Jue, Man and lil Husna returned to Malaysia on 1 April. Went to Narita , carrying two boxes as they didn't have enough space to put everything in their one large suitcase. They came here with a total of 32kg baggage, half of it probably were the stuff they brought for us, yet returned to Malaysia with 30kg of baggage, the supposed to be empty spaces filled up with souvenirs they bought here in Japan.
On Monday both Man and Jue got to realize their 'hajat' to visit Tobu World Square and take a stroll in Ginza - no prize for guessing which of them wished for what. It rained in the morning of their last full day in Japan, making them rather hesitant in determining what to do for the day. Although we all woke up early, and I had already prepared breakfast/lunch even before 8.00 a.m., we didn't reached Tobu Asakusa eki until about 11.48 a.m., when Man finally said he would very much like to visit Tobu World Square despite the cold weather, or even light snow as it was predicted earlier.
The girl behind the counter at Tobu Travel Service asked us if we could visit Kinugawa Onsen on any other day, and I replied that my guests would be returning to Malaysia the next day. In order for us to be able to enjoy the theme park longer, we were advised to board the Limited Express Spacia (extra 800 yen for each person), since we had just missed the normal Rapid train . Man quickly agreed, so we found ourselves seated in Spacia 10 minutes after he bought the ticket, and arrived in Kinugawa Onsen at around 2.00 p.m.
Tobu World Square and Edo Village are both opened for free on certain selected days during Yokoso Japan campaign period (late January till late February) It was during the free open day period when Hubby and Che Lee's family went there last year while I was still pregnant with Humaidi and busy attending a one-week Winter term intensive course in Waseda and could not join them. Hubby consoled me back then, promising to have another visit this year during the free period, but both of us forgot all about it and only realized it when the free days were already over. Zannen datta. So for those who are interested in spending a day or two in Nikko/Kinugawa Onsen in late January/February, try googling "Yokoso Japan campaign", to find out more about these 'free open days' offer as it is only announced on Yokoso Japan website, but not on Edo Village or Tobu World Square websites. Otherwise, you could opt to buy a Kinugawa Onsen Theme park pass at Tobu Asakusa Travel Center like Man did. The 2-days pass covers normal train fare from Asakusa-Kinugawa Onsen, unlimited train rides within Nikko-Kinugawa Onsen area, unlimited bus rides within Nikko-Kinugawa Onsen area, and entrance ticket for particular theme park. The pass costs 4000 yen for Tobu World Square, 6000 yen for Edo Village, and 7200 yen for both World Square and Edo Village.
Alhamdulillah, the sun was shining amidst brief light rain in Kinugawa Onsen. Had a quick foot dipping in hot spring rest area right in front of the station, before we kelam kabut rushed to board a bus going to Tobu World Square (I wore my socks properly only after we were on board)
Man concurred with hubby who opined that while the theme park is not that big, it could be rather fascinating to feel like Gulliver for a short while as we 'traveled' from one 'continent' to another. My camera's battery went kaput when we were in still in 'Europe', so for the rest of the 'travel', I had to rely on Man's camera. Since hubby had a lot of pictures of the replicas, Man took more pics of us rather than the replicas - "gambar bangunan nanti cilok yang dah ada je lah". We only had less than 3 hours to rush though the whole theme park, in order not to miss another Limited Express train back to Asakusa. Jue who had passed by Ginza three times without stopping would really like to take a stroll in the upmarket area. On the way back, we had to pay extra 1000 yen each to board the Limited Express as 800 yen is the 'special price' if we had bought the Limited Express ticket together with the discounted Pass, like we did in the morning/noon. Oh well...
Right after we arrived in Asakusa, we quickly rushed to 100 yen shop not far from Kaminarimon for last minute souvenirs shopping before we boarded the Ginza line subway to Ginza. By the time we reached there, most shops were closing - it was a little past 8.00 p.m. But Jue was satisfied with having a chance to take a stroll there. Having already visited Harajuku/Omotesando and Roppongi areas, Jue at first thought that there would be nothing new to see in Ginza, but she was delighted to take in the sight and sound of Ginza. I remembered Mak insisting on buying us cake and tea in Ginza two years ago when she was here visiting together with my brother and two aunts, all because she wanted us to 'experience' Ginza. There's something very classy in Ginza - the people more well-dressed and less rushed than in other parts of Tokyo, the architecture of the buildings more upscaled, and there were some interesting advertisements unseen in other parts - like the white-against-black/black-against-white light show on Chanel building.
To entertain Jue's wish to have a picture in Ginza, we decided to have dinner there and recharge my camera's battery while dining. Jue was thinking of having nan and tandoori for the night, but the only halal restaurant I knew in the area was Rasa, a Malaysian restaurant. I have never been there personally, so only when we arrived there we realized that there is a Pakistani restaurant 4 floors below Rasa. We decided to ask if they serve Halal meat - and yes, they only serve halal meat there, or so we were assured by the 'concierge' who greeted us as the elevator's doors were opened. So we had our dinner there - and Man insisted on giving me a treat, just like they insisted on paying for my fares.
I almost left the battery and the charger in the restaurant but Jue who could not wait to have her photographs be taken in Ginza reminded me of them as we stepped out of the elevator on the ground floor. So we went up again to retrieve both the battery and charger, and quickly had another round of stroll down Ginza street, happily snapping here and there.
Personally I think Jue and Man came at the best time - when they could still play with snow in Karuizawa, yet also enjoy hanami in Tokyo. We took the earliest normal train to Narita Airport from Ueno, passing by lots and lots of sakura trees lined in parks and near rivers, giving Jue a final chance of enjoying the cherry blossoms from the train.
I finally bid farewell after they had checked-in their luggage, giving Jue a tight hug, kissing a sleeping Husna softly on her forehead. Till we meet again my friend - kalau ada rezeki maybe we can give you a visit in Switzerland - otherwise we'll meet again in 2010 after you are done with your MA, insya Allah...
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