Japan for ages 10 to 75 - Trip report
Oct 1st, 2008, 03:17 PM
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Japan for ages 10 to 75 - Trip report
About us: Me (just turned 43), husband (41), daughter (10), husband''s mother from NY (75), husband's sister from CA (45). We have lived in Japan for 13 years, and is this was their first visit.
Itinerary
Day 1 - arrival in Nagoya, pick up by car and drive back to Kanazawa
Day 2 - Wajima day trip
Day 3 - Meet women's group for lunch Kanazawa
Day 4 - Kanazawa tour with Goodwill guide
Day 5 - Gokayama/Shirakawa-go day trip
Day 6 - Calligraphy, yukata, tea ceremony, lunch with women's group
Day 7 - Nara (Ryokan Matsumae)
Day 8 - Kyoto (Hyatt Regency)
Day 9 - Kyoto
Day 10 - Kyoto
Day 11 - Hakone (Lalaca)
Day 12 - Tokyo (Peninsula Tokyo)
Day 13 - Tokyo
Day 14 - Departure/We stayed one more night in Tokyo
Day 15 - Drive back to Kanazawa
Nominations and Random Data:
Best Hotel - Peninsula Tokyo
Worst Hotel - Ryokan Matsumae (dani everywhere...as in BUGS biting us while we slept)
Most interesting experience - Japanese style batik
Best View - City View in Roppongi Hills
Most delicious meal - dinner at Lalaca
Number of ice cream stops at parking areas along the highway - 9?
Smelliest snack food - Squid on a stick
Most important coffee question - "Do they have decaf?"
Amount of money spent on tolls - ¥46,800
Amount of money spent on gas - ¥40,000
Amount train tickets would have cost for the same trip - ¥52,900 per adult, ¥26,500 per child. MIL and SIL could have used JR Passes for the week of travel but we would still have had to pay full fare. Driving was cheaper and easier given MIL's age, condition and luggage.
Number of traffic jams during the two weeks - 1
Number of minutes delay it caused - 10
Road with the most curves - from Gotemba to Gora
Things to do differently next time -
1. Spend 2 nights in Hakone.
2. Buy better futon for use at home.
3. Schedule more down time.
4. Spend 2 nights in Nara.
5. Spend a night or two in Uji.
6. Have someone else who can drive besides me.
7. Update maps in navigation system.
8. Get ETC system for tolls (easy and you get a discount if you do it right).
9. Do more hands on type activities.
10. Stay at a nicer place in Nara.
Itinerary
Day 1 - arrival in Nagoya, pick up by car and drive back to Kanazawa
Day 2 - Wajima day trip
Day 3 - Meet women's group for lunch Kanazawa
Day 4 - Kanazawa tour with Goodwill guide
Day 5 - Gokayama/Shirakawa-go day trip
Day 6 - Calligraphy, yukata, tea ceremony, lunch with women's group
Day 7 - Nara (Ryokan Matsumae)
Day 8 - Kyoto (Hyatt Regency)
Day 9 - Kyoto
Day 10 - Kyoto
Day 11 - Hakone (Lalaca)
Day 12 - Tokyo (Peninsula Tokyo)
Day 13 - Tokyo
Day 14 - Departure/We stayed one more night in Tokyo
Day 15 - Drive back to Kanazawa
Nominations and Random Data:
Best Hotel - Peninsula Tokyo
Worst Hotel - Ryokan Matsumae (dani everywhere...as in BUGS biting us while we slept)
Most interesting experience - Japanese style batik
Best View - City View in Roppongi Hills
Most delicious meal - dinner at Lalaca
Number of ice cream stops at parking areas along the highway - 9?
Smelliest snack food - Squid on a stick
Most important coffee question - "Do they have decaf?"
Amount of money spent on tolls - ¥46,800
Amount of money spent on gas - ¥40,000
Amount train tickets would have cost for the same trip - ¥52,900 per adult, ¥26,500 per child. MIL and SIL could have used JR Passes for the week of travel but we would still have had to pay full fare. Driving was cheaper and easier given MIL's age, condition and luggage.
Number of traffic jams during the two weeks - 1
Number of minutes delay it caused - 10
Road with the most curves - from Gotemba to Gora
Things to do differently next time -
1. Spend 2 nights in Hakone.
2. Buy better futon for use at home.
3. Schedule more down time.
4. Spend 2 nights in Nara.
5. Spend a night or two in Uji.
6. Have someone else who can drive besides me.
7. Update maps in navigation system.
8. Get ETC system for tolls (easy and you get a discount if you do it right).
9. Do more hands on type activities.
10. Stay at a nicer place in Nara.
Oct 1st, 2008, 04:06 PM
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It was great to meet you in Tokyo, Kim. Belated B-day Greetings again ! I forgot to tell you that I almost missed my train home. Got on the 2nd to the last one from Ikebukuro at 1224AM & was a stop short of home. Thank God for safe taxis at 130AM.
It's been over a year since we had the ETC reader installed in our car & it's been a convenience when we travel. They also give you a 50% discount past 10PM on all tolls.
Looking forward to the rest of your report. Much to glean from your adventures this past week. Till the next time we meet .........
It's been over a year since we had the ETC reader installed in our car & it's been a convenience when we travel. They also give you a 50% discount past 10PM on all tolls.
Looking forward to the rest of your report. Much to glean from your adventures this past week. Till the next time we meet .........
Oct 1st, 2008, 07:37 PM
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We drove to Nagoya from Kanazawa to pick up our guests at the airport. We took the new Tokai Hokuriku expressway, which is said to cut 1/2 an hour off of the trip. We found that it took the same amount of time as the Hokuriku expressway, but cost a bit less. It is not yet a true highway as in many places it is still a 2 lane road (one lane each direction). It is a real timesaver when driving between Kanazawa and Takayama, though.
We checked into the Nagoya Hilton executive floor for the night, enjoyed cocktails and snacks, after which it was too late to have restaurant dinner in the hotel, so rather than go out, Rich and Teaghan ordered room service and I went to sleep.
Next morning, we enjoyed a nice lounge breakfast (which although still nice has gone a bit downhill since our last stay), and a long swim in the pool. We headed out to the airport by car at about 1:00 to meet MIL and SIL on a 2:00 arrival from SFO. Drive to the airport was a breeze, no traffic, no trouble with understanding where to go.
The drive back to Kanazawa started rough. The roads have changed since our navigation system maps were updated, and therefore we found ourselves driving in space according to the map, and then found ourselves in downtown Nagoya...which is what I get for a) being too cheap to upgrade the maps this year and b) believing the navigation system could be giving me correct directions in spite of my driving on a non-existent road. Lessons learned...upgrade maps, and don''t always assume the signs are wrong because the navigation system says differently.
About halfway to Kanazawa, we stopped at a parking area across from a big dairy farm. No surprise to see that the parking area specializes in sales of milk and ice cream from that very farm. Ice cream was "milk" flavor there, and very good. We also enjoyed two giant takoyaki, about the size of a softball each.
Got home to Kanazawa and our guests were hit hard by jet lag so they went to bed pretty much right away. I was glad that they could experience jet lag in a powerful needing sleep kind of way, as anyone who has not experienced that can't really understand at all why the thought of dinner induces nausea or why getting out of bed, even at noon New York time, is almost impossible for someone whose body clock is set to Japan time.
Next day, we were up early to head to Wajima for the morning market. This is when we realized that one shower for 5 people was going to make getting out of the house before lunch every day a challenge.
We checked into the Nagoya Hilton executive floor for the night, enjoyed cocktails and snacks, after which it was too late to have restaurant dinner in the hotel, so rather than go out, Rich and Teaghan ordered room service and I went to sleep.
Next morning, we enjoyed a nice lounge breakfast (which although still nice has gone a bit downhill since our last stay), and a long swim in the pool. We headed out to the airport by car at about 1:00 to meet MIL and SIL on a 2:00 arrival from SFO. Drive to the airport was a breeze, no traffic, no trouble with understanding where to go.
The drive back to Kanazawa started rough. The roads have changed since our navigation system maps were updated, and therefore we found ourselves driving in space according to the map, and then found ourselves in downtown Nagoya...which is what I get for a) being too cheap to upgrade the maps this year and b) believing the navigation system could be giving me correct directions in spite of my driving on a non-existent road. Lessons learned...upgrade maps, and don''t always assume the signs are wrong because the navigation system says differently.
About halfway to Kanazawa, we stopped at a parking area across from a big dairy farm. No surprise to see that the parking area specializes in sales of milk and ice cream from that very farm. Ice cream was "milk" flavor there, and very good. We also enjoyed two giant takoyaki, about the size of a softball each.
Got home to Kanazawa and our guests were hit hard by jet lag so they went to bed pretty much right away. I was glad that they could experience jet lag in a powerful needing sleep kind of way, as anyone who has not experienced that can't really understand at all why the thought of dinner induces nausea or why getting out of bed, even at noon New York time, is almost impossible for someone whose body clock is set to Japan time.
Next day, we were up early to head to Wajima for the morning market. This is when we realized that one shower for 5 people was going to make getting out of the house before lunch every day a challenge.
Oct 1st, 2008, 08:09 PM
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Wajima morning market was really busy with tourists because it was a holiday (Respect for the Aged Day). More sellers have souvenir type goods than fish and vegetables than in the past, as the area is pushing to increase tourist numbers. Over the past 10 years, the town itself has had a facelift, and there are now plenty of little shops and restaurants in a couple of areas of renewed buildings in town. In addition to the many minshuku in town, there is a new Route Inn right near the morning market that is inexpensive but good.
We browsed the market, with Teaghan heading off for her usual stops...a glass shop that makes beauttiful blown glass items like beads, jewelry, decorations, glassware and bowls. Then it is the chikuwa guy...he sells freshly cooked fishcake called chikuwa that are very good. She buys one every time she goes there.
After more wandering, she tells me that she absolutely MUST go to the senbei seller NOW...apparently the senbei lady goes home early...so off we go to buy senbei. This lady loves her job and you can tell. Every customer gets a bunch of senbei for free to eat right then, and if you buy a lot, you get a pretty much equal amount gratis thrown into the bag, too. All the while, she is chatting away, handing out samples to every passing person, and still managing to take care of each customer who buys some. Her senbei come in many flavors...walnut, pine nut, white shrimp, white sesame, black sesame...
Next it is off to the noodle shop for lunch. Food is nice, price is right. I have never thought about how difficult eating udon would be with a fork and not slurping...MIL attempted this, and had quite a time trying to get the noodles to her mouth before they slipped back into the bowl from her fork.
Wajima is famous for lacquerware, Wajimanuri. In Wajima, there is a place where you can experience making lacquered chopsticks or a lacquer panel picture. There are 3 things you can do. 1. Chopsticks with etched design finished with gold leaf powder ¥1500/set 2. Chopsticks that you paint a design with lacquer and sprinkle gold into it ¥1500/set 3. Panel that you etch a design into and color with gold and colored powder ¥3000/panel. Staff there are kind and helpful, and set up a table with chair for MIL as she can not sit on the floor Japanese style. A woman from Taiwan who is now married and living in Wajima works there and can speak reasonably good English.
Next stop Sojiji, for a view of the temple and to see its progress on repairs from last year's earthquake. Repairs are progressing really well. The temple grounds are beautiful and peaceful and there are few other tourists there, so we can enjoy the quiet.
Ice cream there is good. As usual, soft serve. Vanilla, matcha, or mix.
Dinner tonight at home, we ordered pizzas for the experience of it more than because they are good. The cream cheese special cheese pizza was indeed creamy and cheesy. The Hawaiian pizza was nice, and the other two were fine too. It's the price of pizza delivery that is staggering. 4 pizzas (1 small, 1 person size and 3 medium 2 person size) for ¥8000. Similar quantity and better quality in NY is about 1/3 the cost. But we know that, and still order sometimes for fun...but usually, we make our own.
We browsed the market, with Teaghan heading off for her usual stops...a glass shop that makes beauttiful blown glass items like beads, jewelry, decorations, glassware and bowls. Then it is the chikuwa guy...he sells freshly cooked fishcake called chikuwa that are very good. She buys one every time she goes there.
After more wandering, she tells me that she absolutely MUST go to the senbei seller NOW...apparently the senbei lady goes home early...so off we go to buy senbei. This lady loves her job and you can tell. Every customer gets a bunch of senbei for free to eat right then, and if you buy a lot, you get a pretty much equal amount gratis thrown into the bag, too. All the while, she is chatting away, handing out samples to every passing person, and still managing to take care of each customer who buys some. Her senbei come in many flavors...walnut, pine nut, white shrimp, white sesame, black sesame...
Next it is off to the noodle shop for lunch. Food is nice, price is right. I have never thought about how difficult eating udon would be with a fork and not slurping...MIL attempted this, and had quite a time trying to get the noodles to her mouth before they slipped back into the bowl from her fork.
Wajima is famous for lacquerware, Wajimanuri. In Wajima, there is a place where you can experience making lacquered chopsticks or a lacquer panel picture. There are 3 things you can do. 1. Chopsticks with etched design finished with gold leaf powder ¥1500/set 2. Chopsticks that you paint a design with lacquer and sprinkle gold into it ¥1500/set 3. Panel that you etch a design into and color with gold and colored powder ¥3000/panel. Staff there are kind and helpful, and set up a table with chair for MIL as she can not sit on the floor Japanese style. A woman from Taiwan who is now married and living in Wajima works there and can speak reasonably good English.
Next stop Sojiji, for a view of the temple and to see its progress on repairs from last year's earthquake. Repairs are progressing really well. The temple grounds are beautiful and peaceful and there are few other tourists there, so we can enjoy the quiet.
Ice cream there is good. As usual, soft serve. Vanilla, matcha, or mix.
Dinner tonight at home, we ordered pizzas for the experience of it more than because they are good. The cream cheese special cheese pizza was indeed creamy and cheesy. The Hawaiian pizza was nice, and the other two were fine too. It's the price of pizza delivery that is staggering. 4 pizzas (1 small, 1 person size and 3 medium 2 person size) for ¥8000. Similar quantity and better quality in NY is about 1/3 the cost. But we know that, and still order sometimes for fun...but usually, we make our own.
Oct 2nd, 2008, 01:32 AM
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I teach a group of 4 women ranging in age from 50-something to 80-something. They are great women, with enthusiasm for everything they do. When they heard that we had family coming, they insisted on having us for lunch so MIL and SIL could try real, homemade, homestyle Japanese food. They had been planning this lunch since April.
We brought some high quality sweets for a gift, and were excitedly welcomed. Introductions were made, and by the end of the day, the 4 women had dubbed my MIL "New York Mama", because she is a mama, and because the 80-something year old woman is called "Mama" by everyone.
They had prepared a feast, and it was all delicous. We had rice and miso soup and pickles of course, and the dishes included nikujaga (beef and potatoes simmered in soy), nimono (boiled dish, which was white beans, lotus root, burdock root, konyaku), chirashi sushi, tempura, takoyaki...and dessert, too. MIL and SIL also bravely tried nattou...which will never pass my lips.
The ladies all talked a lot, and they did really well with their limited English and my poor translation skills (when are you supposed to butt in to translate? I just couldn't get that right). Mama (the 80-something year old) plays tennis at 6:00 AM 4 days a week, takes 2 English classes, and is going to Tokyo and Egypt this fall. She is a ball of fire and I can only hope that I have half of her energy when I am her age.
After lunch, we had to leave because I had some work to do, but the ladies decided that we were going to come back on Friday to another house where we would learn calligraphy, wear yukata, and do tea ceremony. So that was arranged, and I returned MIL and SIL home. Dinner that night was totally not necessary.
We brought some high quality sweets for a gift, and were excitedly welcomed. Introductions were made, and by the end of the day, the 4 women had dubbed my MIL "New York Mama", because she is a mama, and because the 80-something year old woman is called "Mama" by everyone.
They had prepared a feast, and it was all delicous. We had rice and miso soup and pickles of course, and the dishes included nikujaga (beef and potatoes simmered in soy), nimono (boiled dish, which was white beans, lotus root, burdock root, konyaku), chirashi sushi, tempura, takoyaki...and dessert, too. MIL and SIL also bravely tried nattou...which will never pass my lips.
The ladies all talked a lot, and they did really well with their limited English and my poor translation skills (when are you supposed to butt in to translate? I just couldn't get that right). Mama (the 80-something year old) plays tennis at 6:00 AM 4 days a week, takes 2 English classes, and is going to Tokyo and Egypt this fall. She is a ball of fire and I can only hope that I have half of her energy when I am her age.
After lunch, we had to leave because I had some work to do, but the ladies decided that we were going to come back on Friday to another house where we would learn calligraphy, wear yukata, and do tea ceremony. So that was arranged, and I returned MIL and SIL home. Dinner that night was totally not necessary.
Oct 2nd, 2008, 08:49 AM
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Great report as usual Kim! I am loving all the details.
I can just smell the food through your writings that your 4 friends made for your family. What a feast! Love the part about nattou never passing your lips, lol. It takes an effort for me too but it's not the taste that turns me off its the difficulty of putting it in your mouth without it going everywhere.....you know what I mean.
Funny you mentioned Hawaiian Pizza. When rhkkmk was in Honolulu last week we were talking about that pizza and I mentioned that in Hawaii, Hawaiian Pizza's are very different than they are worldwide. For one thing here everyone has kalua pig on there Hawaiian pizza.
Aloha!
I can just smell the food through your writings that your 4 friends made for your family. What a feast! Love the part about nattou never passing your lips, lol. It takes an effort for me too but it's not the taste that turns me off its the difficulty of putting it in your mouth without it going everywhere.....you know what I mean.
Funny you mentioned Hawaiian Pizza. When rhkkmk was in Honolulu last week we were talking about that pizza and I mentioned that in Hawaii, Hawaiian Pizza's are very different than they are worldwide. For one thing here everyone has kalua pig on there Hawaiian pizza.
Aloha!
Oct 2nd, 2008, 09:38 AM
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Kim, I always enjoy your writing. How wonderful that you have now lived in Japan for 13 years. Maybe you are now fluent in Japanese.
I am thorougly enjoying your description of the experiences of your guests. The food details are really very well written.
So, encouraging you to write more details.
Interested in finding out what you are teaching as you have mentioned earlier.
Also, always like to find out what kind of stuff your guests purchased in Japan to bring back to the US.
Lastly, what were some of the items you may have requested them to bring back to you from the US to Japan.
I love Japan and its culture and you are very helpful in writing often and sharing so many tips and ideas.
Looking forward to more.
I am thorougly enjoying your description of the experiences of your guests. The food details are really very well written.
So, encouraging you to write more details.
Interested in finding out what you are teaching as you have mentioned earlier.
Also, always like to find out what kind of stuff your guests purchased in Japan to bring back to the US.
Lastly, what were some of the items you may have requested them to bring back to you from the US to Japan.
I love Japan and its culture and you are very helpful in writing often and sharing so many tips and ideas.
Looking forward to more.
Oct 3rd, 2008, 03:20 AM
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The next day, Wednesday, MIL and SIL were on their own, as T had school (she has to go sometimes), and Rich and I both needed to work.
Another group that I teach has a few members who are Goodwill Guides. They offer English language guide services free of charge to tourists. They must be booked ahead, and are not always available, but we were able to get one for the day.
Mr. M had his wife drive chauffeur style, and my MIL and SIL started out the day in the Higashichaya, a picturesque neighborhood that still looks like it did years ago. You can go inside a couple of chayas (traditional tea houses) where you may have seen geisha perform. There are two very good gold leaf workshops/retail shops, several very good Japanese sweets shops, a few restaurants, some coffee/tea shops. Mostly it is a pretty neighborhood to wander, and if you are fit, you can go up the hill in the back (Higashiyama) and see a nice view of the city and some very posh and elite restaurants. Higashiyama is a serious walk though, and not for anyone unfit.
Next they visited Kenrokuen. It is one of the 3 top gardens in Japan, and is beautiful in every season. Although they had hoped to also visit the villa Seisonkaku, it was Wednesday, so it was closed.
They lunched at the western style restaurant at the Tokyu Excel hotel in Kohrimbo. As with the Goodwill guide system, they treated Mr. M to lunch. They told me the lunch was great, and the price was good at ¥1200 per person.
After lunch, they wandered the samurai district and went into the one house there that is open to the public. The samurai district is located behind the Tokyu hotel and Kohrimbo 109 shopping center...you'll know you are there by the high walls topped with grass rope like covering that line the windy streets. The streets are intentionally windy to allow the samurai to disappear more easily when being pursued....they could round a corner and duck into a house and be out of sight easily. As Kanazawa has never been bombed, the street configuration here has not changed, and that is why it is so easy to get lost in the older parts of town.
Tired after the wanderings, they returned home by taxi.
Dinner this night was delivery from our local noodle/set meal/donburi shop. The menu has something for everyone, with all types of udon, soba, ramen, sets that come with a variety of main dishes and with rice, soup and pickles, curry, donburi of various types...and all very cheap. Dinner for 4 was ¥3000, delivered in 20 minutes by the owner on a scoooter carrying a metal box holding the food in one hand while he rides, in glass bowls that we wash and return to the shop in the morning by putting them all in the metal box and setting it outside of our door for him to pick up at his leisure, always before lunch time.
Another group that I teach has a few members who are Goodwill Guides. They offer English language guide services free of charge to tourists. They must be booked ahead, and are not always available, but we were able to get one for the day.
Mr. M had his wife drive chauffeur style, and my MIL and SIL started out the day in the Higashichaya, a picturesque neighborhood that still looks like it did years ago. You can go inside a couple of chayas (traditional tea houses) where you may have seen geisha perform. There are two very good gold leaf workshops/retail shops, several very good Japanese sweets shops, a few restaurants, some coffee/tea shops. Mostly it is a pretty neighborhood to wander, and if you are fit, you can go up the hill in the back (Higashiyama) and see a nice view of the city and some very posh and elite restaurants. Higashiyama is a serious walk though, and not for anyone unfit.
Next they visited Kenrokuen. It is one of the 3 top gardens in Japan, and is beautiful in every season. Although they had hoped to also visit the villa Seisonkaku, it was Wednesday, so it was closed.
They lunched at the western style restaurant at the Tokyu Excel hotel in Kohrimbo. As with the Goodwill guide system, they treated Mr. M to lunch. They told me the lunch was great, and the price was good at ¥1200 per person.
After lunch, they wandered the samurai district and went into the one house there that is open to the public. The samurai district is located behind the Tokyu hotel and Kohrimbo 109 shopping center...you'll know you are there by the high walls topped with grass rope like covering that line the windy streets. The streets are intentionally windy to allow the samurai to disappear more easily when being pursued....they could round a corner and duck into a house and be out of sight easily. As Kanazawa has never been bombed, the street configuration here has not changed, and that is why it is so easy to get lost in the older parts of town.
Tired after the wanderings, they returned home by taxi.
Dinner this night was delivery from our local noodle/set meal/donburi shop. The menu has something for everyone, with all types of udon, soba, ramen, sets that come with a variety of main dishes and with rice, soup and pickles, curry, donburi of various types...and all very cheap. Dinner for 4 was ¥3000, delivered in 20 minutes by the owner on a scoooter carrying a metal box holding the food in one hand while he rides, in glass bowls that we wash and return to the shop in the morning by putting them all in the metal box and setting it outside of our door for him to pick up at his leisure, always before lunch time.
Oct 3rd, 2008, 03:34 AM
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A couple of answers to questions...
Souvenirs to bring to the US - Kanazawa is famous for Kutaniyaki, or Kutani pottery, and many people buy some to take home.
What we want from the US - Chai tea bags, Head and Shoulders shampoo, Pledge wipes.
Peninsula Tokyo - short report, it was very good and we were treated exceptionally well. Not sure if they treat everyone that way, or if they knew we had many stays at the Peninsula Bangkok, or if they give special treatment in addition to the perks you get for booking via a Virtuoso agent, or if they treat you better if you book spa treatments and order birthday cakes a couple of weeks before check in. For whatever reason, we had it good there. Long report coming up last, as we ended our trip there.
Souvenirs to bring to the US - Kanazawa is famous for Kutaniyaki, or Kutani pottery, and many people buy some to take home.
What we want from the US - Chai tea bags, Head and Shoulders shampoo, Pledge wipes.
Peninsula Tokyo - short report, it was very good and we were treated exceptionally well. Not sure if they treat everyone that way, or if they knew we had many stays at the Peninsula Bangkok, or if they give special treatment in addition to the perks you get for booking via a Virtuoso agent, or if they treat you better if you book spa treatments and order birthday cakes a couple of weeks before check in. For whatever reason, we had it good there. Long report coming up last, as we ended our trip there.
Oct 3rd, 2008, 07:27 AM
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Speaking of things that people bring us from the US........funny how Kim mentioned Head & Shoulder Shampoo.
KT's uncle was visiting from HI last week & I saw Kim after we had our last dinner out in the city. Here is a photo of the 29" suitcase & the gifts he brought for us:
http://www.new.facebook.com/photo.ph...;id=1246260702
It contained Selsun Blue shampoo, packs of tortillas, macadamia cookies, nuts, chocolates, Kona coffee, US made cereal, boxed cake & brownie mixes, cake frosting, Board shorts, T Shirts, herbal teas & a bit more.
The same suitcase was full of things we bought for him & his GF & their grandkids whom they were visiting in a few weeks. I gave her & the grand daughter a couple of Kokeshi dolls, a boxed set of blue & white rice/cereal bowls & a blue & white serving platter. I usually buy out our local kids store of their Japanese Jimbei ( summer suits) which I give out to friends' kids or grandkids. They are really a hit with my crowd ! I sent a set to the 2 yo Grandson. And for the Grand Daughter who loves cats, an assortment of Hello Kitty items & Japanese made clothes & boots for the Grandson. We also sent Japanese candy . She had requested for Tokyo Banana, a banana cream filled sponge cake which he could only find at the airport.
KT's uncle was visiting from HI last week & I saw Kim after we had our last dinner out in the city. Here is a photo of the 29" suitcase & the gifts he brought for us:
http://www.new.facebook.com/photo.ph...;id=1246260702
It contained Selsun Blue shampoo, packs of tortillas, macadamia cookies, nuts, chocolates, Kona coffee, US made cereal, boxed cake & brownie mixes, cake frosting, Board shorts, T Shirts, herbal teas & a bit more.
The same suitcase was full of things we bought for him & his GF & their grandkids whom they were visiting in a few weeks. I gave her & the grand daughter a couple of Kokeshi dolls, a boxed set of blue & white rice/cereal bowls & a blue & white serving platter. I usually buy out our local kids store of their Japanese Jimbei ( summer suits) which I give out to friends' kids or grandkids. They are really a hit with my crowd ! I sent a set to the 2 yo Grandson. And for the Grand Daughter who loves cats, an assortment of Hello Kitty items & Japanese made clothes & boots for the Grandson. We also sent Japanese candy . She had requested for Tokyo Banana, a banana cream filled sponge cake which he could only find at the airport.
Oct 3rd, 2008, 08:09 AM
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Thanks KimJapan and bmttokyo for your lists of things to send to Japan and bring from there.
It is always good to know these things as we often have friends coming from Japan or when we travel there. Funny to note that dandruff shampoos are not available there.
I guess cake and brownie mixes are good idea as the flavors are better here.
Really enjoyed reading about all the activities and all the tasty foods. Please add more details as you remember.
It is always good to know these things as we often have friends coming from Japan or when we travel there. Funny to note that dandruff shampoos are not available there.
I guess cake and brownie mixes are good idea as the flavors are better here.
Really enjoyed reading about all the activities and all the tasty foods. Please add more details as you remember.
Oct 3rd, 2008, 02:38 PM
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Dandruff shampoo is available here, no problem. It's even made by P & G, just like Head and Shoulders. It is just different in some way, and Rich prefers the US version of it.
Cake and brownie mixes from the US are available in supermarkets and other food selling outlets in Kanazawa, so I would be surprised if one could not find them in other cities. There are also the mail order sources and Costco, too. Not really much that you can't get in Japan, so it is always hard for us to make a request for things when people ask. The shampoo, chai and Pledge wipes are the best we can manage to come up with.
Cake and brownie mixes from the US are available in supermarkets and other food selling outlets in Kanazawa, so I would be surprised if one could not find them in other cities. There are also the mail order sources and Costco, too. Not really much that you can't get in Japan, so it is always hard for us to make a request for things when people ask. The shampoo, chai and Pledge wipes are the best we can manage to come up with.
Oct 3rd, 2008, 07:28 PM
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--It sounds like your relatives had a really special introduction to Japan. Besides your excellent planning, I think that three generations traveling together can really touch peoples' hearts. I am curious to know what you ended up doing in Kyoto, esp did you and your relatives have any favorite things, especially gardens.
Oct 4th, 2008, 01:16 AM
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Agree with Kim that most items are available here in Japan- for a premium of course. The dandruff shampoo here not only cost $15 per 150 ml but it also did not work us. I bake a lot for my kids' friends using boxed mixes & our specialty store carries the cake & brownie mixes for close to $8 @ box.
Anyone familiar with the Filipino concept of Balikbayan boxes, (care packages), pasalubong (omiyage), will know that half of our luggage are gifts. KT's uncle was set on bringing that suitcase & I was more that happy with the Macadamia assortment that he suggested. He insisted that there was still a lot of room in his suitcase. I just made sure I requested for stuff we needed or wanted instead of him just bringing random stuff we won't or can't use or enjoy.
Keep the reporting going. The Lalaca looks like a great place to visit. Looking forward to what I missed out on the Kyoto Hyatt.
Anyone familiar with the Filipino concept of Balikbayan boxes, (care packages), pasalubong (omiyage), will know that half of our luggage are gifts. KT's uncle was set on bringing that suitcase & I was more that happy with the Macadamia assortment that he suggested. He insisted that there was still a lot of room in his suitcase. I just made sure I requested for stuff we needed or wanted instead of him just bringing random stuff we won't or can't use or enjoy.
Keep the reporting going. The Lalaca looks like a great place to visit. Looking forward to what I missed out on the Kyoto Hyatt.
Oct 4th, 2008, 04:20 PM
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It is only an hour by car to Suganuma village in Gokayama. Suganuma is a nice village to visit because it is very, very small. You can walk around it in 5 minutes. It is a group of about maybe 15 gassho (thatched roof) houses, and although it is small, it is ready and waiting for tourists.
The village has build two parking lots, one right beside the village and another above the village. The one above the village is cleverly connected to the village an elevator as well as by a walking path. This is a great place to visit for anyone with trouble walking or even a wheelchair, as in addition to the elevator, the village itself is paved and flat.
There is a museum housed in two gassho houses. One is the gun powder museum...gun powder production was the main industry here years ago. The other is a daily life exhibit. The fee (forget how much, maybe ¥500 per person?) covers both buildings. Very little English information, but the museum staff is happy to speak with you in so-so English if you have questions. There is also an English language brochure.
The rest of the village is a few homes, a tea house, a few souvenir shops and a couple of restaurants. When we visit, we always get gohei mochi, which is slightly pounded rice formed into a patty shape around a popsicle stick, grilled and brushed with sweet miso. We think the gohei mochi here is the best we've had. They also make local beer that is excellent, so we also buy a few bottles of that to take home.
Next stop is Shirakawa-go, about a 30 minute drive by secondary road, or 15 minutes by highway. Shirakawa-go is the biggest of the gassho villages in the area and the most developed for tourists. If you visit, weekdays and early or late are best for avoiding crowds.
Shirakawa-go can be a whole day, at least, if you want to see everything. There is an open air museum that will take about half a day to see, but we've only been once. In the village itself, there are several houses that you can pay an entrance fee to go in (¥500 - ¥1000 per person? I forget) that are worthwhile. I like the Wada house best, but all of them are interesting.
There are shops galore, but most sell the same stuff, so unless you are a shopper, one or two will do. There is one shop that I love...on the main road there is a sake shop (only one, so you can't miss it), and they sell really nice local sake by the glass and bottle and are really happy to talk with you. Right next door is a bean snack shop, with all sorts of ball shaped snacks for sale...they are all delicious and we always buy some for snacking in the car.
When we visit S-gp, we always have lunch at a restaurant called Irori. As you enter the village from the main road, it is on the left at the beginning of the shopping street. The sign is only Japanese, but if you ask someone they can point it out, I'm sure.
Irori, the word, means open hearth fireplace, and this restaurant has a sort of one of these in a table with seats around it. There are also regular tables and tatami seating as well. It is family run and friendly. The menu is varied, and everything we've tried there has been great. Specialties include Hoba miso set (sweet miso grilled on a leaf with vegetables with rice, soup, sides), and yakitofu set (deep fried block of tofu, then grilled on a sizzle plate served with dipping sauce and rice, soup and sides). They make delicious croquettes, both beef and tofu. If you order beer, you get a little snack of spicy miso with mountain vegetables....delicious and surprisingly perfect with beer.
After lunch, we drive up to the viewpoint. You can also walk in about 10 - 15 minutes, but it is up a fairly steep hill (paved) and difficult if you are unfit. However you get there, at the top you are rewarded with a beautiful view of S-go and the background mountains. There is a setup there for photos with the date and location, your camera or theirs (their camera for a fee of course). There is also a restaurant/souvenir shop combo, and a snack bar type place that sells soft serve ice cream...vanilla and matcha I think...and yes, we got some and it was great.
On the ride home, we stopped at a new parking area in Johanna, about halfway between S-go and Kanazawa. This is a great place, and we stopped there specifically to buy butternut squash. In August, we had stopped there and were surprised to find butternut squash...the first time we had ever seen in Japan in all of our years here. We could not possibly pass by without trying to get more of it, so we stopped and hoped they would have some...and they did. We bought 3 big ones. It is somehow amazing that we can be so excited about something like that....but we are.
The village has build two parking lots, one right beside the village and another above the village. The one above the village is cleverly connected to the village an elevator as well as by a walking path. This is a great place to visit for anyone with trouble walking or even a wheelchair, as in addition to the elevator, the village itself is paved and flat.
There is a museum housed in two gassho houses. One is the gun powder museum...gun powder production was the main industry here years ago. The other is a daily life exhibit. The fee (forget how much, maybe ¥500 per person?) covers both buildings. Very little English information, but the museum staff is happy to speak with you in so-so English if you have questions. There is also an English language brochure.
The rest of the village is a few homes, a tea house, a few souvenir shops and a couple of restaurants. When we visit, we always get gohei mochi, which is slightly pounded rice formed into a patty shape around a popsicle stick, grilled and brushed with sweet miso. We think the gohei mochi here is the best we've had. They also make local beer that is excellent, so we also buy a few bottles of that to take home.
Next stop is Shirakawa-go, about a 30 minute drive by secondary road, or 15 minutes by highway. Shirakawa-go is the biggest of the gassho villages in the area and the most developed for tourists. If you visit, weekdays and early or late are best for avoiding crowds.
Shirakawa-go can be a whole day, at least, if you want to see everything. There is an open air museum that will take about half a day to see, but we've only been once. In the village itself, there are several houses that you can pay an entrance fee to go in (¥500 - ¥1000 per person? I forget) that are worthwhile. I like the Wada house best, but all of them are interesting.
There are shops galore, but most sell the same stuff, so unless you are a shopper, one or two will do. There is one shop that I love...on the main road there is a sake shop (only one, so you can't miss it), and they sell really nice local sake by the glass and bottle and are really happy to talk with you. Right next door is a bean snack shop, with all sorts of ball shaped snacks for sale...they are all delicious and we always buy some for snacking in the car.
When we visit S-gp, we always have lunch at a restaurant called Irori. As you enter the village from the main road, it is on the left at the beginning of the shopping street. The sign is only Japanese, but if you ask someone they can point it out, I'm sure.
Irori, the word, means open hearth fireplace, and this restaurant has a sort of one of these in a table with seats around it. There are also regular tables and tatami seating as well. It is family run and friendly. The menu is varied, and everything we've tried there has been great. Specialties include Hoba miso set (sweet miso grilled on a leaf with vegetables with rice, soup, sides), and yakitofu set (deep fried block of tofu, then grilled on a sizzle plate served with dipping sauce and rice, soup and sides). They make delicious croquettes, both beef and tofu. If you order beer, you get a little snack of spicy miso with mountain vegetables....delicious and surprisingly perfect with beer.
After lunch, we drive up to the viewpoint. You can also walk in about 10 - 15 minutes, but it is up a fairly steep hill (paved) and difficult if you are unfit. However you get there, at the top you are rewarded with a beautiful view of S-go and the background mountains. There is a setup there for photos with the date and location, your camera or theirs (their camera for a fee of course). There is also a restaurant/souvenir shop combo, and a snack bar type place that sells soft serve ice cream...vanilla and matcha I think...and yes, we got some and it was great.
On the ride home, we stopped at a new parking area in Johanna, about halfway between S-go and Kanazawa. This is a great place, and we stopped there specifically to buy butternut squash. In August, we had stopped there and were surprised to find butternut squash...the first time we had ever seen in Japan in all of our years here. We could not possibly pass by without trying to get more of it, so we stopped and hoped they would have some...and they did. We bought 3 big ones. It is somehow amazing that we can be so excited about something like that....but we are.
