kubota ice

At one of the supermarkets I go to, I found these ice cream bars, what the Japanese, especially Kansai (west Japan) people call, "ice candy"

These are made by Kubota Ice, a company in Kochi

What I like about these is that there aren't many ingredients in these, just milk, sugar and the fruit or "flavor"

Back in March I tried this strawberry & milk bar
 

and recently this matcha bar

So delicious!

I hope to try other flavors from this company in the coming months

mil's (final)

I told you about BIL telling Satoshi that they needed to make more changes to MIL's

It was about the same time when BIL was getting scammed

He lost his savings

And then he did something unthinkable

He stole from the company that he worked for and gave the money to the scammers!

Luckily the company did not press charges

Thankful that Satoshi’s company allowed him time off and to work from home/Kyoto in order to take care of things

Long story short, we had to sell MIL's

Because his name was also on the deed, Satoshi also received some monies from the sale, but needs to use this money to pay his taxes from the sale of the house

SIL divorced BIL to protect herself from any responsibility of BIL’s debt

Satoshi also cut ties with BIL so that we would not be responsible for any of BIL’s other debts

Before MIL's was sold, I had Satoshi bring the ihai (spirit tablet) of the ancestors, MIL & FIL to Tokyo

And the Kannon (goddess of mercy) that was on the butsudan (family altar)

A very sad adventure but lots of important lessons to learn from

I appreciate all the good mojo from family and friends throughout all of this.

this and that

Tokyo People: the guy with the sunglasses has his portable fan clipped onto the train pole...keeping cool
 

Kinda caught a glimpse of an Eurasian magpie. It was huge in comparison to the sparrows I usually see

Caught these two on the lanai the other day.

There was another one on the electric pole...

I don't mind except that they hangout but they also poop here and there on the lanai...boo!

Caught these two furry ones (can only see one) on the way to the DIY store

On the way back from the DIY store, I stopped into 7-eleven to maybe get a smoothie, but they had a big smoothie sale the day before, so they were all out of smoothies.

I instead got a warm chocolate chip cookie for the walk back home

Made lup cheong rice with the lup cheong I bought in Yokohama

Over the years that I've tried to make this, I think this was the best version

bought us some udon bentos from Marugame, one day for our lunch 

Their summer version has buta (pork) shabu and ume (pickled plum) okra...filling!

also got us some udonuts...kinako flavor

We went to Hamazushi one evening...during the weekends, the wait for a table or counter seat is krazy!

I think we waited for over an hour...

Since I wasn't really in the mood for sushi, I ordered other stuff...like mango & edamame

I did eat a couple pieces of sushi, but I also ordered cheese fries...

I made hoisin sauce chicken.

I was shocked to learn that raw tenderloin has more sodium than the brest?!

I simmered this instead of baking so that we could eat up the marinade too

I really like this building in Ginza/Yurakucho

We had a rather large earthquake the other day...it was quite "long" and our phones were beeping

It seems no one was injured, so that was good! but still scary!

Sanrio has the cutest mailers

Was lucky to take a video of Dr Yellow, the yellow train that checks the Shinkansen (bullet train) routes.

I had heard it was retired, but happy to see it.

The weather is still wonky, some days it is humid, some days it is blazing, some days it is cool, some days it is rainy

Hope you have a safe weekend.

single o

Been wanting to try Single O, a cafe from Australia

They have several locations around Tokyo, and there is one in Yurakucho

I tried their Ethiopia Hallo Beriti cold brew...fruity! delicious

Avo Show...toasted focaccia topped with avocado, pickled fennel, cashew "cheese", chili oil and some arugula & radish...loved the different flavors from each ingredient...1550 yen (tax included) for the foccacia and coffee

“beans & dreams”...I noticed they have carrot cake on their menu that I want to try...I'll be back

Single O

Lumine Yurakucho

Chiyoda, Tokyo

Hours: 10:00-21:00

*closed when Lumine is

made in yokohama

Every time I am in line at Union Supermarket, I have been interested in trying these sweets that are "Made in Yokohama"

Yokohama Caramel...these are actually made by Donan Foods who makes a lot of Meiji brand candies in Hakodate, Hokkaido…269 yen plus tax

They are kinda hard, kinda chewy, so it is probably best to let them melt in your mouth, unless you don't mind it sticking to your teeth

Blue Dal, a dalmation character with blue dots represents Yokohama

the blue is Yokohama's colors 

chocolate pieces covered in various white, light blue and dark blue chocolate shells

These are made by Shikoku Meiji…180 yen plus tax

These red shoes are actually milk chocolate and represent the story of Kimi chan. 

Her mother moved from Yokohama to Hokkaido to work there but could not bring Kimi chan with her.

She instead left Kimi chan with a church related group who would take Kimi chan with them to America

Unfortunately Kimi chan died from TB (tuberculosis) before going to America 

Apparently there is a statue of Kimi chan near the beach in San Diego, California. San Diego is the sister city of Yokohama.

There is a song that was written about Kimi chan called "Akai Kutsu" (red shoes), Satoshi could sing the song, but hadn't known about the story behind it

The chocolate is not made in Yokohama but by Akutagawa Seika, which we tried before…320 yen plus tax

Unfortunately none of these sweets were made in Yokohama...I guess I should've titled this post "made for Yokohama"?!

Still, glad we got to try these.

moon cafe & moon eyes

Lunch was about a 20 minute walk from Sankeien at Moon Cafe

I love the wide sidewalks and trees in this area!

 

Go around to the left side of the building to put your name on the waiting list 

You can choose between the counter, a booth or outside, we just told them whereever opened up first

While you wait you can check out the vintage cars 

And check out Moon Eyes, which is part museum, part knick knack shop and they also sell car parts too

It was blazing, so we were lucky to be seated inside

Satoshi had the small loco moco...he said this was close to the "real deal"...1430 yen (tax included)

1 scoop rice (under the patty & egg (look at that yolk!)) with brown gravy and mac salad

The reason we were eating here was because I saw their Honolulu Chow Mein on Matsuko's show ("Matsuko no Shiranai Sekai") which is similar to Fried Saimin...1540 yen (tax included)

I ordered this without rice or soup

A bit greasy, this had lots of spam, kamaboko & green onions...delicious! I love when the noodles are on the dry side

Kat had a lemonade with her lunch...495 yen (tax included)

Love the interior!

Satoshi had a cream soda....990 yen (tax included)

I showed Satoshi how to get a straw from the canister on the table

counter seating and condiments

the fortune cookie was junk...but the fortune had an important message...

Their butter mochi was similar to what we have in Hawaii, though I think this one was that butter mochi mix version not from scratch...770 yen (tax included)

The bathroom was something to see

Everything was a bit pricey...our total was 5225 yen (tax included) 

Still, I'm glad we got to try this place

If I'm ever in this area again, I'd like to try their mochiko chicken or their burgers

Moon Cafe & Moon Eyes

2-10 Honmokumiyabara

Naka, Yokohama, Kanagawa

Closed: Thursdays

Hours: 11:00-20:00 (weekdays), 10:30-20:00 (weekends)

sankeien

Saturday, we planned to have lunch in Yokohama, and since we were nearby Satoshi suggested we check out Sankeien (Sankei Garden)

But first, snacks...

we were kinda hungry when we arrived and decided to get a little something to tide us over until lunch

I chose a custard filled bread...so cute

Satoshi chose a katsu sandwich...so much for "little something", yeah?!

Clair is a tiny bakery on the way to Sankeien...glad we got to try these baked items

Lots of hydrangea and beautiful houses along the way

Even an interesting looking Korean restaurant...

Sankeien (Sankei Garden) is 175,000 square meters (43.24 acres) which was built by Sankei (Tomitaro) Hara, a successful businessman who built his fortune trading silk

Sankeien is made up of an Outer Garden and Inner Garden

The Outer Garden was opened to the public in 1906 and the Inner Garden was used privately by Sankei, now everyone can enjoy the property

Scattered around the property are historical structures which Sankei gathered from Kyoto and Kamakura and moved to this garden

Yokohama feathery people...short video here

Yokohama people...the garden keeper

Huge historical buildings

Beautiful views!

Lots of stairs

Even a 3 story pagoda

Lots of flowers and foliage to enjoy throughout the year

Even people taking photos for their wedding

It was a beautiful garden, I'm glad I got to see this

I think cherry blossom season might be beautiful too

I'll write about where we had lunch tomorrow

Clair

17-23 Honmokusannotani

Naka, Yokohama, Kanagawa

Closed: Tuesdays & Wednesdays

Hours: 7:00-18:00

*cash only

Sankeien

58-1 Honmokusannotani

Naka, Yokohama, Kanagawa

Open daily: 9:00-17:00

*admission