Japanese women are beautiful. They have beautiful skin, they have small and delicate frames, their hair is silky, and they are always dressed very well. 99% of the women we have seen are in what is considered in the states to be business attire--and they are dressed this way to go grocery shopping or run other errands.
I used to think that their silky hair was just in their DNA. That could be part of it, but a big part is the Japanese water. Our hair has become so silky, and it won't do anything in the way of styling. Even Caitlin's hair--which has become really coarse and curly over the last year--is soft and the curls are relaxing.
But, what Tayla, Caitlin, and I REALLY notice are the Japanese women's shoes. Their shoes and boots are beautiful! None of us have ever really been into shoes, but it's now all we notice when we are out and about walking or on the metro.
Some of the women have such high of heels, they can't walk. It's more of a shuffle. While it's amusing to watch, we have learned that Japanese women do not dress for comfort or practicality. It's all about style.
We are feeling very frumpy in our tennis shoes.
On Monday, January 12th, Tayla and I decided to go shoe shopping for church shoes. She is currently a size 2 in women's shoes. Most shoes that size are made for girls, and being twelve years old, she wants more grown up shoes. In the land of small-framed women, we were hopeful that we would find a pair of shoes that were more Tayla's style instead of a little girl.
A friend at church advised me that we should shop now because all the clearance sales are happening. She told me to go to Shinjuku Station, there are many wonderful shoe shops around there.
Problem: Shinjuku Station is the world's busiest railway station. It handles more than 2 million passengers a day.
Tayla and I set off anyway. We walked to Ebisu Station and got on the Stupid Metro just fine. It wasn't that bad.
We made it to Shinjuku Station without incident. It took us a little bit to find an exit, but we got out and started exploring.
Here's an aerial view of the building surrounding Shinjuku during the day. We got there around 6 p.m. at night when it was dark outside.
While we were at the metro, this beautiful girl in a kimono walked by and started to buy a ticket next to us. Tayla slyly took a picture. Simply beautiful.
While we were walking all over looking for shoes that would fit a U.S. size 2 foot, we noticed several other girls dressed in kimonos as well. This is the only other picture that Tayla took, but we found maybe 8-10 other young ladies in kimonos with their hair up and beautiful flowers and pearls adorning it.
When we got home, we learned that it was a national holiday. Anyone who is turning the age of 20 during the year will celebrate their passage into adulthood by visiting a shrine on the holiday known as Coming of Age Day. It is traditionally held the second Monday in January. For this occasion, girls wear furisode (kimonos with long flowing sleeves) and boys wear haori (half-coats) and hakama decorated with their family crests. This must be a big deal in Japan, because Ray's classes were cancelled because of it.
Tayla and I walked for a long time in major crowds. Often, we held hands to avoid loosing each other. We visited many shoe stores, but they either didn't have her size, or the style was for little girls.
Finally, we went to Keio Department Store right next to Shinjuku Station. We asked where U.S. size 2 shoes would be located, and were told to go to floor 7. We couldn't find an escalator, so Tayla and I got our exercise and hoofed it up all 7 flights of stairs. All we found were little girl shoes.
We went back down and began to look at the women's shoes. Tayla and I found many unique and gorgeous shoes, and even some heels that fit her.
We found these pretty flats and they fit Tayla perfect. They were brown with a slight gold sheen to them. They were pretty and unique and they weren't really what we were looking for, but she loved them. (the red on her foot is just marker) Problem: they were 15000 yen--about $150.00.
This is what we have found in regards to the many shoe shops around Shinjuku Station and here in Hiroo where we live--shoes tend to be around 7000-20000 yen. ($70-200) And, these are on sale because of the new year.
We spent about three hours looking for shoes and came home empty handed. However, we now have an even greater appreciation for the beautiful shoes and boots on Japanese women's feet--because we now know how much they probably spent on those shoes!
Saw these pretty street lights as we were walking home from Ebisu Station. So PRETTY!!
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