Walks around Yoyogi

In the weekends we have been going for walks around our neighbourhood. Hanna really enjoys being carried around and looking out at the world.

One nearby place we finaly checked-out was the National Olympic Memorial Centre which is 5 minutes walk to the east, on the edge of Yoyogi Park. This is a public institution with a gym, tennis courts , a 25m pool, and lots of practice and meeting rooms. It also a good vantage point to look west over our neighbourhood.

Our apartment block is somewhere in the picture above (facing due west). The picture below looks further north (ie north west) over Sangubashi . In the middle you can see the 'Opera City' Tower at Hatsudai, which is the base for the national opera and ballet company. To the right is the pointy Shinjuku Park Hayatt Tower, and in the far-right the Tokyo Metropolitan Government Tower. These mark the western edge of the Shinjuku skyscraper district.


This is the same view from down on the road outside the Olympic centre on a sunnier day. Sangubashi station is in a cutting just behind these trees.


Just north of the Olympic centre is the west entrance of the grounds of Meiji Shrine. The shrines grounds are extensive - even larger than the adjacent Yoyogi park. On the west side nearest us, they contain an English style parkland with lawn and pond, as well a museum and center for traditional martial arts like Kendo and archery. So at Sanugbashi station we often see people carrying bows and arrows - including a surprising number of old ladies. This is Rika in the park looking north towards the pond, with south Shinjuku in the distance.



If we walk south-east through the forest park for another 10 minutes or so, we arrive at Meiji shrine itsself. This is a very attractive place with beautifully elegant shinto architecture. It can also very popular for weddings, especially on days that are asuspicious.

Click play to see the videos below.

This is a wedding party crossing she courtyard in front of the main shrine, at the end of their formal wedding ceremony. After the procession each wedding party poses for official photos, and then informal photos with their guests.

This is another wedding party. The day we took these photos was an especially lucky day in traditional fortune telling so wedding parties were coming through every 15 minutes. So it was bit like watching planes coming in to land at Narita airport

Another common sight is to see parents and grandparents taking their children to be blessed at the shrine. This should be done when the child is 1 month or 3, 5 and 7 years old. It is an opportunity for girls to dress up, and for grandparents to enjoy an occasion with their grand-children.

This little 3-year-old girl is also called Hana. She and her mother are posing for photos with Korean tourists. Below is me with our Hanna in her favourite 'Baby Bjorn' carrier. (Surprisingly no tourists asked to have their photos taken with us).

Walking through Meijii shrine, we normally exit at the main, south-west gate, which is right by Harajuku Station, and a focal point for 'youth culture'. These young ladies are dressing up in the currently popular 'lolita' style, and having photos taken with tourists.

As you can see, this style is a sweeter and cuter direction from the 'gosu-roli' (gothic lolita) style that has been around for a while. This seems to be influenced by the popularity of 'maid' style, which is based on victorian maid costumes. So the look involves big lacy skirts, bonnets and a special 'cute' expression, which you can see in the close-up below. (ロリータの特別の顔)

This is Hanna practicing the look after we got home.　（はなちゃんロリータの顔の練習中）

Hanna at 3 months old

Hanna was three months old last week. She seems like a completely different baby now, compared with even 2 weeks ago.

Firstly her colic has cleared up. So she is much happier lying on her back, and doesn't demand to be carried all the time. So we can now put her down and enjoy talking to her face-to-face.

Also, she can go to sleep herself, or go back to sleep in the night straight after being fed.

Hanna still likes to be carried when she is upset but now she usually she demands to be carried facing out, instead of just facing my chest, so she can see what's going on.

She has also outgrown her old cot already so we have hired a bigger one.

Another change is that Hannah is now happier to be carried in a sling as well as the Baby Bjorn carrier. I think she feels more secure now she can control over her head.

Until now she always complained when we put her in my sling. But now she obviously enjoys it...

I think she looks very different now that she can hold her head steady. She is sometimes happy to be put into a bouncy seat and watch whats going on.


Also she is now holding things and beginning to try putting them in her mouth.

Hanna's face seems to change by the week. At her 3 month checkup she was 5.5 kg which is about 1 stand deviation below average for Japanese girls. Nevertheless she is now overtaken Sasuke as the third largest member of the family.

Hanna has much better control of her hands, and in particular she can now sooth herself by sticking her hand into her mouth.

This photos and video below was taken today.

Hanna is now strong enough to stand up with a little help. She can even support most of her bodyweight.

Sometimes she looks more like a little person than a baby.