Japan Trip Summer Part II

How I missed you Ko-chan Ramen!  As always, Gyoza and Red Spicy Miso Ramen set at the counter :-)

My cute friend and her son.  He is so handsome!

Look, he is taller than me!!  Saya looks mad but she was happy.

A little window shopping became real shopping because of these people.

Aly rode my Mom's bike.  My mother has the ugliest bike in Osaka!

Alyson is brushing her teeth.  Boy, her hair is getting long!

Train ride becomes a playtime - playtime anywhere, anytime.

If you can zoom in, look at Saya's expression!  Poor baby.

They enjoyed the roller-coaster.  It was a kiddy one, but still Mom and I didn't want to ride with them!

Oh my, they were immersed in their play.  I want to collect all of Sylvania Family toys. 

It's hard not to love vacation in Japan where your only concern is to have the best time.  As you can see in the photos, the first week or I should say, the first few days were so much fun for us girls.  I got to see my friend and her son whom I met in Australia while I lived in Sydney.  The last time I saw them was in 2006, so I was surprised how big her son got and how little my friend changed!  I've known him since he was a newborn, so it really is amazing how the children change into a different human in such a short time.  He was all teen and wanted to chill and be cool, but I saw the little boy in him here and there when he was talking to his Mom.  My kids are going to change so much in the next 10 years.  It was a sweet reminder to hug the kids as much as I can now.  Sigh...

I could see how excited my Mom was to see us.  She gave a present for the girls with a note "Welcome to Japan".    She gave me lots of money to spend in Japan, too, and I was grateful because I didn't have much to spend.  She also bought a reference book for leisure activities in Japan so we can look for the places we want to visit.  We found a place called "Toy Land" and well, the girls were sold.  It was very far, took us about 2 hours to get there, but we had lots of fun.  The best part was that since the school summer break had not started yet, the place was empty.  The girls challenged themselves to ride some thrill rides and hopped on Pirate Ship and mini roller coaster.  I could not see very well then but I can see now on photos that Saya was tense on Pirate Ship.  She said she liked it though :-)    The main attraction, at least for the girls, was Sylvanian Family play area.  The Sylvanian Family is called Carico Critters in the U.S. and they are popular amongst little girls all over the world.  I didn't know that it is actually from Japan.  They are tiny cute animal figures with play houses and loads of furniture etc...  My girls are a big fan of the series and they were so happy to be able to play with everything they make.  It was a Heaven for them.  They could have stayed there all day long and never get bored!

We had a good start and I am so grateful for my family to welcome us with open arms.  We felt loved and pampered.