Toy shopping, and Wakayama city sights - Fri 4 May

Our dreams of a lazy day starting with a sleepin were shredded at 7am by ethusiastic Japanese kiddy screeching. Ah well. Hours later, a shy head peak around the door from four year old Hina and a tentative, "Good morning.." was unmissably cute.

Breakfast was huge, eggs and bacon and breads and rice balls and salads and almond chocolate biscuits and finish off this ham... no wonder Take was able to drop 25 kilos when he left home for uni and his subsequent year in Sydney.

On the hour, the loungeroom clock chimed out love theme from The Bodyguard, 'I will Always Love You'.


Perhaps in response to the scarcity of rubbish bins in Japan's public spaces, Take's house offers many opportunities to dispose of your waste products.



The kids played boisterously for hours, until their mum took them for a trip out. On their return, Take's dad asked, "Are they back already? That was a short trip."

We headed out with them to the toy department of the local department store, so uncle Take could buy them prezzies before they headed off to the other in-laws'.

There were lots of kitschy, cutesy things to enjoy at the toy department. I loved the Shinkansen themed range.


Hina shops.


Takumi tries to figure out how this fancy piano works.


A Japanese version of a train set - again, Shinkansen :)


Hina and Takumi, quite depleted after all the excitement.


We made a sweep around the supermarket, which, out in the Japanese countryside, makes Australian supermarkets feel like broom cupboards. Some bread products at the supermarket:


And the dressed-up bread chefs.


We popped off to Kishu Toushougu shrine. Again with the stairs.


A wish for Love and Peace.


These are ornate objects are carried during festivals.


The beautifully intricate and colourful entrance gate.


I scored a juvenile laugh when some of my highschool Japanese came back to me as we passed by Seaside Hotel Kanchou. 'Kanchou', although spelt with different Chinese characters giving it a different meaning in this case, also means 'enema' in Japanese.

We visited Wakayama castle, a concrete reconstruction made after fires destroyed it during World War II, for a walk in the gardens, as the guide book promised they were beautiful. I suggested to Take that he and this tree shared similar hairstyles.


Just as the guidebook promised, Wakayama is picturesque from afar, and concrete up close.


Under Take's cautious eye, I made up some of my recipes collected during my time at Shalom Hutte into a meal for Take and his folks. I made pork kimchee, a side of sauteed cabbage with mirin and soy sauce, and a burdoch-based assorted vegie stew. All were very well received, with Take's dad complimenting them to the extend that Take and his mum told him off for being a repetitive embarrassment.