Dana the Explorer

This weekend my mom and brother were able to visit me in Japan, so here’s a short log of our adventures featuring:

Dana as Dora – the main character
Brian as Boots – the sidekick (or Map – but actually bad at directions)
Mom as Backpack – bc holding everything

Our visits included:

Studio Ghibli Museum
- Taiyaki
- Bonus: Brian gets scammed at a pachinko parlor
Bullet train!
Nara
- Bowing deer
- Todaiji Temple (home of the largest bronze buddha)
Osaka
- Osaka Castle
- River Cruise
- Worth It: Cake PART II
  - The video I’m referencing Worth It Cake episode
- Okonomiyaki!
Kyoto
- Fushimi Inari Shrine
- Nishiki Market
- Arashiyama Monkey Park
- Bamboo Forest
Harajuku
- Crepes on crepes
- Gudetama everything
DisneySea
- I now understand why people say that it is the best Disney park. The theme-ing, shows, and SNACKS were amazing
- There were a couple of differences between the Tokyo and Anaheim parks. First of all, all of the mascots were notably shorter. Presumably because the cast members were all Asian which was kinda funny. Also, when not matching with each other, the groups of Japanese guests were often dressed in outfits so elaborate that it was often hard to distinguish them from the cast members. Finally, I found that a lot of the Japanese guests like to tote around their favorite stuffed animals (usually Duffy and friends) and pose them around the park.

What I said: “Brian let’s pose like we’re hiding in the bamboo!” What Brian heard: “Look spooked.”

Brian tries his hand at Pachinko aka button mashing and flashing lights. Ask him how much money he won lol

A postcard worthy (?) picture of Todaiji Temple housing the largest bronze buddha.

Brian floating away from all his problems at the Illusion museum. We thought it would be kitschy, but actually got bamboozled by the illusions that were actually pretty good.

Met some deer at Nara Park! They LOVE cookies and know when you have them. They’ll even nudge you in the butt for attention. I don’t actually know what the cookies are made of, but hopefully it’s healthy!

Taiyaki! (fish shaped cake with custard inside) Is Brian eating the fish or is the fish eating Brian??

The Iron Giant on the roof of the museum.

Another postcard worthy shot of Osaka Castle!

Oh deer.

Crepes on crepes to start off a morning in Harajuku

Made it to the top of Arashiyama Monkey Park with amazing views of Kyoto. Lots of cute baby monkeys and this dude who blinked and photobombed this pic (in the very best way)