I felt a little bit like a parent taking my child to the first day of kindergarten. I had held their hands through Asia up to this point, but now it was time for them to go off and explore the world on their own. I knew they could do it. I had trained them well and they were going to do a great job traveling on their own. We arrived at the train station on Saturday morning and after one more little pep talk, I waved goodbye and assured them I would be there to pick them up after school...errr after the trip. "Will you just walk with us to the track to make sure we get on the right train?" Mom asked. "No," I chuckled, "I know you can do it on your own."
After leaving my parents to fend for themselves, I headed back to Shinjuku to meet up with Kel. I got to her apartment building by 11 am and was happy not just to see her but also to meet some friends that would be coming along for the day. Our first stop was lunch at Harajuku, where we had a good western meal. Though I could have gone for more Japanese food, I was thrilled to eat a simply delicious grilled chicken caesar salad. That was not something I ever thought I'd have in Asia. After lunch, we decided to check out a reggae festival in Yoyogi Park. Again, not something that I would have expected to find in Tokyo, but I knew that this city was full of great surprises and couldn't wait to see what it was all about. The reggae fest was so sweet. It was crazy to see so many hippies and rasta-clad Japanese people and we bet that the entire hippy population of the whole country was probably at the festival. Though we didn't exactly fit in by our looks, we got into the spirit and had a great afternoon dancing to live music and checking out all of the interesting people. In fact, people watching is one of my favorite activities to do when traveling; just sitting around, watching all of the unique, culturally different people in any given place. That night, I got a real taste of Tokyo nightlife. We started at a fancy rooftop Thai restaurant in Roppongi, the hung out at a cool hookah, hip-hop bar, and finally ended up at a posh club called Ferria where we danced the night away. Oh yea, and did I mention got invited to the VIP table of some young Japanese business men? It was a fun experience, and they were absolute gentlemen. It was a great time and after a long, exhausting night, I said good-bye to my girls and then headed back to the hotel to get some shut eye before picking up Mom and Dad in the morning.
Wait, this is in Japan?
Babies in rasta clothes, so cute
the girls
After getting a grand total of four hours of sleep, I rolled out of bed at 8 am and headed back to the train station to meet Mom and Dad. Despite my best efforts, I still made it there twenty minutes late and found Mom and Dad waiting eagerly. They told me they had had a great time in Nikko and that everything had been smooth and easy. It really is amazing that even in a country as foreign as Japan, you can get by and have a wonderful time without knowing the language at all. The train station where we met was right near the beautiful old area of the city called Asakusa, so I suggested that we walk around there and have lunch before heading back downtown. We walked the streets, lined with vendors and shops selling souvenirs, antiques and traditional clothing. We stopped for some delicious and refreshing green tea ice cream, which made the perfect breakfast! As we walked around, Dad began to have quite a dilemma over which souvenir he wanted to bring home. On the one hand, he really wanted a nice casual kimono, which they'd been given in the guesthouse in Nikko, to use as a robe. On the other hand, he loved the beautiful paper fans and thought that displaying them on the wall would be a better way to remember the trip. In the end, he settled with the fans, and they found several beautiful ones to hang up. For lunch, we went into an authentic noodle bar, where we sat with locals who curiously watched us slurp the noodles in a surely uncultured way. But we didn't care, the atmosphere was great and the food was delicious!
Temple in Asakusa area
typical street scenes in Asakusa
hunting for fans
Finally, we headed back to our hotel in Shinjuku where it was time for me to pack up my stuff. I would be heading back to Korea that afternoon and Mom and Dad would stay in Tokyo for one more day before making the journey home. I packed up and just as we left the room, I pretended to forget something, so that I could put out a small gift for Mom and Dad- a clay sake pitcher and glass set, which I hoped would always remind them of how much fun we'd had on our adventure. We took a stroll through beautiful Shinjuku Gyoen Park, which has traditional Japanese gardens, and took a few more pictures before heading to the train station to part ways.
Beautiful Shinjuku Gyoen park
"It kind of feels like you were the parent and we were the children on this trip" Mom said with a laugh, trying to make light of the fact that we had to say goodbye. I hadn't wanted to mention it but I completely agreed. It was so fun to introduce them to new places and cultures that I know they wouldn't have had the opportunity to experience without me, and to see them grow confident as travellers. In just 9 short days, Mom and Dad had graduated from kindergarten to at least the fourth grade level of their travel education (haha, ok maybe I've exaggerated a little, but they defintely did improve their travel skills!). I know they left Asia exhilarated by their adventure and confident that they could do it on their own next time.
Once again, trying to hold back tears, I found myself saying goodye to my family, an event that was becoming a little too familiar. Despite my sadness to have to leave them, I just kept thinking one thing; how lucky I am to have people that love me enough to come all the way across the world to see me. Life's an adventure, but in the end, I know its all about love. So thanks to those of you who constantly remind me of that...
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