For spring break we decided to take a break to some of Japan’s touristy spots that we haven’t done yet. We went to Kobe, Osaka, Nara, & Kyoto. I thought since our International school took a break before the local Japanese schools, that things would be less busy. I was so wrong! Everything was extremely busy!! But we still had a really fun trip and made some very cool memories.

Monday and Tuesday of the week, the kids and I hung out in Nagoya. John had an overnight work trip and met us in Kobe on Wednesday (when the real trip began). Monday we went to Legoland with some friends and had a great day. It was not bust at all and we rode tons of rides. Having a season pass here has been so nice!

Wednesday morning, the kids and I loaded up the van and drove to Kobe. Its only about a two & a half hour drive and the expressway has the best rest stops along the way. We picked up John at the train station and headed into town for lunch. Since it was John’s birthday we wanted to have Kobe beef, and Kobe Fuji came highly recommended. The food was yummy and the staff was wonderful. However I felt like it was way overpriced and the meat was not cooked the way we would have liked. Next time I would do yakiniku so we can cook the meat ourselves.

We had planned to then go walk the harbor and go to Kobe Animal Kingdom, however Mother Nature had other plans and it began pouring. We called an audible and found somewhere we could be inside. Not far from the harbor is Kawasaki Good Times World. It was sort of like an interactive transportation museum. Blake loved looking at all of the boats. They got to drive a boat simulation and sit on motorcycles.

Then we headed to our hotel in Osaka, when ended up being right next to Universal! We were going to spend the next day at the park so we wanted something close, but didn’t realize how close this was. The kids sat in our window and watched the roller coasters and made plans for the next day. We saw Hard Rock Cafe out our window and decided we were in the mood for some American food. It was a great end to John’s birthday. The burgers were so good and he even got cheesecake for dessert!