Father’s Day Pt. 1 in Harajuku
“My daughter and I saw you on the Reluctant Traveller with Eugene Levy. She is 9 and she loved you!
We would love to schedule a kid-friendly tour with you while we are in Japan.”
I had the pleasure of spending Father’s Day weekend with the F. Family all the way from California, U.S.A!
Ron (dad), Audrey (daughter) and Bodhi (son) spent a week in Tokyo and Kyoto. They love exploring different foods and shopping.
Ron first visited Tokyo with his father when he was six years old. Now as an adult, it’s his turn to do the same for his six-year old son. Will this be a family tradition?
Audrey loved cute fun kawaii fashion and adored my bunny ears. Ron requested a matching bunny ear headband just like mine and Nintendo things for Bodhi for their “Welcome gift.”
Audrey couldn’t stop wearing her pink bunny ears. It made me so happy!
Meiji Shrine 明治神宮
Meiji Shrine is a Shinto shrine that is dedicated to the deified spirits of Japan’s first modern Emperor Meiji and his wife, Empress Shōken.
It first opened in 1920.
Many marriages and baby photos are held here. We even got to witness a traditional wedding that day.
Flocks of tourists were curious and smiled at the beautiful bride in white kimono.
We wash our hands and mouth (optional) before entering the shrine to purify ourselves from the outside world. Bodhi did a fantastic job!
We wrote our wishes on ema 絵馬. These wooden plaques representing prayers and wishes get burned so our message can be reached to the heavens. Of course, you can take yours home if you want.
Soccer fans
Audrey is on the soccer team, so we had to stop by!
She got a Team Japan’s women’s jersey! How cool!
The kids floor is on the bottom floor (elevator & stairs available). However, kids size in this jersey were sold out. So the next best thing was a women’s size small. Audrey can wear it as a pajama for now and grow into it before you know it!
When in Harajuku… crepes
The kids chose a strawberry kiwi flavor, while I got a tuna cheese crepe since I like savory snacks.
I recommend this crepe shop if you’re traveling with kids. Why?
This the closest crepe shop to the iconic Takeshita sign entrance. (Just in case they suddenly get hungry.)
There are three more crepe shops as you walk straight to the opposite entrance.
There is a bench area next to this shop and garbage disposal for crepes only.
The wall of sample crepe is a great IG photo spot.
Capsule Lab
We had some time to kill before our appointment with the pigs, so we went to the Capsule Toy Store.
This store has two floors of capsule toys. Bodhi was in love and wanted to get a bunch, but we all had to hold him back from going too crazy LOL.
The fun part is that you don’t know what you’re going to get. If you get the one that you want, it’s your lucky day! This is very similar to the concept of omikuji or fortune oracles you pick up at the temples and shrines. Some people draw their fortunes until they get the one that they want.
*There are boxes where you can return the capsules if you don’t want to keep it.
Google Map: CAPSULE LAB | (カプセルラボ)原宿竹下通り店
Kawaii Shopping
Audrey loves Kawaii J-fashion. She was in HEAVEN. She wanted another pair of bunny ears in white, exactly like mine :)
She also got this very cute hair clip. So pretty! She asked for some advice on which one looked most kawaii on her :3 Everything looked kawaii on her, so it was a very hard decision!
Rainbow Cheese Dog
This dog is huge! It is a good size to be shared with 3 or 4 people. The colors are very… interesting. It looked like tie-dye.
It is coated with sugar and there is no hot dog inside. It comes out very hot so be careful!
Be sure to order and pay inside and then wait outside around the corner for your order number.
Mustard and ketchup are available for free.
MiPig Cafe
This was a request from Ron and it was the kid’s highlight of the day. This a 30-minute session where you get to hang out with cuddly micro pigs. Pigs are social animals and love to snuggle and cuddle.
Tip: Make sure you don’t wear anything you don’t mind getting dirty or lace clothing! The pigs loved chewing my outfit and there was a little pig saliva on it...
Should I reserve in advance? YES… this is Japan!
Book online on their official website and double check on shop location.
Interior. There is a small table for each group. Wear socks!
A giggly time!
Free flowing drinks available. They even had corn soup!
There are 2 locations in Harajuku, so be sure you are at the right one!
Google Map: mipig cafe Harajuku Takeshita Street | mipig cafe原宿竹下通り
It’s on Takeshita Street and newly opened. This is the one we went to. It has a cute pink interior that matches the Harajuku vibe.
Google Map: mipig cafe - Harajuku
This is in the back alley. This is the old one, but the space is a lot bigger. There are also private rooms and giant size pigs available.
Purikura Photo Booth
I showed them how to work a purikura photo booth. They were so surprised at how filtered their faces looked! They also got to express their artistic talent when decorating the photos. Audrey loved to draw, so she enjoyed this activity very much. Bodhi also had fun making funny faces in the booth. The photos turned out hilarious!
This is how Japanese high school and college students spend their free time. Aren’t we kawaii?
Very talented artists!
After the tour was over, I sent the family back to their hotel and they had the whole afternoon to be spent at the pool. Congrats on surviving Day 1 of crazy Tokyo! We did a lot!
