After picking our pear, the bus took us to Gunma Children's Land for lunch and playtime. There were a lot of kids in our group, so a stop at the park made perfect sense. Mostly one parent with one or more children, but also kids by themselves. Kids that were in 4th grade or older could go on this day trip by themselves. Early independence is a very different concept in Japan than in the US. There were lots of chaperones on this trip. They weren't keeping an eagle eye on the kids, but were there if needed.
We got off the bus and walked over to a grassy area where we spread out big blue tarps and ate bento. The simple bento contained karaage (fried chicken), yakisoba, vegetables, an orange slice, and rice. My son did not want to eat. He was ready to play. I made him eat half of his food and then let him loose.
He immediately bee-lined to the 2 bouncy mounds. He ripped off his socks and shoes and hopped right on. He loves to jump. So much so that he has a trampoline in his bedroom. I love watching his face light up as he jumps. He rolled down the hill several times, which made him laugh uncontrollably. Such joy without abandon is a pleasure to witness.
While he was jumping, I was able to get a good look around the park. Right in front of me was a series of very physical climbing structures. I got a huge chuckle when the thought occurred to me - this was a ninja training facility. I called my son over and asked him if he was ready to play on something else. He was ready, so he threw on his socks and shoes and embarked onto another adventure.
He and his buddy, who's mom had invited us onto this trip, spotted the huge play structure with an epic slide. They bolted over to it. By the time I arrived, they were halfway up the first set of stairs. I decided to let them go. I watched them as they went up, up, up, without stopping once. This play structure goes up a hillside. It is incredibly high. And they just kept going. When they reached the top, I could not see them for a bit. But suddenly they appeared on the long slide coming down. They laughed all the way down. As soon as their feet hit the ground, they headed back up again.
It turns out that there is a large rope-style trampoline at the top that the boys would stop to enjoy before going down the slide each and every time. After four trips up and down, they were ready to try something new.
The time had come for them to test their ninja skills and see if they could transform themselves. There were challenged with 10 structures that required balance, agility, and focus to complete. The boys approached ropes that they had to climb and wobbly boards they had to cross. With focus and determination, they completed each and every one.
We did as much as we could in the 2 and a half hours that we were allotted. We could have spent a lot more time there. There were other play structures as well as a "summer bobsled" that we didn't get around to. In the last few minutes, I checked the map because I really didn't know where we were. Unfortunately I discovered that we would not be going to this park again. It was an hour and a half drive (which really doesn't mean anything since we don't own a car) or a 3 hour mass transit journey.
I was so impressed with this park. My son could have spent days here and never tire of it. I only wish it was closer.
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