Five years ago when I wrote about the unusual “only in Japan” places you could meet Santa, there were really only three. One of which was the “Find Santa” event in Tokorozawa. That event thankfully still exists, but since then dozens of other unique Santa events have emerged. Once uponRead More →
2017 version. This is a master list of the zoos, farms, aquariums and other places with animals in the Tokyo area that are suited to children. You will also find a handful of locations that are actually outside Tokyo, but considered part of the Greater Tokyo area and renowned as placesRead More →
Sayama Municipal Museum, Saitama, is currently holding a “Cardboard Art” 「ダンボールアート] exhibition, until the end of August 2014. Children under 15 years old are free in. High school and university students cost 100 yen and all other adults cost 150 yen. There is a flyer in the lobby with aRead More →
Kodomo no Shiro Ageo – Saitama has a large number of superb free children’s (community/ play) centres, called jidokan or jido centre “jidose” (児童館・児童センター）. Many mothers agree that Ageo’s kodomo-no-shiro, “children’s castle”, is among the best. In terms of size, equipment and diversity, I would personally rank it as numberRead More →
Ichigo no Sato is a “roadside station” in the prefecture of Saitama, North west of Tokyo. A roadside station is a type of rest and service area with a large parking area. There are toilets and benches as well as a gift shop, a vegetable shop, a farmer’s market, aRead More →
I had to forego blogging for the past few weeks due to travel, unexpected visitors and general hecticness in our lives. I have missed it! This is just a quick post to thank everyone who has followed my blog and posted comments in the last few weeks. I will spendRead More →
My hits this week from the search terms “Hina Matsuri Crafts” has encouraged me to showcase some more of our Hina Matsuri activities. This activity can actually be used for any occasion and thanks to the Daiso 100 yen store (dollar / euro store), it is easy to prepare andRead More →
{For THEE most impressive and detailed advice for travelling with kids, there are two blogs I can’t recommend enough. Please see Tips for travelling with kids (journeysofthefabulist.wordpress.com) and Travel (freebutfun.wordpress.com)} As I struggled up the aisle behind a dawdling 4 year old, a clumsy 2 year old and with a 1 year old strappedRead More →
Origami Hearts, Valentine’s Craft. Reposting from last year as it has proved very popular both with my own kids and as a blog post – my evergreen content. 🙂 Origami hearts, Valentine’s Craft These simple origami hearts, suited to young children and Origami beginners, were a big hit with myRead More →
This is a really easy origami craft that preschoolers and origami beginners can enjoy. All you need is the free A4 printables available on HappyLilac.net. You don’t need to be able to read Japanese. The blue Dairi-sama printable can be found here. The pink Hina-sama printable can be found here. My 4Read More →