Trip To Japan

Hi, this is Vivi ^^. Just want to share about my trip to Tokyo hehe.. Actually this is my first trip with my friends. Why we want to go to Tokyo? Simple just because we know that Japan is a beautiful country, and of course Tokyo as the capital of Japan. I lived in Tokyo before for study so I knew everything about there. Well, my Japanese is poor now haha... Because I never used it again in my country, but I think it's ok to go there for 5 days ;p.

 

We went there about 5 days (September 5-10, 2013). We, 7 people, only me who know Japanese language. So I must take care about them. We lived in Sakura Hostel Asakusa. You can check the website here. A nice hostel with nice staffs. I always talk with them in twitter hehe...

 

First day, we went to kimono rental. It's quite good ^^. Here's the website if you want to rental kimono if you're in Tokyo: Asakusa Shichi Henge. We walked around Asakusa. Btw, many people wanted to take photos with us, don't know why, maybe because we're beautiful and handsome ;p.

 

 

Second day, we went to Shibuya and Harajuku. At Shibuya we took some photos with Hachiko. Do you know him? He is a famous dog in Japan who was loyal to his owner. He died at Shibuya station while he waited his owner.

 

 

Shibuya is one of the most busy street in Tokyo. You can see how many people walking in this street.

 

 

After that we went to Harajuku. First, we went to Takeshita Doori. Many people like to be here. It always crowded everyday. My friends bought many things in 105 yen shop. And unfortunately, they must brought their things -which very heavy- to Meiji Jingu. Meiji Jingu is a temple near to Harajuku. We must walking about 20 minutes to enter to the main temple inside.

 

 

Meiji Jingu main gate



Finally enter the temple hehe...

You can make a wish here, just write it in EMA

 

Third day, we went to Tokyo Imperial Palace. A 2 hours tour from our hostel. Actually I didn't pay attention about what the guides said, cause ehm sorry.. they said with a bad english... I think it's one of historical place. It's sooo big inside and one of my friend said; "I can't walk anymore!!!" Hehehehe... It looks like a big park with many trees. Feel so green!!

 

 

After that, we have onigiri and tempura party at Jimbocho Hotel ^^

 

 

Fourth day, the one I like hehehe..., we went to Tokyo Disney Sea!!! We had so much fun there! I thought it won't crowed on Monday, but at that time was the first day of Special Event for Halloween! You can imagine how crowded it was...

 

Happy 30th Anniversary ^^

Happy Halloween ^^

You can buy the ticket fo Disneyland or Disneysea here

In the train to Tokyo Disneysea (or Disneyland)

The ticket to Disneysea & guide book

Once you entered the gate, you can see this big globe

Sooo crowded!!!

In the train to American Waterfront to Mysterious Island

With an ice cream guy hehe...

Emm.. in front of the most thrilling game: Tower of Terror

Fifth day, the last day =(. In the morning we only went to Imado Jinja (Shrine of love ^^) and Maneki Neko. After that we only strolling in Asakusa until the time we must depart to Haneda airport. Well I miss Tokyo now... 5 days not enough...

 

You can see Tokyo Sky Tree by walking

Imado Jinja main gate

You can see many people hope for love in this shrine

 

So, this is my last story of my trip hehe... Thank you for read it and hope all you guys can go to Tokyo too someday ^^

With Yusa, Naoto, Kent, and Ayumi ^^

With Kyoko and Hiro ^^

With Tomo (the manager) and Johrel ^^

 

Sakura Sweets

Did you know that you can taste SAKURA?!

In the sakura season, Sakura Sweets come onto the market!
They smell like Sakura and it lets us feel spring wind.

For example, as Japanese confectionery,


The colors are also cherry-blossom pink!
Looks very beautiful, isn't it?

And as western confectionery too,


There is macaroon of sakura! So cute :)


Actually, today I brought sakura sweet for my afternoon snack =D

Sakura Roll Cake! I cannot wait for the time to eat it XD!

What is 'White Day' and Why You Should Care?

February is finally over men! We made dinner reservations weeks in advance, spent extra hours at the gym, searched for jaw-dropping gifts, and carefully selected the perfect outfit, all to impress that special someone on February 14th – Valentines’ Day. Congratulations! Ganbaremashita (頑張れました, you gave it your all)! Unless…you live in Japan, then your work has only just begun.

Valentines’ Day in Japan

Valentines’ Day in Japan works a bit differently than in the United States and Europe. Men do not give women anything for Valentines’ Day! Instead only the women hand out chocolates to their male companion(s). There are two different types of chocolates that girls give out.

First is the giri-choco (義理チョコ), “obligatory chocolate,” which are chocolates that women may give to male co-workers, superiors, and friends that they are more socially obligated to give a gift to. Second, the honmei-choco (本命チョコ), “true feeling chocolate,” is reserved for the one guy whom that woman has strong romantic feelings towards. This could be her husband or (prospective) boyfriends. These chocolates are a higher quality and more expensive than giri-choco.

White Day

In 1977, a confectionery company in Fukuoka marketed marshmallows to men as return gifts to women on March 14 and called it Marshmallow Day (マシュマロデー). Men mostly gave white gifts: marshmallows, white chocolate, and white lingerie (mostly likely for girlfriends or wives). With the idea of giving white gifts, the first official White Day was celebrated in 1978.

Today the gifts are not restricted to the color white; cookies and jewelry are common gifts as well. Similar to giri-choco, it may be more of a social obligation when a man gives a woman White Day chocolates instead of feelings of true attraction. The men get to know in advance which girl has the strongest feelings and do not have to endure the anxiety of confessing themselves.

Sounds like a good deal right men? Well…the Japanese employ the general rule of Sanbai gaeshi (三倍返し), or “triple the return,” towards White Day. With this rule, the return gift should be about two or three times the cost of the original Valentines’ Day gift. Which means if a woman spends about 2000 yen on your gift, the return gift should be in the 4000 or 6000 yen range!

What do you think? Do you think gift giving should be done on the same day or different days? As well as all other aspects of a relationship, I am sure that the men and women have different opinions on the matter.

Doraemon: Gadget Cat of The Future

Doraemon is one of Japan’s best-loved characters. Everybody from little kids to grown adults watch his animation show. He’s a robot cat from the future with a magic pocket full of cool gadgets. See the appeal?

Doraemon (どらえもん) lives with a boy named Nobita Nobi (野比のび太). His wacky gadgets help Nobita deal with bullies, avoid studying and doing homework, and overcome all sorts of other problems that plague boys everywhere. The only trouble is that his gadgets always take on a life of their own, and then there’s trouble. And there’s always an important lesson in the end.

Doraemon was constructed by the Matsushiba Robot Factory on September 3rd, 2112. However, he was considered defective because of several malfunctions. He was struck by lightning and this sent him back to the present, where he first appeared to Nobita by popping out of his desk drawer at school and warning him that in 30 minutes he’d be strangled and roasted alive.

His gadgets, toys and tools come from the department stores of the 22nd century. It’s estimated that there have been around 4,500 of them since the beginning of the series (this is one of the main reasons for the show’s popularity). Whenever needed, he pulls them out of the 4-dimensional pocket on his belly (四次元ハット, yonjigen hatto). They include:

Anywhere Door
どこでもドア – dokodemo doa
This is a pink door that will take you anywhere in the universe that you want to go. Just stand in front of it, make a wish of where you’d like to go, step through and you’re there.

Time Cloth
(タイムふろしき – taimu furoshiki)
This is a red cloth with little clocks all over it. You wrap it around something and that thing becomes older or newer, depending on the side. Nobita used it to make older appliances newer and sell them in one episode.

Small Light and Big Light
(スモールライト) and (ビッグライト)
The Small Light is a flashlight that shrinks whatever object or person you shine it on. The Big Light works the same way but enlarges whatever you aim its light at. The Gulliver Tunnel (ガリバートンネル) is similar. It shrinks or enlarges you depending on which side you enter.

Memory Bread
(暗記パン – anki pan)
Images are imprinted on the bread and when someone eats it, they form false memories in their mind.

Animal Biscuits
(変身ビスケット – henshin bisuketto)
Animal crackers that turn you into the animal when you eat them.

Air Gun
(空気ピルトル – kuuki pisutoru)
This is a tube that you slip over your finger and it knocks your opponent over with a powerful blast of air when you say, ‘Bang!’

Anything Mind Gas
(強力ハイポンプガス – kyouryoku haiponpu-gasu)
When you spray something with this gas, the thing becomes attracted to you and will flee from anybody else.

Voodoo Camera
(のろいのカメラ – noroi-no-kamera)
Take a picture of someone with the Voodoo Camera and it makes a voodoo doll of them.

What If Phone Booth
(もしもボックス – moshimo-bokkusu)
Ask into the phone about some unreal condition using ‘What if…’ and you enter that world.

Fluffy Medicine
(ふわふわ薬 –fuwafuwa kusuri)
Take some of this stuff and your body weight becomes light enough that you can float in the clouds. Too much can be dangerous though.

Dream Reader
(ユメテレビ – yume terebi)
When you have trouble falling asleep, you can watch other people’s dreams using the Dream Reader.

Takecopter
(タケコプター)
The Takecopter is a propeller that you attach to any part of your body with a suction cup that lets you fly.

Although Doraemon TV shows and movies have appeared in countries outside of Japan, he has yet to make his English-speaking debut. Kids in the world’s English-speaking countries will just have to wait until the day they can experience the wonders of Doraemon’s 4-dimensional pocket.

Sweets In Japan

Strawberry Daifuku いちご大福

Daifuku is a Japanese confection consisting of a small round mochi (soft and sticky rice cake stuffed with sweet fillings, most commonly sweetened red bean paste. Daifuku comes in many varieties. The most common is white-, pale green-, or pale pink-colored mochi filled with anko. But in the Strawberry Daifuku, there's a whole strawberry inside and the taste together with the red bean paste is really great. Totally new flavour for me. Totally great! ^^ Love it! ^^ And you can get them almost everywhere!

Mitarashi Dango みたらし団子

Mitarashi Dango is a Japanese dumpling made from mochiko, rice flour, covered with a syrup made from soy sauce, sugar and starch. Three to four dango are often served on a skewer. You can't imagine, how sticky and sweet they are. You can get them everywhere, really, so you should try! They are one of the sweetest things here, I would say! :)

Taiyaki たい焼き

Taiyaki is a Japanese fish-shaped cake and It's most common filling is - of course - red bean paste. Taiyaki is made using regular pancake or waffle batter. The batter is poured into a fish-shaped mold for each side. The filling is then put on one side and the mold is closed. It is then cooked on both sides until golden brown. Love them fresh and hot.

Imagawayaki 今川焼き

Almost the same as Taiyaki. You can get them at every festival! They are really yummy with vanilla cream, cheese cream, chocolate cream (that's the best!) or red bean paste fillings. Their dough is thicker than the Taiyaki ones and there's no better thing to eat, when it's cold outside, than a hot and fresh Imagawayaki at a festival! ^^

Ningyoyaki 人形焼

Ningyo-yaki are small snack cakes, made from cooking batter of flour, eggs and sugar in an iron mold. They are sold both with and without sweet bean paste. Many come in the form of the seven gods of good luck (shichifukujin 七福神) or the great lantern at the Kaminarimon gate of Asakusa temple. ^^ On festivals at Senso-ji, you can always buy them. Or just at the supermarket or combini in different, cute character forms (but of course these ones aren't as delicious as the fresh ones ^^).

Dorayaki どら焼き

Dorayaki is а red bean pancake which consists of two small pancake-like patties around a filling of sweet red bean paste. You can get them in very small to really big sizes (from 5 cm to 15 cm ^^) almost everywhere and they are very very tasty and a perfect snack, when you're hungry! ^^

Geppei 月餅

These nice little things have their origins in China, but you can get them almost everywhere here in Japan, too. They also are called mooncakes and red bean paste is the most popular filling, but other sorts of beans as well as chestnut are also used. They taste very very rich and have unbelievable much calories! ^^ For me, they taste very nutty and I love that kind of taste! ^^

Melonpan メロンパン

A "bread" with an enriched dough covered in a thin layer of crisp cookie dough. It's appearance resembles a melon. Just try one and you'll be addicted! ^^ You can buy melonpan in different flavours/with different doughs and with different fillings like strawberry cream, chocolate or vanilla cream. ^^

Baumkuchen バームクーヘン

First, yes, yes, of course I know, that Baumkuchen is from Germany! :D BUT the Baumkuchen here in Japan differs from the Baumkuchen I know from Germany. ^^ And it's one of the most popular pastries in Japan! So as I remember from the little Bavarian town where I was born, the old men, spinning around Baumkuchen over open fire on festivals and made an really crunchy caramel crust outside. The Baumkuchen here looks much more exclusive and filigree. In Germany, you can get that softy Baumkuchen often, too. But as Baumkuchen isn't that popular, too, I've often forget, to buy one...but here...no chance to escape! ^^

Toppo トッポ

Toppo, the "reverse pocky", is a chocolate and bread-based snack, which you can buy in many different flavours/with many different fillings. The best was an winter special edition filled with white chocolate and little cinnamon flavour, hihi. That was great! ^^ But I love the classical Toppo very much, too (much more than pocky, I'm sorry ^^).

Kakigori かき氷

Kakigōri (かき氷?) is a Japanese shaved ice dessert flavored with syrup and condensed milk and you can get it almost everywhere while the hot, Japanese summer season! It's available in many, many different flavours like strawberry, cherry, lemon, green tea, grape, melon and colourful syrup-variations. ^^ I love cherry the most! ^^

Garigari-kun ice ガリガリ君

That's the most popular ice bought in convenience stores here in Japan. It's only 60 Yen and 70 kcal (as I remember). The taste is really hard to describe. Sweet, very refreshing, like sugar soda. Really different for me. ^^ I love it! ^^

Tadaaa, all these things let increase your body weight very fast, I think! ^^

So it's really hard to withstand these nice, tasty, yummy, delicious sweets day by day! :D

You will see it yourself, when visiting Japan! ^^

Wish you many sweet new things to explore, hehe! :)

By: Vanessa (Asakusa)