Will's Art Show

One of the best things about our DOD elementary school here is the art program.  William's teacher, Mr. Swigert, is phenomenal.  He teaches the kids tons of different mediums and really makes art a wonderful experience for the.  And, for us, each year he puts on a huge Art Show!  They hang every piece of artwork from the school year and families are invited to come and walk around.  We knew Will loved his art classes, but a surprise to us was that he won 1st place for his age group for his painting of the The Princess and the Pea!  His was prize was that his piece is printed in the Sun 42 book of art (I think it contains prints of all the winners from the Asia North region), and his painting will be framed and remain hung on the walls of the school here forever!  Pretty awesome.  I am so proud of my little artist!

He had several other projects displayed, but these two below were my favorites!

Moomin Park

Have you ever heard of the Finnish character, Moomin???  Moomins are big, white hippopotamus-type animals.  And, well, before we had moved here, I hadn't ever heard of them either!  But Japanese people love Moomin and so they are everywhere!  In fact, nearby in Saitama, there is even a Moomin Park where the buildings look like the Moomin houses in the Finnish stories.  It's a free park and it is completely charming.  The houses are big with stairs, nooks and crannies for kids to explore.  We went with a bunch of friends and our kids never wanted to leave.  It would be perfect to bring a picnic lunch and a ball to kick around as well.  But, the drive is well worth the outing!

GPS Coordinates:  35.830779, 139.344180

National Museum of Nature and Science

Right after we got back from Okinawa, it was Labor Day, so we decided to take advantage of Peter's day off and go back to Ueno Park to check out the National Museum of Nature and Science.  It was a fun outing--the museum is quite large and has some really amazing artifacts.  But, what I loved most about the whole place were the layouts and the design of the exhibits.  They were so modern and bright; it felt very fresh--I loved it!

There is so much to see and do at Ueno Park!  Check out my other posts about Ueno Park here and here.

GPS Coordinates:  35.716703, 139.776324

Will Turned 6!

How is my baby 6?!?!?!  We had a super fun Star Wars party with a bounce house shaped like a birthday cake, homemade root beer, lots of junk food, friends, and a soccer game to celebrate!  Happy birthday to my sweet, tender-hearted, helpful, sensitive, and loving boy!

Meiji Shrine

We've been to the beautiful Meiji Shrine 2 or 3 times since living here, but I just realized that I've never posted about it!  Meiji Shrine is truly a sanctuary in the heart of Shibuya.  Entering the grounds, it's hard to believe that you've just walked off a busy Tokyo street!  

The entrance is marked by a giant torii gate and once you pass through, you continue along a long, wide path through a beautiful forest.  

It's amazing how peaceful and serene the grounds are, since literally just outside the entrance is the Harajuku train station, which is always bustling and noisy!  Halfway along the path on the way towards the shrine is another giant torii gate.  This is one of my all-time favorites.  It stands so tall and majestically, and I love the natural wood.

Upon approaching the shrine, there's a fountain of holy water to cleanse your hands, and then there are three or four other buildings in addition to the main shrine.

And, if you visit Meiji Shrine on a Sunday afternoon (especially in nice weather), you're likely to see a wedding procession!  We've been lucky enough to see weddings two times that we've visited!  Seeing the brides in their traditional bridal clothing is fascinating!  And so beautiful!  

To get to Meiji Shrine, go to the Harajuku train station, and the entrance to the shrine grounds are just across the bridge when you get out of the station!  (Cross the bridge and go right; Yoyogi Park is to your left!)  GPS Coordinates:  35.676633, 139.699347

Take Me Out to the Seibu Lions Baseball Game!

Not more than 10 minutes from our house is the Seibu Dome, home of the professional baseball team, the Seibu Lions.  Since we moved here a year ago, we've talked about going to a game down there, and we finally made it happen last weekend!  We went with two other families and had a blast.

The Seibu Dome is a really cool stadium; it's actualky open/outdoor, but has a giant umbrella-like covering over the top.  This keeps it nice and cool with the breeze flowing through and it keeps the rain and harsh sunshine out.  Plus, somehow, it seems really small; every seat is a good seat!

Going to a professional baseball game in Japan felt so different than going to a game in the states.  I don't know exactly what it was, maybe the fact that they sell katsu curry at the snack bar instead of footlongs???  Or maybe it's the fact that the girls walking up and down the aisles selling beer look more like Harajuku girls in beer-branded cheerleading outfits.  Or maybe it's the fact that normally Japanese people are so quiet and reserved, but at baseball games they go CRAZY!!!!  They had noise makers, everyone was wearing team gear, and they would sing full songs and chants the entire time!  It was actually pretty awesome; it took a while for Clara to get used to it.  She was really upset by the noise when we first got there!

But, as you can see, Clara warmed up quickly and was back to her normal, goofy self in no time!

You can get the Lions' game schedule here, and the GPS Coordinates for the Seibu Dome are:

35.769030, 139.420527

Kamakura Shrines Part 2: Great Buddha and Tsurugaoka Hachimangu

After Odaiba, driving down to Kamakura and seeing the Houkokuji shrine, we then went over to the Great Buddha, which we'd visited before, but wanted to show Andrew.  Even though it's only a couple of miles from Houkokuji, the traffic was absolutely horrendous and since we were literally stopped on the road just under a mile away, Andrew and I finally decided to just jump out and run the rest of the way to see it while Peter and the kids slowly made their way over in the car to pick us up afterwards.

Unlike the last time we went, this time the place was packed!  There were tons of people, so it was impossible to get a clear shot, but regardless, seeing it up close is amazing and its size and construction are just so impressive.  

After walking around the grounds for a few minutes and checking out a souvenir shop, we ran back down to meet Peter and the kids and we drove back over to Tsurugaoka Hachimangu, a huge shrine in the heart of Kamakura.  The grounds were huge, there was tons of variety in the landscaping and buildings; we really had a fun time walking around and exploring it all.