 |
| The best pancake treat ever - why doesn't the 7-elevens in the U.S. have this magical treat??? |
I woke up to very heavy rains which was a bit depressing. But I was quickly cheered up by my 7-eleven pancake breakfast. I don't know how they make these things but they are amazing! There's literally butter and maple syrup hidden inside these pancakes, and even though they are obviously pre-packaged, they are shockingly and addictively tasty! (I think I had 5 of them during my trip this time and I was wanting more...) My husband didn't believe how good they were until I forced him to taste one, and then he kept trying to eat my pancakes - argh.
On today's agenda was a private tour of some particular sights in Tokyo. I booked my guide through www.chrisrowthorn.com (6 hour tour for approximately $300) and I was pleased despite the rain cutting into part of our tour. While I don't like my entire trip to be dominated by private tours, it's a nice break for me to have a guide sometimes so I don't have to be responsible for all the planning and logistics. Our guide was very punctual and met us in our hotel lobby. He was very nice and spoke good English. The best thing about having your own guide is you can change the itinerary anytime you want and move on to the next thing, or if you want to spend more time at a particular place, you can do that too.
 |
| One of many outdoor sculptures in Ueno Park. |
 |
| There are lots of museums in this area - here is the natural sciences museum. |
We took the subway to Ueno, but because of the heavy rain, it was difficult for us to really enjoy the serene grounds and the different art museums. To hide from the rain, our guide took us to Ameyayocho where there were lots of food stalls and other shopping.
 |
| There seemed to be lots of great little restaurants around here - I wish it hadn't been raining so much - boo! |
But because we knew we would be going to Asakusa where there were lots of good snacks, we restrained ourselves. We also saw a few claw machine shops - where you can try to 'win' plushies and other cool prizes. Let's just say I suck at claw machines ...
 |
| Claw machines galore! |
 |
| Sigh - i did not bring home a kitty. |
We weren't disappointed by the awesome snacks at Asakusa and right outside of the Senso-ji Temple. Apparently the area is famous for melon pan (a big sweet bun), traditional Japanese sweets (variety of mochis and other small petit four like delicacies), and tempura.
 |
| Senso-ji Temple in the rain... |
 |
| Entrance to Imahan Bekkan - amazing sukiyaki! |
We had also heard there were some amazing sukiyaki restaurants nearby so after visiting the temple, we sought out Imahan Bekkan for lunch. There seemed to be 2 sister restaurants - one was very formal and the other was less formal. But the lunch sets were fabulous! The sukiyaki (thin pieces of beef expertly grilled) were mouthwatering and tender, and the sashimi and other accompaniments were equally delicious. It was nice to get out of the rain and relax with good food and sake.
 |
| Get in my tummy! |
Afterwards, we explored the surrounding shops and food stalls. I had to have the small mochi balls rolled in soy powder (so amazing) and I got some melon pan to snack on later.
 |
| Little mochi balls on a stick. |
 |
| We got melon pan and apple tart - just a note, there's no filling in the melon pan in case you are wondering. |
But again because of the heavy rains, it was difficult to really shop and browse. I would definitely want to return and spend more quality time here to enjoy all the different offerings. The prices are probably a little marked up for tourists but it's a convenient place to pick up lots of tasty food and other cute souvenirs.
 |
| Pretty red-bean filled treats. |
We decided to not see the Imperial Palace (actually you can't go in without a reservation) but you can visit the outside and some of its grounds - but since it was raining, our guide took us to the food basement hall at Mitsukoshi in Ginza. What a splendid food basement - everything was so beautiful and delicious looking. For anybody visiting Japan, you have to go to a department store food basement - whether it's Mitshukoshi or Isetan or Takayashima - they are all fabulous and I could spend hours just going down each aisle....I decided to indulge in a few mochi and confection treats from "Kanra". So yummy!
 |
| Little jellied desserts and a mochi with a fresh strawberry hiding inside! |
Fatigued from all the walking and rain-dodging, we rested at the coffee place - Douter. It's probably like their Starbucks because I saw several Douters throughout Tokyo. Instead of coffee I had a delectable royal milk tea. Come to think of it, ever since my return from Japan I've been having lots of royal milk tea.... I should make one now as I'm writing this...
 |
| Mmmmm - royal milk tea. |
We actually ended our tour early due to the weather, but it was actually nice conversing with our guide and learning about local life and customs. But we were ready to return to our hotel room and rest.
Much to my surprise, when we got into our room, the concierge team had sent us a bottle of wine. So nice! (As a backstory - it isn't normal to give tips in Japan, but it is considered polite to give gifts. So in lieu of the normal tips we would have given to a concierge for helping us make reservations and get tickets and stuff, we sent them a fruit basket. The wine was a way for them to thank us for the fruit basket - but it was still very unexpected and nice.)
After a lovely rest, we went to Sushiso Masa for dinner - literally the best sushi I've ever had in my life. (See review and lots of pictures of sushi here.) I was so full I almost died - but I would have died happy.
 |
| Near Barneys New York in Shinjuku. |
After dinner, we took the train to Shinjuku to meet a Japanese friend who was kind enough to take us to the Golden Gai - a collection of local alleyway bars. I had read some of the bars were members only, and most of them do not cater to English speakers. We had assumed it was a local hot spot, but our friend had to admit he had never actually been there himself. We wandered around a bit, and then ended up at a teeny tiny bar that was clearly celebrating all things 80's. It was actually quite fun and luckily our friend was with us because the owner/bartender did not speak one word of English.
 |
| One of the alleyways at the Golden Gai. |
 |
| Flashing back to the 80's |
When we finished our whiskeys there, we went to Bar Rouge - which was owned by our friend's acquaintance. Coincidentally when we were there, the acquaintance showed up - apparently he spends each night going to each of his bars, "testing" out the drinks. He was only on bar #1 that night and he was already tipsy... I hope he made it home alright.
No comments:
Post a Comment