Tokyo

Every year we take a vacation. We have the next 3 years planned out. We were supposed to go to Puerto Rico this June. After the hurricane my husband approached me. "You know how we were planning to go to PR in June? Well, I'm pretty sure they are going to be rebuilding the island still by then."
"Okay. So where do you want to go?"
"I was thinking Tokyo."

We planned to go to Tokyo in 2020. This would be a flip. I told him that I would look into it. I did. There is no way in hell we could go in June, it would be much too expensive. I was looking at dates and it is half the amount to go in March / early April for Spring Break AND that is the week the cherry blossoms bloom so BONUS.  I've been watching flights like a maniac and found a really good deal.

We will fly out of NYC and our flights to Tokyo (including flights to NYC, baggage and fees) were very reasonable. Lodging is expensive in Tokyo and I wanted to stay in Shinjuku but that was out of our price range. I found a cute AirBNB in Kita that is close to a train station that offered a great weekly discount. There were a lot of reviews and they were positive so I'm feeling good about it.

We will spend 2 days at DisneySea which will be the most expensive thing but there is a LOT of stuff to do in Tokyo that is absolutely free.

We will attend the Kanamara Matsuri: FREE

                             

It's a penis festival. It's actually The Festival of the Steel Phallus and it's a religious tradition. They have a parade with big giant penises, women in kimonos cradle penises as seen above, they sell penis shaped food, candy and souvenirs. This is an event that is right up my alley.

It's a family friendly event- I mean, as family friendly as a penis festival can be. People bring their kids and grandmas show up. We are pretty laid back about that kind of stuff so I don't think it's that big of a deal.

I know people will think I'm a bad mom for attending the Kanamara Matsuri with my kids but keep in mind that I toured an ancient brothel with my children this summer so I'm not exactly winning in that department. Pompeii is one big giant ode to penises.

In ancient Italy they had fascinus which are penises with wings on them and they were considered to be good luck. There was this booth outside of the city gates that had rows and rows of giant fascinus as well as other questionable souvenirs.

We just walked by with the kids like:
                                  

A penis is a penis, once you've seen one- you've seen them all. It will be fascinating and I definitely won't post pictures on Facebook but I'm weirdly excited about it.

We will go to Ueno Park and view the cherry blossoms: FREE

How beautiful is this? I'm thinking that we'll picnic here with our $5 Bento boxes

We will visit the Imperial Palace: FREE



We will explore a Japanese cemetery: FREE


We will visit Sensi-Jo: FREE


We will visit the Meji-Shrine: FREE


We will explore Akihabara and go in all the anime stores: FREE

My youngest loves all things Manga and anime so this will be a real treat!

Watch a sumo practice: FREE


Wander through Tokyo markets and back alleys: FREE


We will visit the Muramatsu flute store: Free

There are actually multiple flute manufacturing facilities in Tokyo and we might hit up a few. My oldest is so excited about it. She wants to try ALL the flutes.

We will eat treats at the Kawaii Monster Cafe:

We will take selfies at Tokyo Tower: Free


You can pay to go up to the top but we won't. Instead we'll go to the top of the Metropolitan Government building which has amazing views of the city and is FREE.

We have taken some legit vacations the past few years and people are always ask us about it. The number one question I get is:

How can you afford to go?
I watch flights like a hawk. I have alerts on my phone and I watch out of all the hubs - New York, Boston, Washington DC, Atlanta, Miami. I watch flights for ALL of my bucket list places. Did you know you can fly to Beijing from NYC for $429 round trip? Or from Miami to Tel Aviv for $550? That's crazy!

I found tickets to Tokyo for $480 round trip from New York. We flew out of New York to go to Rome. When we went to South Dakota we had to drive to fly out of Atlanta to Denver and drive 7 hours through Wyoming. Otherwise, we never would have been able to afford to go. On the upside, we got to visit family and explore the Rockies. The long drive though Wyoming was beautiful and we bonded for sure. We laugh about the night we spent at JFK airport. We make the best of it. We only have a 3.5 hour layover for this trip so it won't be so bad. Direct flights are super expensive.

Convenience costs a lot of money so sometimes I find great deals that might not be as convenient as I like but that is the difference between us being able to go or not go.

When we went to Rome, we couldn't afford to stay in the center of the city. We stayed in a small hotel outside of the city walls. Everyday we had a 10 minute walk to the bus station and another 15 minute ride into the city. It was totally fine. It added to our experience because there were a lot of non-touristy restaurants and shops in the area.

We booked the smallest interior room on the cruise ship. We are only there to sleep - there is no need for a bigger room and balcony. Would it be nice to have a bigger room and a balcony? Sure. But that is the difference between us being able to go or not go.

If we go to a sit down restaurant, it will be for lunch and not dinner. We will eat a lot of market/ street food in Tokyo and a lot of Bento boxes. There is a supermarket across the street from our apartment and we will buy breakfast and snacks there. We will fill our water bottles and carry them with us. We do everything we can that is free. I don't do expensive tours, I plan everything myself.

We don't buy souvenirs. I let each of the kids spend $30 in Europe and I brought some magnets for the fridge. I don't buy gifts for people. I'm kind of an asshole like that. haha. But really, we go on trips to create memories not to collect things. I'm not spending hundreds of dollars on souvenirs. That is the difference between us being able to go or not go.

We squirrel away a little bit of money every paycheck for our vacation fund. If you want to take a $5,000 every year that breaks down to a little over $13 a day. Most of us waste more than $13 on bullshit. We are frugal and we are savers. We are not shot callers. We live very modestly.  That is the difference between us being able to go or not go. 

We decided that if we want to travel we have got to do it with the resources that we currently have.

Are you scared?
Yes. The idea of flying across the ocean gives me the creeps big time. Being in a country where I can't read or speak the language is super intimidating. Different than Europe because I know a little bit of French and Spanish. I can only say "hello!" and "thank you" in Japanese. Our 11 year old knows a TON of Japanese phrases so we will put her in charge. Bad mom award.

I've been studying public transportation in Tokyo. The train stations have signage in English. Thank goodness! I think the first day will be overwhelming but by the end of our trip we'll be pros. On the upside, the train system in Tokyo is very efficient and trains are always on time. Not at all like the Roman bus system.

I've figured out the currency and how the dollar converts to yen, so I feel confident about that. Tokyo is a pretty safe city and I've read that the people are very nice and helpful. You don't have to worry about pick pockets as much as you do in Europe.

I'll read as much as I can so I feel comfortable as possible going. There are going to be hiccups, there are going to be frustrations, and we might even get lost a few times. But guess what? We'll figure it out. That is what we have always done in life. If my husband can figure out how to get from Germany to France and navigate Paris by himself then surely we can get around Tokyo. We have done this before. It will be fine.

Are you traveling with your kids?
People think I am crazy to travel with the kids and they have just gotten to the ages where we can travel with them easily. They do great. They carry their own things, they can walk long distances without complaining (well, mostly), they enjoy the things we enjoy. They make great traveling buddies. The only downside is that we can't play the piano and while not ideal, it's okay.

We could not leave them for 9-10 days. I know they are older now but I'd miss them terribly. Besides, I think being able to travel and see the world so young is definitely an education and will help us bond as a family.

We are traveling because I HAVE to. This is my life's dream. It's important to me. I want to see the world. I have so many places on my list. I am young and we can. I don't know what the future holds. We could be living in a Hunger Games-like dystopia in 10 years. If not now, then when?

I am very excited about it and I am very humbled. My husband and I are just some rag-tag kids from New Jersey and we have worked hard and been very fortunate in our lives. I think Tokyo will be amazing and life-changing. Then, it will be time to plan our next trip.