Snoopy!!!

When I was a little girl, I had a stuffed Snoopy.  I loved him so much.  I took him everywhere and even slept with him.  My adoration was easily recognized by the lack of his nose, which I had rubbed off until it was just a few little threads.  On our first full day in Tokyo, we walked past the Snoopy Museum.  We were on a mission of errands that day, so I noted its existence for a rainy day. 

Well, today was that rainy day.  We woke up to wet windows and gray skies and yucky, yucky humidity.  My son put on his Snoopy shirt, grabbed his umbrella, and we headed out.  It's just a quick 5 minute walk from our apartment. 

Since we knew it was going to be a rainy day, my husband had purchased tickets for us at a Lawson convenience store, saving us a couple hundred yen.  Japanese convenience stores are actually convenient and amazingly helpful. 

Upon our arrival, we deposited our umbrellas into the locking umbrella rack so we didn't have to carry wet, dripping umbrellas in the museum.  These racks are quite popular and can be found so many places.  Just like a locker, you lock the handle and get a key so no one else will walk away with your umbrella.  To be honest, if that happened it would most likely be a mistaken grab and not an actual theft.

We provide our pre-purchased tickets and enter the magical world of Charles Swartz's imagination.

It is quite delightful from beginning to end.  The museum is filled with Peanuts cartoons, a bit of memorabilia, and even three animated shows (the last one being interactive, which really tickled the fancy of my son). 

At the end, we wandered through the gift store and picked up a couple souvenirs - including a stuffed Snoopy for my son.  When I asked him if he wanted a Snoopy, he said "Since you won't get me a real dog, I would love to have a Snoopy to pretend he is my dog."  Where do they learn these things?

Later at the park, my son had an interesting interaction that I am still mulling in my head.  He approached some big kids (probably 10 years old or so) who were digging a deep hole.  He introduced himself and asked if he could dig with them (in Japanese).  One of the kids looked surprised and said "Are you Japanese?"  My son replied by repeating his name and asking again if he could play.  The older boy then asked where his mom was and when he noticed me watching, he asked if my son was my son, to which I nodded yes.  Then he asked (still in Japanese) if my son could play with them.  I once again nodded my head yes.  They then happily dug together for about 10 minutes until our friends arrived.  What strikes me as odd about this conversation is that #1 they didn't realize my son is Japanese (he is half); #2 they asked my permission if he could play with them; and #3 they seemed quite concerned when he got dirty (they were all meticulously clean despite digging in wet sand).  It was just an interaction that I haven't quite figured out.  It's as if pieces are missing that I am not privy to.

Lettuce update - it is growing nicely.  Soon we will be thinning it out and putting the microgreens on our salads.