Family bonding in Tokyo
The love of a family is life’s greatest blessing. Family bonding is a tradition we all look forward to. This year, our family chose Tokyo, capital city of Japan, as the venue to welcome the new year. It was an experience like no other as we immersed ourselves in the Japanese culture from the people’s gentleness and respectfulness, to the invigorating clean air, down to the sumptuous and mouthwatering Japanese cuisine.
Tokyo, with a population of 13.6 million, is one of the world’s most populous metropolises. Prior to 1868, Tokyo was known as Edo. A small castle town in the 16th century, Edo became Japan’s political center in 1603 when Tokugawa Ieyasu established his feudal government there.
Tokyo is characterized by splendid architecture both the old and the new. My niece, Nikki Boncan-Buensalido, and her husband, Jason, both passionate architects, admired the modern architecture as they took photos of the amazing buildings.
We arrived in Tokyo safely aboard a CX flight from Manila via Hong Kong. From the noticeably quiet airport we opted to board an evening train to get us to our Airnbnb located at Ikebukuro. At the district’s center stands Ikebukuro Station, a busy commuter hub traversed by three subways and multiple urban and suburban train lines. The station handles over a million passengers per day, making it the second busiest railway station surpassed only by Shinjuku Station.
Our very thoughtful host Ken, who is half-Japanese and half-Filipino, had every little thing we needed to make our stay most comfortable, resulting in such happy family bonding, where we talked about the abundance of eating places and Japanese convenience food stores that kept us picnicking to our heart’s delight.
The next day, after breakfast in our three-bedroom apartment, we all trooped to nearby Sunshine City, which was a pleasant 12-minute walk away. Sunshine City is a commercial complex that features a variety of facilities including a hotel, an office building, aquarium, observatory, planetarium and shopping center. It is conveniently located in the heart of Tokyo and is just a short walk from Ikebukuro Station. The sight of local Japanese fashion stores like Alta attracted us. The choice of food establishments floor after floor was so varied it was so difficult to make a choice. One of our favorites though was the udon restaurant on the ground floor that served a very delicious tempura and handmade fresh noodles that my brother Mark and his wife Mylene enjoyed very much.
We then went to the Aquarium located on the rooftop of a 40-meter-tall building. Built in the image of a tropical resort area, you can take a break from the everyday bustle surrounded by water and greenery. One unforgettable moment in our trip was when the diver came to feed the sea creatures by hand. He fed the huge Mobula rays, almost bear-hugging the sharks as they circled the giant tank together like mother and child — boy, what a big child. The sea lion show was also a highlight as it kept our little niece Annika clapping her hands with glee. It was also a pleasure to see the giant Japanese spider crabs and the exotic colored frogs.
After all the fun and satisfying food trips we had, the boys of our family worked out in Gold’s Gym and came back invigorated. We took the train to Ginza, walked around the high-end stores admiring the spring fashions in bright colors of Chanel, Furla, Bulgari and Louis Vuitton. The Ginza is Tokyo’s most famous upmarket shopping, dining and entertainment district, featuring numerous department stores, boutiques, art galleries, restaurants, nightclubs and cafes.
One square meter of land in the district’s center is worth over 10 million yen, making it one of the most expensive real estate in Japan. It is where you can find the infamous $10 cups of coffee and where virtually every leading brand name in fashion and cosmetics has a presence.
After our fashion stroll, we then went to the Mitsukoshi Building, where we enjoyed the delicious okonomiyaki, a Japanese pizza made with lots of eggs, shredded Japanese cabbage, seafood topped with a succulent sweet sauce. The taste was definitely todie-for.
The temperature dropped so quickly a few days later that we trooped to Uniqlo to buy more furry jackets, HeatTech garments, hats and sweaters. Then we went to Torijin for dinner and tasted the tender chicken yakitori. Then a street bakery beckoned us to queue up to try local chocolate marble donuts and other decadent pastries.
We decided to explore Shibuya, so we took a train going there and took photos at the famous crossing with the statue of legendary dog, Hachiko. The Hachiko Statue in Shibuya Tokyo celebrates the life of Japan’s most famous canine and his undying loyalty to his owner. The Hachiko Statue is located next to the very busy Shibuya Station. For more than 50 years, this monument to Hachiko has retained its popularity as a tourist attraction. Behind it is a true story about Hachiko, a golden brown male Akita Inu (a Japanese breed from the mountains of northern Japan) who would arrive at Shibuya Station every afternoon just to wait for the return of his master, Professor Hidesaburo Ueno. This pattern went on for just over a year, until one day in 1932 Prof. Ueno did not return; he had suffered a cerebral hemorrhage while at work and died. Despite this, Hachiko still waited every afternoon for the master to return until the dog himself passed away. Such was Hachiko’s faithfulness.
The next day we went to the Tsukiji Market — my nephew Matthew’s wish. There we were amidst a sea of stalls teeming with the freshest seafood you can find — all kinds and varieties of crabs, prawns, tuna, salmon, scallops, lobsters, unagi and many more. Tsukiji Market is a large wholesale market for fish, fruits and vegetables in central Tokyo. It is the most famous of over 10 wholesale markets that handle the distribution of food and flowers in Tokyo. Tsukiji Market is best known as one of the world’s largest fish markets, handling over 2,000 tons of marine products per day.
Around the Tsukiji Market is an area filled with food stalls that’s a gourmand’s delight. From the freshest sashimi to scallops on the half shell broiled in fresh butter to savory beef dishes, there is something to delight even the pickiest of eaters.
For late lunch we went to Sushi Zanmai. According to my niece Sam, that food experience was definitely unforgettable for her because she was able to relish every succulent bite of her
uni- assortment of sushi. After a walk to the park, we braved the cold weather all the way back to Ginza where we found a store building full of brands and hardto-find fashionables.
We also met up with a family friend Eiji Tezuka, who is the owner of Gold’s Gym in Ginza. Eiji- san treated us to dinner at Gopachin, a quaint Japanese restaurant with interiors made of stone and wood that felt like being in an old Japanese dwelling in the countryside. Gopachin is a popular go-to for good comfort food located in a picturesque building that draws you in. A must visit, I must say.
Omotesando is also a very nice area as well. The boys bought shoes in the very nice stand- alone Tiger Onitsuka store located in a quiet enclave. My niece and nephew, Carin and Cito, enjoyed Kiddieland. Then we walked on to Harajuku, where my sister Yvonne lined up for 22 pieces of croquant for our snacks, which she distributed and we all enjoyed, especially Michelle, my other sister, because she devoured hers in less than a minute. The Croquant Chou Zaku Zaku specializes in freshly made croquant chou cream pastries, which originate from Hokkaido. Vincent, Michelle’s son, was in heaven at the football store we passed by the ICI Ishii Sports Harajuku. Michelle’s husband, Benny, and Matthew bought Hershell backpacks in one of the stores in the area.
We enjoyed our New Year ’ s Eve dinner at a yakiniku restaurant named Seiko–En. Then we merrily went back to our apartment toasting to Hibiki Whiskey and master’s brew beer, with white chocolate KitKat sake. After midnight, the millennials in our group, Alex, Sam and Vincent, went to A-life club to dance to the local beats.
On the first day of 2017, we went to the beautiful St. Ignatius church located in Sophia University at noon to start the year with a beautiful Catholic Mass. After thanking the good Lord for the many blessings, we look forward together to the new year.
Truly, the love of a family is life’s greatest blessing.