Wednesday was originally planned as being the day we went to Fuji-Q Highlands, a wicked looking amusement park at the foot hills of Mt Fuji. But with Whitney out of action (probably wouldn't be nice have your feet whacked around in a rollercoaster carriage), we decided to postpone it. Whit's foot was feeling a little better, so people decided they wanted to do some shopping instead. (How this could be worse than a rollercoaster I don't know)
We decided to make our way down to Johnathan's, a cheap family restaurant chain just down the street. We mustn't have been feeling very adventurous, because Dean, Bubz and I all ordered toasted bacon and cheese sandwiches, while Mum and Conrad got the bacon and egg set meal. Was pretty cheap, and with the drinks bar included in our meals, unlimited coffee and softdrink for 514Y. This meant I got to press my own buttons, so a triple-shot espresso it was. There was a girl to the left doing what looked to be a logic puzzle, but with the x and o or whatever, it ended up producing a picture of a girl. In the time that we were there, she finished one and got started on a second one. With lots of caffeine coursing through my veins, it wasn't long before I was super-energetic and had to get moving.
We headed back to the hotel to grab some stuff, before heading down to Kayabacho station. There after getting on, we got off at Otemachi to change trains. Maybe it's me, but Otemachi seems like the anti-thesis of Japanese efficiency. Yes, you have the most of subway lines going into your station, but the walking distance actually covers several large city blocks on the surface. Anyhow, we changed trains for the Chiyoda line heading towards Meiji-Jingumae, the closest stop to Harajuku. Dean, Conrad and I were wanting to head to UT (the shirts in a can place), but as they and most of the shops around them didn't open til 11 (it was only 10.20) we had to wait around and find a loo for the time being. We went into the Starbucks that was close by, but with no decent coffee, and a false toilet code, we didn't hang around there long.
Back up the street to UT and it had opened it's doors by now. While Dean, Conrad and I perused the selection of T-shirts, Mum made use of their facilities. I like UT and Uniqlo, as they tend to use a lot more natural fibres, so 2 pairs of jeans and 3 or 4 shirts, and my wallet felt lighter. It was a pity they didn't stock more M and L sized shirts, as all that was left seemed to be XS, but judging by the amount left on the shelf, even the Japanese aren't that size. If they had them, my wallet would have felt lighter still.
We now decided to head around the corner and down Omote Sando-dori to the Oriental Bazaar. We hadn't been here for a few years, and Conrad had never been here at all, so while he looked around, I sat down, taking the weight off my already tired feet. We then headed back up the street, but at the place where Kiddy Land was meant to be, there was now a construction site... Oh noes!!! Don't tell us that Kiddy Land has gone the way of our favourite Gyoza place and the Mos Burger near our hotel!! But as we got up the street, we noticed a sign saying it was around the corner while it was being rebuilt. Down the side street, we stopped via a handmade candy kitchen, the Burton flagship store and a grocers until we found the illustrious Kiddy Land. The layout was slightly different, but it was still full to the brim with so much cuteness and sweetness, that you though you were going to have a toothache afterwards. We looked around there a bit, lamenting the fact that we don't have room in our house for a model trainset, as well as seeing all the cool toys we'll probably never get over in Australia (I'll have to see if they have a Rakuten shop). When we felt like all our teeth had rotted, we left, heading towards Takeshita-dori, where a whole heap of subcultures started. We looked, walked, didn't make eye contact with the Nigerians trying to lure you to their hip-hop gear shop, and generally just window shopped. There was plenty to buy, but with funds and room limited, only the most discerning products get bought...
By now it was after 3pm, and with all of us getting tired, we decided to head back to Yaesu mall. It was a good afternoon, with me trying various different cognacs, whiskeys, and expensive stuff that I'll never get to have again. It's funny, but I can easily go through 1000 or 1500Y there buying tastes of various things, but I never seem to walk sideways. Just as well, because I don't really want to fit in with the business men after a Japanese business meeting. It was now getting later, and with a big day planned for tomorrow, we decided to quickly look around for somewhere to eat. After poohpoohing all ideas around Yaesu, we stuck Whitney (who still had a sore foot, but by now the painkillers had worn off) into the back of a taxi along with Mum and Dean, while Conrad and I walked back. We eventually decided just to head downstairs to the restaurant under the hotel, as Dean wanted a steak. I ordered a 5 types Cheese pizza, which from what I could taste/read was Mozarella, Gorgonzola, cream cheese, and a couple of others. It was nice enough, but the service at the restaurant wasn't that good, and the rest of the food was a little greasy. There are plenty of other places around here we could have gotten better food at a cheaper price. Afterwards, we headed outside to Lawson's Station, before heading back upstairs for some beer/drinks and tele. We had to get an early night though, as tomorrow was going to be a big day.
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