With Aloha From Japan

Spirit Tour Japan

2012-11-14T19:47:00.000+09:00

For all of you who live in or around the Tokyo area, this is something you might be interested in. Staton Ann, a very talented Spiritual Advisor and Intuitive Healer, is coming to Tokyo and will be holding individual sessions on December 3 and 4th. I don'tusually use the blog to advertise - and actually, I'm not even really advertising....I consider it more like spreading the word. Besides, I have known Staton Ann for a very long time and I'm very excited that she's coming to Japan to share her gifts and talents here.

Stat and I have known each other since 7th Grade (I'm not going to disclose how long ago that was, but trust me when I say it was a while back) - in fact, she was one of my best friends. She, our friend Jamie and I were inseparable for most of 7th and 8th Grade. When we hit 9th Grade, Stat went into cheer leading and Jamie and I went into tennis so inevitably we sort of drifted. But what makes her upcoming trip to Japan so awesome is the fact that Japanese language sort of reunited us. Our senior year in high school, we had Japanese Class together and we partnered up for our big assignment which was to make a video speaking all Japanese. I can't recall exactly but I think we were making a travel video so we did sort of a circle island tour of Oahu, stopping at some interesting attractions. I remember my cousin Sara drove us around and did the videotaping. We stopped at the original Kua 'Aina on the North Shore (well back then it was the only Kua 'Aina) and I have a distinct memory of us jumping out of a canoe at the entrance of the Polynesian Cultural Center and saying something in Japanese. In any case, it was the best video EVER! I am incredibly sad that neither one of us has a copy of that video...watching it would've reminded me that I actually could speak Japanese fairly well (which is no longer the case).

So continuing on, we both went off to college and lost touch for a bit but reunited at some point during college (she at BYU in Provo and me at the University of Puget Sound in Washington) and went on a road trip to Canada one Thanksgiving. On that trip we got our first tattoos together and had some adventures at the Canada-Washington border which I won't get into here. As it goes in life, we lost touch again for awhile, but 4 years ago her brother and my sister gave us a gift which, although they are no longer together, will keep us in touch with each other probably for the rest of our lives ---our beautiful niece.

Anyway, I am very proud of my friend and her success and I encourage anyone that has the time to set up an appointment. I know her appointments are filling up fast, so hurry. Here's a link to more information about the Spirit Tour and about Staton Ann in general ( Spirit Tour ). Enjoy!!!

I LOVE Weddings

2012-10-22T18:38:00.001+09:00

I really DO love weddings. I didn't always love weddings, but I think that since my besties started getting married, I've come to associate weddings with great times with friends/family. I'm not gonna lie, I have also come to love weddings because they remind me of my own wedding (which by the way, was awesome).

This past weekend Rich and I attended the wedding of friends we have made while in Japan (the groom is one of Rich's co-workers). The wedding was at KKR Porthill Yokohama Hotel which is located at the top of a hill that overlooks the bay. Luckily on our way to the wedding we met up with friends that were also going to the wedding - I say luckily because even though I tried to map it out and find out how to get there ahead of time, I probably still would've gotten lost trying to find it. In any case, our group arrived with time to spare and spent the remaining minutes outside enjoying the scenery, including the area we thought was where the ceremony was to occur (see photo in bottom right corner). The weather was perfect (not too cold), which I appreciated since I was wearing a dress. After noting the continued absence of guests or anyone official looking, we figured out we were in the wrong location (for those that know our group, this should not surprise you).

The ceremony was held upstairs in the hotel in an indoor chapel with a fabulous view of the bay and bridge - the fact that the ceremony took place at dusk made it a particularly gorgeous sight. The groom came in first, followed by the the bridal party who took their places behind him. The bride entered the chapel with her mom, who put the bride's veil down before they walked down the aisle. A particularly touching moment occurred when the bride (a talented violinist) surprised the groom by performing a musical piece with the best man (a cellist).

After the ceremony, we were ushered upstairs to the reception. I think one of my favorite things about weddings is getting to see how the bride and groom sort of make different aspects of the event their own, so that their guests are like "that's soooo them." After everyone was seated, the bride and groom made their entrance in a dramatic fashion that was definitely "them" - they entered dressed in Yokohama Baystars uniforms as the beer guy/girl. If you've ever been to a Japanese baseball game, you'll understand; if you haven't, see my blog post on it to get a better idea of what I'm talking about re: the beer girls (Baseball in Japan) After entering the reception hall with the spotlight on them, they proceeded to go from table to table filling the pitchers with beer and providing a basket of snacks to each table. It was great!

After their entrance, the dinner service began. Each course was presented in an impeccable fashion - being a Japanese wedding and all, I expected nothing less. The food was not only beautiful, it was also delicious (and thank goodness the main course was steak, otherwise Rich would've starved). After dinner, there were the customary speeches and a few games. One of the games, which wasn't really a game, called for the guests to see if they had 1 of 3 chocolate pieces hidden in their slice of cake. Since my hubby was out smoking when this took place, I HAD to rummage through his cake to see if he had the chocolate! It's not like I ate any of it, but it was pretty funny when he came back and looked at the state his cake was in - he of course ate it anyway.

Ahh, I almost forgot....then came the part of weddings that up until July 2011 I dreaded more than anything (and hence the reason I omitted this wedding ritual from my own wedding)....the bouquet toss. Don't get me wrong, some people live for the bouquet toss - I'm not one of them. I think the reason I swore off on the bouquet toss was due to one particular wedding I attended where I purposely went to the bathroom when I knew it was going to occur. Well, to my profound surprise, embarrassment and anger, I actually heard the emcee calling my name (note to all brides: don't do this, especially to your good friends). Anyway, back to this wedding - I will gladly admit that it was quite an amazing feeling to FINALLY be able to stay in my seat and watch other females have to stand up in front of everyone. I'm sure the feeling will wear off but this was the first wedding I've attended since my wedding last year. After all of this, the bride and groom left and when they returned, they were dressed in their traditional Japanese attire for the cake cutting, thank you's and joining of the families.

The event ended somewhat early, as Japanese weddings are known to have somewhat of a time limit. No matter though, it was a great night and when we got home, I went through all my wedding photos (haha, just kidding). Congratulations again to the happy couple!!

I'm Back

2012-10-21T12:54:00.001+09:00

Ok, I know it's been awhile since I've posted anything. What can I say other than sometimes life just gets in the way. :) In any case, after getting much grief from my friends about my lack of blog posting, I promise to post something soon. First on the docket, highlights from the wedding Rich and I went to this past weekend.

May 2012 Grand Sumo Tournament Part 2

2012-05-23T11:55:00.000+09:00

After we found our seats, we chilled out and took in some of the matches but we still had a while to go before the "real" action started so we ended up walking around the arena for a bit (including getting some snacks - they had the best soft serve I've had in long time). Rich noted that this was one of the most English-friendly events he's been to in Japan - they gave us English programs (i.e., the schedule of matches), there were English informational booklets on sumo and they even had radios you could rent that broadcast the commentary of the matches in English. We ended up renting a radio and sharing it and honestly, it helped out a lot (if we hadn't gotten it, we wouldn't have known there was a playoff for the Emperor's Cup).

The Sumo Tournament: The Grand Sumo Tournament lasts for 15 days and the winner of the tournament receives the Emperor's Cup. The winner of the tournament is the wrestler with the best record of wins over losses (must have won at least 8 of his 15 matches).

Sumo Ceremonies/Rituals: If you've ever watched a sumo tournament or even just a single match, you will have seen the various ceremonies and rituals that take place, but you may not necessarily know what they mean.

Dohyo-iri (Maku-uchi) This is the "entering the ring" ceremony that occurs immediately before the maku-uchi matches. The wrestlers for each side (east and west) of the maku-uchi enter the arena seperately in reverse order of rank wearing colorful ceremonial aprons.

Maku-uchi of the East entering the dohyo

Dohyo-iri (Yokozuna): The Yokozuna enters last and is attended by a senior gyoji and two other wrestlers. The Yokozuna then peforms the traditional dohyo-iri ceremony.

Yokozuna Hakuho entering the dohyo

Hakuho performing the dohyo-iri ceremony

Water - After entering the dohyo, the wrestlers go through a series of symbolic movements. In order to cleanse the mind and body, the wrestler rinses his mouth with water and wipes his body with a towel. The wrestlers also go through a series of other movements such as raising their arms to the side, stamping their feet and slapping their body (to ward off injuries).

Shiomaki - The wrestlers scatter a handful of salt to purify the ring and insure against injuries.

Chiri-o-Kiru - The wrestlers squat on their toes and face each other in the ring and open their arms wide to show that they respect fair play.

Sonkyo - Toeing the mark position (also includes glaring at each other).

Shikiri - The wrestlers squat facing each other in a "get set" position using their fists to support themselves. At this point, the match usually doesn't start right away; rather, the wrestlers can go back to their corners and repeat the process (from shiomaki on). They have 4 minutes to complete this process and at the end of the 4 minutes, they must start the match. Repeating the process is considered a psychologial thing for the wrestlers to mentally prepare and it also serves to stir up the crowd.

Tachi-ai - The initial clash.

Torikumi - An initial charge by a wrestler toward his opponent.

Yokozuna's Match: The Yokozuna's match is always the last regulation match. Hakuho lost his final match and ended the tournament with a 10-5 record.

Emperor's Cup: Often, the winner of the tournament will already be known by the end of the second to the last day based on the wrestlers' records. However, we got lucky because the winner had not been decided the day before and in fact there were actually 3 wrestlers in contention for the Emperor's Cup depending on what happened in their regulation matches (Tochiozan, Kyokutenho and Kisenosato). Tochiozan did not have to wrestle because his opponent withdrew due to injury so he just waited behind the scenes to see whether he would win the Emperor's Cup outwright (based on his record) or whether he would have to wrestle Kyokutenho or Kisenosato. Kyokutenho ended up winning his match but Kisenosato did not, so it came down to a single playoff match between Tochiozan and Kyokutenho.

Amazing enough, the arena was still completely full. The commentator noted that many people leave right after the Yokozuna's match but because this playoff situation was somewhat of a rare occurence and the winner was anyone's guess, everyone stayed till the end. The actual match lasted mere seconds and to the crowd's delight, was won by Kyokutenho (from Mongolia). I'm not sure but I think everyone wanted Kyokutenho to win because he was somewhat of an underdog - he became the "oldest wrestler in the modern age to win his first career title." Shortly after the match the dohyo was cleaned off and the trophy presentation ceremony began. We were running short on time so we were only able to watch presentation of the first two trophies (both of which went to Kyokutenho and both of which were HUGE).

It was a long day, but well worth it..watching a sumo tournament in real life is so much better than watching it on t.v. If you ever the opportunity to go, I would highly recommend it. In fact, we are definitely considering going again in September!

Kyokutenho about to receive the Emperor's Cup

May 2012 Grand Sumo Tournament Part 1

2012-05-22T19:02:00.001+09:00

Although sumo wrestling has never been legally recognized as Japan's national sport, it originated here, this is the only country where it is practiced professionally, and it is definitely a sport beloved by the Japanese people. The Grand Sumo Tournament lasts for 15 days and takes place 6 times a year, 3 of those ocurring in Tokyo at the Ryogoku Kokugikan (January, May and September). When I saw that MWR was offering a tour to the May Grand Sumo Tournament which included brunch at the New Sanno Hotel, I made sure we got tickets (or rather, I made sure Rich went to the office and got tickets) because going to a sumo tournament was definitely on my list of things I wanted to do before leaving Japan.

The buffet at New Sanno Hotel before the Sumo Tournament

Having grown up in Hawaii, I was familiar with sumo wrestling since I grew up during a time when the success of sumo wrestlers from Hawaii was on the rise and as a result the sport/wrestlers received much publicity on Hawaii T.V. stations. In fact, Akebono was the first non-Japanese to reach the rank of Yokozuna (Grand Champion) and Musahimaru was the second non-Japanese to reach that rank. The success of Hawaiian wrestlers led to the establishment of the number of foreigners a professional stable could have at any one time. There haven't been many famous sumo wrestlers from Hawaii in recent years, but a number of wrestlers from other places have been very successful (Mongolia, Estonia, etc.)
We arrived at the Kokugikan around Noon. Although some matches started earlier in the day, they were only the lower division matches so we weren't really concerned that we missed those matches. The lower level of the arena is divided into boxes that hold up to 4 people all of whom sit on the ground on pillows. The upper level, where we had reserved seats, has regular cushioned seats that would have been comfortable except for the fact that we were sitting on them for such long periods of time. The very top level is open seating on plastic chairs.

The Annaijo Entrance - these house establishments help
arange for seats, souvenirs, refreshments and other fan
services for those with reserved seats.

View inside the Kokugikan from the lower
level and the upper level.

For those of you that aren't too familiar with sumo, here are some definitions and basics about the sport and its rituals:

Dohyo = The ring
Rikishi = Wrestler
Gyoji = Referee
Banzuke = Sumo rankings
Mawashi = Loincloth worn by the wrestlers

Rules: The dohyo is made out of a special kind of clay and the hard surface is covered with a thin layer of sand. A sumo bout is won when the wrestler forces his opponent out of the inner circle or throws him in the dohyo. The wrestler who touches the ground with any part of his body OR puts any part of his body over the straw bales marking the circle loses the match. Although there is a gyoji in the dohyo for every bout, there are also 5 judges that sit on the sides of the dohyo. In the event there is any doubt about the gyoji's decision, the 5 judges will get into the ring and settle the matter amongst themselves - they will either uphold the referee's decision, reverse it or order a rematch.

The judges trying to make a decision on a particular match.
In this particular case, much to the crowd's displeasure,
they ruled that the wrestlers must have a rematch.

Banzuke/Rankings: There are approximately 800 rikishi in professional sumo, from the trainee (i.e., those who have to carry the bags of a more senior wrestler) all the way up to the Yokozuna. After each tournament, the banzuke is revised with the wrestlers being promoted or demoted depending on their performance during the tournament.

The maku-uchi division is the highest division and is divided into the following ranks:

Yokozuna (the Grand Champion)
Ozeki
Sekiwake
Komusubi
Maegashira

Yokozuna is the only rank that cannot be demoted but it is generally expected that should a Yokozuna have a number of poor tournament performances, he will retire. There have only been 69 Yokozuna over the past 300 years. Although there can be more than one Yokozuna at any one time, currently Hakuho is the only Yokozuna (he has been the only one since 2010). Hakuho is from Mongolia and is only the 4th non-Japanese Yokozuna.

The senior wrestlers entering the arena with their attendant
(a trainee or lower ranking wrestler). I couldn't see over
the wall so Rich had to take the pictures for me.

The fans usually wait on the ground level to get a glimpse
of and to cheer on their favorite wrestler(s) as they
enter the arena.

Harajuku For Dessert....That's How We Roll

2012-05-15T13:58:00.000+09:00

This blog post is a continuation of the Kappabashi-Dori post - well, maybe not really a continuation, but it's basically a recap of what we did post-shopping in Kappabashi. When we were done shopping, it was only around 1 or 2 in the afternoon and since we were already in Tokyo, we decided to do something else while we were there. Someone suggested that we go to Harajuku since it was Sunday (and Sunday is generally when the "interesting" people can be found roaming Takeshita Street), so we made our way back to the subway station and headed toward Harajuku. The subway line that we were on didn't stop at the Harajuku Station so we got off at Omotesando Station and walked up Omotesando Street (actually I think it's an avenue but to be honest, I am not sure what the difference is so I'll just stick with Street).

As we were walking along Omotesando Street, we passed a shop/restaurant called Peltier Chocolatier. They really draw you in with their bright yellow sign and these amazing donuts that are conspicuously placed on a table in front of the window. They also have a sign with the price of the donuts to make you think that their prices are reasonable (which of course they are not, with the exception of the donuts). As usual, we were suckers and were drawn in by their clever marketing...and it was also starting to drizzle and we wanted to get out of the rain while we waited for our friend to meet up with us...and it had also been several hours since we ate lunch so we were a little hungry. What started out as us just taking a casual look at all the chocolates and sweets they had in their glass display cabinets turned into us grabbing a table and sitting down.

It was actually quite crowded inside so we had to wait a few minutes while they cleaned a table (clearly by the look of all the fancy shopping bags at the tables, these people had worked up a quite an appetite shopping) which was totally fine because it gave us time to look at the menu and the desserts in the display cases to decide what we wanted. I'm not sure if I've mentioned this in any of my previous blog posts, but the Japanese are all about the "sets" when it comes to menu offerings (you can order stuff ala carte, but for just a little bit more you can get a set which usually comes with a drink, rice, salad, soup, etc.). Here, there were a couple different dessert sets which all included your choice of drink. The most expensive set on the menu, the "combination set," included a combination of different desserts.

Before we ordered, someone brought up the idea of sharing the combination set, but that idea was quickly shot down as no one really wanted to share. So it ended up that each of us (there were 5 of us) got our own combination set. The set came with a piece of chocolate, a macaroon and this chocolate mousse /cake thing. Each of us got a different type of chocolate and a different flavor macaroon - my chocolate had a yummy caramel filling and the macaroon was lemon flavored. Needless to say, it was all very good BUT there were definitely some pangs of regret by the group since everything was very sweet and rich and the combination set was just a bit much (I'm sure that won't stop us from doing the same thing at the next place).

After Peltier, we made our way back to the main entrance of Takeshita Street to do some people watching. By the time we got there, it was really starting to rain and we were all feeling a little sick off of the sweets we just ate and none of us really wanted to deal with that mess of people, so we walked across the street to Harajuku Station and headed home.

Kappabashi-Dori - A Shopper's Paradise

2012-05-04T11:30:00.002+09:00

Lately, my friends and I have been obsessed with flatware (tea sets in particular), so my friend Marissa suggested we take a Sunday shopping trip to Kappabashi-Dori to see if we could find anything we liked. Kappabashi-Dori is definitely a shopper's paradise - if you happen to be shopping for flatware, serveware or kitchenware, that is. Kappabashi-Dori (also called Kitchen Town) is a street located between Ueno and Asakusa in Tokyo and is famous for having tons of shops that sell flatware, kitchen items/tools/gadgets, and basically anything needed in the restaurant industry...including fake food! Although many restaurants have their fake food specially made for them, that can be pricey so apparently a less expensive option is to buy premade fake food from Kappabashi. Word to the wise (and I'm speaking from experience here) it's not a good idea to go in any of these shops when you're hungry.

We arrived at Kappabashi around 10:30 a.m. and as usual, we were starving. Finding a place to eat in Japan on Sunday before 11:30 a.m. is, as we discovered, incredibly difficult. Since we couldn't really focus on our shopping until we ate, we decided to have coffee at Doutor while waiting for restaurants to open. Doutor is the "Starbucks" of Japan and although their coffee is actually really good, there is a haze of cigarette smoke throughout the entire place which makes it quite unpleasant for non-smokers (there is a designated smoking section but it's useless since it's right next to the smoking section).

An hour later and stuffed from the delicious dim sum we had at the restaurant across the street from Doutor, we were ready to take on Kappabashi. I will admit, this shopping experience was slightly overwhelming because there was just so much stuff to choose from. Seriously, you walk in a shop and there are just rows and rows of stuff. One thing you can count on, if it's related to cooking, serving food or the restaurant industry, you'll find it here. If you ever wondered where you could buy a taiyaki maker (the fish shaped pancake that comes with different fillings like azuki beans or custard), now you know.

There's also a wide range in terms of price - from teapots for 500 Yen to a single cup/saucer set for 15,000 Yen (um, not really in my budget). I think we were all a little cautious with our purchases because we didn't know what the next store might have and perhaps the next store might have something we'd like better. A few good things to note about many of these stores: (1) many of them take U.S. credit cards; and (2) many of them will ship your purchases worldwide.

At the end of the day, none of us really went too crazy. I had my eye on this teapot that matched the pink teacups and plates that I got from the 100 Yen store a few weeks ago, but for whatever reason I didn't get it. Well actually I do KNOW the reason - the reason is that I thought I might see something better at another shop and I didn't want to be stuck with it if that were that case, but it turned out that I didn't find a better one, so I ended up with none. In fact all that I left Kappabashi-Dori with was a bundt pan (which I've been wanting), a plain white teapot for a single cup of tea, and a mortar/pestle (which I've been needing). However, a day or 2 later, I got a text message from one of my friends expressing regret over not having bought everything she was considering buying....oh well, guess it looks like another trip to Kappabashi-Dori is in our future.

A Day In Tokyo: Harajuku and Meiji Shrine

2012-04-30T11:14:00.000+09:00

After my friend and I were done in Odaiba, we got back on the train and made our way to Harajuku Station. Our plan was to make our way down Takeshita Street, check out Omotesando Hills and finish with Meiji Shrine which is basically right next to the station (also on the list was to find somewhere to eat along the way). I had been to Takeshita Street once a few weeks prior but I didn't have time to walk down the whole thing. That last time had been in the afternoon on a Friday so the street was aleady packed, but this time it was slightly before noon on a Tuesday which allowed for a more leisurely stroll down this Harajuku hot spot. For a second we considered getting crepes at the infamous Marion Crepes since there was no line (which is a rare event) but we had just had soft serve ice cream back at Odaiba and also we were a little overwhelmed by all the choices at Marion Crepes.

We continued down Takeshita Street and we also hit Cat Street where we found some really cool shops (one of them had tons of hats). Then we went into Omotesando Hills where I thought perhaps we could find a place to have lunch. At the time, I didn't know that Omotesando Hills was a super upscale mall, but I soon found out. Architecturally, it's really cool but shopping-wise, I can't really say....I mean, I don't think I could even afford to buy truffles from the French chocolate store. We took a quick stroll around the top floor where all the restaurants were located but as we didn't feel like spending a small fortune on lunch, we decided to walk around the area and find someplace else. I think it was fate that as we happened to be crossing a street, I turned my head and recognized the sign for Ichiran Ramen. There were no ifs ands or buts about it, we headed straight there. My friend loved the "cubicle eating" experience and this time around, since I knew what to expect, I was a bit more adventurous with the customization of my ramen. In any case, it totally hit the spot.

The great thing about ramen is that even though you're full, it's a pleasant full (not a disgusting I want to vomit kind of full). It was already late in the afternoon so we made our way to Meiji Shrine which was just a short ways up the road. Meiji Jingu is a Shinto shrine dedicated to Emperor Meiji and Empress Shoken. It was originally established in 1920 but the original shrine buildings burnt down in 1945. The buildings that exist today were built in approximately 1958 (see their website for more info on the shrine at Meiji Jingu Website). The shrine is located in a forest that covers approximately 175 acres and includes over 120,000 trees which were donated by people from all over Japan when the shrine was first established. It is also consistently listed as one of the top spots to visit in Tokyo, so there is generally always a good amount of foot traffic in and out of the shrine grounds.

Literally as soon as we passed through the Torii gate (the main entrance) of the shrine, there was this really loud rumbling sound which turned out to be thunder. We looked up and the skies had really darkened so we figured we should probably hurry it up. Usually visitors come here to take a leisurely stroll through the grounds but the skies were dark and depressing and we didn't want to get caught in the rain so we did a quick tour of the grounds. I had taken Japanese History in college which was, needless to say, a long time ago, but my memory was definitely refreshed as I read the information they had posted around the grounds on Emperor Meiji and the path the country took during his time as emperor (i.e., the Meiji Restoration). We also got to see a wedding party right after they finished their ceremony, so that was pretty cool. I ended my trip to Meiji Jingu by purchasing some charms and then practically sprinting back toward the exit (and Harajuku Station) just as the rain started coming down.

Sushi Sakura Style

2012-04-24T16:08:00.000+09:00

As I mentioned previously, during sakura season (cherry blossom) here in Japan, sakura literally becomes the center of attention in terms of products, flavors, foods, themes and activities. So when my friend asked me if I was interested in joining her (and her other friends) for a sushi making class in Yokohama with a sakura theme, I thought nothing of it except to say that I would go. I had never made sushi before so I thought it would be an interesting experience. I was a little nervous that I would be awful at it - in a conversation with my mom a few days before the class, I told her that my sushi was probably going to come out very ugly. She asked me why I would say that and my response was "mom, I can't even make nice looking spam musubi."

A few days before the class, my friend messaged me and told me that I needed to bring with me an apron, a bandana, a dish towel and a container for the finished product. I didn't have an apon or a bandana, and I initially panicked and wondered where I was going to get them, BUT then I realized my favorite place in the world, The Daiso would probably have exactly what I needed. I already had a container and dish towel, but come on, stuff is ONLY 100 yen at The Daiso (plus, it was Hello Kitty AND I also wanted my stuff to be color coordinated in pink, since pink is the color of sakura).

The class was held at a community center in Yokohama in a room that was obviously meant for cooking classes. We got there a little early and the class before us was just finishing up so we got to see the fruits of their labor - our class was making rolls but their class had made nigiri. Everyone was really friendly and helped us get the supplies and ingredients we were going to need for our class (bamboo roller, plastic measuring mat, knife, plastic wrap, plastic gloves). The sushi rice was already made so all we had to do was weigh out exactly how much rice we would need for our individual rolls.

The class started out with everyone going up to the front of the class and watching the teacher do (and simultaneously explain) a few steps. I thought that having the mirror above the teacher's area was particularly helpful because there would often be people in front of me (and since I'm short, I couldn't exactly see what was going on). As soon as she was done with her explanation, everyone would run back to their stations and do the steps we had just learned.

The instructions given by the teacher were entirely in Japanese, but luckily someone in our group was fluent in Japanese and was able to translate the directions. Plus, the teachers (and the aides) would go around the room monitoring the progress and assisting those who needed help. It seemed like one of them was always kind of hovering around our table which I didn't mind at all because I'll be honest, I kind of needed the help (plus a lot of the women in the class seemed like they had already taken these classes before and knew what they were doing).

It was a very cool process though. To get the rice pink, we used some sort of food coloring that was also cherry blossom flavored (go figure) and the wrap around the roll was tamago (egg) instead of nori. There was such a feeling of suspense (and for me, anxiety) when you roll the sushi and then cut it in half at which point you find out whether you have the shape/image you were going for, or you just have a blob of rice and vegetables. Mine was somewhere in the middle. From far away you can kind of tell that it's a cherry blossom tree but I sort of messed up on one part so the trunk didn't turn out as "trunky" as it should've been. Oh well, at least it wasn't as much of a disaster as I thought it was going to be, and I totally had fun in the process. Next class on my list, making sushi pandas!

To Odaiba And Back

2012-04-23T14:21:00.001+09:00

One of the things that has been on my "things I want to do" list was to check out Odaiba, so when another friend of mine came to town recently, I suggested we stop there on our way to Harajuku. Odaiba is a man made island in Tokyo Bay that has developed into a popular destination amongst locals and tourists. It has a somewhat interesting history -it was originally built in the 1850's for defensive purposes. Later there were attempts to expand/develop the island but development slowed in the mid 90's and didn't pick up again until the late 90's. Today, Odaiba is well known for its futuristic look - illustrative of this look is the Fuji Television Building, which is the headquarters of Fuji Television and which some call the landmark of Odaiba. At the time I didn't know what that crazy boat thing was, but I have since learned it is the Himiko Ferry that travels between Asakusa and Odaiba.

The Rainbow Bridge connects Tokyo and Odaiba, and you can get across the bridge by car, elevated railway system (the Yurikamome line) or by foot. Since I wasn't about to drive to Tokyo and I didn't really feel like walking across the bridge, we caught the train there (I got the sense that walking across the Rainbow Bridge just doesn't hold the same appeal as, say walking across the Golden Gate Bridge). Actually, the Yurikamome Line while technically a train is more like a monorail and is a fully automated system controlled by computers.

It's evident almost immediately why Odaiba is such a popular destination - there is literally something for everyone here - there are business, hotels, shopping, restaurants, parks, museums and entertainment complexes. Odaiba has several shopping/entertainment type plazas, but the ones closest to the train station are Aquacity and Decks Tokyo Beach. Since we got there so early, many of the businesses weren't open yet, so we did the tourist thing and took pictures of the Goddess of Democracy statue (basically a replica of the Statue of Liberty), walked down the length of Aquacity and Decks Tokyo Bay and then checked out Odaiba Seaside Park (I think this park goes by other names as well). It seemed really quiet and peaceful when we were there (although there were tons of people taking pictures of the Goddess of Democracy), but I bet it gets really crowded during the summer.

Odaiba Seaside Park runs along the water and has a great view of the Rainbow Bridge and the rest of Tokyo. Like I said, I think it goes by other names, and probably some consider it a beach since it does have artificial sand. To give it even more of a beachy feel, there is a "Hawaiian Restaurant and a huge shop where you can rent paddleboards and kayaks. As we walked along the "beach" portion my friend and I looked at each other and both commented that there's really no way we would ever go in that water (which didn't look as bad as the Ala Wai Canal but, well you get my point). I have since learned that swimming is not allowed (for obvious reasons such as pollution), but you are allowed to paddleboard and kayak there (hence the shop that rents paddleboards and kayaks). Personally, I don't think I would risk paddleboarding or kayaking in that water for fear of falling in.

There were other things on our agenda for the day so we headed back to the train station. I definitely plan to come back and check out the museums and other attractions (plus I bet the Rainbow Bridge at night is really pretty). So stay tuned for Odaiba Part 2 - probably relatively soon since it's approaching that time of year here where getting me to leave my house (and more importantly, the air conditioning in my house) during the day becomes nearly impossible.

Want Some Tea & Creme Brule With Your Lotion? Try L'Occitane Cafe In Shibuya

2012-04-19T19:56:00.000+09:00

As I mentioned in the prevoius blog about ramen, I was in Shibuya a few weeks ago with some friends who were visiting. My friend Ryan had printed out some travel information, including a list of things that one should check out while in Shibuya. One of the things on the list was the L'Occitane Cafe. Perhaps you're thinking that L'Occitane is a store that sells body/skin care products and that you've never heard of L'Occitane having a restaurant or serving food? Well, that's because the L'Occitane Cafe in Shibuya is their only cafe worldwide. According to the travel guide's description, it's known for its convenient, spacious and relaxing atmosphere and for its "safe" dishes which are made with organic ingredients. After walking around Shibuya, we had worked back up an appetite (well to be honest, even if I'm full, I can usually always make room for dessert) so we decided to see what all the hype was about.

L'Occitane Cafe occupies the 2nd and 3rd floors directly above the L'Occitane Store which is located at the famed Shibuya Crossing (across from the equally famous Starbucks). It was definitely a little weird walking through a shop with skincare/beauty products in order to get to a cafe, but whatever, I went with it. In order to access the stairs to the Cafe, you have to walk through the shop - but now that I'm thinking about it, perhaps that was intentional to get you to stop and look at their products, in which case it's brilliant (and in fact, as we were leaving, someone in our group ended up buying stuff from the shop).

I will say, the atmosphere really was relaxing and quite spacious (well, for as far as Tokyo establishments go anyway), and it had a great view of the crossing. We had no trouble getting a table (and actually, the entire 3rd floor was empty) but this probably had something to do with the fact that it was during the week and not at a peak eating time. I was under the impression that they only served desserts, but they also serve breakfast (mostly sandwich type things) and lunch. People at tables around us had ordered real food and everything I saw looked really good. But we were there for dessert so I didn't bother to look at the food menu too carefully. Now, the drink/dessert menu was a different story....

The special of the month was creme brule with fruits and ice cream (strawberry) and from the picture it looked delicious, so I knew that's what I was having. Since I was already having an actual dessert, I decided to go with tea as my drink rather than one of the dessert drinks. No matter though, Ryan ordered the cocounut drink so I got to taste it. I wouldn't go out of my way to order something coconut, but I have to say, that drink/dessert was really good. It had coconut ice cream, ice and milk tea, and the combination was delicious (it got better as the ice melted into smaller chunks). The creme brule was perfect and exactly how I like it; the presentation was impeccable and looked exactly as it did in the picture, which is something I have become accustomed to here in Japan (I'll probably be in for a rude awakening when we move). I certainly wasn't blown away by this Cafe, but if you're in the area it's a cool spot to chill, grab some dessert and watch all the craziness down below at the crossing.

Adventures in Ramen: Ichiran Ramen in Shibuya

2012-04-13T11:53:00.000+09:00

Ramen eating is serious business here in Japan. It is one of Japan's most well known and popular foods - perhaps even more so than sushi. I love them both, so living in Japan is a dream for me. Before I moved here, one of my besties and I would eat dinner at Goma Tei in Honolulu every chance we got. I realize now that I was fairly ignorant about ramen and the fact that there are so many different types and different aspects to it. I'm still no expert, but I feel like I know a little more than I did before. For example, the different regions in Japan have their own unique ramen style based on the type of soup/broth used (e.g., miso, shoyu, shio). There's even a whole museum dedicated to ramen in Yokohama, but that's a post for another day (if you're interested, here's the website: Shin-Yokohama Ramen Museum. There are a few things about ramen consumption in Japan that are common to most places: (1) you order by machine: (2) ramen restaurants are generally not meant for socializing; (3) it is perfectly acceptable to slurp your ramen (sometimes it seems like the louder the better).

I met some friends visiting in Tokyo earlier in the week and the first thing on their list of things they wanted to do was check out Shibuya. None of us had eaten as of yet so that was our priority upon getting to Shibuya. Someone found Ichiran Ramen on Tripadvisor and since it had good ratings, we headed there. However, we almost had a totally different experience because initially we walked into the wrong place (both places had "ichi" in the name) but after looking at the menu above the vending machine, we were pretty sure we were in the wrong spot - this place was very fast foody looking and served what appeared to be more donburi type dishes. So, after all 5 of us turned around and walked out, I saw another sign with "ichi" in the name and promptly led us down the stairs (I should've known it was downstairs - underground restaurants usually end up being the best ones).

As I mentioned, ordering at ramen establishments takes place by way of a vending machine. Basically you select and pay for all the things you want - i.e., your ramen, extra condiments for your ramen, gyoza perhaps, a drink if they offer them. Some places will have their menu items listed in Japanese AND English AND/OR will at least have a picture of the item (if not, then you pretty much just guess and hope for the best). Once you put the correct amount of Yen in the machine, it spits out a ticket which you present when you sit down. When I first looked at the choices on the machine, I was a little skeptical because there was only one option for ramen (usually, there are at least 2-3 different options), so I wasn't really sure what I was going to get. As I waited for the rest of the group to finish ordering, I took a peek around the corner to look at the seating area. What I saw was a row of cubicle looking seating - I had heard about ramen establishments like this where you don't talk to anyone and it's really all about just eating your ramen. This was clearly a serious ramen joint, so I was excited.

Everything you would need to enjoy this meal is right there in your cubicle area - water dispenser, a pen to complete the customization form and a buzzer to let them know you need something or when you are finished. As soon as I sat down, I was instructed by the guy on the other side of the counter to complete the form so they could prepare my ramen according to how I wanted it. The form was pretty intense (thankfully it was in English); it was almost like taking a test except there were really no wrong answers. Ichiran allows you to customize your ramen based on the following (1) flavor strength; (2) richness (fat content); (3) amount of garlic; (4) amount of green onions; (5) whether I wanted roast pork in it; (6) how spicy I wanted it; and (7) how hard/soft I wanted the noodles. Also, I had the option of whether I wanted to add egg, mushrooms and a variety of other condiments. After I completed the form, the bamboo shade was dropped to ensure maximum privacy - like I said, this was a serious ramen joint.

As per usual, it only took 10 minutes before my steaming bowl of ramen was put in front of my face. Although we were talking to each other up to this point (and not really abiding by the "don't talk" policy), once our food came, you could hear crickets. So how was it? I thought it was really yummy and I loved the fact that you could customize the ramen to your specifically tastes (and now I know why there was only one option on the vending machine), BUT I prefer my ramen to have a bigger/thicker piece of pork in it. Everyone has their own preferences when it comes to ramen and in fact some people that I know (I'm not going to name names ) are very adamant about which restaurant/establishment has the best ramen. Anyway, back to what I was saying, people have their own preferences based generally on one or more of these : (1) broth; (2) noodles; and (3) meat. Some people may not think the meat is an important part, but I am not one of them. While Ichiran was definitely a winner, unless I happen to be in Tokyo, I'll stick with my hubby's fave down here in Kamakura (we don't know the name because we can't read the kanji).

Hanami 2012

2012-04-10T20:42:00.001+09:00

In case you didn't know, it's sakura (cherry blossom) season in Japan - i.e., that amazing time of year when the country is covered in a sea of pink/white and hanami parties are all the rage. During this time of year, cherry blossom flavored/themed products are all over the place - lotions, perfume, sake, wine, desserts, tea, etc. The literal meaning of hanami is "flower viewing," and over time it has come to refer specifically to the Japanese tradition of enjoying the beauty of cherry blossoms. These days, it also means getting together with your friends in a park or other scenic place (with sakura trees) to eat, drink and be merry. I wrote a guest blog post on sakura season on the blog Fun, Food & Travel and it can be found here: Springtime In Japan Is A Fabulous Time To Visit . How good sakura season is and whether you can actually partake in sakura/hanami festivities is all about timing and weather. From the time the flowers reach full bloom, they only last about a week. If there's bad weather near the blossoming time, that can also affect the timing and length the sakura are around - for example, last Tuesday we had a typhoon, which could easily have ruined sakura season this year (but it didn't).

Last Friday I happened to be in Yoyogi Park in Tokyo with my friend. Yoyogi Park, which is one of the largest parks in Tokyo, has approximately 600 sakura trees throughout. It was still early in the day (not quite noon) but it was great because I got to observe a private hanami party firsthand (and not the crazy loud partying type with tons of people) - I saw a small group of people look for a spot, pick their spot and then set up their blue tarp (during sakura season, the blue tarp is a necessity). They were dressed in work attire so I'm assuming they were using their lunch break to have a hanami party...it was very endearing! While there are certainly other more scenic spots and spots that have more trees, Yoyogi Park is nonetheless an extremely popular place to have a hanami party. Apparently several thousand people were at Yoyogi Park over the weekend (people were even bussed in).

My other friends and I had also made plans to have an informal hanami party this past Sunday. We didn't feel like going all the way to Tokyo, so we stayed in the Yokohama area. We got lucky because it was a beautiful day to have a hanami party - even though it was still in the mid 50s, the sun was shining so it made it feel warmer. We got off the train and walked through a popular sakura path along a river to get to the subway station in order to catch the train we needed to get to our final destiination. There were people everywhere and food vendors lining the path...it was almost like a carnival or a fair without any rides (although there were stands which had games for kids). At first we walked along without buying any food, but as we went along, we just couldn't resist. It started with someone buying candied strawberries, which then led to the cream filled pancakes, which led to grilled chicken skin, then it was yakisoba, then it was takoyaki (well, you get the point). By the time we reached the end of the path, we were well stocked with food.

After a short subway ride, we reached our intended park/destination. Again, there were people and blue tarps everywhere (seriously, I think the whole country comes out for sakura season). I think we were all really hungry because we picked the first open spot we saw, which was on somewhat of a steep incline - but no matter, we ate our lunch and loved it. After we were done, a chu-hi run was in order, as there was a convenience store right across the street (that's kind of a silly statement since 9 tines out of 10 there will be a convenience store right across the street). With chu-his in hand, we took a stroll around the park - there were children playing on the jungle gyms, people flying kites, playing baseball, jumping rope, and generally having a good time. There was so much energy and laugher everywhere that you really couldn't help but have fun. We came relatively unprepared, but thanks to our friend Mio who had just met up with us, we were able to set up camp with our own blue tarp. Mio brought more food and I brought some sweets, so we sat down for Round 2. When it started getting chilly, we packed up and headed for the Taproom, one of our favorite hangouts. Even though we were all still stuffed from Rounds 1 and 2, the Taproom has awesome beer, barbeque and the best pecan pie....needless to say, we sat down for Round 3.

Adventures In Furniture: My Trip To IKEA Kohoku

2012-04-05T10:46:00.000+09:00

The current state of the guest room

One thing that has been bugging me since we moved into our house is the fact that our guest bedroom remains unfurnished. Every time I walk past it (which is several times a day since it's across from my bedroom) and see the emptiness and empty boxes littering it, I wince. Sure, I could just close the door, but I prefer not to do that.The guest bedroom had fallen in terms of priority, but with summer approaching I wanted to clean it up and and make it less of an eyesore. So, after many months, I finally decided I was really going to furnish our guest bedroom with the hope that one day soon we'll actually have some guests to use the new furniture (hint hint to my family and friends).

I had been periodically checking the NEX furniture store to see if they had anything I liked (and within my budget), but most of their stuff is so big and bulky (or chunky as I like to say). I knew there was an IKEA in Yokohama and one of my friends that lives down the street just furnished her home with stuff from there so I decided to check it out. Having lived in Seattle and California, I had shopped at IKEA many times so I knew the drill. In anticipation of the IKEA shopping experience, I went online and went through the catalog and basically picked out the pieces I wanted to get pending my in person viewing.

That morning I did a few things which I do every morning before I get out of bed - check the weather and the Yen rate. The weather report said it was going to rain much later in the day and the currency exchange site said the Yen rate was down (or up, depending on how you look at it - all I know is that it was going to cost me more $$ today than the day before). As soon as I sat down on the train, I pulled out my iphone to check my email and was greeted by an email from Rich forwarding an email from the Base Command notifying us that destructive winds were expected within 12 hours (i.e., a typhoon). I figured I still had 12 hours, so I continued on to IKEA. I got off at the Shin-Yokohama station and made my way to the IKEA bus stop (it wasn't hard since there are signs in conspicuous locations throughout the station directing you) - that's right, IKEA has its own bus that takes customers to/from the train station.

I had barely even gotten into the store when I got another forwarded email from Rich stating that the winds were now expected within 2 hours. Ugh! But I had come all this way and I was determined to get my furniture. So I continued on with the intention of just getting what I came for, but if you've ever been through IKEA, you know they make it hard for you to do that by practically forcing you to walk through the showroom. Of course I'm a sucker and I get sucked in and rather than head straight for what I need, I went through the whole damn store looking at everything (although at the end of the day, I am proud to say I left with exacty what was on my list).

At first I was nervous about how I was going to get all of my items onto the cart by myself and then try and set up delivery. Thankfully I found a very friendly staffperson, and with her help and my passable Japanese skills, I was able to get an itemized list of my pieces (with specific aisle and shelf information) and schedule home delivery. After that, I raced downstairs to pick everything up (except for the bedframe and mattress, which luckily I didn't have to get myself). Initially I had wanted to grab lunch in the restaurant/cafe and shop around their food store but with the typhoon fast approaching, I decided to get the hell out of Dodge and hightail it home. By the time I got on the IKEA bus back to the train station, it had already started raining and the trains were packed with people trying to get home. Even though the train ride home was miserable because we were packed in like sardines, I was happy because I had accomplished my mission (and within the budget my husband gave me). I also made it home before the crazy winds started (and which kept me up all night irrationally afraid that the windows that didn't have typhoon shutters on them were going to shatter in a million pieces on me while I slept). Now my impatient self just has to wait until next week before my stuff is delivered. To be continued....

50 Reasons Tokyo Is The World's Greatest City

2012-04-04T11:10:00.000+09:00

Ok let me start by saying that the title of this blog post is not something I came up with myself (and it does not even necessarily reflect my own sentiments); it's the title of a CNNGo article I recently came across online. I found it amusing and I also agreed with a lot of what they said (as much of it applies not only to Tokyo but to much of Japan in general), so I thought I would share it. The article can be found here in case you want to read the whole thing: 50 reasons why Tokyo is the world's greatest city , but here are a few of the "reasons" I liked the best (or which stood out to me the most).

The world's most sophisticated railways (#1) - I have to say, the train system in Japan is impressive. There are above ground trains, subways, bullet trains...you name it, they have it. What's more, some of the major stations have all three, so all you have to do is catch an elevator up or down (sometimes way way up or down) if your final destination requires a connection on one of the other rail systems. The sheer number of "lines" and stations (and people all racing to make their train) can be daunting to a traveler that is not used to the system, but think about it this way - if 6 year old children can navigate the railways by themselves (it's quite a common occurrence here to see children riding alone), so can you!

Highway rest stops are destinations (#20) - I laughed when I saw that this was one of the items on the list, because this is one of the things Rich and I commented on the first time we experienced a Japanese rest stop. I have not been to Umi-hotaru, the rest stop mentioned in the article, but I have been to other rest stops in Japan, and all of them have been way more elaborate than any rest stop I had ever been to before. The first time Rich and I went on a "road trip" here was the end of last summer when we went to an IndyCar race at Motegi Racetrack. Since Motegi is about a 5 hour drive north from Yokosuka, the MWR bus had to leave base at 5 a.m. (which I thought was ridiculous at the time) in order to make it to the track on time. After the first 5 minutes on the bus, I promptly fell asleep and was awakened 2.5 hours later when we arrived at the rest stop. My first thought was: woah, this is a rest stop? There was a Starbucks, about 50 vending machines and a restaurant - and everything was really nice (even the bathrooms were ridiculously clean for being a rest stop).

The next rest stop I encountered was even bigger and nicer - it had even more vending machines, a full blown food court with fast food type stands as well as actual restaurants, a convenience store and specialty stores (in case you forgot to get omiyage from wherever you were coming from). The thing is that every rest stop I've been to has always been packed with buses, cars and people. I'm guessing that because people have to drive such far distances to get around, that's the reason Japan has such elaborate rest stops. Whatever the reason, I think they're great and it makes stopping so much more pleasant.

Bat's what's up (#23) - Omg, before I moved here, I had no idea there were so many bats around, but I soon found out! Shortly after our furniture and other stuff we had shipped to Japan was delivered to our house (before I arrived in Japan), our friend Bryan helped Rich move some of our furniture into various parts of our house. One night after I got to Japan, Rich said that Bryan asked if I had met our new pet. I was confused because we didn't have any pets per se. He started laughing and said, yeah he wanted to know if you met our pet BAT. Apparently at around dusk, Bryan was oustide of our house and saw something flying around near the top of the lamp post next to our front deck (fyi, the top of the lamp post is right outside my bedroom window) - at first he thought it was a bird, but then he realized it was a bat. A few nights later, when we were heading to catch the train, I DID in fact see the bat, which apparently likes our lamp post. Later, when we were at the train station waiting for the train, I saw tons of bats flying around in the sky - it kinda grossed me out, but at it made me feel better knowing that my house probably isn't the only one with a pet bat. :) I haven't seen the bat since it's been winter, but now that summer is fast approaching, I'm guessing the bat will make its appearance soon.

Cocktails are maniacally fresh (#46) - See my post about the Pine Sour where I described how they juiced an actual pineapple at our table and then poured it over the Chu Hi (Pine Sour Anyone?)...enough said.

Ichiro And The Seattle Mariners Come To Tokyo

2012-03-31T07:56:00.000+09:00

Baseball is huge in Japan...I mean HUGE. Sometimes when I'm watching Japanese cable, baseball games are on like 5 channels (and there aren't even that many baseball teams here). I definitely wouldn't call myself a baseball fan (unlike my hubby who has the Boston B tattooed on his leg), but I've been known to go to a game or two when I lived in Seattle and The Bay Area because in my opinion, baseball is a sport better watched live. So when Rich asked if I wanted to go to the Mariners/A's game (which also happened to be MLB Opening Day for the 2012 season) at the Tokyo Dome with some friends, I said I was in!

We left Yokosuka around 4:00 in the afternoon and really lucked out with all of our train rides by getting seats (seriously, getting a seat on a train between here and Tokyo is a really big thing for me since it can really change the whole mood of the trip for me). We arrived in the Tokyo Dome vicinity about an hour and a half before the game and instead of going right in, we decided to grub at Bubba Gump's. The food was good and my shrimpin dippin broth hit the spot, but eating at U.S. chains here can be very pricey. So, a lot of shrimp and A LOT less money later, we headed for the Tokyo Dome.

I had been to the Tokyo Dome before (for the Orchid Festival), so I knew that it was nice a place. Personally, I am a fan of any indoor arena, particularly in the winter or summer. I am not so sure whether I will be accompanying Rich to baseball games in Yokohama, especially during the summer (the stadium is outdoors and I've heard the seats are really small). Tokyo Dome was Japan's first indoor stadium and is home to the Yomiuri Giants baseball team. It is part of Tokyo Dome City which I discussed in a bit more detail in a previous blog post, Orchids, Orchids and More Orchids.

We got to our seats right before the game started, so we missed the opening/pre-game ceremony which was somewhat special because it featured the U.S. Army band and a video tribute to three heroes of the March 11 tragedy. This was also a special game for the Japanese because their own Ichiro Suzuki of the Seattle Mariners was coming home (I'll come back to this issue in a bit). Once we were seated, I was able to take everything in. Thanks to our friend Andy who got the tickets for us, our seats were amazing - I think that was the closest I've ever been at any sporting event (I even saw myself on the big screen). Getting tickets to big sporting events like this in Japan can be a somewhat painful experience for foreigners, but luckily we have friends that speak/read Japanese. For this game, Andy had to go to the convenience store and enter some sort of a lottery to get tickets (max was 4 tickets).

As the game began, the beer girls entered the arena from various locations. You can always see them from wherever you are in the arena, because most of them wear fluorescent colored uniforms. As one girl passed me (I was sitting on the aisle), I asked Rich if he thought I could be a beer girl - his response to me was "I'm not really sure, that keg looks really heavy; didn't you see her sweating?" Anyway, all in all it was a great time (very different from sporting events in the U.S.) - everything was just so much orderly than I was used to and the fans are so respectful. I think that if Ichiro weren't there, there would've been a lot less cheering (at some points you would think you were at the symphony rather than a baseball game cause it was so quiet). I also couldn't believe it when I didn't have to wait in line to go to the bathroom OR to get something from the concession stand.

The game itself was overall not that exciting (although apparently it got good after we left), but each and every time Ichiro was at bat, a billion flashes went off and as the night went on (and the beer girls came around more), the cheering got louder. I know that there has been some criticism about having Opening Day in Tokyo (for a variety of reasons) but I thought it was awesome. I could be saying that just because I live in Japan now, but I also thought it was really great for the Japanese people to be able to see Ichiro play at home (he's seriously like a god here). I don't know if this is how all games are in Japan, but no one left early. It was tied at the bottom of the 9th and we still had a long train ride home, so Rich and I took off and it was a good decision on our part because getting home was a breeze. Getting home at midnight and having to wake up early the next morning for work, not so much fun - for Rich that is (not me since I'm still playing the part of housewife), but in the end it was worth it. :)

March Madne$$ in Las Vegas - Part 2

2012-03-26T15:14:00.000+09:00

Instead of giving a recap the rest of our March Madness 2012 trip, for this post I decided to list a few of the things that, in my opinion, are worth checking out when in Vegas (these are in no particular order). However, I just realized that we did most of what's on this list on our March Madne$$ 2012 trip, so in a way it actually IS a recap of our trip!

1. The Fountains at Bellagio: In my opinion, the water show at the Fountains of Bellagio is a must see at least once. Seeing it at the end of the movie Oceans Eleven is not the same as seeing it up close and personal. Watching it during the day is nice, but I would hold out for a night show because the lights really make a difference. I remember one trip a bunch of us were staying at NYNY. One night we were headed to Pure at Caesar's Palace and one of my friends (a guy) insisted that we walk instead of cab it. It was fine for the first 5 minutes until the girls realized we were wearing heels and then the whining started and it was all downhill after that. By chance, just as we reached the Bellagio Fountains, the music and the water show started, causing us to stop and enjoy the show. At the risk of sounding corny, it was totally magical and improved our moods immensely (and for a few seconds, we forgot about the pain our feet were in).

2. The Cosmopolitan Hotel: Just when you think Vegas can't get any more "over the top" they do something to make you reconsider that thought. In this case, that "something" happens to be The Cosmopolitan Hotel, which opened in December 2010. Everything about this hotel is over the top, but I love it. Seriously, how can you not love the outrageously extravagant chandelier in the center of the hotel (one of these days I'll get around to having a ridiculously expensive cocktail at one of those bars the chandelier surrounds). Seriously though, even just walking through here, you feel like you should be wearing a suit and/or fancy dress. When we were here last July (sort of as a joint bachelor/ette party), our friends took us to dinner at STK at The Cosmo. It's definitely pricey (but what steakhouse isn't), but worth it - if you decide to try it, I highly recommend the skirt steak.

3. The Banana Cream Pie at Emeril's at the MGM: I'm going to start out by saying that the gumbo and the chowder at Emeril's, which Rich and I usually have as our first course, are very good. However, the real reason that we keep going back to Emeril's is for the banana cream pie. No matter how stuffed we are, we always have room for dessert at Emeril's - although how full we are dictates whether we share a piece or order our own. What sets this version apart from other banana cream pies is that there's more banana and less cream (and the cream in this pie is thicker, which I like). Trust me, it's a winner!

4. The Michael Jackson Impersonator at New York New York: When we were in Vegas in November last year, NYNY was promoting Michael Jackson the Immortal show, a Cirque du Soleil show that highlights the music, dance and message of Michael Jackson. In order to promote the show, they had the Michael Jackson impersonator come out every few hours and perform a compilation of MJ hits. In addition to the music, you could always tell when he was performing because all you can hear is screaming. This past trip we found him still performing -if you're in the area, definitely check him out!

5. Minus 5 Ice Bar at the Monte Carlo Hotel: On our bachelor/ette trip, my friends took me to Minus 5 Ice Bar. Everything in Minus 5 is made of ice, including the glass your drink is served in. There are different packages, but we got the $50 which got us a deluxe parka, furry boots and one drink. After drinking from the ice glass, I swore I would never drink from a regular glass again (that didn't last long). Despite the parka, it's still really cold so we only lasted about half an hour in there (I'm not sure how people stay in ice hotels). If you're looking for something different but still fun, this is for you.

6. Bobby Flay's Mesa Grill at Caesar's Palace: Rich and I are avid Food Network viewers and we especially like Bobby Flay, so naturally we've added Mesa Grill to our list of Vegas dining spots. In fact, it's become a tradition for us to have our last dinner here. This is a Bobby Flay restaurant, so if you don't like spice, it might not be for you. Tip 1: make a reservation. Tip 2: the bread basket is pheonomenal, but try not to fill up on it or you'll ruin your appetite. Tip 3: Pork tenderloin - do it! On this last trip, there were 7 of us and 5 out of the 7 diners ordered the pork tenderloin (because no one wanted to share theirs).

March Madne$$ in Las Vegas - Part 1

2012-03-24T16:49:00.000+09:00

Since I'm from Hawaii, it's only fitting that I do my part and perpetuate the sterotype that everyone from Hawaii loves Las Vegas. The first time I went to Vegas I was about 6 years old, although I don't remember much except for being locked in the hotel room with my cousins because there was a bad lightning storm; oh, and also because we were kids (this trip was way before Vegas launched their "family" marketing campaign). I started going to Vegas more frequently when I lived in the Bay Area, as it was so easy and relatively inexpensive to hop on a quick flight there for the weekend.

Over the years, there has definitely been a shift in the agenda/itinerary of my trips - in the past, it used to be more about clubbing and the pool; nowadays I'm all about eating good food, getting pampered at the spa and shopping. Las Vegas will always hold a special place in my heart though, because so many good memories have been made here for me (including the lesser known fact that Rich and I got married here months before our big Hawaii wedding). Anyway, Rich and I just got back from our 2nd annual March Madness trip to Las Vegas with some of our friends from Hawaii, and as usual, we had a blast.

The first week/end of March Madness is a special time of year in Las Vegas - there's the start of the tournament, St. Patty's Day usually falls somewhere during this time, and for some colleges, it's spring break. Needless to say, this particular week/end attracts a wide variety of people. This year we arrived on Wedensday afternoon which we've decided is ideal because it gives us time to check in, pick up the basketball sheet from the Sports book and relax a little. We always stay at the MGM Grand, which is currently undergoing renovations, and were interested to see what their highly publicized "new rooms" looked like. From the moment we stepped off the elevators, the transformation was clear. The decor in the common areas and the rooms was a lot more modern and sophisticated. Personally, I really liked the color choices and I especially like the remote control blinds (and blackout shade, which is essential to getting any sleep in Vegas).

Rich and I are totally creatures of habit and generally follow the same schedule while we're in Vegas (even down to what we order at restaurants). Breakfast (or lunch, depending on what time we roll out of our room) is usually at Studio Cafe and is generally by ourselves because everyone wakes up at different times based on what time they end up going to sleep (if at all). I always have orange juice, yogurt/granola with fresh berries and a bagel - I like to get in at least one healthy meal a day. For our first dinner, we chose The Grand Wok at MGM, which serves Chinese food and sushi. The calamari is definitely a must, as is the sweet and sour chicken, mongolian beef and honey walnut shrimp. Despite the fact that I live in the sushi capital of the world, I also wanted some sushi, so I ordered the Red Dragon Roll which has spicy tuna, shrimp tempura, cucumber and unagi sauce - yum! I also recommend getting a pot of jasmine tea to go with the meal.

The next day we were up early to hit the Sports Book and wait for our other friends to arrive. After taking care of business and getting our friends checked in, we hit Fat Tuesdays for a few yard dogs (I refrained because it was only 11 in the morning, still a little too early for me). Some other stuff happened during the day that I can't remember, but after a late dinner at Wolfgang Pucks, we met up with our friends at Tabu Ultra Lounge (don't ask me what an ultra lounge is, cause I don't know) where we had a table with bottle service waiting for us. I had only been to Tabu once before, but since Studio 54 was closed for renovations, it was a lot more crowded than usual, which made me happy I had thought ahead and called to reserve a table. Oh who am I kidding, these days I won't go to a club or "ultra lounge" without getting bottle service - seriously, why wait in line, pay a cover and then wait in line again for drinks? After a fabulous time at Tabu, it was time to call it a night (or in this case early morning) and see what the next day had in store for us!

Out And About In Roppongi

2012-03-14T10:18:00.000+09:00

Every big city has an area (or areas) that's known for it's nightlife - in Honolulu it's Waikiki, in San Francisco it's North Beach (or SoMA or the Marina or...), and in Tokyo, it's Roppongi. Everyone that lives in or near Tokyo has heard of Roppongi and it's repuation for being a somewhat risque area. Roppongi is interesting because it is home to several foreign embassies, the swanky Roppongi Hills "city" and a ton of nightclubs and bars. With respect to the nightlife aspect, Wikipedia describes it this way: "'[t]he area features numerous bars, night clubs, strip clubs, restaurants, hostess clubs, cabarets, and other forms of entertainment. Among the expatriate community, the area tends to be favored by business people, students, and off-duty US military personnel" (so basically what you're saying Wikipedia, is that you'll always find a lot of foreigners in this area).

This Wikipedia image is from the user Chris 73 and is freely available
at //commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Roppongi_Area_from_Tokyo_Tower.jpg
under the creative commons cc-by-sa 3.0 license.

After living in Japan for seven months, I can FINALLY say I've been to Roppongi...well, sort of. Since I live about a 70 minute train ride away from Tokyo, anytime I go out at night I have to be mindful of the train schedule and make sure I don't miss the last train(s) back to Yokosuka, including the transfers I have to make. The alternatives to this are to either get a hotel room OR stay out all night and catch the first train in the morning, which is at around 5:00 a.m. (apparently this second option is a really common thing to do). I've heard that people who who miss the last train will hang out at an all night internet cafe until the first train (and by hang out I mean pay for internet time and take a nap at the computer). Well on this outing, I didn't have a hotel room and since I actually had to be awake at a decent hour the next day, I already knew it was going to be an early night for me.

Two of my friends that grew up in Tokyo were in town for the weekend for a bachelorette/birthday party, and the plan was for me to meet up with them at Zara in Roppongi Hills. Since I was going without Rich, I was a little nervous about the whole train situation but I managed to make it to Roppongi with plenty of time to spare. Everytime I visit a new area in Tokyo, I always feel like a kid in a candy shop. My arrival in Roppongi was particularly memorable - after taking what seemed like five different escalators up, I finally emerged from the underground subway to bright lights, tall buildings and tons of people out and about (heading to who knows where). I didn't really know where I was or what direction I was supposed to head in, so as discreetly as possible, I pulled out my iphone, clicked on the map and walked a little bit to see where I was on the map (I have no idea how people got around before iphones and gps). I ended up getting to Roppongi Hills early because I had given myself lots of time just in case I missed a connecting train (which luckily I didn't), so I decided to walk around Roppongi Hills to kill some time. It is literally a city within a city, and it has it all- offices, theater, apartments, restaurants, a shopping center, an art museum, the Grand Hyatt Tokyo. As I made my way back to Zara, I made a mental note that I must come back soon and fully explore it.

From Zara we headed to our dinner destination, which was a lounge/restaurant/bar called Console. It was a quaint little spot with a loungey vibe. There was one actual table that I saw in the place, but otherwise it was all couches and comfy chairs. They seated us in a room off to the side that could be closed off from the rest of the space if need be but which still allowed you to see what was going on in the other areas. It worked out well because there was no one else in the entire place while we were there and the area that we had was conducive to an intimate gathering (in this case, old friends catching up). Our reservation included a set menu and all you can drink for 2 hours (for 5000 Yen). The food was good (or I could've just been really hungry); we had a cru de te followed by a salad, french fries, and then pasta. Dessert was a birthday cake, and rather than cut it up and serve on plates, we ended up just digging into the whole cake with our forks and passing it around to each other (not very classy, but it definitely made it more fun). Overall I think everyone liked the place except for the fact that they didn't have ketchup, tobasco or crown royal (which is what the bachelorette/birthday girl wanted to drink).

As it got later and later, I kept my eye on the time and eventually I said goodnight to the girls (who were off to do the real celebrating), giving me lots of time to find my way back to the train station. The train was totally packed from Tokyo all the way to Yokosuka (anyone who knows Japanese trains at rush hour knows that packed really means packed), but luckily I had gotten on at the very first stop and was able to get a seat. Funny that in addition to before work and after work during the week, midnight on the weekends is also considered rush hour on the Tokyo trains! All in all it was a great time - I successfully made it to/from Tokyo at night by myself, I got to see a new part of Tokyo, I got to try a new restaurant, AND I got to see old friends and meet new ones.

Eating Out In Japan: Plastic Food

2012-03-08T19:33:00.000+09:00

I love going out to eat. Rich and I usually eat at home during the week but when the weekend comes, I'm all about going out to eat. When I found out we were definitely moving to Japan, I was really excited by the thought of all the new restaurants I would be able to try and all the yummy food I was going to enjoy (so far, I have not been disappointed). At first I was nervous about eating in local restaurants: how would I know how/when to order, would I be able to communicate, how would I know what to order. Thinking about the first time Rich and I ate at a local restaurant makes me laugh because we were so serious about it. After we were seated, and not wanting to look like idiots, we spent at least 10 minutes in silence, carefully observing what everyone else was doing and how they were ordering. This is how we first learned about the buzzer system I referenced in the post "Things About Living In Japan That Make Me Happy". Thankfully everything went smoothly and we're now old pros at eating out (well, for the most part anyway). :)

Many restaurants that get a lot of foreigners tend to have English menus (or at least parts will be in English). But if not, don't worry, all you have to do is look for the plastic food display case to determine what type of food the restaurant serves and what to order. When I really started exploring and searching for new restaurants to try, one of the first things I noticed was the display cases with plastic/model food that a large majority of restaurants seemed to have (keep in mind that I'm referring to the more casual restaurants; I don't think you'll find a plastic food display at Gordon Ramsay's at the Conrad Hilton in Tokyo).

Besides having a tendency to make a person hungry, these plastic food displays can also be incredibly helpful. For example, if you happen to be in a shopping complex or at a food court (where there are several restaurants in a row) and you don't know what you want to eat, taking a quick glance at the plastic food displays each restaurant has definitely helps those that are more visually inclined decide what/where they want to eat. Also, if the menu is not in English, the handy dandy plastic food display can help you decide what you should order. In theory, it also helps speed up the ordering process once inside the restaurant, because presumably the customer has looked at the display and has already made a decision as to what he/she wants to eat (unless of course you're my husband who changes his mind at least 5 times before we actually order).

Since I'm a curious person, I did some research into the origin and evolution of Japanese plastic food The first Japanese fake food models were made in 1917 and were first used by restaurants starting in approximately 1926. The original models were made out of wax and were intended to be used as a marketing tool because Japanese like to see the end product. In fact, someone wrote a book which is devoted entirely to the subject of plastic food - in particular, it explores the psychological structure unique to the Japanese and which brought about the plastic food culture.

Apparently, over time, the plastic food business has become a billion dollar industry in Japan and the making of the plastic food has actually become an art form (there are even regular competitions that are held). Each restaurant's items are custom made for that particular restaurant with an emphasis on making the model look as authentic as possible. I learned that the fake ingredients are often chopped up in a manner similar to how the real dishes are prepared in order to make the model more authetic. I'm here to tell you that the models really DO look like the dish you are served. There's one particular display that I pass a lot and I often wondered if the real salad actually looked like the display because the display just looked so perfect (see the chef salad on the left side of the pictue). One day I was in the mood for a salad so I decided to order the display salad. Lo and behold, the salad I was served looked EXACTLY like the display - all the ingredients were perfectly lined up in exactly the order shown in the display. That taught me to never doubt a plastic food display again!

A Little More Insulation Please

2012-03-01T11:38:00.001+09:00

Last night as per usual, I woke up in the middle of the night to use the bathroom
(sorry if that's TMI), and as I was in the bathroom freezing (and silently cursing myself for forgetting to turn the toilet seat heater on before bed), I wondered: why are Japanese homes so poorly insulated? The question was timely, since the bathroom in Japanese homes is generally much colder than the rest of the house, and generally doesn't have any type of heating unit (although some people I know take their kerosene heater in there to warm it up before/during use). Our bathroom has an overhead body dryer which we use as a heater, but it really only heats the area directly under it. Anyway, as I returned to my warm bed and went back to sleep, I sort of forgot about my question but I was reminded of it today due to the fact that it's essentially 30 degrees and snowing outside and I am a virtual prisoner in my living room (the only place in the house where it's nice and warm).

It is fairly well known that home insulation in Japanese homes is poor (in older homes it is almost non-existent). Central air/heat is a foreign concept here, and you will rarely, if ever, find double-paned windows in homes. I can understand the lack of insulation in older homes, but the lack of insulation in newer homes is a mystery, and not just to me - it is the subject of many articles and blog posts, but there is no consensus as to why this is the case. For me, the lack of double-paned windows is especially problematic. In my bedroom, the headboard is in front of a large window, and at night, even with the heat on, the door closed and the curtains drawn, I can still feel the cold air blowing onto my face. From the brief internet research I've done to help me with this post, I've learned of several inexpensive and common ways to minimize the problem - i.e., bubble wrap, japanese tape around the metal frames, and clear insulation sheets, all of which I plan to try out next year. Winter 2012-2013, you're going down!

So, how are Japanese homes heated? Our home has an A/C/Heater wall unit in every room (except the hallways and bathrooms). These units use electricity (and a lot of it) and do an ok job of heating the room. Our landlord also provided us with gas heaters for every room (there is a special gas outlet in each room), which we prefer because they heat an area faster than the wall unit. Some people also use kerosene heaters which I've heard are the best in terms of heat and also price. We don't use kerosene heaters because it's kind of a pain to get the kerosene (and transport it home) and also we don't really have anywhere to store it. Although sometimes, for the reason I describe below, I'm tempted to start using our kerosene heater in the hallway. None of these heating methods is perfect and they all have their advantages/disadvantages so I guess it's basically just a personal choice.

The reason I say I'm being kept a virtual prisoner in my living room is because it's the warmest spot in the house at the moment. In order to cut down on our utility bills, we keep all the heaters in the house off except for the one in the living room/dining room/kitchen area (otherwise known in Japan as "LDK"). To keep that area warm, we also shut the sliding glass door. The effect of keeping the door closed + no heating in the hallways mean that once you step outside the LDK area, it's almost as if you're standing outside the house, that's how cold it is. When either of us has to do something outside the LDK area (like laundry or go upstairs or even use the bathroom), there's always a verbal "brrrr" that comes out of our mouth followed by the sound of running to quickly do whatever it was that needed to be done so we can get back to the warmth of the LDK. This occurs in spite of the fact that I'm usually always bundled up clothing wise (on an average day I'll be wearing one, maybe two long sleeve shirts, athletic pants, furry socks and my house slippers). Sounds silly, but it's the reality of Japanese living in the winter. And for a girl from Hawaii where it's almost always "80 degrees and partly sunny," these winters can be mighty brutal.

Orchids, Orchids and More Orchids

2012-02-29T11:35:00.000+09:00

A few weeks ago my friend messaged me and asked if I liked orchids and was interested in going to the orchid festival in Tokyo. I pondered the first question for a few moments - do I like orchids? I definitely enjoy flowers but I never really thought of myself as an orchid lover (or of any other flower for that matter), but I suppose that of all the flowers out there, orchids would probably be one of my favorites since it was by far the dominant flower at my wedding (see pictures to the right - hey, any chance I get to reminisce about that day, I'm taking it). In any case, I am always up for new things and I love going to Tokyo, so I said I would go. It was supposed to be a group of guys and girls on this outing, but the night before when we were all at dinner, the guys found out that Rich and his friends were going to UFC 144 at the Saitama Super Arena the next day and promptly informed us they were ditching the orchid festival for UFC (guess I can't really blame them). To our delight, it ended up being a girls' day out.

We arrived at Tokyo Dome City around 11:00 a.m. and since none of us had really eaten, we decided to eat before taking on the Orchid Festival. Tokyo Dome City has it all - Tokyo Dome (home of the Tokyo Giants), an amusement park, a hotel (Tokyo Dome Hotel), a skate arena, a bowling center, a shopping mall, restaurants and the LaQua natural hot spring complex. We walked around LaQua to check out our dining options - we considered eating at Bubba Gump, but once we saw The City Buffet and the sample selections in the plastic case, we were sold (it was also the best choice price-wise). The buffet had a salad bar, Chinese and Japanese dishes, pizza (Japanese style), and an ice cream bar. By the time we were done, we were stuffed and sleepy. Hmm...I think I see a pattern developing (buffet followed by some activity that involves a lot of walking), which is ironic considering that on Edo-Tokyo Museum day, we thought it was ridiculous to pig out at a buffet and then go sightseeing.

The official name of the festival is the Japan Grand Prix International Orchid Festival and it's an annual event which was started in 1991. This year the festival was held from February 18 - 26 at the Tokyo Dome. We really had no idea what to expect but once we entered the arena, we realized that this festival was a lot bigger than we had anticipated. I'm not sure if it was because it was the last day of the festival, but there were tons of people (mostly older Japanese women, I'm not gonna lie) and by the time we were ready to leave, it was a struggle just to make it to the exit.

The festival had a little bit of everything. There was an area to view the orchids which had been submitted for display/viewing, an area for the orchid competition (there were different divisions for the different species of orchid), there were massive orchid displays, orchid flower arrangements, orchid gardens and orchid-related crafts on display. In addition, there were food vendors, a wine garden, and booths where you could buy orchids and other orchid-related products (one of the popular booths seemed to be the Shiseido booth where you could buy orchid perfume). I had absolutely no idea there were so many different types of orchids or that they came in so many different colors, and I can honestly say that I now have a new appreciation for this flower (I was tempted to buy a plant but then I remembered that I've never been able to grow anything and decided against it). According to the Daily Yomiuri, this year's festival featured 100,000 plants from over 21 different countries. There was a special display where you could view a blue orchid from Borneo, but when we saw that the wait time to get in was at least 45 minutes, we agreed that it wasn't really necessary for us to see the blue Borneo orchid. After we saw everything there was to see, we headed back to Yokosuka and ended our fabulous girls' day with tea and scones at Afternoon Tea.

Here are some pictures from the festival:

Time To Take Out The Trash

2012-02-27T16:48:00.000+09:00

One of the most difficult things we had to adjust to when we moved to Japan was the sorting of our trash. I know what you're thinking - how hard can it really be? Well, move to Japan and you will find out firsthand. Rich moved into our house a few days before I arrived in Japan, so he was the one that got all the paperwork and explanation(s) from our rental agent on everything, including the garbage system. The thoughtful husband that he is, he also made a trip to Homes (our version of Home Depot + Target) and got Japanese trash cans and trash bags - although I later got an earful about how it took him forever to decide which trash cans and what size bags to buy. In his defense, shopping for garbage bags is overwhelming the first time because there are so many choices - i.e., what size and with or without handle (not really sure why anyone would get ones without handles though, they make it so much easier).

Anyway, I had barely walked through the door to our new home when Rich handed me a stack of papers explaining the trash system and said, "Enjoy!" You can't really tell from the pictures, but the colored pamphlet is 6 pages long and is quite user friendly since it's in color and has pictures. The other one, which is 5 pages long (front and back), is more comprehensive in listing items and identifying which category they belong to. I studied both of them very carefully and thought to myself, this is going to be interesting!

Taking the trash out in Japan is a 4 sometimes 5 day a week chore, as our city has established five general categories which our trash must be sorted into and put out on the appropriate day (only a few of which overlap days). Here is the schedule that we follow:

Burnables (food scraps, some paper products) - picked up on Mondays and Thursdays
Group resources (cardboard, clothes, magazines, toilet paper rolls) - picked up the 2nd and 4th Monday of every month
Plastics - picked up on Tuesdays
Nonburnables - picked upon the 2nd and 4th Wednesday of the month
Cans, bottles and PET bottles - picked up on Fridays

After living in The Bay Area, I am BIG on recycling and I get why Japan has this system. But having just moved from a state where they only started curbside recycling in 2007, sorting the trash into 5 bins takes getting used to. Also, since different trash gets picked up on different days and you place your trash either under a mesh net or in a steel cage, you can only put it out the morning of pickup. That's right, there's no putting your smelly trash in your own bin; you have to wait till the right day to put it out. You also can't throw away large items (you have to call the city to pick it up) and you can't throw batteries away, you have to take them to a store and put it in a collection box. As I type this, I realize that at least you don't see old couches, dirty mattresses or other junk furniture lying on the sidewalk like you do in some neighborhoods in the U.S. (I won't name names, but you know who you are).

You're probably wondering why you should care about sorting your trash properly. You don't have to, but if you don't, the trash collectors will leave your trash there with a preprinted Yellow Note identifying your trash violation. How do they know if you've gotten it right or not? Everyone is required to use clear (or opaque) trash bags which clearly show what's in the bag - talk about no privacy. Having heard of how strict the Japanese are about trash and living in constant fear of the shame of getting a Yellow Note, I probably checked the pamphlets any time I had to throw something away for the entire first month we lived here.

As the months passed with no incident, I think we got a little complacent with our trash sorting habits. Well, after living here for 7 months without any issues, we got our first Yellow Notice the other day. And apparently they knew the violators were not Japanese because as you can see, the Yellow Note is in English not in Japanese like the others we have seen. It seems we have been incorrectly putting non-PET water bottles in the plastics when they should be going in the cans, bottles and PET group. Luckily this wasn't such a hard violation to correct (I say this, but Rich is the one that had to go through the bag and re-sort it) but the crappy thing is that we had to keep it for another week. With the exception of this incident, I'm pleased to say that we've pretty much gotten the hang of the sorting and hey, I may even miss it when we leave here.

Afternoon Tea

2012-02-24T17:04:00.000+09:00

Afternoon tea is one of my favorite things to do. When I lived in The Bay Area and I was in charge of throwing a birthday party, a shower or a plain ole girls' get together, you could always count on me to host afternoon tea at The Ritz-Carlton San Francisco. There's something so relaxing about enjoying a cup of tea and scones with clotted cream (you can't forget the clotted cream) with your girlfriends. And of course you can't find a more elegant atmosphere than The Ritz. Ah but I digress...thoughts of San Francisco are thoughts for another day. Truly though, I really do love tea. I once went through a phase where I was obsesed with loose leaf tea. I'd get different types and flavors, I got metal cannisters to store the different flavors and I got every tea-related accessory I could find. These days I'm back to regular tea bags, and I even gave away tea sachets from my favorite tea maker Harney & Sons Fine Tea as favors at my wedding. Moral of the story = I really like tea.

Afternoon Tea at the shopping plaza where I frequent quite often has a tearoom/restaurant, a small bakery where you can get fresh pastries/desserts to go, and a shop across the way that sells a lot of cute tea, lunch/bento and kitchen-related merchandise. I constantly have to restrain myself from buying everything in sight at the shop. I would absolutely love to buy a lunch set from Afternoon Tea (food containers, thermos, chopsticks, musubi holder, ice pack - depicted in the picture to the left), but for one thing I don't have anywhere to take it and for another, the containers really don't hold much food at all (that's probably a good thing). Although, my new favorite website is a site "dedicated to the subject of simple bento lunches," both traditional and not so traditional. I've already found some recipes I want to try and I really think I need to get some cute bento containers to put my creations in.

Given that I like tea, it is a little strange that it's taken me 6 months to visit Afternoon Tea. Recently, my friend and I were arranging to meet up for coffee and although I suggested Starbucks for lack of something better, in the back of my head I knew there was somewhere I wanted to try but I couldn't think of it. To my delight, she responded "how about Afternoon Tea?" We met at Afternoon Tea and both got the Cream Tea Set which comes with a pot of tea and two scones (complete with fruit preserves and cream). I ordered chai tea which was perfect. I have since been back and tried their signature Afternoon Tea blend which I also really liked. Since it was lunchtime, people around us were ordering actual meals (pasta and salads) which, as is customary here, looked delicious and impeccable. On my next visit, I plan to try one of their meal sets and I'll report back.

Lunch Date in Yokohama

2012-02-21T21:08:00.000+09:00

Even though Monday was President's Day and a holiday, it wasn't really a holiday because Rich had to work for part of the day. But since it was a week day, we wanted to take advantage of the fact that it was not a Japanese holiday, which we figured might mean less crowds and congestion at places. I suggested we catch the train to Yokohama, which is always a great option because it's closer to us than Tokyo, but yet there's still a lot to do there. Yokohama is approximately 20 miles south of Tokyo and is the second largest city in Japan by population after Tokyo.

After a short 30 minute train ride (including one transfer), we arrived at Landmark Tower/Queen's Square Tower in the Minato Mirai area. The Landmark Tower, which is the largest building in Japan, houses offices, a hotel, tons of restaurants and a shopping mall. The hotel is on the 52 - 67th floors of the Landmark Tower, there is an observatory on the 69th floor and the Sky Lounge Sirius (whose amazing view I hope to enjoy for myself one day, hint hint) is on the 70th floor. At lunchtime during the week, the business people from the various offices come downstairs to the mall area to eat at one of the many restaurants. Seeing so many suits always reminds me of and makes me miss the hustle and bustle of San Francisco. Landmark Tower is awesome because it has Cold Stone, H&M, Gap, and Krispy Kreme, among others.....basically all the essentials.

We were starving so we headed straight for Hard Rock Cafe. Even though we definitely love to eat at local restaurants, there's something comforting about going to a place with a name you recognize. Plus, I'm not gonna lie, sometimes I just feel like a big ole burger. However, the thing about U.S. restaurants in Japan is that you never know how closely the Japanese location will resemble the U.S. one in terms of menu offerings and what the food actually tastes like. In my opinion, Hard Rock Yokohama remained true to its roots and did not disappoint.

I had the bbq bacon cheeseburger and Rich had the pulled pork sandwich, both of which were delicious. Rich is pretty picky about his bbq, so if he says it's good, it must be good (he asked me to make it clear that he's a North Carolina vinegar bbq sauce person). We were both stuffed so we didn't get anything for dessert even though the apple crumble was calling my name quite loudly (oh well, there's always next time). I will caution readers though, you definitely don't want to go here if you plan on drinking a lot because drinks will run you about $12.00 a piece, $20 for the ones that come with a signature glass.

After lunch we headed back to Landmark Tower and walked around for a bit. I only window shopped though because we are heading back to the States in a few weeks, at which point my husband knows I plan to do a TON of shopping (so he understandably had me on a short leash while we were in Yokohama). Since I didn't have dessert at Hard Rock, I stopped in at Mrs. Elizabeth Muffin for some yummy mini muffins for later. All in all, it was a great day and the best part was that I got to spend it with my husband!!