Tokyo!!

The second phase of our holidays began today, with an overnight flight from Perth to Tokyo. Of course, we had hoped that the girls would sleep during the flight, but general excitement, electronic entertainment and a midnight stopover in Singapore put paid to that. So, with each of us limited to less than 4 hours sleep, we were pretty thankful that the girls snatched another half hour on the train into Tokyo.

You'll see from that photo that we have transitioned from summer beach gear to our puffies - it was -2°C in Tokyo when we arrived! Despite the cold, it was a nice sunny day, and perfect for exploring the Asakusa region near our apartment. We tested a few different foods from the local markets with varying levels of success (it seems Ella will live on dumplings/gyoza for the next two weeks), and wandered around the temples here.

The next item on our agenda was a "bird cafe" which we just happened to trek past (after significant planning by Nat). Sounds strange and it is - a typically eclectic mix of Japanese quirkiness  and dorkiness, we each donned an old raincoat and descended into a basement, where parakeets, galahs and toucans took turns at sitting on our heads/arms. (It should be obvious to you what the raincoats are for.) We also got to pat & hold on to some owls, which was equally exciting.

Finally, we took a trip on the subway to Ueno Park, and after a short walk found ourselves in Nature and Science museum. I can't say we understood much of the context, as all signs were in Japanese, but both girls enjoyed taking photos of the exhibits.

By this stage, the energy levels were dropping and decided to call it a day. After a quick dinner on the way home from the subway station, and we settled into our accommodation. The goals is to rest up for a wider tour of Tokyo tomorrow.