children's day

Thought these handmade carp were so cute for Children's Day a.k.a. Boy's Day...click on the photo to see them move in the wind.

Up the hill is Ikegami Honmonji, the largest temple of the Nichiren sect and this 5 story pagoda.

There are also lots of smaller temples as well as many cemeteries.

Many families had their own buckets for water for their family graves.

The buckets not only had their names but also their family crests on them.

Some families also used their buckets as makeshift vases for flowers.

This particular bucket was the temple's.

Also on the grounds of Honmonji is Shotoen, a beautiful garden with a very large pond and many tea houses...we look forward to seeing this garden in the Fall.

Lunch was at a soba shop called Koga.

I had their yakitori donburi with soba..980 yen.

Satoshi had their unatamadon (unagi donburi with egg) with soba...980 yen.

We both enjoyed our lunches, they were delicious and filling.

There are many sweet shops along the way to the temple, and we picked up some senbei from Hamaya.

Goma (sesame seed) and ginger (coated with a ginger sugar glaze).

This was the first time I've had ginger senbei made from arare (rice crackers), most times they are more like thin wafers coated with ginger glaze...these were spicy & sweet.

I'm sure we'll check out the other sweet shops in this area in time.

We also bought some takuan (pickled daikon) that was made for the temple.

The nice thing about exploring so close to "home" is that we went to take a nap after lunch then ventured to Kitsune & Hachimitsu for some pancakes...

Love their name..."kitsune" is fox & "hachimitsu" is honey, not sure what the relevance is but thought it was cute.

And how everything was "branded" with their logo.

I chose their dorayaki thinking it was teeny but it was huge!

Loved the sweet bean paste and butter "flowers".

Satoshi ordered their matcha with matcha sauce & vanilla ice cream.

Mega carbs and so worth it!

We'll be back to all of these places.

Koga Soba
4-20-6 Ikegami
Ota, Tokyo
Phone: 03.6410.2517
Hours: weekdays 11:00-15:00, 17:00-21:00 weekends & holidays 11:00-21:00

Hamaya
1-35-1 Ikegami
Ota, Tokyo
Phone: 03.3751.3257
Closed Thursdays
Hours: 10:00-19:00

Kitsune & Hachimitsu (UPDATE: 6/2020 no longer at this address)
6-31-3 Ikegami
Ota, Tokyo
Phone: 03.3752.8155
Closed Mondays
Hours: Tuesdays-Fridays 11:00-16:00, Weekends & Holidays 11:00-20:00

greenery day

May 4 was Midori no Hi or Greenery Day.

Mother Nature decided to wake us up super early (twice) with two teeny earthquakes...

After breakfast, we went to check out Senzokuike Park.

I learned about this park during the time we didn't have satellite television and I had to entertain myself with the local television programs...

This park is super huge and beautiful, we'll be back throughout the year.

We then went to Togoshi-Ginza, the longest shopping arcade in Japan...1.3 kilometers (0.8 miles).

Lots of businesses were closed for Golden Week, so we'll definitely have to go back.

Lunch was at Ramen Enishi.

Satoshi had their mixed bowl, which was topped with pork thigh and pork belly.

He chose his broth to be shoyu based. The other choice was salt.

He also ordered the special plate of toppings.

He said he enjoyed his bowl.

I chose the mazesoba...lots of noodles, hints of shiitake and lemon, this was also topped with a raw egg, some greens, puffed grains, a slice of pork thigh and pork belly.

Both meats were super tender and a little smoky.

This was super filling, but I really enjoyed the flavors of this bowl...we'll be back.

I really liked the Tokyu Togoshi-Ginza station too, so pretty with all the wood panels.

And to round out the day bonding with Nature, a hazy sunset with Mount Fuji.

Ramen Enishi
2-18-8 Hiratsuka
Shinagawa, Tokyo
Phone: 03.3788.5624
Hours: weekdays 11:00-15:00, 18:00-22:00, weekends & holidays 11:00-21:00

takakuramachi coffee

We found a nice coffee shop called Takakuramachi Coffee and shared their fluffy pancakes served with fruits.

Like eating air!

Satoshi likes that they play Beatles' music.

We want to try their lunch, so we'll be back.

Takakuramachi Coffee
1-22-16 Ooi
Shinagawa, Tokyo
Phone: 03.6429.9936
Hours: 7:00-23:00

bubby's

Bubby's isn't related to the one in Hawaii (I think) but is an American style eatery.

I had their buffalo chicken sandwich...bummer that their fries were limp and grossly oily.

I enjoyed the spiciness of the chicken and the bleu cheese sauce was nice and tangy.

I would probably try something else if I go back.

Bubby's
Futako Tamagawa Terrace Market 2F
Setagaya, Tokyo
Phone: 050.5571.7820
Hours: 10:00-23:00

this & that

The thing about living in a different part of Japan is that you get to see different varieties of fruits and veggies.

These cherry tomatoes were from Wakayama Prefecture and called Akatombo, super sweet!

Blueberries from Shizuoka Prefecture.

The berries were medium to small sized.

Tochiotome strawberries from Tochigi Prefecture.

These were so sweet and the hulls were thicker than the varieties we had in Osaka.

Looking forward to trying other varieties.

tako sunomono (revised)

One of the first things I "cooked" when we moved to Tokyo was this Tako Sunomono.

I used this recipe, and added some sliced myoga and red onion.

I got the idea from a sozai (pre-made food) shop that I like called Matsuoka.

Their version didn't have tako (octopus) in it, but had all the other ingredients.

Super easy and I think I'll be making the version from now on perfect for summer.

akihabara

It was my first time to Akihabara.

I think a long time ago this area was where you would go to buy electrical gadgets but nowadays I think it is where you go to buy anime and character goods.

I was looking for something to convert our old DVD player to be used on our high-tech tv...no luck...boo!

Lunch was at Menya Haruka, a Taiwan mazesoba shop.

Located in the basement of a building, the line was up the steps when I got there.

I'd say I waited about 30 minutes or so.

Bought my ticket from the machine and ordered the regular sized taiwan mazesoba, no raw garlic...850 yen.

When your bowl arrives, mix it well, letting the raw egg coat everything.

Overall, this was a bit too salty for me--I kind of wanted a little sweet-salty more than salty-spicy.

At the end of your meal, if you still have toppings left, ask for the "oi-gohan" and they will give you a spoonful of rice to finish up.

I was quite full, but asked for the oi-gohan because I didn't want to waste the toppings I had left.

I don't know that I would go back to this place, but I am glad I got to try them.

On the way back to the station, I noticed a place called "Chabara", inside there was Shokuhinkan which has local foods from all over Japan.

I picked up some items I've tried in the past, like the smoked mackerel and corned beef.

I also picked up two cans of taco meat by Okinawa Hormel for taco rice and some drip coffee pouches by Bankoku Coffee in Okayama.

Akihabara is a little far from where we live, but I wouldn't mind checking out this food shop from time to time.

Menya Haruka
3-13-7 Sotokanda, Tanaka Musendenki Building B1
Chiyoda, Tokyo
Phone: 050.5571.6519
Hours: 10:00-22:00

Shokuhinkan
8-2 Kanda Neribei
Chiyoda, Tokyo
Phone: 03.3258.0051
Hours: 11:00-20:00