Today is Japan’s birthday (National Foundation Day), a non-working holiday, so I went out to celebrate by eating at a “tabehodai” (smorgasbord) restaurant at Lalaport. It’s about 5 minutes by bicycle from my schoolhouse near Tamagawajosui Station. It’s the same traveling time if you take the Tama Monorail and it’s just on the 3rd train stop.

I knew it’s always crowded during the holidays and my student this morning told me that it’s hard for her to find seats to eat lunch with her friend during the weekend. Some students did not cancel their lessons so I gladly taught them today. 

Going to Lalaport at 2 PM for my late brunch would be wiser than waiting for hours in the cold alleys. Glad to have chosen The Buffet Diner as they serve Filipino-style dishes under the Chinese corner  and had pizza galore in the Italian corner.

When Lalaport in Tachikawa was inaugurated on December 10, 2015, I took the time to tour this new Mitsui Shopping Park and compared it to other centers that they manage like Mitsui Outlet. It’s the talk of the city especially my students when this former Tachikawa Army Airfield was being transformed into a commercial district. Now it’s home to about 240 stores and restaurants. Though quite compact and few places to rest and relax, it’s a good one-stop shop for food, fashion, home furnishings, electronics, stationeries and novelty items.

It’s a great place for families with small children as they have an outdoor play area. On a clear day, you can see Mt. Fuji, Japan’s tallest mountain, from the Food Court!

After my sumptuous 2-in-1 meal this afternoon, I went to Vanguard and Don Quixote shops to buy presents for our students who passed Eiken (English Language Proficiency Test) and graduating/moving up students at Olives Language School.

It’s actually my first trip to Lalaport this new year. Check for yourself our city’s shopping park here: 935-1 Izumi-town, Tachikawa-city, Tokyo 190-0015 / Tel:+81-(0)42-595-9393 Website: https://mitsui-shopping-park.com/lalaport/tachikawa/en/