Happy Christmas, Japan-Style!

Some of you know that as you read this, we are back in the US celebrating Christmas with family.  I scheduled this post to go out back in early November because that's when the Christmas catalogs started appearing.  No, I don't mean toy catalogs.  I'm referring to the catalogs that supermarkets and convenience stores put out with all the food you can order for the holidays.  I didn't do this post last year because I wanted to wait until we actually had some experience with ordering the holiday food, but at the rate we're going we'll never actually be here at Christmas.  So here it is.

You may have heard about how Japanese people go to Kentucky Fried Chicken for their Christmas dinner.  It's true, many years ago KFC was the closest you could get to an American holiday-type meal here and the KFC advertisers took diabolical advantage of it by convincing the Japanese that everyone in the US eats restaurant fried chicken at Christmas.  And since Christmas is only celebrated as a fun, secular, western holiday here, they believed it.   So as it nears Christmas you'll see a sign-up sheet outside KFC where people sign up for their holiday meal.  When you try to explain to a Japanese person the reality of turkey, stuffing and cranberry sauce they just get kinda confused.  As far as I can tell turkey isn't a very popular meat here although you can find a few Butterballs at Costco and you can order them online through the Foreign Buyer's Club.

last year's KFC sign-up sheet and advertising

The other food you have to have at Christmas is cake.  Most supermarkets and bakeries do a booming business selling elaborate cakes that you pre-order and then pick up at Christmas.  They have catalogs that you can get in November with all the cake options listed. 

By far the most fun is the 7-Eleven catalog.  Now, this seems like a pretty ghetto place to get your Christmas food, but I'm not sure if that holds true for the Japanese people.  It does seem like more people go to the supermarket and do their ordering, based on the crowds.  Anyway, we always pick up a 7-11 catalog for sheer entertainment value.

I particularly like this year's catalog cover because it depicts a little scene of Christmas houses.  Notice that the houses are western (including a church), the little people are Japanese, there are dudes running across the roofs and a half-dressed lady is hanging out an upper window.    And, of course, a 7-11 is prominently featured.

The hugely famous pop group AKB48 is prominently featured in the 7-11 catalogs. 

I particularly like their exclamations over the chocolate fountain. (BTW, wouldn't a chocolate fountain be awesome at Christmas dinner?  Who needs pie?)

Here's your roast chicken, sandwich tray and wine options....

 And your cake, which can run anywhere from $20 - $70.  I'm not sure how much the cakes are at supermarkets and bakeries but I'm betting they're more.

So if you're sitting around with your family over the holidays, trying to figure out what to eat, pretend you're in Japan and get some KFC and cake! :)  Happy Holidays!!

Back In The USA

We're back in the US for 7 weeks over the holidays so I'll be on break from blogging. Look for a pre-planned post around Christmas and check back after the New Year for more Japanese adventures.

Meanwhile, things I have to say about being back in America.....

1. American supermarkets are awesome. A.W.E.S.O.M.E. I could spend hours just walking around enjoying looking at all the wonderful food options. And no slabs of whole octopus stinkin' up the joint.
2. Americans are loud. (Or maybe it's just New Jersey, ha!)
3. It's really hard to remember to say "Excuse me." instead of "Sumimasen.".
4. Did I mention that American food is awesome? Pizza, wings, steak sandwiches....I eat so much more healthy in Japan.
5. I miss our heated toilet seats. :D

Happy Thanksgiving!!

Tiny Traveler in Tokyo

A couple of weeks ago I had to take Cora to get her first round of vaccinations at the clinic in Tokyo (we have to go there to get her the "American" vaccines on the "American" schedule---the Japanese versions are different and not in a good way).  I was a little worried about taking a small baby by myself on the trains and subways for a two hour trip.   So I did what I usually do and scoured the Internet for tips on taking a baby through Tokyo's public transportation.   And whenever I look up something on the Internet I try to do a blog about it so that the next person looking it up gets another hit. :)

So first...the train trip.  It's a one hour express train trip into the city.  I wasn't too worried about this part because the seats are reserved and private enough to feed her.  I also bought two seats this time just for my peace of mind.  Let me stop right here and say that for the purposes of this post you can assume I'm feeding her with a bottle.  I don't want to get into breast-feeding etiquette....if anyone reading this wants to know my thoughts on breast-feeding in public here you can email me.

There is one larger restroom on the train with a changing table---it's not the ideal place to change a baby (a little grimy plus the motion of the train) but it would work if we were desperate. So I knew that if she started yelling I could probably calm her down. Unfortunately while we were waiting on the train (we got there too early) she got upset by the autumn wind whipping through the station (this happens in a lot of stations).  I would recommend dressing a baby really warmly if you're going to be spending some time on a train platform in autumn.

My biggest dilemma was whether to take the sling carrier or the stroller or both. A lot of my online research was on using a stroller in the subways.   I found differing opinions---some reviewers thought Tokyo was easy with a stroller (or a wheelchair for that matter) and some didn't.   I can see how it might be easier than old European cities.   But, to a person who only became accustomed to public transportation in a huge city recently, navigating Tokyo's subways alone with a big stroller would be a huge pain. 

Subway/train stations are labyrinthine with lots of stairs and they may or may not have elevators.  If one does have an elevator, good luck finding it.  Some spots don't even have escalators and technically you're not supposed to take a stroller on an escalator although I've seen people doing it (and would try it myself ).  For example, our little local train station has a lot of stairs and no other options.  So taking a stroller to it while alone would not be a good idea.  If there were two people to carry it up stairs, or if you have an older child who can use a small foldable umbrella stroller, it would be doable.  I've read rumors online of subway maps that indicate which stations are fully handicap accessible but I haven't found a link that works yet. 

So I went with just the sling carrier.  It worked out OK, but was hard on my back.  I managed to keep her asleep the whole trip.  While I was on the subway she would get scrunched if I tried to sit down and would start to wake up.  I was a little nervous about her crying on the subway because we would've been stuck with me not able to do much (except the pacifier, which is a must-have).  Even if we were to get off at a stop for a take-care-of-baby break there isn't really anywhere in the subways to go.  Some station restrooms have a changing table but that's it.  You may not even find that.  The station restroom I always stop at on the way (in Ningyocho) is little more than two holes in the ground and a sink.  There isn't even soap, much less a changing table. 

This trip I made it to the clinic (which has a baby room) without having to tend to her too much.  I did find this link to a great list of baby-friendly places and baby rooms in the city, but none are in subways.  And they aren't all conveniently located.

So for the next round of vaccines we're going to go on a Saturday with Chad in the car.  That's not to say I won't try taking her into the city by myself again.  Just maybe when she's a little older.  And not when we have to keep an appointment so I can take the stroller and have time to find elevators in the subway stations.  I'll let you all know how it goes.  :)