Bye bye China, Konichiwa Japan. Immediately upon arriving in sushi central I started to question my long-standing hypothesis that Hong Kong reigns supreme as the greatest city in Asia. Why didn't I look at jobs in Tokyo??? Ok, let me backtrack a little and elaborate on the events that led me to make this bold claim.
The weather was beautiful, no PERFECT. Sun umbrellas were out and cherry blossoms were in full bloom. Whoever thinks Tokyo is crowded needs to spend 24 hours in China - roaming the streets of Tokyo felt like wandering through Palo Alto - personal space is a beautiful thing. And The Japanese people are absolutely delightful - good manners and no spitting goes a long way in my book. An idyllic setting for a long weekend getaway.
It's hard to resist the temptation to treat this blog entry as yet another gastronomic review (a recurrent theme since moving to Asia), but as a tribute to Japanese food snobbery and the mind-blowing epicurean treats I was able to experience, I think it's only appropriate to enlighten your blog-reading minds beyond tempura and miso soup. Vegan restauranteur Patricia tracked down a hole-in-the-wall joint on the edge of town that turned out to be the home of a mad-professor turned professional noodle connoisseur. During our 3 hour meal (and I gladly would have stayed longer), we watched him whip us up some hand made udon and soba noodles (on a camping stove mind you), in addition to some of the best produce I have had in months (some pickled, some raw, some from the ocean), omelets, soba bread, kofu, a "cloud" of red bean, and then some. But it wasn't exclusively Japanese food - Marie took me to one of the best Italian places in the world (!) and the long wait was well worth it. And my favorite new discovery might have been an immensely satisfying Japanese vinegar beverage. My next trip to Japan will will obviously just be a full blown food tour.
Yet another food-related activity, Marie and I woke up at 5am on Saturday morning to experience the famous Tokyo Fish Market. The biggest Fish Market in the world, this market definitely lived up to all the hype surrounding it. Scared that I would be overcome with the nauseating smell of seafood, I really should have been more concerned about being run over by the swarms of speeding fish-transporting tractors. We witnessed the tail end of the tuna auction featuring some of the biggest fish I have ever seen, then got lost among the never-ending aisles of mostly unidentifiable marine creatures. Our early morning run-in with half of the ocean was then followed by a large (non-seafood) breakfast and blissful afternoon wandering through the Imperial Gardens.
After 48 hours of non-stop action in the city, by Sunday we were all feeling the itch to wander outside of the city walls and see what else Japan had up its sleeve. I was set on going to a traditional onsen, or Japanese bath, so Marie (and our new friend Reza) maneuvered us through the intimidatingly complex train system, leading us to Hakone - a beautiful lake-front village famous for its onsens, lakes, sulfur rocks, and stunning views of Mt. Fuji. Highlights included a gondola ride to the famous sulfur mountain complete with a taste-testing of sulfur eggs (and a siting of a sulfur egg hello kitty), and then spending the evening soaking it all in (literally and figuratively) in some lovely Japanese mineral baths. Yes we had to get naked, and yes they separated the men and women, and YES I loved it. No shame no gain. Please see attached photo for potentially incriminating visual aid that is necessary for appreciating the memorable experience just described.
(rest assured I do not know any of the ladies pictured)Ahhhhh Japan. Was hard to say soyanara to such a great country and such a good friend. Marie - can we do a one month exchange program?? Hazy-san will definitely find an excuse to be back sometime in the near future, and for a lot more than just the sushi....
I promised my good friend Marie that I would come visit her in Tokyo when the cherry blossoms were in bloom (romantic, I know), and I like keeping my promises. So naturally the 4 day Easter weekend seemed like the obvious choice of weekends. Plus, my traveling wingman Patricia had to be in Tokyo that weekend too, perfect timing for a Japanese invasion. Marie, English teacher extraordinaire and friend of 15+ years!, was my generous hostess, translator, tour guide, and weekend social coordinator.
It's hard to resist the temptation to treat this blog entry as yet another gastronomic review (a recurrent theme since moving to Asia), but as a tribute to Japanese food snobbery and the mind-blowing epicurean treats I was able to experience, I think it's only appropriate to enlighten your blog-reading minds beyond tempura and miso soup. Vegan restauranteur Patricia tracked down a hole-in-the-wall joint on the edge of town that turned out to be the home of a mad-professor turned professional noodle connoisseur. During our 3 hour meal (and I gladly would have stayed longer), we watched him whip us up some hand made udon and soba noodles (on a camping stove mind you), in addition to some of the best produce I have had in months (some pickled, some raw, some from the ocean), omelets, soba bread, kofu, a "cloud" of red bean, and then some. But it wasn't exclusively Japanese food - Marie took me to one of the best Italian places in the world (!) and the long wait was well worth it. And my favorite new discovery might have been an immensely satisfying Japanese vinegar beverage. My next trip to Japan will will obviously just be a full blown food tour.
Yet another food-related activity, Marie and I woke up at 5am on Saturday morning to experience the famous Tokyo Fish Market. The biggest Fish Market in the world, this market definitely lived up to all the hype surrounding it. Scared that I would be overcome with the nauseating smell of seafood, I really should have been more concerned about being run over by the swarms of speeding fish-transporting tractors. We witnessed the tail end of the tuna auction featuring some of the biggest fish I have ever seen, then got lost among the never-ending aisles of mostly unidentifiable marine creatures. Our early morning run-in with half of the ocean was then followed by a large (non-seafood) breakfast and blissful afternoon wandering through the Imperial Gardens.
After 48 hours of non-stop action in the city, by Sunday we were all feeling the itch to wander outside of the city walls and see what else Japan had up its sleeve. I was set on going to a traditional onsen, or Japanese bath, so Marie (and our new friend Reza) maneuvered us through the intimidatingly complex train system, leading us to Hakone - a beautiful lake-front village famous for its onsens, lakes, sulfur rocks, and stunning views of Mt. Fuji. Highlights included a gondola ride to the famous sulfur mountain complete with a taste-testing of sulfur eggs (and a siting of a sulfur egg hello kitty), and then spending the evening soaking it all in (literally and figuratively) in some lovely Japanese mineral baths. Yes we had to get naked, and yes they separated the men and women, and YES I loved it. No shame no gain. Please see attached photo for potentially incriminating visual aid that is necessary for appreciating the memorable experience just described.
(rest assured I do not know any of the ladies pictured)
1 comment:
This post deserves a comment. KK, all I can say is WOW. I can't even begin to imagine how sneaky you were in getting that photo. "Excuse me ladies---CLICK" You're one of a kind. Glad Tokyo treated you well.....
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