Time to make the donuts

But not eat them. Today, was a special day for us, for many reasons, but most of all, a Krispy Kreme opened in Osaka, only 45 minutes from our house. There are other Krispy Kremes in Japan, mainly near Tokyo, a 4 hour train ride away. Now, the bad thing about today being the opening day was that it was a National Holiday here in Japan called Showa no hi (Emperor's Day). I asked a japanese friend yesterday what the holiday for today was, just so we'd know, and she didn't even know really what it was, she had to tell me later. Evidently, the emperor Showa's birthday was April 29 and when his reign came to an end, the Japanese government was looking to add more National Holidays to their calendar, which is how his birthday came to be one. The thing about this holiday is that it is the kick off Golden Week. During Golden week, there are four National Holidays, which means A LOT of people not working and not in school. Since it is such a long time to have off of work, this is one of the only times, besides New Years that Japanese people travel. So, put a National Holiday together with the opening of a popular foreign donut chain in a very large city and you have MASSIVE CROWDS!!!!

Dave and the kids went into Osaka today to go to a Tomica Car convention, just basically lots of toy cars and model cities set up to look at, but with a BIG gift shop at the end. I decided after three hours of cleaning that it was okay to get out of the house, plus I wanted to see what this Krispy Kreme was all about (knowing full well I probably wouldn't even get a bite). Guess what? I was right, the wait was over three hours. Sorry, no donut is that good, I'll go in two weeks after the holiday is over during the week when everyone else is in school and/or working.

Did you know there are actually quite a few other foreign companies that have launched chains in Japan? To name a few, Wendy's, McDonald's, Cold Stone Creamery, Starbucks (my favorite), Tully's, Hard Rock Cafe, Outback Steakhouse, TGI Fridays, and Bob's Big Boy (that was a shocker to me). I'm sure I've missed some, but basically you shouldn't be afraid to come here because you can find a taste from home, you just might have to wait a few hours to get it ;)

Here are some shots of the new shop:



The three hour line:



The best part about the Golden Week holiday is look who comes out to be photographed:



And my personal favorite:



Oh and one more thing, I found out what shoes are in season this year while making my way to the donut store: