Yokohama Day Trip

Yokohama Day Trip

On October 15, 2017

In Cup Noodle, Japan, Yokohama, Yokohama Baystars, Yokohama Trick Art Cruise

Our first stop in Yokohama was the station. We stopped for train stamps and an onigiri snack. When in Japan, visit the Conveni and eat onigiri!

Next on the agenda was the CupNoodle Museum. This is the second time it has been on a Julia Tour. I highly recommend it. I love the fact your Cup Noodle is your souvenir. They have worked out the process to a science. First, you buy your cup.

Then wash your hands.

After reading the rules for decorating your cup, you are escorted to a decorating table.

We spent about 20 minutes decorating our masterpieces. I made a cup for Layla’s husband, Nick, so they could enjoy a Japanese ramen dinner after they returned home.

Our finished products.

After decorating, we prepared our cups with noodles and flavor. The cups are placed upside down on the noodles. Each person turns the wheel and the noodles drop into the cup.

Next, you select the flavor of the ramen. Nina and Noah each selected traditional ramen flavor. Layla choose seafood flavor and I picked curry flavor for the cup I made for Nick. Also, we selected four toppings for each of our CupNoodle.

The chicken is my favorite. Kawaii!

After our cups are filled, the lid is applied and the cup is shrink wrapped.

After we made our own CupNoodle, we walked quickly around the museum. We were able to learn more about the history of the CupNoodle and pause/pose for a few pictures.

After our visit to the CupNoodle Museum, we meet up with Dave. We enjoyed a nice American lunch at Hard Rock Cafe Yokohama. As we made our way to the next stop on Julia’s tour, we took a quick detour at the Gatcha and Pokémon.

Our next adventure was at the Trick Art Cruise. This again made the Julia tour because it’s entertaining and a fantastic rainy day activity. Here are a few of my favorite pictures.

One of Noah’s Japan requests was to find a Yokohama Baystars baseball hat. We looked at Sports Authority and didn’t have any luck. We jumped a train and two stops later we were at the Baystars Stadium.

Of course we found one at the stadium!

This was our last stop of the day. From here, we headed home on one last train ride. From our first to the last train ride, we were all smiles!

Tokyo Giants Baseball

By wabisabisole

On August 2, 2017

In Baseball, Japan, Tokyo, Tokyo Giants, Yokohama Baystars

Thank you for the outpouring of love, support, and congratulations shared yesterday. Dave and I truly appreciate the kind words. I’m happy I could share his promotion with you. Thank you.

Meanwhile, back in Japan… I’m almost caught up to real time. Which is good, because on Thursday Dave and I are taking a trip to Kyoto. I will have so much more to share!

Saturday, July 29th, Dave and I went to the Tokyo Giants baseball game at the Tokyo Dome. The Tokyo Giants were playing the Yokohama Baystars. The Dome from the outside is impressive! The roller coasters and rides in the background are part of the Tokyo Dome City – an amusement park.

From a distance the sunflowers looked amazing. Upon closer inspection they were even more amazing! They are fake flowers that are actually water misters! Perfect for a hot summer day in Tokyo. Plus, they are kawaii!! (As you can tell by the pictures, it was cloudy and drizzly so the misters weren’t needed too much today.)

There is an American Baseball store right by the Tokyo Dome with all the American team’s logos. I paused to pose in my favorite t-shirt’s team. I mean next to my favorite baseball team. Go Brewers!

There were so many people entering the stadium!

We had a group of SRF sailors join us for the game. The orange towels were the free gift of the game. They made GQ ties for the gents!

The Dome was impressive and perfect. It was mildly air conditioned and it prevented a rain delay!

My friend, Sonia, also joined us for the game. Originally from the San Fransisco area, she sported her SF Giants gear with Giants Pride.

At halftime (?), we went on a hotdog run.

A hotdog with potato chips, BBQ sauce, and a side of fries. Yes, please! Because, Japan.

It was a very fun night. The Giants baseball game at the Dome seemed less animated than the Yokohama Baystars game. The biggest difference was that they didn’t have the balloons during the seventh inning stretch. Simultaneously, the crowd didn’t seem as excited, even though the Giants were winning throughout the entire game. All in all, it was a fun night. Japanese baseball is an experience. If you are brave enough to visit during the summer, I’ll make sure we catch a game! “Put me in coach…”

Yokohama Baystars

By wabisabisole

On April 16, 2017

In Baseball, Beer, Culture, Edamame, Japan, Yokohama, Yokohama Baystars

Dave and I went to the Yokohama Baystars baseball game on Saturday afternoon. This was our second time to a Japanese baseball game. We went last summer shortly after we arrived. It was funny to read my previous post. It truly seems like forever ago and that I was still in a jetlag haze. This experience was so much easier!

It was a beautiful day and I was able to take a few pictures of the flower gardens surrounding the stadium. The tulips were stunning.

Unfortunately, the Baystars lost. They are actually off to a rough start this year. It still was a fun day with my favorite liberty buddy.

Despite the lose, the game is entertaining on so many other levels. Including the always happy beer girls.

Not only have they perfected the art of the perfect pour, they climb up and down the stairs the entire game. All while carrying a pony keg on their back and smiling. Plus, they look perfect! They pin their hats to stay in place and their makeup is flawless! I can only imagine how strong their legs are by the end of the season!!

The other entertainment is the constant chanting for each batter. It is constant regardless of who is at bat. The highlight is during the seventh inning stretch. Everyone releases blue balloons.

The other treat is as the food options. Because we are in Japan, edamame is always an option. And always a good one!

Another cultural difference is how clean the stadium is after the game. Attendees are expected to put their garbage in the garbage cans. The stadium is very tidy, for the most part, after the game. Imagine expecting Americans to put their trash in the trash can!

The Japanese baseball schedule follows the American schedule very closely. Please consider that if you are interested in attending a game when you visit.

Japanese Baseball

By wabisabisole

On August 14, 2016

In Baseball, Japan, Yokohama, Yokohama Baystars

Today we traveled up to Yokohama to watch the Yokohama Baystars, a Japanese baseball team in the Central League.

Despite having our license, the train system is much easier to navigate. Simultaneously, parking in Japan is a HUGE challenge. And considering we are going to a baseball game & we will undeniably have a beer, it was a safer option to take the train.

A little bit about Yokohama. The population of Yokohama is 3.7 million making it the largest populated city in Japan. It is located about 30 minutes, by train, from where we will live and a little less than half way to Tokyo. Yokohama has many areas that I will definitely need to visit and discover.

The Ferris Wheel and Cup of Noodle Museum will definitely be on my list to explore.

I took a picture of a pedestrian bridge in Yokohama. If you notice, there are no crosswalks and actually railings to prevent pedestrians from crossing the street. Instead, pedestrians climb 2 flights of stairs and take a “sky bridge.” It is actually quite lovely. To me this picture truly illustrates the “wa” of Japan. Pedestrian friendly alternatives to crossing a busy road (although the road doesn’t look too busy in this picture). Also, please look closely the picture and notice the Pikachu in the background. Apparently, there was a Pikachu Party going on in Yokohama because this was the third one we saw.

We arrived in Yokohama with enough time to walk around the city a little and also visit Chinatown. The area was HUGE! We will definitely need to make a return trip to see more of the area.

After a day of exploring we finally arrive at Yokohama Stadium.

Attending the game was an experience and so much fun. Much more fun than a boring stuffing American baseball game. To start, the stadium was packed the entire game. It even went into an extra inning and the stadium remained full. Second, the fans are engaged and cheer for their team and more specifically their batter the entire time they are up at bat. Each batter has a song or chat that is tailored to their name that is sung by their fans. There are actually “cheering sections” for each team who are responsible for leading the cheers. If you notice in the picture below, the opposing team is wearing red and the home team is wearing blue.