48 hours in Tokyo - Part One
Every year I try to go to at least one place (ideally country) I have never been before. Since last year was a bit chaotic in terms of adjusting to life back in Auckland/New Zealand, I didn't really manage to plan a trip or holiday.
Fortunately towards the end of 2017, I was able to accompany Mama on a business trip to Germany - with the added perk of catching up with family and friends. But since those would be predominantly familiar places and faces, I had to make the stopover - Tokyo - count!
My Papa grew up in Japan, and hearing his and my grandparent's expat stories, meant that I've always had a bit of a fascination with its culture and people.
Since Mama is a bit of a Tokyo-fan as well, the two of us made an event of it (even squeezing in another beauty expo there), and so our whirlwind 48 hours in Tokyo began...
Despite the trains being brutally efficient, we were already somewhat shattered after rolling our overladen suitcases from the airport through two train changes, and close to 100% humidity to the hotel.
But there is no rest for the wicked, so we headed straight for the Meiji Shrine to escape to its surrounding greenery...
I fell in love with these gnarly trees - the things they must have witnessed...
And the patterns on this one - almost as if its bark has been engraved.
After a quick cleansing ritual at the shrine, and a leisurely stroll through the grounds, we were ready to dive back into the bustle that is...Takeshita Street!
If there is something to see, you will see it in Takeshita Street - including the most outrageous outfits. Your eyes won't be able to keep up with sights to take in.
While not ideal for flash-less (iPhone) photography, dusk was a perfect time to explore the streets of Tokyo, as all its neon-coloured lights danced to life.
And watch the last of the sun's glow disappear behind high-rise buildings and high-end fashion billboards.
Once darkness hit, and our feet were beginning to ache, it was time to retreat to the Aoyama Flower Market, which with the motto "Living With Flowers Every Day." is my kind of haven - I literally could live here.
A lush sanctuary bursting with flowers and even trees in all shapes and colours...
No words or pictures will describe the feeling of standing within the flower market and its incredible smell, so you better just check it out for yourself!
And since we are in Japan, of course there was tea to be had in the adjoining tea house.
The Japanese just do things with such attention to detail, such as your own little flower served with your cuppa...
And plants even thriving beneath the glass-covered tables.
So while Mama was preoccupied with arranging dinner plans, I took a moment to concentrate on my tea and appreciate how lucky I was to be there.
Fitting in quite nicely with my florals - in fact, if the tea wouldn't run out, I could quite happily have spent several more days in the company of the flowers.
But there was dinner to be had and friends to be made, so off we missioned back towards Takeshita Street, where a couple of side streets off it, we arrived to a tiny little eatery/bar where Mama introduced me to the owner and her friend, Jun.
Mama had discovered Jun's and befriended him a couple of stopovers back, and despite not really understanding a word of each other's languages, the two of them get on like a house on fire.
At Jun's there isn't really a menu, since he prepares the freshest ingredients before your very eyes.
However as pescatarians, it does make the ordering process a bit of an experiment, trying to figure out what those ingredients are, and avoiding any meaty stuff.
But with the help of hands, feet, other patrons and our next Japanese friends Yukio and Kentaro (pictured here), we managed to order the right things including some Japanese beer, which put Mama right in her element.
Once the accompanying food arrived, I was in mine:
Again - is that just not almost too beautiful to eat?!
To balance all that seafood protein, we'd also ordered some charcoal grilled corn on the cob, and although I don't remember ordering them, some snails arrived...
Hesitating for a moment as I plucked it out of its shell with my chopsticks, I thought what the hell, and down the hatch it went - it was delicious! :)
I just googled where these snails come from (land or sea), and the only thing I could find that had some sort of semblance was number 12 on this list...I don't remember them being bitter at all, rather refreshingly zingy and with a very interesting texture - but perhaps that comes down to preparation.
If you are more into your veggie proteins, nuts or starches, then I can also highly recommend roasted Ginkgo nuts (the little blackened nuggets in the bowl in the middle).
What the hell are they and why aren't we eating them is very aptly explained by this chick. I think my next foodie mission will be to track some down in Auckland and make them myself.
As Mama was determined to hang out on a rooftop bar, and what Mama wants, Mama gets, Yukio was kind enough to take the lead, and we headed a couple of blocks down the road again, up an elevator and ended up at a pretty great rooftop bar.
Unfortunately I no longer have any recollection as to where it was or what it was called. But this was the facade of the building you came up through.
Apologies, I realise that is not the most precise of tips, however while googling trying to figure out which it might have been, I discovered a whole line-up of rooftop bars, so I am sure they are all worth a visit in their own right.
And with the first 16 or so of our 48 hours in Tokyo over, we were ready to catch up on some sleep, before heading to the expo the next day.
So we said our farewells and jumped into a taxi. Unfortunately, we were either a bit too tipsy, or so distracted by the bright lights of Tokyo...
...that we somehow ended up at the wrong hotel! Oops... :) So In the end we walked the 15 minutes from there to the right one, where we fell into a deep slumber.
Part two of Tokyo coming up tomorrow.
Until then - yours truly,
Fräulein SoulFood x
Fortunately towards the end of 2017, I was able to accompany Mama on a business trip to Germany - with the added perk of catching up with family and friends. But since those would be predominantly familiar places and faces, I had to make the stopover - Tokyo - count!
My Papa grew up in Japan, and hearing his and my grandparent's expat stories, meant that I've always had a bit of a fascination with its culture and people.
Since Mama is a bit of a Tokyo-fan as well, the two of us made an event of it (even squeezing in another beauty expo there), and so our whirlwind 48 hours in Tokyo began...
Despite the trains being brutally efficient, we were already somewhat shattered after rolling our overladen suitcases from the airport through two train changes, and close to 100% humidity to the hotel.
But there is no rest for the wicked, so we headed straight for the Meiji Shrine to escape to its surrounding greenery...
Barrels of Sake as offerings to the shrine.
I fell in love with these gnarly trees - the things they must have witnessed...
And the patterns on this one - almost as if its bark has been engraved.
After a quick cleansing ritual at the shrine, and a leisurely stroll through the grounds, we were ready to dive back into the bustle that is...Takeshita Street!
If there is something to see, you will see it in Takeshita Street - including the most outrageous outfits. Your eyes won't be able to keep up with sights to take in.
While not ideal for flash-less (iPhone) photography, dusk was a perfect time to explore the streets of Tokyo, as all its neon-coloured lights danced to life.
And watch the last of the sun's glow disappear behind high-rise buildings and high-end fashion billboards.
Once darkness hit, and our feet were beginning to ache, it was time to retreat to the Aoyama Flower Market, which with the motto "Living With Flowers Every Day." is my kind of haven - I literally could live here.
A lush sanctuary bursting with flowers and even trees in all shapes and colours...
No words or pictures will describe the feeling of standing within the flower market and its incredible smell, so you better just check it out for yourself!
And since we are in Japan, of course there was tea to be had in the adjoining tea house.
The Japanese just do things with such attention to detail, such as your own little flower served with your cuppa...
And plants even thriving beneath the glass-covered tables.
So while Mama was preoccupied with arranging dinner plans, I took a moment to concentrate on my tea and appreciate how lucky I was to be there.
Fitting in quite nicely with my florals - in fact, if the tea wouldn't run out, I could quite happily have spent several more days in the company of the flowers.
But there was dinner to be had and friends to be made, so off we missioned back towards Takeshita Street, where a couple of side streets off it, we arrived to a tiny little eatery/bar where Mama introduced me to the owner and her friend, Jun.
Mama had discovered Jun's and befriended him a couple of stopovers back, and despite not really understanding a word of each other's languages, the two of them get on like a house on fire.
At Jun's there isn't really a menu, since he prepares the freshest ingredients before your very eyes.
However as pescatarians, it does make the ordering process a bit of an experiment, trying to figure out what those ingredients are, and avoiding any meaty stuff.
But with the help of hands, feet, other patrons and our next Japanese friends Yukio and Kentaro (pictured here), we managed to order the right things including some Japanese beer, which put Mama right in her element.
Once the accompanying food arrived, I was in mine:
Again - is that just not almost too beautiful to eat?!
To balance all that seafood protein, we'd also ordered some charcoal grilled corn on the cob, and although I don't remember ordering them, some snails arrived...
Hesitating for a moment as I plucked it out of its shell with my chopsticks, I thought what the hell, and down the hatch it went - it was delicious! :)
I just googled where these snails come from (land or sea), and the only thing I could find that had some sort of semblance was number 12 on this list...I don't remember them being bitter at all, rather refreshingly zingy and with a very interesting texture - but perhaps that comes down to preparation.
If you are more into your veggie proteins, nuts or starches, then I can also highly recommend roasted Ginkgo nuts (the little blackened nuggets in the bowl in the middle).
What the hell are they and why aren't we eating them is very aptly explained by this chick. I think my next foodie mission will be to track some down in Auckland and make them myself.
As Mama was determined to hang out on a rooftop bar, and what Mama wants, Mama gets, Yukio was kind enough to take the lead, and we headed a couple of blocks down the road again, up an elevator and ended up at a pretty great rooftop bar.
Unfortunately I no longer have any recollection as to where it was or what it was called. But this was the facade of the building you came up through.
While the view was nice enough, the main thing at this one was that the cocktails were great and it was a welcome relief to be up from the street level, catching the light breeze, on an otherwise sultry night.
And with the first 16 or so of our 48 hours in Tokyo over, we were ready to catch up on some sleep, before heading to the expo the next day.
So we said our farewells and jumped into a taxi. Unfortunately, we were either a bit too tipsy, or so distracted by the bright lights of Tokyo...
...that we somehow ended up at the wrong hotel! Oops... :) So In the end we walked the 15 minutes from there to the right one, where we fell into a deep slumber.
Part two of Tokyo coming up tomorrow.
Until then - yours truly,
Fräulein SoulFood x
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