Heyyyy, it’s Sunday and time to explore. The rain of yesterday has let up, even though it still looks scary cloudy out there. Joe wanted to go rub some feet (!), so off we went!
We had our sight set on an area called Shinsekai, so we bussed it to Abenobashi and walked from there. To cross the park area containing Tennoji Zoo, we stumbled upon Ten-Shiba. This place is worth visiting again! There’s a (kids only) raised jungle gym, a clip and climb-like business, soccer areas, concert stage (lots of high school bands were practicing and awaiting their turn), restaurants and a large park.
After taking a wrong turn because there was so much to see, we finally found our way around Ten-Shiba, and were on the right track. I love taking quirky pictures of buildings and other things that are different than home, and I liked the look of this building!
When we finally got to Shinsekai, it was another partially covered network of market and restaurant alleys. Suddenly, Joe said “here it is!” and started rubbing feet! Billiken is a very famous character in Japan, even though his creator is an American lady, and he’s also a mascot for Saint Louis University. If you’re lucky, maybe you’ve received an Alaskan Billiken figurine as a souvenir?
By the time we walked through the area, we’d seen so many Billiken figures, we have no idea which one we’re supposed to rub!
We kept walking through this area, smelling all the street foods, watching all the games (if you want to throw stars, you now know where to come. Also, archery!), and then we rounded a corner and found…
This observation tower used to have a theme park at the base, hence why this market and all these vendors ended up here. The park has since disappeared, but the vendors and the visitors still flock to the base of this tower. We did not go up. We were on the hunt for lunch!
This area has endless restaurants, but we felt like they were mostly kushikatsu (deep fried food on a stick), so that’s what we ended up having for lunch. We ordered a few different things on a stick, like pork, chicken, Japanese yam, cheese, quail eggs, I forget the rest. We also ordered gyoza and a bowl of deep fried octopus (honestly the tastiest dish of them all).
After lunch, we were exploring the side alleys we hadn’t looked at yet, when suddenly we hear music and see a crowd. It was a group of grandmothers, costumes, makeup and a dance routine! I continue to be impressed with the older Japanese people, but I guess it’s only natural. They have the longest expected life in the world, so why wouldn’t I find them more active in general?
We continued our walk through the area, and found some more fun along the way.
The rain returned, even though it hadn’t told us it would, but luckily the rain jackets saved the day again. We decided to head home, and took a subway and a bus, then a walk. On a rainy day, of all days, the busdriver overshot our stop, and we had to walk an extra few blocks.
To pick us up, Maylin and I walked to 7Eleven for some frozen treats, while Joe and Téa walked home. We ate ice cream before dinner, because we were home so early, and then spent the rest of the day playing and working, you can guess who did what…
Can’t wait for tomorrow, our Mon-Saturday!