I Broke Something in Takashimaya

My recent promotion of Takashimaya to the Cold Sake Hall of Fame got me thinking about my experiences there. We first discovered the Japanese Macy’s (on crack) during our first trip to NYC in 2002. I had heard Madonna and Gwenyth Paltrow shopped there, so I had to go see for myself. You see, I am a champion window shopper. I have non-shopped at some of the finest stores in the world. We walk around, comment on things, and leave empty handed, usually not being able to afford a shopping bag at a store like that. So, we toured the six tiny floors (and basement tea shop), used the pleasantly scented bathrooms, and that was that. In Tokyo, we discovered the real version of the miniature. It was six floors times 10 in terms of square footage. They even had a kimono boutique, a Boy Scouts (of America, mind you) badge outpost, and two gigantic basements with prepared foods and groceries. It was very posh, but very cold, which is a premium in August in Japan. Dying from heatstroke in Kyoto, we remembered this and charged the building for some sweet relief. So, back in New York last Christmas, walking the animatronic window route of 5^th Avenue, we decided to stop back in and pay our respects. Yes, we hung with Giorgio Armani. But then, the unthinkable happened. I broke something in Takashimaya. It was like that episode of Sex and the City when Carrie falls in Dior. I was poking through the cheap table on the ground floor (you know, for the window-shopping tourists) and came across a little set of glass test tube vases, in a glass base (sort like this). The glass was paper thin, like ribbon candy. Well, I picked up a test tube, looked at it, put it down, and then -- pop. A big crater had formed in the side of the test tube. I carefully slunk away from the table, my face red. No one seemed to notice. Eventually, I did buy a set of Travel Topic Cards, which really did help pass the time on the way home once we hit Connecticut. The good news is I got a super cool triangular Takashimaya shopping bag for my $10 purchase. The bad news? I don’t know if I’m allowed back. I’m hoping their induction into the Hall of Fame is a show of good will. Maybe we can work something out?