Tokyo Disney Sea

Sign you'll see at the Maihama Station exit.

Since we already have a yearly pass to Disneyland in Los Angeles we decided to skip Tokyo Disney and instead hit up Tokyo Disney Sea. Talk about a good decision!

Getting there
It was really easy to get to Disney from Tokyo. Catch the Yurokucho line and get off at Maihama Station. From there you walk over to the Disney train system which costs Y200 each way. Yep, you read that correctly. You have to pay to use the Disney trains. At least if you have the Suica card you can use the money on your card to pay for the ride.

Disney train cost Y200 each way

Ports

Map of the Tokyo Disney Sea Park

First of all, it’s beautiful. They put a lot of money into creating great architecture that really makes you feel like you’re in on the “ports”. Take a look at some of the great-looking “ports”:

Arabian Sea Port

Mysterious Island Port

Mermaid Lagoon Port

More Mermaid Lagoon Port

Lost River Delta Port

Journey to the Center of the Earth ride

Delicioso
Every port has a different type of popcorn. We tried black pepper and caramel, but they also had milk tea, curry, etc. The black pepper was surprisingly good. We had some twice. They had churros (yea!) but they were hard and had some kind of filling in them (what the hell? lol).

They also had some chicken that looked great and smelled awesome. It’s sold in the Lost River Delta and everyone was eating it. I guess looking good does not equal tasty. LOL We each ordered one, but the skin was on it and the meat was a bit rubbery.

We had “lunch” at Vulcania Restaurant in Mysterious Island. Expensive! It’s a Chinese cafeteria style restaurant. We chose it because it seemed familiar, but I learned that I don’t know anything about Chinese food! LOL It was tasty, but I was salty because it cost so much.

All things considered, I had a great time. Some things were familiar, but different and some things were totally new. I’m glad I went.

Namja Town

When we checked in to our last hotel in Japan (back to Tokyo), Corey noticed a big sign that said Namco. That company makes video games like Tekken (fighting game) from back in the day, so we decided to find out if there was a museum/experience that we could visit. Of course there was! LOL

Namja Town is located inside Sunshine City (take the Yarakucho train to Higashi-Ikeburo. Sign will say Sunshine City at the exit). Of course, we can’t do right, so we got off at Ikeburo Station and had to walk to Sunshine City through the rain. It wasn’t far, but it would have been smarter to get off the stop before (Higashi-Ikeburo). Once you’re inside the complex signs will direct you to the 2nd floor and the entrance to Namja Town. It’s a really interesting place. I’m not really one for video games, but there were tons of things to look at, take photos of/with, and eat.

It costs Y300 to get in or Y3,000 for a pass that gets you in and gives you free access to about 16 of the 24 rides. We bought the Y300 pass and had a ball walking around.

This chair talks to you and moves when you sit it in it.

Making funny faces.

Wilding out! LOL

Getting down with his bad self! LOL

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Ikebukuro Life Safety Learning Center

Before we arrived in Japan, I heard about a fire station in Tokyo that helped people learn about earthquake survival by providing an earthquake simulator. How awesome is that?!

We tried to go Sunday, but they offer guided tours only from 9:30am to 11:30am. We made an appointment and returned bright and early Monday morning.

When you take the tour you get to:
– Watch an awesome video about the Tokyo earthquake
– Learn how to use a fire extinguisher and practice with an awesome screen in the room
– Learn how to exit a burning building and get to practice by exiting a smoke filled maze
– Learn how to duck and cover while in the earthquake simulator room

It was super fun! I learned a lot and the best part is it was free! If you get a chance to check it out, please do.

Everyone learns what to do in an earthquake and how to help others. It’s a great concept. Does anyone know if we have anything like this in California?

When I say Hello Kitty is EVERYWHERE! lol

10 earthquake tips and the viewing of the simulator room

Tips for visiting:
Take the Yarukucho line and exit at Ikebukuro Station. Leave from the exit near Luminare.
Walk towards Mos Burger.
At the Sukiya turn right.
The fire station is on the left hand side.
The Life Safety Center is on the 4th floor.
The people there don’t speak English well, but they are very friendly.
The video is in Japanese with English subtitles.
The training is in Japanese, but you’ll be able to understand everything.