Scaredy Cat Travels

Tokyo – Ginza & Back To Shibuya or RIP My Feet

As I mentioned before, packing light has been a life-long struggle for me. A Gemini needs options, people.

For this trip, I knew bringing 10 pair of slightly different black shoes wasn’t an option. I was determined to limit myself to just two pairs of shoes and a pair of slides but, in the packing blitz, I snuck in another pair of sandals – ugly, but practical and well-tested, sandals. I have never been so thankful for something in my life.

I thought that my iffy shoes – iffy meaning cute but potentially blister causing or so unwieldy that I can’t drag my bags through Paris fast enough to catch the one train to the Loire Valley – were my brand new Dr Martens which are adorable but weigh about 20 pounds each.

Fun Fact – In the “Great Paris Combat Boot Disaster” we ultimately did make that train to the Loire Valley – we just had to jump the barricade and run from the train police. In my defense, I needed those combat boots for the Paris BTS concert. I regret nothing. My sister however, may feel otherwise.

While slightly unwieldy, the Dr Martens managed just fine traipsing through multiple airports and dragging luggage through Tokyo to the hotel. It was my tried and true tennis shoes that did me in. We walked well over ten miles Saturday. By the end of the day, I was hobbling. The scene when I finally returned to the hotel room and took off my shoes was nothing short of a massacre, as Rowan would say.

I have weird feet (I know, TMI) and a penchant for wearing shoes that are more practical than cute, so I am very accustomed to having blisters. Usually with a little doctoring, I am good to go for the rest of our trip. This time, most of my toes were manageable but there was one I swear will never be the same, with blisters upon blisters with a pulse stronger than my heartbeat and so deep they touched my very soul.

Spoiler alert: That toe didn’t fully heal until after we’d been home for several days.

So on Sunday morning, we left the hotel with a major handicap. I still managed to walk over five miles that day but it was at a slow pace and with a pronounced limp.

I didn’t mention that we had breakfast again at Collage in The Conrad. This time I tried the Matcha Pancakes and confirmed that I still don’t like matcha. Or mochi.

First on our to do list was the Art Aquarium Museum in the Ginza district. On a better day, we would have walked to Ginza from our hotel but, for most of the rest of the trip, many of our plans would be reconfigured because of my feet. I was thrilled that Ginza was just one easy subway ride from the Shiodome Station under our hotel.

While we were pretty good at finding our way in the subways, once on street level we struggled. Despite being really close to our subway exit, we could not find the museum. Part of this was because Google Maps usually had trouble finding us accurately and the other was because the aquarium was on the top floor of a department store with no obvious signage on the exterior of the building. I complained about poor signage so much on the trip that I was banned from mentioning it by the end of the first week.

Once in the right building, we still couldn’t find the entry and, by this time, were well past our scheduled entry time. Rowan argued that we should go back – that they would never let us in. But, as a former avid watcher of The Amazing Race, I know that giving up before you know for absolute sure you’re out is terrible game play. Even if I’m 99% sure I’m going to miss my flight, I still drive like a bat out of hell that has a chance. Sometimes it works. And sometimes I end up staying at a Detroit airport Marriott after a BTS concert in Hamilton, Canada.

Ah! Back in the good ole days when you could get floor tickets to a BTS concert without selling your soul. And ARMY knew the chants.

Risking Rowan’s eternal “I told you so” we forged ahead and were, thankfully, allowed entry.

The Art Aquarium is another museum, in the loosest sense of the word, comprised of a wide array of goldfish in Instagram-worthy settings. The attraction is not large. We were through it within about 45 minutes. While we enjoyed it, the exhibits were beautiful, and I especially liked seeing the many different types of goldfish, I wouldn’t advise going out of your way for it. If you’re in Ginza, then it’s a great addition to your day. I wouldn’t spend 45 minutes and three subway transfers to get there though unless you’re desperate for yet another place to take pictures of yourself for social media.

Based on the state of my fish tank, I really admire whoever cleans these.

Once again, I was disappointed by a gift shop I had been looking forward to. There were some cute items but they were really overpriced. Rowan and I both wanted t-shirts but they were almost $60 US each. I make t-shirts for a living. No matter which way you figure it, there’s no way that price makes sense so we left empty-handed.

After one last look at the aquariums, paying my respects in memory of my beloved goldfish, Zach & Rachael, who met an untimely death right before our trip, and asking for forgiveness from their friends – I really didn’t mean to kill them – we left to explore the Mitsukoshi department store.

Someday we’ll learn to take a selfie. Today is not that day.

I see you judging me. It really was an accident.

When I booked the tickets for the Art Aquarium, I didn’t realize it was located on one of the upper floors in the iconic Mitsukoshi department store (part of our problem in finding it). Mitsukoshi is the oldest department store in Japan and possibly the oldest in the world, opening way back in 1673. Our family is familiar with Mitsukoshi because of its sister store in Epcot’s Japan Pavilion. Now having been to both, I see zero resemblance.

In Epcot, the store is mostly made up of Pokemon, anime and other pop culture items. There are smaller sections featuring traditional Japanese goods as well as Japanese snacks, but those are located in the back of the store. The actual department store in Japan is known for being a high-end retailer. I didn’t see a single Pokemon while we were there.

If we had gone to Mitsukoshi deliberately, the kids would have been disappointed. But, as an accident with no expectations, we loved it. The upper floors by the aquarium had housewares and some souvenir-like items. Other floors have large food courts. It’s a great place to look around even if you don’t buy anything.

Ginza is known for its high-end retailers so, if you’re looking to seriously shop, it’s the perfect Tokyo district to visit and the Mitsukoshi Department store is a good starting point.

After leaving Mitsukoshi, my original plan was to wander the area. But very early into the trip, I realized that my kids are not great wanderers. It’s one of my favorite activities in a new place, and I think one of the best ways to get the feel of a city. They did not inherit it. One of my favorite memories of Amsterdam was the day my sister was busy at her medical conference.

Part of me wants to leave that as the end of the story just to annoy her.

My sister being busy was not what I enjoyed though. I went to the Van Gogh museum on my own, got shooed out after trying to take pictures of Human with the Sunflowers painting, and then wandered the city aimlessly until she was finished. It was raining hard most of the day so I didn’t go into many shops, feeling too guilty about sloshing all over the place. I just walked and looked.

My children would never.

Not all museums in Amsterdam are so strict.

Most of the time their lack of wanderlust would have upset me. But my feet were already approaching Code Red. The Nissan Showroom was nearby. I thought this would be perfect because a) I could make it there and b) Rowan loves cars so this could be something to make him feel slightly better about the trip.

In the end, the only benefit, in my opinion, was proximity. Rowan did seem to enjoy it but calling it a showroom is a misnomer. There were two cars – one 1970s vintage Nissan and one new model – a terrible driving simulator and a small café. That’s it. Most people are familiar with the Nissan Showroom because, at the café, you can order a latte with your face printed on the foam. We did make a stop here but Rowan and I ended up ordering other juice-based specialty drinks instead. They were really good, so I can recommend the café for a drink and a very limited selection of snacks but if you want to see cars, you’ll need to satisfy that need somewhere else. You’ll do better to stay on the streets of Ginza where fancy cars drive by every few seconds. I know this because Rowan pointed out every. single. one.

After seeing just three things in Ginza, we were all ready to go back to the hotel which felt like a bit of a defeat. We intended on resting for a few minutes then finding somewhere to eat lunch – most likely in back in the Shibuya area or near Tokyo Tower. But my “15 minute” nap ended up being three hours.

By the time I woke up, it was time for dinner.

We decided to head back to Shibuya and try to eat at one of the iconic conveyor belt sushi restaurants, Kura. After getting lost once again, we finally found the restaurant on the second floor of a high-rise. The usual check-in screen was either broken or off, so we waited a while trying to ask someone how to get on the list for a table only to find out that all reservations for the night were booked.

What Kura might have looked like if we had gotten in.

On the way to Kura, we had passed several ramen places but one in particular caught Rowan’s eye. It was also up a narrow flight of stairs on the second floor. The restaurant seemed to have dining rooms on the first, second and third floors of the building, all specializing in different types of ramen. The one on the second floor was ramen with a miso-based broth but all Rowan needed to see was the word “spicy”.

If you’re not familiar with Japanese or Korean restaurants, it is important to understand that most of them do not have Cheesecake Factory-style menus with hundreds of options spanning multiple styles. More often restaurants specialize in and serve only one or two items. If your family has members with very different food preferences, this can make finding a restaurant difficult. And it did for us the entire trip.

Following Rowan’s lead this time really paid off. After doubting what could possibly be up a sketchy set of stairs, we found ourselves on a very, very small landing facing a vending machine. To order our meal, we selected the items we wanted from the machine, paid in cash then it printed tickets for each item we ordered. Once inside the restaurant we gave the tickets to an employee. There was no English on the machine, so we used the pictures to guide us, filling in with Google translate as needed.

Vending machine similar to the one at our ramen place.

The inside of the restaurant was maybe eight-feet wide with one long wooden counter with stools providing most of the seating. There were a couple of small tables squashed into the space as well. Each of us ordered a different ramen, and I ordered a beer. It was wonderful. And ridiculously inexpensive. Our entire meal cost less than our room service club sandwich from the previous two nights.

Fun Fact: The Japanese often call a dish “salty” or “fatty”. In the US, these would be a turn off for diners but, in Japan, it’s a good thing. As a fan of all things fatty and salty, I completely agree. Jackson had the “salty ramen” here. It was Rowan and my least favorite but still delicious.

Everyone happy! If only we’d written down the name of the restaurant or had any recollection of where it was.

Nom!

Since it was our last night at The Conrad, after dinner, I was determined to have a drink in the 28 Lounge and pay more for one glass of Sauvignon Blanc than I had for all of our ramen. Despite being overpriced, the Lounge and the night views of the bay were well worth the cost.

The view from our table at 28 Lounge in The Conrad.

28 Lounge at The Conrad

Scaredy Cat Rating: Zero paws. Nothing to be afraid of except the possibility of goldfish revenge.

The $$$: Yes, I paid $8 again for a Coke Zero. I am not proud.

The Art Aquarium was part of the Klook three-exhibit package I booked. With the Klook discount, it was about $17 per person which I think is high compared to other Japanese attractions and for the amount of time you will spend in it.

We saved a little money by sleeping through lunch. Dinner was less than $30 but drinks at The Conrad were around $50.

I think I broke them part two.