The Log Dog Blog: Land of the Rising Sun: Day 10

Sunday, April 16, 2017

Land of the Rising Sun: Day 10

Sunday, April 16

For our last day in Tokyo, we took the bullet train from Tokyo to Oyama, then transferred to another train to go to Tomita, which took about two hours in total. When we arrived at the Ashikaga Flower Park, it was clear that the travel time was well spent because it was one of the most beautiful and peaceful places we've ever been. In addition to the gorgeous flowers and grounds, classical music was played throughout and people walked around quietly and only spoke in hushed tones. So tranquil! And as you might imagine, it smelled heavenly! Paradise!

After spending several hours at the flower park, we made the return trip back to Tokyo. The nice thing about such a long train ride was being able to see more of Japan than just Tokyo. The more suburban and rural areas appeared just as lovely as the city.

Once back in Tokyo, we visited the National Art Center in the late afternoon before heading back to the hotel to pack for our trip home. While that is never fun, I have missed our three little gals so much! Last night, when we were visiting the Buddhist Temple, I finally worked up the courage to approach someone and ask (or gesture weirdly) if I could pet their dog. Obviously we've seen lots of dogs in Tokyo, but I hadn't made any attempts to pet any of them until last night. I was suffering from dog withdrawal pretty badly, and both the dog and her owner looked friendly, so I went for it. Probably looked a little foolish, as it was clear I did not speak Japanese and he did not speak English, but my smiling, pointing, and miming obviously worked and it was amazing to just pet that beautiful dog! I can't wait to get home to our three - they have no idea how much love smothering is in store for them!

Tomorrow is a day of travel - a long flight to NYC and then a short drive home!