Guest house and Apartment Tokyo

Uguisu: The Little Shoppe

“Zakka” means housewares or home goods, but that translation doesn’t do zakka shops like Uguisu justice. I went by the little shop, which sells a curated collection of miscellaneous, adorable, and well-made things, one Sunday with a friend. The shop is run by Hiki, a well-known Tokyo photo blogger, whose eye for style is reflected in her site and her shop. Uguisu is open Fridays, Saturdays, and Sundays, so if you’re looking for a nice handkerchief, some paper goods, or even a bowtie (bowties are cool) you should take a look!

Link: http://www.uguisulittleshoppe.com/

Azaleas, Overshadowed by Sakura

I get why sakura (cherry blossoms) are such a big deal in Japan. But in all the excitement over sakura, it’s easy to forget the many other beautiful flower blooming seasons that Tokyo and the rest of Japan has to offer. For example, azaleas! I noticed the bushes around my neighborhood were in full bloom in mid April and continued on into early May. Thanks to a tip from a friend, I went to see the spectacular azalea gardens at Nezu Shrine.

Dragon Ball Sweets

If you, like me, are a frequent patron of the convenience store, you probably noticed a line of Dragon Ball Z products hit the shelves recently. I can understand stamping popular characters on packaging, maybe even shaping certain food like them. But this little pink blobby guy crosses the line. [image: http://distilleryimage5.s3.amazonaws.com/350ecd04936411e2820d22000a1e8b88_7.jpg] [Majin Buu pudding -Ed.] He sort of reminds me of the Dragon Quest slime nikuman. No thanks.

before the trip 3

loooooooooooove these design!

soooo pretty!!!

i bought ALL these cute things for my siblings, but i wonder if they know how much i had spent on those this and that …

really … the receipts soooooo think might make you sick.

at least i did.

but they are so cool, i wish someone bought them for me as presents …

i am SOOOOOO afraid of planes, that is one of the main reasons why i almost never go back to USA.

念のため、i had this convenient delicious tofu kim chi thing again in some chain restaurant …

taste so good.

the day i came back to tokyo, this already no longer available …

before the trip 2

very cute kerokerokeropi file.

another waste of money on things that i probably will never use.

but the design, really was nice.

soooo cute, like back to the old days …

2 little things bought for my sister since she likes the white bear, and when i gave that to her she did like it …

i think i also bought one for myself.

this biiiiiig pillow, soooooooooo super soft …

i actually wanted to get the BIG WHITE pillow for snow white BB, however, when i tough this one, it makes me want to get both WHITE and the BROWN one!!!!!!!!

さしか main character, really unbelievably SOFT.

well, there are 2 babies anyway, right …?

so i bought 2, how expensive …

before the trip 1

this is the VERY first “all star” with “pattern” that i never bought my whole life. it was a little like “love at first sight”, even though the pattern might not be my VERY favorite, but oh well, it is not like we can choose it, right?

and right before i went to the airport back to USA for 2 weeks due to 用事、i went to the “DEMO” store in Narita, and i FOUND a pair of PINK shoes, just like “all stars”, but A LOT more comfortable and never gives me any pain at all … for ONLY half the cost of ALL STARS …

maybe from now on, i highly recommend ppl should seriously look around before spending money on ALL STAR ..

that is from TAMA, 2 miffys guarding the outside of the store …

how sweet … they sure have each other don’t they …

寂しくないね 。。。

確かに、for the last 3 days my friend stayed with me ALL the time and i was glad, but after my friend left, again i feel that loneliness sooo strongly … たまらない。

the little backpack that i got for bro’s daughter …

food

it has been a while. these are not the newest photos i have, but they were the photos with size that i do not have to trim before posting here.

the above looks good and it taste not bad, i think.

it is salmon. as you can tell.

recently, i have moved to a guesthouse that fit me a lot better.

however the closest by supermarket does not have as many choices as what i used to have.

this taste ok, a little too sweet for me.

due to the potential bird issues, recently i just completely quite eating chicken … very painful.

i guess tomorrow, i will have to stick with either noodles or beef … again …

kiwi … isn’t the above looks good?

wow, and yes of course, it taste good!

Highway Bus

Don’t get me wrong, I love the shinkansen. So efficient, so clean… but also, so expensive. I like to travel, but sometimes I want to spend my money when I get there, not getting there in the first place. Thankfully Tokyo offers a more affordable travel option through the highway bus. There are a few companies, but the one I’ve traveled on personally is the Keio Highway Bus [link: www.highwaybus.com]. When I took a trip to Hida Takayama, the round trip bus ticket was about half the price of the shinkansen, and more convenient, too, because it went straight there whereas I would have had to transfer if I took the train. And you still get the fun of watching Japan go by out the window.

What is “Macrobi”?

Macrobi, or macrobiotic food, is trendy enough in Tokyo that there are more than a few restaurants serving it. But other than trendy, what is it? To be honest, even after two years of frequenting macrobiotic restaurants, I’m not totally sure. Some of them, like Island Veggie in Hiroo, are totally vegan, offering fresh veggies and deli-style fake meats. Others, like Chaya Macrobi in Isetan in Shinjuku, are almost vegan…. except for the fish. Where did that come from?

Regardless of the iffy definition of “macrobi,” every self-proclaimed macrobiotic restaurant I’ve been to in Tokyo is delicious. If you’re looking for something new to try, and need a break from the heavy fast food ramen, see if you can find a macrobi restaurant of your own to try.

Hida Takayama

Have you ever been to Hida Takayama? It’s a little mountain town about five hours drive west of Tokyo. It’s known for, among other things, its old Japanese homes. There are several streets where “newer” old homes are lined up, and still lived in by townspeople today. They look very distinct but aren’t incredibly different from the basic structure of a home we’d think of today. The “older” old homes are in clusters, one near Hida Takayama itself and others you can reach by bus, are definitely from another time and way of life. They’re hand built from start to finish, before the era of construction machinery, heated with fire pits and topped with thatched roofs.

They’re beautiful, and also make me appreciate just about everywhere I’ve lived, no matter how cheap. If you have time, take a trip to Hida Takayama and see a little bit of Japan’s rural history.