creative to market their products. One thing they do is constantly come out with new flavors or varieties. It’s not uncommon to see the same snacks we have in America suddenly appear in novel shapes or bizarre flavors that don't exist elsewhere. We were particularly enamored with the cheese and sausage flavored Dorito, Cheeto, and pop corn mix. It was one of the best snack mixes we’ve ever had. Sadly, we ate it once and have never seen it again.

Our white whale snack in Japan

And that’s the Catch-22 about all the fad flavors. Sometimes you find a flavor that is amazing, but suddenly it disappears never to be seen again. The successful flavors often become seasonal, so at least you can get them once a year. Every time I go to the grocery store, I’m afraid that the sparkling apple soda that I have come to love will be gone. It’s only a matter of time. Apple is a fall flavor after all.

Another common tactic is giving some free junk with the product. There is a point card for everything in Japan, so if you want to fill out application forms, you can soon be collecting points to earn all manner of junk. Or there is the junk that literally comes attached to drink bottles. The small toys always have straps, so you can connect them to bags or cell phones. It is not uncommon to see compact cellphones with three pounds of toys hanging off of them.

Becky and I got drinks the other day. My Calpis Soda came with a Brahms cell phone figure. Yes, that is Brahms, the composer. There were a number of composers to choose from, but Brahms had the best beard.

Becky’s tea came with a chocolate pretzel bling charm.  She had to slowly narrow it down from amongst the bling cupcake, bling cheesecakes, and bling ice cream cones. She decided to add it to her USB flash drive, which so far has acquired a small Himeji Castle mascot, and a huge, puffy Hyogo Prefecture phoenix mascot. Her goal was to focus on regional mascot charms, but the bling pretzel adds a certain je ne sais quoi.

More IKEA/China Town

We went to IKEA for the second time and bought what we have long been lacking: a bed! I think the apartment is almost ready for a photo shoot. Expect some pictures in coming days... 

After IKEA, we spent a bit of time in Kobe. We had some fantastic croquettes at Kobe Croquette in China town. It was recently redesigned by one of the most famous Japanese architects, Tadao Ando.

China Town in Kobe is clean and tame, with lots of great places to get food from street vendors and of course, some great photo-opps. 

Capsule Toys

Remember when we were kids and the grocery store had capsule toys for 50 cents at the exits? They still exist in Japan. Sometimes they are simple toys for as cheap as 100 yen and sometimes they are blind-boxed, highly collectible toys for 300 yen and up. Blind boxing is when a toy is wrapped, so you don’t know which model/color you are going to get until you pay for the item and open it. This practice is slowly becoming more popular in the U.S. thanks to designer toy shops such as Kid Robot .

Outside the entrance at a local bookstore, I saw a capsule machine filled with Lego mini-figures. It showed the eight variety of figures that were blind-boxed. I was a Lego maniac for many of my formative years, and I was instantly smitten with the possibility of getting a Lego elf, a mini-figure that has never been in any Lego set! The samurai and bearded fisherman were also worth going for.

Becky encouraged me to get one for 300 yen, and I admit I had a slight gamblers’ rush as I dropped in my three coins and turned. Then I suppose I had gamblers’ disappointment as I opened the capsule and tore open the bag revealing the baseball player, one of the less desirable outcomes, in my opinion. The disappointment was severe.

After dreaming of the Lego elf for days, we returned to the bookstore with a pile of 100 yen coins. We weren’t sure how much money we were willing to commit. I put in my first 300 yen and had that gamblers’ rush for a second time. I tore open the bag and peaked in. “I got the elf,” I said, shocked and delighted. He now guards the house moving around from surface to surface.

Nakanoshima, Osaka

Miki is rural, very rural. There is not a lot to do there. It will be a fine place to work, study Japanese, and build some local relationships. But the weekend will call us away to Kobe and Osaka. This weekend, we chose Osaka.

Entrance to The National Museum of Art, Osaka

We started our day in Nakanoshima, an island about 20 minutes south of Osaka Station on foot. You wouldn’t realize it’s an island without seeing it on a map, because it’s right in the middle of everything. The island is home to Osaka City Hall, the National Museum of Art (Osaka), a science museum, a lovely park with a rose garden, and a number of other landmarks. 

In addition to the big landmarks is one of my favorite companies in Osaka, Graf. Graf is a furniture store, a design company, a gallery, and it has one of the best cafes in Osaka. They have a simple menu with four set lunches, and everything always tastes fresh and gourmet. 

We popped into the Museum of Modern Art for a bit after lunch. A portion of the museum was free for the day, and we enjoyed making fun of an exhibit called White, which was literally white, framed canvases with a tiny bit of texture on each canvas. Several rooms of all white squares begged the question what is art?

Just over the river is the beautiful Utsubo Park. Once a US airstrip, this park is not widely know beyond locals, but anyone in the area should get a cold drink and take a leisurely walk here.