Day 4 - Kawasaki area & Day 5 - Studio Ghibli and Tokyo Tower

Let's get it on..

The next 2 days are where we headed a little out of the way from Tokyo.

Went to Fujio F Fujiko museum which is in Kawasaki and Studio Ghibli in Mitaka. We bought the ticket from a tour agent. You can buy the ticket at any Lawson convenience store I think which have the ticketing machine, just google it up. You CAN'T buy it at the museum which is so weird to me. I think they want to limit how many people can enter it at a time . 

However since I heard Studio Ghibli tickets can go really fast I first asked a website that handled in buying and sending things in Japan to people all over the world, however we had some language barrier issues which caused me to unable to purchase it. However husband have contact a tour agent there who is willing to take the extra steps to purchase it for us and mail it to our hotel a week before arrival. So those who are interested to know how we purchase it from Malaysa, that is how! Easier if you have someone you know la. 

So on the day 4 which is on Tuesday, we woke up just in time to get to the station and catch a train to Noborito Station. I was worried a bit because the ticket is for 10 am.  and I think you only have a half hour window to enter it from the time you bought. We got to Noborito Station just in time around 10 am, and reached the museum at 10.15 am via the shuttle bus. Not to mention Aziz was cranky during the whole train ride. Ade la sorang pakcik Jepun who tried to tease Aziz back to good humour and a group of Thai ladies who offered him candies.

The shuttle bus to Fujio F Fujiko museum is very easy to spot!

We queued up a bit and was told no stroller are allowed which is a bother because Aziz really wants to drink his milk and he only do it lying down! 

Went to the nursery and let him drink up a bit but then he was excited seeing all those toys and patung to drink! So tak jadi minum pulak! 

My tips to those bringing toddler here, bring the toddler straight up to the play area and you and your partner take turn to watch him so the other people can see the exhibit in peace. At first we tried bringing Aziz along with the exhibit but he is a tots and not really interested and he was acting up. So yeah we took turn for both of us sanity. Sempat jugak Aziz berak time there, which is way better than anywhere else since the baby room is incredibly nice. 

Our ticket!

Passport!

This is actually at the entrance display

The exhibit mostly contained their sketches of Doraemon comics and one of their earlier works that looks incredibly like it.

They will give you an audio guide and this is the best audio guide I had heard. It have the option for English so that makes the exhibit more informational than we just roam around and seeing it. Also there is a replica of their home office which is amazing! Their home office looks like my dream library! So many books and posters and Star Wars memorabilia. Fujio Fujiko were a fan of Star Wars. We can't really take pictures of the exhibit and that passport picture are taken by my husband illegally I think.

Most of the time were spent here. The play area.

There are Doraemon comics all over for people to read but it is all in Japanese so we didn't bother.

One of the things Aziz try to play. I don't quite understand it either.

I actually realized we didn't take picture of the whole place, oh well, there is one part for reading and another for playing. There is a movie, actually more like you can watch a trailer for an upcoming Doraemon movie, but we didn't go in.

Then we went outside for more picture taking opportunities and let Aziz roam around.

I suruh die sayang Doraemon and this is what he did.

Also those who read/watch Doraemon. Remember this!

Ade la few others patung around the outdoor area, the biggest draw is the Pintu Suka Hati, which is a pain to get a picture with because a couple of photographer snapping like 30 pictures in one pose while adjusting their settings. Amateurs! But we manage tapi I tak upload sini la.

There is a cafe but we just opt to eat the melon bread from the stall selling breads and drinks outside. Bought Aziz a dorayaki. He likes it enough that he finished his off.

Then we went to Nihon Minkaen ( Open Air Folk House museum ) which is just 5 mins bus ride from the museum. At first I thought we have to walk there, but my husband asked the guard outside the museum and he informed us that there is a shuttle bus to take us there so we waited around 15 mins for the shuttle bus. Naseb baik tak jalan. Dah la hari panas .

So yeps! This is one of the house in the area. The Nihon Minkaen is a collection of real rural houses that they transported from all over Japan to one area so we can see what old rural house looks like. It is located in a park so it is very beautiful. And hilly!

I love it there, though after 10 houses I kinda give up reading the histories.

Some of the interiors.

The walk is uphill and the houses are really fetching. I bet in winter during snow it is even more beautiful.

 

Comel

Muka Aziz dah ngantuk gile dah time ni.

So we gave him susu in stroller and pushed him up around the hilly area looking at houses and die tidor dalam stroller.

Tea in one of the houses

You can also join in for tea and conversation with these men if you like though I excused myself politely.

That is the exit, and the park is gorgeous! We didn't have enough time to go into the park though. This time we missed the shuttle bus and we had to wait close to an hour for another bus to come! Asked the guard nearby and the walk to the train station is not far. I timed it myself, only 15 minutes! So we walked as the weather is beautiful at the time.

We headed back to Tokyo, rested up a bit and went to Akihabara. At first I was really stoked to eat naan at an Indian place but after many searching the place is closed! Booo! I was hungry and annoyed. 

Not to mention pissed. We were walking out of Akihabara station when a Japanese guy approached us wanting to help us asking where we want to go, we just want to go to the Electric town exit, he showed us the way ( wrongly I may add ) and after he shown us the way he asked us for money! So never say you won't be scammed in Japan. I can always say No but he was insisted saying he is hungry so please give him 300 yen, I eyed him sidewise while smiling thinly which he then change to 200 yen. Since I want to get rid of him I just give him 200 yen. Annoying. So yes, we were in for a rude shock since I never heard tourists got asked for money when Japanese people giving directions. So that is my tale of caution. Maybe only in Akihabara because that guy really looks super otaku. Said to my husband probably this is one of the guy who is addicted to those pachinko machine. 

That unpleasantness aside we walked around in Akihabara. I actually was underwhelmed. Foreigners seems to gush at the place, to me it just look like a bigger Low Yat. Hahahaha. Maybe I don't really appreciate the Electric Town. *shrugs* 

We did spot a Caucasian girl working in costume at one of the shops. To a lot of guys delight. No photos are allowed though.

I don't really find maid cafe or these costumes appealing since these are too objectified , so I guess maybe that is why Akihabara looks blergh to me.

 

Anyway my husband manage to ask from one of the Indian man wearing kopiah buying stuffs at Akihabara if there is any halal shops nearby. And just our luck that the guy do know where to find one since he actually is living here. 

So we went to this Yodobashi Akiba place where at the 8th floor there is an Indian place which served halal food ( chicken ye, not beef). 

So yes! I got my naan. It was a good naan too and the tandoori chicken is actually really good and Aziz ate a lot of it too. 

Aziz actually threw down my naan to the floor when I still have half left and I think the waiter saw that I am nearly in tears ( people just don't mess with my food, I get emotional with my food ) that he gives me another naan free. That waiter is the best ever ok. 

So that is it, we got back to hotel and prepared esok for Studio Ghibli pulak! 

On Day 5, we woke up and got ourself to the station. We waited a while to get to Mitaka Station with increasing anxiety. Rupanye the train going in that direction is delayed. Our ticket was at 10 am and at 9.20 am we are still waiting for the train to go to Mitaka.  Nasib baik sempat jugak. We arrived at the station close to 10.10 am and there is the shuttle bus waiting at the station.

We arrived there at 10.20 and have to queue up for a while but that does not take long. Our visit to Studio Ghibli Museum also coincide with a junior high school trip I believe. So that was interesting and madness to the whole museum. 

 While we were queueing there was I think an Australian guy with his daughter who was pissed and trying to make the worker there understand while showing them a piece of paper that he had bought the ticket from their website online and this paper stated that they only needed to show their passport and this printout to them to collect the ticket. I think that they had been scammed from some weird website or misread which place they are suppose to collect it, since we can't collect the ticket at the museum. 

Anyway. The queue does not take long and as we guess since at the Fujio Fujiko museum we can't bring stroller in, we had closed the stroller by the time we get to the entrance. 

The exhibit is magical! I can't describe it, a lot of it are animated or interactive and most of them wondrous. Aziz enjoy the exhibit very much. We took turn in bringing him to the things which we think he would enjoy, and the rooms that he I think he won't care about ( the replica of the animators office, home and works) we took turn looking at. He especially like the peek and boo sorta exhibit shown in there. Photography is not allowed inside the museum, so yeah.. no pictures here. 

But husband did manage to get Aziz picture on the Neko bus! 

A japanese girl helping Aziz to get into the bus.

See! A neko bus! This is a play area for toddlers and children, and it is nothing much just a cat bus with cuddly round fur things inside but the kids do enjoy it! And I had half a feeling to jump into Neko bus myself! Aziz was really stoked and I think this is the highlight of the day for him. He even cabut Neko bus tu punye bulu to the protestation of the worker. Nasib baik buat sekali je, lepas tu tak buat lagi. Kalau tak kena halau dari main.

He was the youngest child there and got bullied once by a boy who wants to take away his fur balls, Aziz cried and the worker intervene so that's that. Then he continued to play happily in the bus sampai kena tarik dengan mak bapak die untuk amik gambar kat atas. 

Alamak. Gamba ni tak bersedia. Lantak la. There were so many schoolchildren hopping impatiently to take a picture here so aku macam malas nak beria.

The water fountain Aziz main sampai basah baju. Geram. Anyway, lepas amik gamba die terus terpa balik area Neko Bus tu and tanggal kasut nak sambung main. So we let him in there for 10 or 15 mins before going out of the  museum. 

While at the cafe so husband can buy me ice cream, noticed a park next to the museum.  with few sakura trees. Sebab jakun kena pegi amik gamba. 

Then we walked back to museum to take a last photo before going back to Mitaka Station and head back to Tokyo. 

At Mitaka station, we had lunch at KFC. No.. not the chicken but the fried fish. Boleh la for hunger pang. Beli extra for Aziz in case he wants it, but he wants only the biscuits.

 

Got back to Tokyo and decided eh, let's go to Roppongi la.

A place where expats thrived. Memula nak pergi Mori Tower to see the whole view of Tokyo but then saw that the entrance fee cekik darah amat. Don't want. 

So we walked a while and singgah Hard Rock Cafe for the usual tshirt purchase. 

Then we went to Tokyo Tower! 

I really wanted to go here because I heard souvenirs here is cheap and it is! Tips2 mengatakan Nakamise Dori tu lagi cheap,... no the one selling here is the cheapest so far I seen. 

Also partly I was an avid fan of Japanese Drama which then used to have a lot of Tokyo Tower as background and the rainbow bridge! Since I did not plan to go to Odaiba, it was ok by me seeing it from afar.

Ni laki aku la amik. One of the Tokyo sight. Bukan, ini bukan miniature. 

Up there, there is a large robot gliding here to provide interactive information. Aziz suke. Campo takut.

Stayed there nearing sunset time.

Oh the souvenirs I mentioned that are cheap there, it is Level 2 ke 3, not the same level as the observatory.

Afterwards we walked back to Roppongi and had dinner at a kebab place. Not so nice , so salty, maybe that is why I didn't take picture.