Ciao for now Tokyo...

It was our last morning in Tokyo, and we had breakfast at the top floor of our hotel, overlooking the Shinkuku district.  A pretty spectacular view on a crystal clear autumn day.  The weather was actually really pleasant during the whole trip, so we were lucky.  I had to try out this panarama function on my camera, though you will see that I haven't quite yet mastered it.

After breakfast, we checked out a new building that housed a very cool artisan coffee shop (shown above), not dissimilar to Blue Bottle or Four Barrel.  I could definitely see gourmet coffee becoming the next big thing in Japan.  Starbucks already dominates, but I think that even more refined and trendier spots like this one will find a nice and sizable niche among Japanese consumers.

For lunch, Steven and I found a really cool French cafe at the top of the hill in Shibuya.  You can find some incredible deals for cafe lunches in Japan; high quality food at a low price point.  Our entire meal, including salad, entree, dessert and coffee was only 1,100円, about $11.

After lunch, it was back to the hotel to grab our bags and hop on the Narita Express to the airport.  I am actually writing these last few sentences from the train, as we make the hour trip to the airport.  Steven is speed reading his way through a novel, and I will wait for the airplane to dig back into mine.  

Eleven hours to Tokyo and nine or so to get back home to the US.  Japan can seem a world apart, and in some ways it is.  Still, a lot is familiar to me here and it will always hold a special place in my こころ (cocoro), heart/soul.  

I am not sure when I will be back in Japan again, but I am glad that I was able to make this trip. There were some old memories relived and definitely some new ones made.  

Japan is like an old friend, who, even after not seeing for some time, is just the same in all of the ways that count.  

Here's one last cool shot, (surprisingly) not of food, but of the entrance to a little hidden alley of small bars and restaurants that seat four or five people each.  Those places looked like they had been standing for hundreds of years, and though we didn't make it into any of them on this trip, I am sure they will be there next time.

Thanks for coming on this trip with me, ragazzi, and until the next one...un abbraccio forte :).

Leaving Atami and Yakiniku in Tokyo

I woke up around 6:00 am on Monday in Atami, and went for an early morning bath in the rotenburo.  It was really quiet and peaceful that early in the morning.

The grounds of the property were really pretty, and I brought my camera along to snap a few photos.

After a dip, it was back up to the room, where we were served a traditional Japanese breakfast, which started with 梅干し (umeboshi) a really sour pickled plum, and some green tea, followed by grilled fish and an assortment of other small dishes.

Following breakfast, we had time for another quick dip in the onsen, which is really hot and relaxing...a bit hotter than 100 degrees, so you can't stay in for that long at a time.

Then, it was off to the station, but not before a few more quick photo opportunities.

On our way to Atami station, which was about 1.5 miles from the hotel, Steven and I noticed a 手作り豆腐の店 (tezukuri tofu no mise) a shop selling homemade tofu products, including fresh soy milk.  

We had a refreshing glass of soy milk, way different (a lot beanier) than you would find in the store and pretty good.

Then, it was back to Tokyo, to check in to the hotel for our last night in Japan.  For our last meal (in Japan, not ever), we decided to visit an old haunt called トラジ (Toraji), which is a really popular 焼き肉 (yakiniku) or Korean BBQ place that has almost 50 locations throughout Japan.  

After some kimchi appetizers and a salad, we got right into the meat...beef and pork, all small pieces of tender cuts of skirt steak, tongue, belly and fillet.  That little foil container with boiling liquid is garlic....mmmmm!!

The yakiniku was delicious, and, in traditional form, we finished it off with a bowl of ピビン冷麺 (pibin reimen), cold spicy Korean style noodles, that are a bit sweet, a bit spicy and refreshing after the meat.

After dinner, we headed back to Shibuya and strolled around the old stomping grounds for an hour or so before heading back to the hotel.  Both of is were pretty beat after a long day, and a fun-filled five days in Tokyo.  By midnight, we were sound asleep on our last night in Japan.

熱海 (Atami) not Atari

Sunday morning began with breakfast at the hotel, then check out, as Steven and I were headed to 熱海 (Atami), a town that is about an hour from Tokyo by bullet train.

Before boarding the 新幹線 (Shinkansen) or bullet train, we left our bags at the hotel we would be staying at for our last night in Shibuya.  We grabbed our backpacks for the overnight trip, and walked around Shibuya, one of the busiest areas in Tokyo, with lots of young people, restaurants, cafés, bars and shops.  There are quite a few burger places popping up in Tokyo, including this Shibuya outpost which may or may not be named after me.

But, burgers were not on our agenda for Sunday lunch.  Ramen was.  ラーメン (ramen), originally a Chinese word for noodle soup, is very popular in Japan, and there are all different kinds of broth and noodles.  Steven was kind enough to let me select a Hokkaido style miso-ramen place which seemed to look like a safe bet from the outside.

This twenty seat place called 味源 (Aji gen), ended up serving some delicious miso-ramen, shown below with an 味付け玉 (aji tsuke tamago) seasoned egg, メンマ (menma), もやし (moyashi) bean sprouts, チャシュ (chashu) pork and コン (con) corn.

The ramen was delicious, and after finishing up, Steven and I trolled around the basement of the Tokyu department store to check out all of the different stalls that had a variety of items on display.

Then, it was off to Shinagawa station to board the Shinkansen to Atami.  Here's a photo of Steven on the bullet train, who clearly was a bit tired of the paparazzi by this point in the day.

We arrived in Atami around late afternoon and took a short taxi ride to our 旅館 (ryokan), or traditional Japanese hotel with a 露天ぶろ (rotenburo) outdoor hot bath with real onsen (hot spring) water.

We were shown to our tatami mat room, and then it was time to slip on our ゆかた (yukata) robe and have a bath befoe dinner, but not before some tea service in our room.  

I didn't bring my camera to the baths, so you will just have to use your imagination.  The rotenburo was great - very hot and very relaxing.

Afterward, it was back up to the room to relax a bit before dinner.  At about 7:30, our meal began, a ten or eleven course 懐石料理 (kaiseki ryori) traditional Japanese meal with many different kinds of fish, meats and vegetables. Ours included a special 和牛 (wagyu) Japanese beef course, where we grilled our own meat on top of a salt block.

Each item and each course was in tune with the season and delicately balanced, as was the cold sake we enjoyed with the meal.  We finished with a small fruit plate and some ほうじ茶 (Houjicha), or roasted green tea.  Green tea known as 煎茶 (sencha) is green (or a bit yellow) in color because it is steamed and minimally processed.  Lightly roasted green tea like Houjicha is brown in color, smoky in taste and lighter in caffeine, which is probably one of the reasons it is served at night after a meal.

After dinner, the plan was to head back down to the rotenburo for another soak in the tub.  I called an audible and was asleep by 10:00 pm, while Steven goed it solo for a nighttime bath.

Saturday in Tokyo

Yesterday began with a nice light breakfast in our hotel.  Steven can be seen here posing in front of the "living wall."  It's always nice to be surrounded by some greenery.

We had a busy day planned, and didn't lollygag for long.  Instead, we headed for the Hibiya line of Roppongi station, which took us directly to 中目黒 (Nakameguro), which is a really cool fashionable district of Tokyo, and also where I lived for a little under a year of my time in Japan. 

Steven shot me above in my Uniqlo jacket, (which has really been nice this trip) with the Meguro river and cherry blossom trees in the background.  During cherry blossom season in the springtime, these trees are in full bloom and it is really a sight to see.

We couldn't come to Nakameguro without a stop in at Coeur et Coeur, a little cafe along the river, where I spent many evenings after a long day at work, sipping chamomile tea and chatting with Junko, the owner appearing above between me and Steven, as well as Ushi, the owner of the building and a regular customer.  Junko-san was pretty floored when Steven and I appeared at the door, and we spent some time chatting and catching up.

As a treat, Ushi brought us down some 味付け玉 (aji tsuke tamago), or, marinated/seasoned eggs, which we enjoyed as a snack.  Check out that orange yolk!!

Afterward, we were off to lunch at Browny, a highly rated Japanese curry spot that Steven had found for us online.

The curry at Browny, shown above, was rich and spicy, topped with cheese (actually not common in Japan), and served with a green salad with sesame dressing.  This curry was simmered, then baked in the oven and was quite good.

After lunch, we wandered around a bit, then I played golf at Pebble Beach.  Well, okay, not the real Pebble Beach, but we stumbled upon a bar that had a golf simulation screen, where for 1,000 yen, you could play for 30 minutes.  I got in nine holes, while Steven enjoyed a beverage and made an excellent caddy.

Following the golf outing, we headed to a Japanese microbrewery that Steven had read about and wanted to check out.  He had a sampling of three small beers, and we hung out for a bit before heading back to the hotel and freshening up for dinner.

For dinner on Saturday, we met up with a friend of ours who lives in Tokyo, Ryo and his wife Masami.

The four of us grabbed dinner at an aptly named 串焼き (kushi yaki), grilled things on a stick, place called "Meatman."  We feasted on grilled skewers of meat and veggies, washed down with cold beer and some excellent cold sake.

After dinner, Steven, Ryo and I headed to a few different bars for some drinks and Masami took a taxi home.  

It ended up being a late night out, and it was somewhere between 3:30 and 4:00 am by the time we got back to the hotel.

Sushi Time!

Wow, okay...it has cretainly been a busy 24 hours here in Tokyo.  

Steven and I are now on the 新幹線(Shinkansen), or bullet train, headed to an 温泉 (onsen) hot spring in 熱海 (Atami) which is about an hour away from Tokyo.

Two nights ago, on Friday, after our tea tasting, we went to a very cool sushi place that Steven had found in Ginza.  The place was called かくとう (Kakutou), which was the name of the sushi chef, and was highly acclaimed on Tabelog, a website that rates food establishments, not unlike Yelp.

Our meal started with two or three courses of zensai, or appetizers, to whet the palette prior to the おまかせ (omakase) sushi tasting, where everything is left to the chef.

Just some little bowls of vegetables and fish, lightly marinated or cooked.  After that, we were onto the sushi.  

Piece by piece, Kakutou-san laid out some fanastically fresh fish.  All of it was simply prepared, and expertly cut, sometimes topped with a bit of salt, garnish or yuzu, and sometimes just the fish.  Though I am tempted to include all of the photos (which Kakutou-san was okay with me taking), I will just display a few of the all-stars, including this beautiful toro (fatty tuna), shima aji (horse mackerel) and uni (sea urchin).  

After having some 寿司茶 (sushi-cha) green tea special for sushi restaurants, Steven I headed out, our stomachs full and souls content.  This had been a great sushi experience!

It had been a long day and we were beat, but not too tired to stop by Propaganda in the Roppongi district for a quick drink.  This was actually the first bar I had ever visited in Tokyo, and not much had changed since way back then.

Wow, this was a quick Shinkansen ride....we are in Atami already!  I will write more later, but it's time to get off the train.