Sense the post holiday glow from me? *_* To answer your question, Tokyo trip was great! The only thing I wished I could change for this trip was time. I wish we had more time.
Apologies to all, I had no chance to shop for quirky presents and meaningful gifts but all we could get was nicely packed cakes and Japanese snacks and small souvenirs to give – mostly bought from the airport and Asakusa because that was the only chance we had to ‘stock up’
As you will find out soon, our trip is much about food and Jap food is great! It is satisfying and quality assured everywhere we go. (Except for 1 meal, which I will elaborate further on) Contrary to comments from friends, food in Tokyo is actually relatively affordable. Portions as decent too and you can always savour the Japanese sincerity and pride in food preparation.
Day 1:
By the time we checked in to our room famished and weak from dragging luggage, the nearest and dearest place to eat was little shops opposite the main road from our hotel. Shinjuku is a very convenient place to stay, food is always within walking distance.
We wanted to gorge ourselves with rice so we settled with this cosy shop for Beef Curry Rice and Katsu Don. Upstairs on the 2nd floor is the yakitori section where lots of middle age men sit, eat and smoke.
Those who are a fan of Red bean pancake will relish it lots here. It is freshly made and sold to you warm and full of fillings in every bite~ There is red bean (of course) and cream filling to choose from and both look much bigger compared to those sold here. The pastry is much thinner than local version so there is an explosion of flavour every time you sink you teeth in. *Bliss* This definitely settled Kel’s craving and im not sure if he would ever enjoy the fish pancake at Takashimaya basement marketplace anymore.
Day 2:
We have a full day of self planned itinerary so breakfast must be had. Italian Tomato café is seen around Shinjuku area with a few branches. This is probably the only place that is open early in the morning so we ordered ourselves hotdog and egg & smoked ham sandwich. Not sure if it is the atmosphere or because Jap bread tastes better, the meal was simple yet fulfilling.
Sitting at the window allow us to people-watch (whoever walked by so early). With lounge music playing, the whole experience was romantic *smile*
Now we head off to Harajuku, it’s the Meiji-Jingu Shrine that we are visiting. Whilst there we could not curb our appetite, we ordered ramen and green tea. Now Im wondering how come there is only 1 piece of Cha Shu in my ramen? Somehow the ramen in Tokyo is not as salty as those we find here… Maybe less ajinomoto?
I think we walked a lot then Kel started to crave anything in sight – here comes Kebab! Not the first kebab stall we came across, this one has more crowd and loud music so Kel ordered a beef kebab. Look how he is licking his fingers you know its good. *hiak hiak*
Next stop is Asakusa! This is a place locals come for their gift giving obligations. The entire street is endless supply of jap dolls, mobile phone trinkets, jap design pouches, touristy magnets, and traditional Japanese sweets such as mochi, rice cakes, ningyoyaki (small cakes with fillings) and rice crackers. The longest queue must be the best of all others right? We join the crowd to buy some for family and friends.
At the end of this street is a famous temple where at the entrance you can find jap fried noodles, yakitori and my favourite takoyaki! After all the anticipation, I was disappointed though. The real Japanese takoyaki has pink pickles in it and it alters the savoury taste I love.
Nevermind, we know that there is a tempura restaurant around the corner and we set foot exploring. After a long walk (lost our way for a while), we sat down at the old-fashioned eatery and started a chicken-n-duck conversation to order our food. With my super limited single syllable Japanese and Kel’s blur look, we managed to have prawn tempura and a raw fish platter on our table.
This is the highlight – the fresh Tuna sashimi melts in the mouth even before you chew! OMG, I can’t describe this sensation. Usually I’m a raw salmon fan but I think they don’t serve salmon. However, no regrets! It is delicious and no fishy smell whatsoever! I don’t think I can ever settle with sakae sushi anymore. Bah!
Day 3:
Today we are going to Mt Fuji and Hakone day tour. Breakfast today is croquette sandwich and teriyaki chicken sandwich from a cottage style bakery. Special mention on instant coffee – the sachet is made in such a way you can hang the open ended paper sieve on the side of your mug, pour hot water in to brew, then add creamer and sugar to taste! So creative and interesting! Both of us were in awe and so amazed we bought some back to impressed others :p
The coach journey is worth it – scenery was breathtaking and the route uphill was surprisingly comfortable. At the 5th and highest stop on Mt Fuji, there are lots of (more) touristy souvenirs and more foooooddd. We were impatient for lunch and the cold weather doesn’t help much with our cravings.
Now you see us with yakitori~ I chose sausage, Kel chose his favourite squid. Both were yummy yummy! Holding on to the warm food and munching away, it was so fun as we can see ‘smoke’ coming out from our mouths into the cold. Squid was nicely done, not raw and not burnt. Sausage was springy and juicy.
Finally we have our lunch coming up. Our day tour comes with so-called Japanese Style Lunch but guess what, we were brought to a restaurant in a theme park hotel that says ‘Chinese Restaurant’. I should have known; how good can tour meals be?
This statement sums it all up – I can’t believe my worst Jap meal is actually in Japan. Food was cold when we arrived, the fish was as hard as a rock and how on earth did a Chinese vegetarian dish end up in my bento as a side dish? My bento in the picture looks like a lot of food but we didn’t finish it at all.
We got back to town from countryside in no time by Shinkansen (bullet train). Again, we were looking around for our last dinner in Tokyo and wanted to eat to our hearts’ content, then comes sushi train!
This place is cramp and no frills. Florescent lighting created a rather somber ambience. We had to help ourselves to green tea sachets and fill up our own mugs from taps all along the stool counter. There is only a handful of sushi variety going round but im only interested in salmon sushi and unagi! We had only 3-4 variety of sushi to fill us up but it was sooo good that we are happy just doing that. Count our plates and you will know how much we ate. :P The bill came up to about SGD40+. Sweet!!
To finish off the day, we had Crepe-in-a-Cone for dessert.
Day 4:
Today, we woke up reluctantly. We don’t wanna go back yet – we still want to see Tsukiji fish market, Roppongi, Shibuya, Ginza… To ease our mood, we indulge in Mister Donuts at the corner of our hotel street. Sitting by the window enjoying coffee and donuts on a quiet morning, it is the best way to end our trip.
However, we were not contented to just leave like that, we pop into a corner shop noodle bar. Once in the plastic flap cordoning off the street, we order our Pork Bone Ramen Soup and voila~ It is goodd!!! Have been walking pass this place past few days and we see a crowd and thought why we took so long to try it. Simply slurpelicious! A container of special preserved spicy vegetable is for us to add on some zest to the noodle and it works wonders for the soup. The noodle is just nice, not too soft nor hard. ahh~~
Some last minute shopping, we bought sakura green tea and lots of Japanese cake – honey and green tea flavour. Everything is intricately wrapped, feels like having lots of Christmas presents~ Also found kit kat in red bean flavour and Haagen Daz ice cream vending machine, I cant let go! As if to say goodbye, Tokyo rain came on our way to the airport.
Now Kel & I are back in reality and mourning the holiday over is quite a dampener. Nevertheless, with a plane ticket we can still go wherever we want to so that’s for future planning.
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Mata ne!
Warm Love,
Starningblue
