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Travel: An afternoon in Himeji, Japan

May 4, 2020

Himeji is a popular day trip destination because of the UNESCO World Heritage site, Himeji Castle. Himeji Castle has been on the fiance’s bucket list for many years now. During our first Japan trip in 2018 that was 5 years in the making (due to school/new jobs/timing/money/etc), this was already on his list but we were only staying in the Tokyo area so we didn’t get to come.

This time, during our trip to the Kansai region, we knew we had to make a stop to this breathtaking, magnificent castle.

We came here with a friend from Tokyo, who flew down and spent a weekend with us. The three of us went to Kobe on the Saturday, and then to Himeji and Kurashiki (which I’ll also be writing about) on the Sunday!

Here is what we did in Himeji for a few hours, before taking the train to Kurashiki. We did not do much except eat and go to Himeji castle, but it was a fun few hours here.

Getting to Himeji: With the exception of 3 days in Kyoto, we stayed in Osaka (you can read my hotel review here). From Osaka, we took the Shinkansen to Himeji which was about a hour, and met our friend at the station in the late morning.

Brunch: The Himeji area is known for grilled anago, which is a type of saltwater eel. I’ve only ever tried unagi, which is a freshwater eel. We went to a small shop by Himeji Station recommended by my friend’s friend who lives here, Sumiyaki Anago Yamagi.

The restaurant was quite popular as evident with the lineup even prior to opening hours. It was a warm, comforting and filling lunch.

Himeji castle: We slowly made our way to the castle! My breath was taken away when we approached the castle. It was a beautiful, stunning sight, meticulously crafted with so much detail.

My tip is to not take photos right after you cross the street to the castle. A lot of people were gathering here taking photos, because like myself, they were probably stunned of the magnitude of how beautiful the castle was. However, be patient and walk an extra few minutes to get your pictures!

After paying the entrance fee, off we went into the castle! All guests are required to take their shoes off, wear slippers, and put it in a plastic bag to carry around with you throughout the castle. I thought the plastic bag was a bit wasteful but in Japan, they tend to use a lot of plastic bags and packaging.

The castle is very easy to navigate as you just follow the signs. You start on the first floor and slowly make your way up. There are no washrooms available so be sure to use it prior to entering the castle.

Each floor has signs and displays for what it was used for, along with hidden storage areas and closets. I will also warn you that the stairs are very steep and narrow so be careful! There were a couple of times where I thought I was going to slip and fall (but I didn’t).

View of Himeji from the top floor of Himeji Castle

When you get to the top floor, you are greeted with a beautiful view of Himeji. My first thought was imagining this castle back in its prime, overlooking what was farm land and villages.

It took us roughly a hour to get through the castle at a leisurely place. Apart from the castle, you can also walk around the area which features smaller houses where staff lived, etc.

We didn’t feel like going through that area since it would not compare to the beauty of the castle that we just witnessed, so we took some photos outside of the castle and walked back to Himeji Station to go to our next destination, dessert!

Dessert: Another Himeji specialty food item that I did not know about was imagawa-yaki. This is a waffle cake usually stuffed with red bean. It was recommended by our friend, so we had to try it out! We went to Gozasoro at Himeji Station, one of the most popular stands for this dessert.

We bought both the red bean and white bean cakes, and they were delicious! The cakes were made fresh so it was piping hot. It was lightly crispy on the outside but soft inside.

Usually, this is the part when people head back to Osaka or Tokyo. However, we decided to go in the opposite direction, and take a hour train ride through the Japanese countryside to the city of Kurashiki.

Next stop of the day: Kurashiki, Japan – Stay tuned for another post!

Kurashiki is not a well-known city in Japan among international visitors, but I wanted to go after seeing beautiful pictures of their preserved historic district, Bikan Historial Quarter. Stay tuned for my next travel post on Kurashiki, you don’t want to miss it!

Travel: Kyoto Eats

April 15, 2020

During our trip to the Kansai region of Japan earlier this year, we stayed in Kyoto for 3 days! Since we were only here for 3 days, we picked a very central location to stay at. You can read my review on the hotel, Grand Bach Hotel Kyoto, here! A major plus was that we were close to so many food options such as Nishiki Market and Teramachi Street!

Here’s some of what we ate during our time in Kyoto! I didn’t include all the places we ate at because I don’t remember the name of or didn’t take a picture (gasp!).

Freshly Baked Melonpan: Yes, this is the name of the food stand! Melonpan is a popular type of Japanese pastry which is a bun topped with sugar in the shape of melon, hence the name. I saw the Freshly Baked Melonpan stands quite a few times throughout the trip, and it did not disappoint. The melonpan was warm, fresh, and so delicious. You can also add soft serve!

Sugi Honey Shop: This was located in Nishiki Market, where there are tons of food stalls! Although this place specializes in premium honey (which was very good, by the way), they sell soft serve on the side drizzled with their honey. We really enjoyed the yuzu honey soft serve and came twice during our 3 day visit!

I contemplated including this place because this was the only picture I had (why didn’t I take a picture of the soft serve?!), but in the end, I want to look back at my posts and remember this lovely shop!

Yakitori Kanazawa: Since we were a mere 20 footsteps away from Teramachi Market, the fiance looked up some yakitori places around there and picked Yakitori Kanazawa. Props to him because it was a great find! The yakitori was juicy, delicious and full of that grilled, smokey flavour.

One of the chefs/waiter (it was a very small place, probably only fit 10 customers) was really funny and liked to scare customers. He would talk normally and then all of a sudden, scream AH!!!!! which was startling to us, but then entertaining as we saw him do it to other customers, LOL!

Katsukura: Oh my GOD, the best meal we had in Kyoto! We still talk about Katsukura to this day. Katsukura specializes in tonkatsu. The tonkatsu was so delicious and the best we’ve had so far. I ordered a set that came with shrimp tempura above. Just writing about this makes my mouth water and I’m hungry again.

A Happy Pancake: A Happy Pancake isn’t new to us, as we tried the location in Tokyo in 2018. We were happy to see a location in Kyoto and came here for lunch before heading back to Osaka. A Happy Pancake is known for their fluffy pancakes. The pancakes were delicious here as well but be prepared to wait! Luckily we came right when they opened so there wasn’t a line yet.

To be honest, I didn’t enjoy Kyoto as much as I thought I would because the city was over crowded with tourists. I don’t want to be one of those people who complain about tourists because I am also one, but it lacked an authentic vibe to me. However, the food was really good and memorable.

I enjoyed the quieter cities of Kobe and Kurashiki more. I published my post on Kobe earlier this week, which you can read here. I will be publishing a post on Kurashiki soon!

Travel: A Day in Kobe, Japan

April 7, 2020

During our trip to the Kansai region, Kobe was a city that I was really wanting to explore! Kobe is smaller than Tokyo and Osaka, so it doesn’t receive much international attention, except for its world-famous, mouthwatering Kobe beef! However, I personally really enjoyed our day trip here! There was a lot less tourists here, and felt like a breath of fresh air from the crowds of Osaka and Kyoto.

We travelled to Kobe from Osaka via a regular train which took roughly a hour. You can also take a Shinkansen which is faster, but it would cost a lot more. Our friend took a plane from Tokyo and met us in Kobe. Since he had limited time, a domestic flight was a lot faster than taking the Shinkansen from Tokyo.

We were in Kobe from the morning until evening! Here was our itinerary for the day:

Meriken Park: We started our day by walking around Meriken Park, towards the harbour. The photogenic Kobe Port Tower is located here, as well as a big Kobe sign that would make for a nice souvenir photo. The skies were blue and sunny, so it was a pleasant walk around this small area.

We also saw a small ferry terminal, and a boat offering tours around the harbour!

Harbourland: A quick 10 minute walk along the same path as Meriken Park, is Harbourland. There are some malls here to do some shopping as well. We walked around the path outside and took some pretty photos of the ferris wheel.

Lunch at Steakhouse Zen: You can’t go to Kobe and not try Kobe steak. Our Japanese friend knew a local, who recommended Steakhouse Zen to us. We came during lunch so the prices are a bit cheaper, but I will warn you that Kobe beef is not cheap!

The quality of the beef is unparalleled and unlike any steak you will ever eat. As expected, the beef was mouthwatering, melted in our mouth, and super delicious. We ordered a lunch set, which also came with rice, soup, veggies, and dessert.

The cherry on top of a perfect lunch was that Steakhouse Zen is located on a higher floor of a building complex above the train station, so you get a beautiful view while eating Kobe steak. To our right, were buildings and the water peeking out. To the left, was greenery and mountains (including Mt. Rokko, our next destination!).

Mount Rokko and the Kobe Nunobiki Herb Gardens: After lunch, we walked to the base of Mount Rokko, next to Shin-Kobe Station. We took the cable car to the peak of the mountain.

The ride up in the cable car was beautiful and we also saw Nunobiki Waterfall from above. Alternatively, you could also hike up the mountain but we wanted to spare our tired feet when possible.

Atop of Mount Rokko is the Kobe Nunobiki Herb Garden. The Nunobiki Herb Garden is a really pretty, calm area where guests can see many different types of herbs, flowers, and greenery. There is no entrance fee to the garden.

You start at the top of Mount Rokko and can walk down the mountain to see the different types of vegetables and herbs that they grow here. Unfortunately we came during winter so the trees and leaves were bare, but I still found it to be very beautiful and calming here. I can only imagine how breathtaking it would be during sakura season!

Foot soak atop Mt Rokko: One of our highlights of the day was the herbal foot soak. For 100 yen, guests can soak their feet in a hot, herbal bath made with fresh herbs from the garden. The foot soak has a beautiful view overlooking Kobe. We ended up spending a hour chatting, just enjoying the view, and enjoying the hot water relaxing our feet.

There are also hammocks at the herb garden! It was a bit too chilly to fully enjoy in the winter time though.

City Loop Bus: After our relaxing visit to Mt Rokko and the Kobe Nunobiki Herb Garden, our friend (tour guide/translator hehe) suggested that we take the City Loop bus back to the Harbourland area for dinner.

The City Loop bus stops at all major and recommended Kobe attractions. This was a great suggestion because we were able to see other areas of Kobe instead of being in an underground train!

Harbourland at night: We were thinking of going on the sunset cruise, but we spent too long relaxing at the foot soak at Mount Rokko and missed the sailing time. Oops! But no regrets because that foot soak was amazing. Anyways, I would recommend the sunset cruise if you have time.

We ended up walking around Harbourland a bit more, and took some pictures of the night landscape. You could also take this time to shop around Habourland.

Dinner: Our friend suggested Vietnamese food for dinner! It was my first time having Vietnamese food in Japan. We went to Thang Cafe Motomachi which was a short walk from Harbourland.

Compared to Canadian Vietnamese restaurants, the noodles were thicker and chewier. The main distinction was that the pho broth was very gingery so that may be a good or bad thing depending if you like ginger or not.

Overall, it was a very fun day in Kobe. We left very satisfied with the sights that we saw and the city left a great impression on us. The weather was beautiful the whole day as well. Kobe, you were great!

Osaka Eats: Top Five

February 23, 2020

Last month, the fiance and I went back to Japan for vacation! This time, we went to the Kansai region, which includes Osaka, Kyoto, Kobe, and Himeji. With the exception of Kyoto for 3 days, we stayed in Osaka for the two weeks of the trip. This post will contain the top five places we ate at in Osaka! I also did a similar post for Tokyo eats, if you’re interested in reading that as well.

The area we stayed in was Namba so most of the restaurants will be around here. Namba is one of the central hubs in Osaka known for their food and shopping.

Osaka is nicknamed ‘Japan’s kitchen’ because they have the most amazing food. Takoyaki, okinomoyaki, and kushikatsu were all invented in Osaka!

1) Kushikatsu Hyotan: Our absolutely favourite restaurant of the trip. We went here three times because we couldn’t get enough! They serve kushikatsu, which is deep fried meat or veggies served on a skewer.

The kushikatsu breading is not like tempura breading. Tempura breading is flakier and has a softer crunch, whereas kushikatsu batter contains breadcrumbs and has a harder crunch. Kushikatsu batter is also thinner. I’m not sure if that makes sense because I’m no food expert, but that’s how I’d describe it.

I like both tempura and kushikatsu, but there is currently only one restaurant in Vancouver that serves kushikatsu so we had to eat more of this while in Osaka!

This is random, but they also had an amazing seafood yakisoba that we ordered each time to go with the kushikatsu! Equally as good as the kushikatsu!

The only bad thing here was service wasn’t that friendly, but clearly we didn’t mind because the food was so good.

2) Takoyaki doraku wanaka: There were a lot of takoyaki places in Osaka, especially in Dontonbori. Every few steps, you would come across a takoyaki stand. Rather than going to the first place we saw, we walked around Dotonbori to compare prices and see what caught our eye.

This was one of the cheaper places for takoyaki we found! A lot of places charged 500 yen for 6 pieces, but they charged the same amount for 8 pieces!

The takoyaki was big and so delicious! The batter was so flavourful. A bonus about this place was that they have a two floor seating area inside, so you could enjoy it in peace!

In Japan, it is considered rude to eat and walk at the same time and there are many signs telling you not to, so people usually stand and eat before carrying on.

3) Naruto Taiyaki Hompo: The fiance discovered this place during the second half of our trip. We wish we discovered this sooner! A bonus was that this was only a block from our hotel, on the way back to the train station!

The taiyaki here was AMAZING. They make it fresh in front of you, so it is served piping hot. The outside was crispy, while the inside was filled very generously with your choice of filling – I usually went with the custard, the fiance went with red bean. The best dessert to end our night.

We also found out that this was a chain, so you can find stands throughout Osaka!

4) Torikizoku: We also love yakitori, aka grilled meat skewers! Our favourite in Osaka was Torikizoku. Torikuzoku is a chain based in Osaka that is known for their chicken skewers and cheap prices.

We did not know that an order includes 2 skewers! All the skewers are 300 yen (about $3.50 CAD) and it comes with 2 skewers! Such a good deal and the quality of the food was not sacrificed either.

If you’re not a fan of chicken, they also have other meat and veggies available. The chicken was full of umami flavour. Mouthwatering and delicious!

5) Mister Donut: Mister Donut is a popular fast food chain in Japan for donuts. I remember seeing Mister Donut in my textbook when I was learning Japanese in university, haha! So yes, I’ve heard of Mister Donut but we didn’t try it until now, and OMG have we been missing out!

Mister Donut is famous for their pon-de-ring donut (top right), which was soooo good. They were delightfully chewy yet airy. Think of a light, airy donut mixed with mochi.

My favourite was the strawberry pon de ring, pictured on the top right! It was like their original glaze pon de ring, but with a strawberry topping that tasted like Pocky strawberry. Their other donuts were amazing too! You can find Mister Donut everywhere. We mostly ate it at the food court in local shopping malls.

We found that Osaka didn’t have much to see in terms of sightseeing but made it up in terms of food. If you are a food lover, you have to go to Osaka!

On Yogurt

December 8, 2019

After having a delicious meal at TAKO, the fiance and I took a stroll around the area. We looped around BC Place and stumbled across On Yogurt.

I heard of this place but didn’t realize they sold taiyaki! During our Tokyo trip last year, we went taiyaki crazy. Since then, we haven’t had taiyaki in Vancouver and have missed eating it.

Apart from taiyaki, On Yogurt also sold rolled ice cream, which is not as popular in Vancouver compared to Asian countries. I’ve seen videos online, but never had the chance to try it personally.

Here was my chance to have taiyaki in Vancouver and rolled ice cream!

On Yogurt was carefully curated for Instagram. They featured a cute backdrop for photos and encouraged people to take photos of the ice cream rolling process. There were also some board games and cute artwork to look at on the walls. It was a small but cozy cafe.

Rolled frozen yogurt: I ordered a plain original rolled frozen yogurt. Taste wise, it was like a vanilla ice cream with a hint of yogurt taste. The original flavour was very smooth, creamy and enjoyable.

The frozen yogurt is scooped and then placed on a freezing cold metal plate. The plate freezes the frozen yogurt even more, thus allowing it to be rolled.

I was quite impressed that the rolled yogurt did not melt into a blob while I was eating it. It was pretty cool to eat frozen yogurt in rolled sheets! There definitely was a novelty factor to eating ice cream this way.

Strawberry taiyaki: The taiyaki came with some Asian waffle sticks, which reminded me of my childhood. It also came with rolled strawberry ice cream, which was delicious! The strawberry ice cream had so many chunks of real strawberry in it!

The taiyaki was flaky with an eggy taste, similar to bubble waffle. We found the taiyaki to be thin, and flakier compared to in Tokyo where their taiyaki was more chewy and doughy. Personally, I prefer the chewier and doughier taiyaki.

The taiyaki was also a bit messy to eat because of the flakiness. I’d come back for the rolled ice cream, but not the taiyaki.

All in all, it was a successful spontaneous visit to On Yogurt. Rolled ice cream is pretty cool and although it tastes the same, there is an aesthetic and unique element to it.