This morning we woke at 5:30am to sunshine streaming through the windows… only to discover later that there were blackout blinds we hadn’t put down. Whoops! So we were up bright and early, and decided to make the most of it.

Breakfast at the hotel wasn’t exactly a traditional Japanese offering, nor what I’d call a typical Western breakfast — think basil risotto with prosciutto. We all went for the “American” option, which still came with a bowl of miso soup (delish!). Everything was beautifully presented, and the hotel has such a calm, cool vibe.

Since most shops don’t open until around 10am, we went for a quiet wander around the neighbourhood. We popped into the 7/11 to check out the goods in peace (last night it had been packed), and Jessie chose a mochi dessert that she absolutely loved. We stumbled across a little park with a playground, where a group of preschoolers arrived, being pushed in trolleys by their teachers. They were wearing bunny ears for Easter — the teachers had been there early hiding plastic eggs for them to find. They were adorable, and when their teacher encouraged them to say good morning to us, they all just stared, wide-eyed.

After another quick look (okay, we’re addicted) at Uniqlo, I picked up a few of the TikTok-viral beauty products from Loft.

At 11am, we joined a free walking tour offered by the hotel and met our “OMO Ranger.” The tour focused on the tram line — Tokyo only has one left, and it runs right through Otsuka. There’s a lovely story behind it: during a major clean-up in 2008, they discovered rose bushes buried under piles of rubbish. Since then, they’ve planted roses and cherry blossoms along the tram route, which now bloom beside the tracks.

The tour also took us through the local neighbourhood. We visited Sennari Monaka, an 83-year-old traditional bakery that sells Japanese sweets like monaka (sweet bean paste sandwiched between two crispy rice wafers — not Jessie’s favourite), and dorayaki (bean paste between two fluffy pancakes), which smelled incredible. A sweet local woman tried to give us some she’d just bought, but the shopkeeper gently scolded her and motioned for us to buy our own (which we were going to anyway). We all had a laugh, and of course, Jessie’s celebrity status continued with a handshake. The warm little pancakes were a treat.

We also looked at Bongo, a famous onigiri shop that’s been around since the ’60s and is still run by women. The line can be up to three hours long! Craig’s very keen to try it before we leave the area. The ranger also pointed out a local izakaya that’s known for its sashimi and yakitori, so we’ve bookmarked that for tomorrow night.

Our final stops were a 700-year-old Buddhist shrine (our guide was shocked when we mentioned that the temple is older than our entire country!), and a bridge with a perfect view of the Tokyo Skytree, especially striking as a train passed beneath it.

In the afternoon, we had a reservation at Kidzania for 3:15pm. We headed over early to grab lunch first — the journey from Otsuka to Toyosu took about 40 minutes, including a metro stop and 12 subway stations. Toyosu is by the water and home to LalaPort, a gigantic mall where Kidzania is based. We got utterly lost trying to find our way through its three buildings and nine levels, but eventually found a restaurant that served us a lunch with free “popovers” — light, hollow pastries made of egg, flour and milk, served with whipped butter and maple syrup. Odd, but tasty.

Kidzania itself was chaos — thank goodness I booked tickets in advance. We should’ve arrived early to check in and come back later, as seems to be the golden rule in Japan. Jessie was signed up for the Wednesday-only English-speaking programme, which was fantastic. While she didn’t get to open a bank account or receive her ATM card (like the regular programme offers), she still had an amazing time.

She tried her hand at being a frozen foods R&D worker, a Ponzu sauce maker, a toy designer, an airline pilot, and a firefighter. The entire place is sponsored by big brands — think a real Mitsubishi mechanic setup, Nintendo design rooms, Johnson & Johnson hospitals — incredibly realistic… we enjoyed watching small children perform a keyhole resection at the hospital. At the end, the kids spend their hard-earned “Kidzos” at a kid-only department store. Honestly, it’s a genius system — no managing expectations as a parent!

At one point, my phone died (rookie error — I left my cable at the hotel), but luckily there are portable chargers everywhere. I hired one for about ¥400 for the hour, which was a lifesaver.

By 8pm, Jessie was exhausted. After such a huge day, she was falling asleep on the subway. There were no seats, and she ended up squished between a pregnant woman and an older man. The pregnant woman offered her seat to me, but I declined — then Jessie promptly nodded off onto the gentleman’s shoulder! Thankfully, they switched places so she could lean against the wall instead.

Rush hour in Tokyo is a whole experience — just a constant stream of people moving, which can be a bit overwhelming. But the system is so efficient, and once you get the hang of it, it’s surprisingly easy to navigate.

We were a little peckish when we got back to Ōtsuka, so while Craig took Jessie to bed, I popped down to FamilyMart for Famichiki.

Our feet are killing us already — I’m so glad I packed proper supportive sneakers and I was so happy to get in bed for the night.

Tomorrow we’re off to explore Shinjuku, Shibuya and Harajuku before having an early night ahead of our big day at Disney… I’ll check in again then!

P.S. I completely forgot to include Craig discovering bidets in my last blog. Enjoy that little mental image, and audio-guide.

❤ Laus