Japanese Baseball

It may be the American pastime, but the Japanese take their baseball seriously.  Actually they take pretty much everything seriously, and baseball is no different.  Even when it was TERRIBLY hot outside this summer, you would see Japanese men and boys in uniform, off to play baseball.

Road Trip!

For our first Japanese baseball experience, we choose to go see the Yokohama Baystars.  Just getting there was by far the most challenging part.  Especially parking the GIANT (really just a normal American-sized) minivan that we rented while Poppy and BB where here.  

Just imagine driving here... from the passenger seat... and all road signs look like gibberish to you

But we made it and I was even able to figure out how to buy us tickets!

Though a mid-week game, the stadium was mostly full

Each team is only allowed 3 'foreign' players on the roster.  One is almost always the clean-up hitter/first baseman.

They have cheerleaders and mascots

It's blurry, but this is D.B Baystar on the left and 'his sister' according to Leyton 

We really enjoyed the hot dogs

A flyover by an American helo.  Daddy was out flying that night, and we knew he liked to fly over the stadium, so we snapped a picture hoping it was him.  It was not.

Go Baystars!

We left after the 7th inning stretch.  Ellis wasn't too impressed with baseball.  She played on the iPad for most of the game.  And Leyton liked the characters and the Ferris wheel that lit up cool colors that we could see from our seats (side note: the Japanese are big into Ferris wheels).  It was a cool experience.  For each batter, there was a band that played a special song and the crowd would sing along -a different song for EVERY player.  And though we couldn't understand much more than 'Let's Go!' it was fun to clap along.  Even now Ellis will do a fist pump and a hardy 'Let's Go!' on occasion.  And it was a good night for the Baystars.  The rules of baseball are exactly the same, so we could follow along easily.  They got a lot of hits and scored some runs and I am assuming they won.  And I successfully relocated our car and got us back home -thanks Google Maps!

Well, Hello Kitty!

Nothing quite conjures up the true feel and essence of Japan like Hello Kitty.  Right up there with Fugi and sushi, Hello Kitty is a Japanese icon.  And you would be hard pressed to find a bigger Hello Kitty fan than Leyton Lee Campoamor.  For two years running, and she's gunning for a 3-peat, Leyton has been Hello Kitty for Halloween.  Then there are toys, blankets, purses, shirts, shoes, bows, books, and lots and lots of stickers of Hello Kitty that liter our home.  So though the rest of our party found Hello Kitty Land to be rather painful, Leyton LOVED it.

Hello Kitty Land, or Sanrio Puroland as it's really named, is completely indoors.  Perfect for a rainy day.  Which it was.

HK is apparently 40 years old

Poppy and Ellis on the lookout for Kitty

This smile is why adults subject themselves to places like Hello Kitty Land

Our first 'ride' was the boat ride.  Basically 'It's a Small World' but with Hello Kitty characters.  P.S. there are a LOT of characters.

My Melody!!!

This is Bon Bon Ribbon, who is a big deal here in Japan but I don't think she is elsewhere.  Not sure if Bon Bon Ribbon is the name of this whole group of rabbits or just one rabbit.  Anyway, they danced on-stage and then invited the kids out to learn a very detailed Bon Bon Ribbon dance.  I will try and post a video or find a link for the Bon Bon Ribbon song.  It's a very annoying though catchy tune.

LC is on the far right.  Ellis had long ago grown bored and ran away.

Hello Kitty's coach

One last hug as we departed

No idea who the tiger is

We visited on a weekend AND a Japanese holiday, so it was very crowded.  We didn't even get to see the parade or go inside her house.  Fortunately, HK Land is only about a 40 drive from our house.  So, though painful and expensive, we will likely be going again.

**After further research and unsuccessful attempts at loading a Bon Bon Ribbon video, I have discovered a few things.  First, Bon Bon Ribbon is new (compared to HK's 40 years) so if you've never heard of her, you just aren't that cool.  She debuted in 2012 and is indeed one rabbit, so the rest must be her friends or siblings.  Also, she wants to be a fashion designer like her mother when she grows up.  My sources include, but are not limited to, wikipedia.  You are welcome.

FOOD!

You will all benefit from pictures from Poppy and BBs camera for the next few posts.  Everyone else is better at remembering to take pictures than me.  This post is a sample of some of the food available here in Japan.

Vending machine ice cream

Sanwa (local grocery store) sushi

Probably chicken

Hot dog at a baseball game (some things are universal)

You can get pretty much anything from a vending machine here

Fresh catch at a fish market

Some kind of giant dumpling thing with pork inside

Sweet potato cakes

Sweet potato and green tea soft serve

A squid that is flattened into a cracker using high heat and pressure.  It was fabulous.

Candy-dipped banana at Hello Kitty Land -personally I thought it was gross

Chicken??

More sushi

More sushi... this time at a sushi Go-Round

Yummy

Japanese curry.  The red is spicier at this restaurant.

Udon noodles

The best food of the visit was not photographed.  For our 10th wedding anniversary, Ryan and myself went to Nakamura Sushi.  Mr. Nakamura gave us a special seat at the bar and for two and a half hours personally prepared sushi for us.  We sampled everything, including sea pineapple and sea urchin.  Everything was good, but some things were better than others.  The whole experience was delightful.  I sat next to a Japanese computer programmer who helped to translate for Mr. Nakamura (who spoke pretty good English himself).  He was delightfully socially awkward and was very helpful in teaching me the proper sushi-eating technique.  Next to Ryan was an older Japanese gentleman who goaded Ryan into drinking plenty of sake.  I can't begin to describe all the delicious food we enjoyed, so you will just have to visit and try it for yourself.  If sushi isn't your thing, then you can babysit while I go back there and eat :-)

Our First Visitors!

Welcome to Japan Poppy and BB!

We had the opportunity to finally show some folks around our new home.  Our first visitors were Poppy and BB.  They stayed for two weeks, and we stayed busy.

Our first trip was to Enoshima Beach.  It was very hot and very crowded -but to be fair it was probably the worst possible time to go.  It is currently the Japanese Obon season, when most Japanese take vacation, AND we went on a weekend.  And it's August, so the sand was BURNING hot.

But we still had fun.  The water isn't dirty, it just looks that way because the sand is blackish.

Ellis is fearless and loves the water.

Leyton was a little more hesitant in the water, but she had fun too.

The patch of clouds in the background is Mt. Fugi.

Stay tuned for more -including Yokohama Baystars baseball, Hello Kitty Land, shrines, weird food, pirate ships and, of course, lots of cute kids!