Izakaya

    An izakaya is a Japanese bar, and one of my favorite places to eat. Not that I like all izakayas, for they are as varied as bars and pubs are anywhere else. Some izakayas cater to younger people, some to office workers, and others to a more diverse clientele. Some have really great food while others have food that you would only want to put inside your body after an adequate number of drinks. I obviously like the ones that serve great food. 

    In Japan, it's typical for restaurants to specialize. Just as you would go to a ramen shop for only ramen, you would do the same for soba (buckwheat noodles) or yakitori (grilled chicken). The same for grilled eel, sushi, pork cutlets, udon, tempura, etc. These restaurants will all do one thing but do them well. You won't see many Japanese places with eclectic menus. The izakaya is unique in this aspect and usually serves many different types of dishes in small portions. Their varied menu gives them more creative latitude too, so it's fun to discover Japanese flavors presented in novel and modern ways. This is one of the main reasons I like izakayas. 

    The downside of izakayas is that they can be really smoky inside. They are not places you would want to go with little kids. Anyways, they are places where you would want to sit, talk, and eat slowly - things that are difficult to do with toddlers. Because of this, and because izakayas are part of the nightlife establishment, we haven't been to even one since moving to Japan. So it was really very exciting when we handed the kids over to the grandparents on Saturday and headed to our neighborhood izakaya, Kogane. 

    Kogane is a small izakaya that uses variety meats in its menu, which includes many other things such as seafood, vegetables, and noodles. They have a good selection of sake, which pairs nicely with the food. Kogane is also a non-smoking establishment, which is great even if you don't have kids. There are several options for seating: floor, bar, or table. We chose the bar. 

    The food is some of the most delicious and interesting I've ever had. Even the ordinary items like onigiri and truffle fries are really well made. One particularly memorable dish was thinly sliced tripe and vegetables, chilled, mixed with pesto, topped with walnuts and served as a salad. No photo of that one, unfortunately, but here are other things we ate: 

Onigiri with ume (pickled plum).

Bonito sashimi in the front and braised beef tendon and daikon soup in the back. 

Truffle fries.

Japanese horse mackerel, fried and served with Japanese tartar sauce.

Grilled duck with negi. 

    As for drink, I had an organic lemon sour and a shared flask of sake. We chose a sake based on their recommendation. I know nothing about sake and rarely drink it, so there is not much basis for comparison. The only thing I can say about it is that it was light and sweet and paired beautifully with the food. 

    Given that I had an organic lemon sour, you can likely guess that this particular izakaya belongs to a newer breed of izakayas. Kogane's food and atmosphere reflects modern sentiments for fine-casual dining while retaining the essence of izakaya culture. Like Tokyo itself, it is a flattering mix of the new and old. 

    Izakaya food is rarely pretentious. It's first and foremost about flavor and enjoyment (and in some cases, simply putting something in your stomach to absorb the alcohol). In the case of this izakaya, I love that it could transform a humble ingredient like tripe into a great dish that most people would enjoy. Here's to a nice night out and many more to come. 

A Weekend in Tokyo

    Between extracurricular activities, birthday parties, and day drips, it's rare for us to spend the weekend in the city with no agenda. But that is how we spent last Saturday. There is someone else in Tokyo as well: Joe Biden, my mother-in-law tells me. One clue was the incessant sound of helicopters overhead. American heads of state and diplomats always exact the biggest fanfare. Since we mostly stay in our neighborhood and get around by bicycle, the visit didn't really affect us. 

    Saturday started out cool and cloudy - perfect weather for a cup of coffee and some reading. Although I received a kindle for my birthday last year, it took me a long time to warm up to it. I used to read a lot (also a symptom of living down the street from a public library), mostly during my commute to work and during lunch. Once I no longer had that, I found it difficult to sit still and read. Something about moving and settling into a new environment threw my head into disarray. Daily tasks required more energy than usual, and I guess there was just no mental space for anything other than surviving gracefully day to day. 

    A few months ago, at the one year mark of our arrival in Japan, I suddenly started reading with my kindle. I just felt like it one day. And I realized that I could access any English book I wanted this way (it's obvious, I know). I've been reading a lot of Murakami recently. I am now reading his book Underground, which is a collection of interviews and reflection about the 1995 sarin attacks in Tokyo. For a terrorist attack of that magnitude, there isn't as much literature as you would expect. The book is thought-provoking and introspective. It asks how the event, and even more so the public's reaction to it, reflected Japanese society and its psyche at the time, and perhaps even now. 

    Anyways, I was able to read a good hour before my kids woke up. This is a true luxury. Since the kids must get up and get ready early on weekdays, their accumulated sleep deprivation allows them to sleep as late as 8:30 am on Saturday mornings. M slept until 9 am, a real win win situation. Naturally, we had a slow morning. By the time everyone at breakfast and got ready, it was 10:30 am. Despite a light drizzle, we headed to our local park, which was pleasantly empty. 

Our playground outing was short lived, as the rain started coming down hard after fifteen minutes. Our bicycles are rain proof, but it is never fun cycling in the rain, so we waited for the rain to die down before heading home. 

Since we moved so slowly through the morning, it was already past eleven when we returned home. Time to prepare lunch. We usually get ramen at our favorite neighborhood shop but stayed home for homemade ramen (i.e., packaged ramen from the supermarket). I had bought quail eggs on a whim a few days prior. Quail eggs are common in Japan. Ten quail eggs cost the equivalent of $1.50, so I wouldn't call them a delicacy here. Nonetheless, it is not something we usually eat, so it was interesting to try. They taste similar to chicken eggs. The kids loved eating them because they are small and therefore "cute".

They look different from chicken eggs, but they don't taste all that different. 

E no longer naps regularly, but she occasionally will on the weekends. So after lunch came nap time for the kids and coffee time and Japanese studying for me. On the one hand, I'm happy to have the free time while the kids nap. On the other hand, napping takes a big chunk out of the day and makes it trickier to make plans. 

Post-nap playtime. M wearing her sister's lunch bag. This went on for half an hour. Visual proof that anything can be a toy or a prop. 

    By the time the two wake up close to 4pm, it's almost time to go to Grandma's house. My mother-in-law was in Karuizawa for the last few weeks, so E had requested dinner with them. Usually my husband's grandmother cooks, but she too had just returned from a trip, so takeaway it was. 

    Japan makes it easy. Most large department stores have a food hall in the basement with a grocery store, gift foods, and different restaurant counters. You are spoiled for choice. The grandparents delivered with this beautiful sushi assortment in addition to a few side dishes. I don't know what it is about salmon eggs, ikura in Japanese, but kids love them. It's a little scary because they are on the pricey side as far as sushi selections go, and they throw them back like pizza rolls. While both love ikura, E doesn't like sushi as much as M, who really loves it, particularly the tuna rolls. She even surprised us by pointing to the roll and calling it "maguro." Who knew that she knew the specific names of fish? We don't even eat sushi often.

    Anyways, it was a really delicious end to our Saturday. I leave you to feast your eyes on these beautiful boxes of sushi:

Showa Kinen Park in the Spring

    One of the nicest things about Tokyo is the many parks around the city. Not that it helps reduce crowding; there is never enough of a good thing to go around at once in this metropolis. So while we love exploring new parks, the question holding us back is: will it be too crowded? Alas, we can't afford to think too much about it, or we would be sitting at home most of the time. 

    Last weekend we visited Showa Kinen Park for the second time. The first time was last summer, at the peak of summer. It was sunny and scorching hot then. We drank water constantly and ate shaved ice just to stay cool. Despite the heat, it was still fun. Since the spring weather has been nice lately, a return to Showa Kinen had been on my mind. So when I saw a cool and cloudy projection for Saturday, we decided to visit again. 

    Last time, we went by metro, which took an hour with one transfer. This time, we drove, which took about the same time. The kids prefer the metro, which is more fun and engaging. We also avoid sitting in traffic this way, so it will probably be our transportation of choice in the future. 

    The Tulip Garden was the main attraction last month. Sadly, all the tulips had faded and the main flower attraction were these little blue things (I've no idea what they are called).  

The kids, as soon as they saw the pedal boats, wanted to ride on them. Last year, M was too little. This year, she got to go along the ride as well. The rental is for half an hour, and though the kids are on the boat, their legs are not long enough to actually pedal. Nor would they have had enough strength even if their legs were long enough. The pedaling was hard work. Definitely two adults' worth of work. Half an hour of fun for the kids, half an hour of moderate exercise for the parents. 

    There are at least two large play areas for kids. Each area has multiple play structures for a wide range of ages. This was nice - it allowed us to keep an eye on both kids even as they could play with different things. We stayed in the first area for over an hour. We actually had to use lunch to bribe the kids away. We knew they would like the second play area even more, and it was already past 1 pm. 

    There are plenty of eating options inside the park. There are sit down restaurants, food trucks, and numerous stands all around. Last time, we ate at a sit down restaurant by the lake. This time, I brought plenty of food with us, and we supplemented with snacks from stands. The stands sell things like hotdogs, yakisoba, karaage, french fries, and of course soft serve. The restaurant we tried has your standard Japanese/modern Japanese fare (soba, curry, ramen, etc.). We got a doner kebab from the food trucks, which offer more variety. As with most public Japanese facilities, prices are reasonable. 

    After lunch, we finally make it to the area called the Children's Forest. This includes a massive playground with multiple tornado slides, a network of nets on which kids can climb and jump, and a series of bouncing domes. At this point, M was deteriorating without her usual nap, though E was still going strong. What a difference a year makes. E shied away from the intense slides last year and loved them this year, lining up to go again and again. On the nets, she managed to climb up different levels whereas last year, she only bounced around here and there. 

    Even after two hours, E had not gotten to the bouncing domes that she had loved last year. M, by then, was in no condition to try anything else. So we bought shaved ice for an afternoon treat and called it a day. 

    In the summer, the park opens up a section for water play. This was not open last year due to Covid but will likely be open this summer. Even though we did not get to everything on this trip, we will surely be back soon for the water park. We focused on kid friendly activities, but there is also a lot for adults, including a woodworking shop, a Japanese garden, and special events. This week, for example, there is a special Bonsai exhibition. It's truly a day trip destination. 

    As we had hoped, the kids fell asleep in the car just as they had last year on the train. Whatever effort it takes to get to here, you are nearly guaranteed a good nap afterwards! Goodbye and see you in a few months, Showa Kinen Park. 

Golden Week 2022

Golden Week is a cluster of Japanese holidays that all occur in the last week of April and the first week of May. The first two are historical holidays: Showa Day (honoring the Emperor Showa) and Constitution Day (celebrating the establishment of the modern Japanese Constitution). Then comes Greenery Day, which as its name would suggests, celebrates nature. Finally, there is Children's Day, which traditionally celebrated boys and fathers (there is a Girls Day in March) but now celebrates boys and girls as well as their parents and family unity in general. 

Japanese workplaces don't offer as many annual personal days or vacation days compared to its western European or even American counterparts. Yet the total number of days off most workers receive annually is not bad thanks to these national holidays. It's just that everyone has to take the same holidays, so it gets really, really crowded. Add to it the fact that foreign travel is still pretty much off limits, and you get crowds everywhere: the supermarket, parks, roads, museums, city offices - quite literally, everywhere. What to do then during Golden Week?

We went to Karuizawa in Nagano Prefecture last weekend. Of course, since Karuizawa is only a couple hours from Tokyo, it was also crowded, but we were able to stay away from the crowds for the most part. My mother-in-law's friend, who is also a tennis coach, gifted our girls two small tennis rackets and a net. We gave it a go in the backyard. Although they can't hit the ball over the net yet, they had a lot of fun trying. We also went hiking, as Karuizawa is home to many hiking paths with views of the Japanese Northern Alps. While the shopping streets were totally congested with people, the hiking paths were surprisingly empty. The rest of the time, it was raining anyways, so we stayed indoors doing puzzles and games. 

In a country as mountainous as Japan, you don't have to go far to experience early spring again. You might recall that Hakone. Though south of Tokyo, Hakone still had plenty of sakura blossoms due to its higher elevation. Karuizawa, on the other hand, is north of Tokyo and higher in elevation. There, you could still see sakura blossoms and many other ones, like these:

The last few days back in Tokyo, we have been taking a lot of walks, frequenting our regular park, and exploring new parks. And reading. A few weeks ago, I read Haruki Murakami's What I Talk About When I Talk About Running, which inspired me to read South of the Border West of the Sun (one of the few Murakami ebooks immediately available to borrow at the library). I enjoyed it more than expected, and so I am now reading Men Without Women, a collection of short stories. At least Golden Week gave me more time to read. 

Days off are great, but when the entire country is taking the same days off, and international travel is still unfeasible (per Japanese border regulations), the country feels like it is bursting at the seams with people. I suppose we will think of this the same way as we thought of the first lockdown: how many opportunities will we have to sit around and spend time together without distraction? That said, I hope next year brings more travel opportunities during Golden Week. 

Tokyo Disneyland

    When I was six years old, a VHS cassette arrived in our mail. It was a fifteen minute promotional video sent by Disney. The video showed a family of four frolicking through the various Walt Disney World resorts with enormous smiles and Mickey ears. I remember watching it over and over again, mesmerized, until we actually went to Disney World months later. My parents were not the type to indulge my whims or cave into marketing pressure, so it was a testament to the potent Disney dream, pushed by the Disney corporation, that even they relented. 

    Of course, those trips to Disney World (we went twice as a family) were some of my happiest childhood memories. However, even as the essence of my Disney memories remain the same, my perception of the  Disney entity has changed. As a child, it was difficult to see past Disney World as the "Happiest Place on Earth." As an adult, it was difficult to see past Disney as a powerful capitalist machine, keen on manipulating young minds and capitalizing on parental love for its bottom line. As a parent who very recently visited Disneyland with my five year old, this perspective has shifted yet again. It's not that one experience replaces past ones; it's that each experience, each stage of life, brings a new layer to my perception. And the newest layer is the reality of enjoying Disneyland with my child. More precisely, it is the happiness of experiencing my child's enjoyment of Disneyland. So here it is, our trip to Tokyo Disneyland. 

    For starters, Tokyo Disneyland is amazing for its staff's attentiveness, the cleanliness, and orderliness. Despite its size and complicated ride-queuing system (as well as my own linguistic obstacles), I found assistance right away when I needed it. Even at the end of the day, the toilets were spotless. I can't imagine the amount of hard work and dedication required to maintain such a level of attentiveness. 

Preparations

    We chose to go on a Friday during E's school holiday. Since Japanese schools were in session, we thought it would be relatively empty. And while it was definitely not empty, lines were on average 15-20 minutes long, which is not bad from what I gather. To make the most of your visit, avoid holidays and weekends. The day we visited, the weather was warm and sunny - I would have actually preferred a cloudy day, as there is not much shade. Even with sunscreen and a hat, I got a bit sunburnt in one spot on my neck I had missed. 

    With respect to food and drink, I packed our water bottles and lots of snacks. Both food and drink are plentiful in the park, but it was nice to have our own. I do wish that there had been more water fountains to refill our bottles. Walking around Disneyland takes a lot of energy, and we went through a lot of snacks. I brought yogurt, nuts, crackers, fruits, and cheese. The food was not great, but also not too bad. It was more reasonably priced than I had expected, and less than in Disney World. For lunch, we had chicken burgers and chicken nuggets at Tomorrowland Terrace. Dinner was turkey drumsticks, teriyaki chicken, and packed onigiri. We chose casual restaurants for meals to spend more time on rides.  

Arrival in Toontown

    Toontown is ideal for toddlers, with the exception of Gadget's Go Coaster, which is a small but legitimate roller coaster ride. E had no idea about rollercoasters and immediately wanted to get on. She realized that she didn't enjoy it a few seconds into the ride. Luckily the ride is only a couple of minutes long. The other Toontown attractions are vibrant but simple. There are play structures for kids to climb and take photos. 

Goofy's Paint 'n' Play House: aim and shoot at the projection.

Donald's Boat, Miss Daisy

    Character meet and greets were not originally part of my plan (especially because you can't stand close to them due to Covid-19 and reservations through the Disneyland app are required), but E kept asking when she would see Mickey Mouse. I guess for kids, it's like meeting a celebrity. Since all the Mickey meet and greets were fully booked, I booked a tour of Minnie's Studio in Toontown instead. To be honest, the tour was slow and dull. It was like a tour of the White House but with less history. There were a lot of (adult) diehard Minnie fans, and they took lots of photos of each room, which made the line move slowly. The best part of Minnie's Studio tour was the end when E got to meet Minnie, albeit from two meters away. 

Fantasyland and the Standby Pass

    The Beauty and the Beast ride was unequivocally the star of Fantasyland. What we didn't know was that this ride requires a Standby Pass, which can only be obtained through the Disneyland app. We tried to get a pass as soon as we arrived, but already the earliest available one was 6:30 pm. Seeing this, my husband said, "let's just stand in line." We found out soon enough that that is not an option. Luckily, after checking very, very frequently, a slot popped up for 1:30 pm. 

    The line for Beauty and the Beast begins on the "castle grounds," so there were things to see while waiting. Then we were ushered into the grand hall where the Beast and Beauty appear on the staircase. This is where the story begins. The tour continues through the castle, which is really magnificently designed, until you get into these big teacups. The teacups take you through the rest of the castle on a musical journey of the story. This ride is only a few years old and beautifully integrates technology into the storytelling. 

    We also did a Small World, the Castle Carousel, Dumbo, and Peter Pan's Flight. E loved all these rides except Dumbo, which she also liked but perhaps not as much as the others. Dumbo's line is consistently long because there are only a few seats. I saw a mom wait for half an hour and then abort because her two year old got scared right before getting on the ride. At least that didn't happen, but it is not a ride for which we would wait in line twice. 

It's a Small World 

Tomorrowland

    Despite not having watched any of the relevant movies, E loved Tomorrowland's rides. They were the most interactive, and we loved them too. In the Buzz Lightyear ride, you spin around and shoot lasers to earn points. Similarly, Monsters, Inc. has you shining a flashlight to get the "monsters" to pop up and greet you. 

    The Happy Ride with Baymax has a DJ dancing while the cars spin to the music. Although only a minute and a half long, it was super popular and required a Standby Pass. Towards the end of the day, I happened to catch an available slot. This happened a lot during our day in Disneyland: the lines would fluctuate seemingly randomly throughout the day. 

Adventureland

    The Jungle Cruise was one of our family favorites. It is a real boat tour, complete with waterfalls and caves, except of course, the animals are not real. The tour guide seemed great too, though it was in Japanese, so I didn't understand everything. For me, the language barrier didn't take away from the experience. It had one of the longest lines at 35 minutes, but the tour lasted about 15 minutes and was worth the wait. 

    Alas, we didn't have time to explore the rest of Adventureland. Western River Railroad is on my list for next time. 

World Bazaar and Evening Parade

    Another "ride" we didn't get to was the Omnibus tour of the World Bazaar, an area consisting mostly of shops and restaurants. This is a good area for souvenirs. It gets crowded at the end of the day as people stop by for souvenirs on their way out. There is also a New Orleans Square here. When I stumbled across it at nighttime, there was faint jazz playing, and it really felt like the French Quarter - but cleaner and less smelly.

    There are several parades throughout the day. People line up with picnic blankets along the parade route as early as an hour ahead of parades to secure a nice view. A friend who had recently visited Disneyland had told me that the night parade was the best, so we held out for that one. I set up our own picnic blanket forty-five minutes before the parade. Even then, most of the benches were already occupied. E was tired anyways by then, so we had a picnic-style dinner and rested while waiting for the "Electrical Parade" to begin. 

These coveted spots have good views but were also close to the speakers. In retrospect, we would have enjoyed the parade just as much from a spot farther back. The parade itself was worth the hype. For E, it was indeed magical. Seeing E so happy, I tried not to ruin the moment by thinking too much about the costs of creating this magic and of the parallel realities other children were living. Those are things we would talk about another day. Such is the complexity and ambiguity of parenthood. 

Hakone: Part 2

    The rain made our cabin-like room feel cozy, but it also made traveling with two little kids tricky, so I was glad for the blue skies on day two. The kids, being in an unfamiliar environment and sleeping in one bed, roused each other awake early. The timing and weather was perfect for riding the Hakone Ropeway to see Owakudani, whose active sulfur vents were created by a volcanic eruption some thousands of years ago.

    First, we ate breakfast. Our hotel had a modern Japanese breakfast full of salads, sausages, eggs, fish, fruits, and some bread. Compared to western breakfasts, Japanese ones could pass for lunch, or even dinner. Then, on to Owakudani. 

    The ropeway is basically a gondola lift. We arrived about half an hour after opening time, and there was no line. The lift is suitable for kids, as it moves slowly - it is about a ten minute ride to the viewing site. On the way, we got a magnificent view of Mount Fuji. As we approached the area of the sulfur vents, we could smell the sulfur from inside the lift. It didn't bother me too much but gave my husband a headache. 

Very dramatic volcanic steam. 

Mount Fuji

    At the main viewing site are several souvenir shops and eateries. There you can buy black sulphur egg called "kuro tamago," literally, black eggs. These are just eggs that have been hardboiled in the sulphury hot springs, which is what turns them black. I wanted to try one, but they came in sets of six, and I could not commit to six of of these black eggs. 

Main viewing site.

Back at our starting point, there are more souvenir shops and a foot bath bar where you can soak your feet in thermal water whilst soaking in the mountain views. 

For lunch, we went near Lake Ashi to a cafe/restaurant called Bakery & Table. They have delicious baked goods, desserts, and sandwiches. My kids loved the curry pan (fried bread with curry filling inside - this place puts an egg inside too). You can order from a sit-down menu upstairs, or you can buy items from their cafe/bakery selection downstairs and eat on their terrace. The front terraced, pictured below, actually has a foot bath. Hakone seems to have lots of foot baths. We bought our lunch from the cafe/bakery and ate it on a bench overlooking Lake Ashi. 

The drink selection was interesting.

    On the shores of Lake Ashi is the Hakone Shrine. I didn't get a photo, but its red Torii rises out of the lake and is one of the famous landmarks of Hakone. 

    As is typical of any other day, the afternoon passes by in a blur with the kids' naps. The important thing was for them to be well-rested for our seven course dinner - our hotel's prix fixe dinner. The food came at a good pace. E made it through the dinner while M got a bit restless close to dessert but survived. It helped that they were served juice, which they don't usually get. The not-so-impressive kids meal was in stark contrast to our beautifully prepared courses. In the end, the kids ate a good amount of our food as well, so we were all able to enjoy it. 

Pork loin with Japanese leek and shiitake sauce.

Dessert was a standout: sakura mousse with candied ume. 

    Before we knew it, day three, the final day, was before us. The plan was to take our time and visit the Hakone Open Air Museum, one of my favorites, before heading home to Tokyo in the early afternoon. 

A last look at our hotel. 

The Hakone Open Air Museum is as much a garden as it is a museum. It displays a lot of sculptures outdoors. The mountainous setting and beautiful gardens make for a dramatic backdrop for the art. Its outdoor setting and numerous interactive exhibits make for a great place for both adults and children to visit. For instance, the Woods of Net is exclusively for children. It is a netted play structure were kids can swing from pendulums and scurry around in a web of nets. There is also a large Picasso exhibit, including an exhibit of Picasso's ceramic artwork, which he apparently did not embark on until he was 65. There is, also, another foot bath. 

Picasso

    We could have spent all day at the Open Air Museum, but alas our kids were sleep deprived, as kids get during vacation. So we hurried back to Bakery & Table for one last hurrah. If you visit the cafe, be sure to do it before noon. The second time we went, it was only a little past noon, but some sandwiches were already sold out. 

    By 3 pm, we were on the road en route back to Tokyo with two sleeping kids. Hakone was nice, but returning home felt nice too. Sometimes it feels like the whole point of going on vacation is to make you appreciate being home. Somehow the first day back home feels just as relaxing as the first day of vacation did. Until next time, Hakone. 

Hakone: Part One

    On Monday, we packed our bags, strapped the kids in, and drove towards Hakone for a little vacation. Hakone is a mountain town about an hour and a half southwest of Tokyo by car. Due to its proximity to Tokyo, it is a popular tourist destination for Tokyoites. We had actually visited once before, almost three years ago. When we arrived in Hakone then, it was raining. It's funny, because the weather was exactly the same when we arrived this time. 

    The rain was persistent, so we spent the afternoon at Hakone Crafthouse, which offers glassblowing, ceramics, and jewelry-making workshops for adults and children. It is located inside the Hakone Gora Park. Since we arrived right around noon, we parked the car next to the Crafthouse and had lunch at a soba restaurant across the street. In retrospect, we should have first made reservations for the Crafthouse workshop before eating lunch, because there turned out to be a two hour wait until the next workshop slot. Given the rain, this should not have been a surprise. 

    Hakone Gora Park is a beautifully curated garden in the French and Japanese styles. It boasts a variety of flower gardens, a rose garden, and several greenhouses. We didn't walk around the garden this time due to the rain but enjoyed exploring it when we visited three years ago.

    While E waited with her dad for the glass decorating workshop, I checked into our hotel with M, whose nap was long overdue. Our hotel, Hakone Retreat Fore, had a distinctively minimalist, woodsy, tree-housey feel. They provided amenities for children, including pajamas, toothbrush, baby bathtub, and slippers. And there were lots of families with young children. While my kids enjoyed staying here, I wouldn't say it was particularly geared towards families with children. For instance, M kept playing with the coffee beans and grinder, but there was no shelf or table high enough to keep them out of reach. Then again, low shelving and tables are pretty standard in Japan, so this was not out of the ordinary. 

Coffee beans for you to grind. Laborious but delicious. 

A stool for aesthetic purposes only. M found out the hard way after attempting to sit on it. 

    The rain only got heavier as the day wore on. Luckily, Solo Pizza, the pizza place we had in mind for dinner, was right next to the hotel. Solo Pizza had a cozy atmosphere fit for a small eatery in the mountains. Its menu was mostly Italian-style pizza (as is most pizzas in Japan), but there were also a variety of appetizers, sides, pastas, and dessert. We ordered spare ribs, roast chicken, a Genovese pizza, a Margherita pizza, and bagna cauda (also curiously ubiquitous in Japan). This sounds like a lot of food, but the portions were small and the food was very good but light. Plus, we had had a light lunch and were starving by our 6 pm reservation. 

By the time dinner ended, it was pouring outside. After a morning on the road and an afternoon in the rain, most of us were ready to go to bed. E, however, wanted to go to the onsen. Onsens are Japanese hot spring baths. The water flows directly from active volcanos and are supposedly rich in minerals good for your skin. Onsen etiquette requires you to strip down completely and thoroughly wash yourself at one of the shower stalls before entering the bath. Clothing and bathing suits are prohibited. This is to ensure that anything entering the shared bath has been cleaned. 

A hot spring bath was a nice way to end our rainy first day in Hakone. While the rain lent a nice ambience to the mountains, it wasn't the most convenient for walking around and sightseeing. So we were very glad to have good weather the following two days. Stay tuned for part two, where we go see an active volcano and visit one of my favorite museums in the world.