Really, Who Gives a Shinto?

My son's preparation for our whirlwind tour of Tokyo apparently involved throwing a dart at a map of the city. And I use the term "preparation" loosely, since I am the one who finally insisted on purchasing the map. I'm just relieved he didn't toss the dart at me.

All three of us got a little testy yesterday. This is, after all, a family trip, and if you can't act like an asshole in front of your family, why live? Matt feels unduly pressured to give us a perfect tour of Tokyo in less than two days. Nicki is struggling with the physical effects of too much travel, too much food, and a significant interruption in her routine right before school begins. I am just old and ornery, melting from the blistering heat (and blistering feet), and in the throes of an oxymoronic and particularly delightful bout with pre-menopausal PMS. As a threesome, we have been an accident waiting to happen; I'm just surprised it took as long as it did.


Naturally, I had thought I was putting on a good face in spite of my physical woes and hormonal bitchiness. I suppose my frustration may have come to the forefront after we wandered around aimlessly in a red light district in oppressive heat at midday for what seemed like an eternity. FYI, there are no trendy stores in the red light district. As for Nicki, god help anyone who even suggests she is capable of bitchiness. And, in her defense, she was never thrilled about the timing of this trip, but has for the most part been a trooper and, as she always is, a major source of delight for her brother. She has an uncanny ability to make him smile, to step in when I fail miserably (which is most of the time). And Matt, our host, has one lousy week of free time from an exhausting job and has to spend it all entertaining us. Shit, I'd be in a bad mood too.

The testiness was nothing too serious, and we managed to tackle it with a little rest stop in a Starbucks, and, later in the day when we found ourselves again wandering aimlessly in the heat near the Imperial Palace (which we couldn't even see, much less enter), a bigger rest stop in a hole in the wall Indian joint for some samosas and cheese naan. Luckily, we are all able to laugh off our shortcomings, especially when each of us knows, deep down, that the other two are the ones with the real issues.

When I reflect on yesterday, we really did not see anything of note, at least from a tourist perspective. No museums, no Shinto temples, not even a real geisha. We did, however, bad moods and physical ailments and sheer exhaustion notwithstanding, enjoy dinner on dad for Matt's birthday in a unique Japanese style restaurant (sitting on the floor and everything -- ouch) in what appeared to be a really cool neighborhood. Maybe next time Matt will have better aim with the dart and we'll see it in daylight, when things are open. But it was a day in Tokyo, with two of my children, a day that I never in my wildest dreams would have expected to have, and it was one I will remember fondly (with a touch of ironic smirk).

For three people just having a bad day, not bad at all.