Leeanne's Travel Blog

Tokyo Gourmet Trip --Souvenirs

2009-12-09T13:33:00.000-08:00

Stuff we have brought home.

Tokyo Gourmet Trip --Day 9 Part 2

2009-12-09T13:31:00.001-08:00

Wednesday 20 May 2009

After the lunch, we had to pop back to the hotel straight away as the Limousin bus left the hotel at 3pm for the airport. We had booked the tickets and checked out already. So we just picked up our luggage from the reception at waited outside for the bus.

Our flight was on early morning tomorrow so we decided to stay in an airport hotel in Narita and visit the Aeon shopping mall ( with a big Jusco supermarket) at Narita tonight.

Farewell Tokyo. I'll be back.

After checking in at Holiday Inn Narita, we popped onto the free shuttle bus to shopping mall from the hotel.

On arrival, we headed to the food court straight away. I was so excited to find the branch of this chained Takoyaki shop. I planned to try it in Ginza yesterday but was so full that day hence gave it a miss. I got to try in today.

Gindako 築地銀だこ

Mister Donut again.

We finally got a chance to try the ticket machine at a Ramen shop.

Here we goes. We got everything we wanted and started on our dinner at a food court for the first time in Japan. Still can't understand why they don't have seating area in all the department stores food hall.

After a quick yet nice dinner, We did a bit shopping at Jusco and grabbed some stuff to bring back home.

Simon also got some pieces of cakes for breakfast tomorrow.

This has ended our wonderful and memorable trip in Tokyo. We love Japan so much that it's almost certain we will come back soon. I love their people, the food, the transport, the technology and everything else

Go to Souvenirs

Tokyo Gourmet Trip --Day 9 Part 1 ( Shinjuku)

2009-12-09T13:28:00.000-08:00

Thursday 21 May 2009

Today was our last day in Tokyo. A bit sad.

Finished the packing, we hit the tube to get to the Honda Welcome Plaza at Aoyoma Itchome (only 2 stops from Shinjuku on Toei Oedo Line) before lunch. Highlight would have been the Asimo demonstration. Unfortunately, we missed the previous one. It only took place 3 times a day and the next one would be too late. We checked out some of the Honda models and played on the riding simulator for a while then headed back to Shinjuku.

We then came to the Tokyo Metropolitan Government Building. A trip to the observatory on the 45th floor is a must and it's free! It overlooks the whole city. On a nice day, you might be able to see the Fuji Mount. Oh, the lift was very fast and made by Mitsubishi.

We could see the Tokyo Tower from here.

It's now lunch time and we headed to the building nearby. It's so exciting as we had waited for this lunch for days. The restaurant was located on 51st floor.

As we waited outside for our table to be set, the chef came out to take order from us. He spoke Chinese. Excellent. He explained to me the differences between each set menu and only one of them was Japanese Wagyu. It was the most expensive set but we got to try it. So we ordered a set of Japanese Wagyu and one set of Australian steak to taste the differences.

The steak on the left was Australian and the one on the right is Japanese Wagyu.

We were served by the same chef in a private room looking over Shinjuku. He first fried 2 giant Scallop on the Teppan. Incredible freshness. He then started to work on the crispy deep-fried garlic slices. These are a perfect match with the Kobe beef.

The view at the back was fantastic. Even better at night I suppose. We were first served with the Australian steak. The chef cut the steak into cubes effortlessly. They were actually quite tender, the most tender sirloin steak I have had.

Then comes the legendary Kobe beef. What can I say! It's a perfect balance of meat and fat. Every bites were full of oiliness and juiciness. To whoever will ask, yes they melt in the mouth.

Set menu B ( Australian sirloin with seafood)--4200円

Japanese Wagyu--10,500円

The bill came in a total of just under 150,000 ( £100). Expensive, but worth every penny.

Day 9 Part 2

Tokyo Gourmet Trip --Day 8 Part 2 ( Ikebukuro 池袋)

2009-12-07T10:39:00.001-08:00

Wednesday 20 May 2009

We didn't stay too long in Ginza before setting off to Ikebukuro (池袋). We found Haagen-Dazs in Ikebukuro station. I stopped to see if there were any special Japanese flavours. As I had expected, they did Green Tea ice cream. How could I possibly give it a miss?

Look at that. What a gorgeous colour. Like other Haagen-Dazs ice cream, very smooth and with a strong green tea flavour which I like. I hate those stuffs that claim to be green tea flavoured but do not taste like green tea at all except being green in colour.

Simon got this. I don't remember what it was. I think it's mango ice cream in cream.

Sitting on top of Ikebukuro station to the west is Tobu Department store (东武). In the basement is Tokyo's largest food hall with 2 floors and hundreds of stalls. My favourite section of course is the exquisite Japanese confectioneries.

On the lower floor are meat and delicatessen.

Wagyu beef again. They enjoy a lifestyle of massages and beer to get those marbles. We would try it on Tepanyaki tomorrow. Can't wait.

Bizzarrely, we didn't buy anything from the food hall. We were overwhelmed by the choices.

Matsumoto. Japanese version of Boots. They were all over Japan.

Hello Kitty shop.

Manga shops everywhere.

Saw KFC for the first time. I tried very hard to keep Simon from going in.

We came into Amlux, a Toyota showroom with 4 floors. Not as big as Mega Web in Odaiba but the biggest in City centre.

This was a Hybrid Synergy Drive game to test how green/economic your driving is and I FAILED.

Here comes Simon's favouriate section--the Fomula 1 section. The engine used in Formula 1, not sure which season though but it's a V8.

Bridgestone tyres slicks and wets were on display, as well as brake discs.

A picture of the floor panel (under tray) of a Forumla 1 car.

On my itineary, we planned to get to the Namja Town in Sunshine City to visit the Icecream city. Yet we were tired and hungry by this time and decided to give a miss. We realized that we hadn't try sushi on the conveyor belt yet. Therefore, we asked the lady at the information at Sunshine city for a recommendation and direction to the closet one. This was the one she recommended.

I noticed in the past few days that in Japan, Sushi on the conveyor belt was so cheap that you wouldn't believe it. In most of these restaurants, there was one single price for each plate from salmon to uni or Toro. It was for example 120 yen for each plate in this one.

Uni (sea urchine) sushi that melt in your mouth instantly, almost as fresh as those in the fish market.

Unagi ( eel) sushi. So generous that the eels cover the sushi rice completely.

Ikura ( salmon roe) sushi.

Simon fell in love with sushi in Japan.

So full we were now and decided to wander around Ikebukuro before popping back to the hotel. This was the Bic Camera building, a giant electronic store. I like the design of the building with the numbers on the huge "mobile phone" showing the floor directory.

Go to Day 9 Part 1

Tokyo Gourmet Trip --Day 8 Part 1 ( Ginza 银座)

2009-12-07T10:30:00.000-08:00

Wednesday 20 May 2009

After a light breakfast in our room today, we rushed to Ginza for the Kobe burger for an early lunch. The restaurant opened at 11am and we must get there before 11 to queue as the number of the Kobe burgers were limited every day (for lunch only) and they said that they were usually sold out in the first 10 minutes. Whether it's true or not, since we came all the way to try it we couldn't afford to miss it.

To make it even more efficient, I googled the place on google map before this trip so that I knew exactly where to go. Coming out of this station, the restaurant was only 5 minutes on foot.

It was 10 to 11am and there was already a queue. The second we joined in the queue, there were about 10 people behind us also joined in.

Gyuan 牛庵--銀座6-13-6

A few minutes later, the host lady started to take the order so that our food is ready by the time we are seated. The queue in front of us ( not a lot).

The queue behind us ( a long queue).

My Kobe burger set ( 和風ハンバーグ), 990 yen, excellent value of money. The texture was so soft that it didn't taste like a normal burger.

Served very hot.

Simon's Kobe beef set menu. 3500 yen. The most expensive set on the lunch menu and not disappointing. Very juicy. There were 3 different sauces for dipping. The one in the middle was awesome. I don't remember what that was though.

Very full now, we were back on the main streets at Ginza and visited the Nissan Gallery.

The Skyline was on display as we walked in. Simon had been waiting for a long time to see and get inside this car. The Skyline had a lot of small little gadgets that are often found in some modern day Japanese cars like the reverse camera, which is a good idea for all those short people that can't see out of the rear window. The Skyline was one of 2 cars in the showroom, so we didn't spend too much time there as the other car was locked up and on a stand. Upstairs was all of Nissan's accessories, range from small models, soft toys, key rings, jackets etc etc etc....the list goes on and on.

Wako department store. The iconic building of Ginza. Ginza's a luxury shopping area with heaps of department stores and designer boutiques. It' more pleasant to do shopping over here at weekends when some of the main streets are close to traffic.

The SONY building with eight stories of high-tech gadgets showing the newest products by SONY that could be available in the UK years later. If you like gadgets, it's a heaven.

Pictures were not allowed inside unfortunately.

It was actually quite a warm day today. After climbing 8 floors in the Sony building, we fancied some sweet. And I saw Fujiya. Perfect timing.

Ice cream with mix fruits and a cup of syrup to add flavours.

Simon's ice cream. Mouthwatering isn't it?

Go to Day 8 Part 2

Tokyo Gourmet Trip --Day 7 Part 2

2009-11-25T14:09:00.001-08:00

Tuesday, 19 May 2009

After lunch, we started to explore this old Tokyo area. This was the Kaminari Gate(雷門), the first of two large entrance gates leading to Sensoji Temple.

On the approach to the temple after entering the big gate, it was Nakamise Shopping Street , lined with numerous lively stalls selling traditional tourist souvenirs and local snacks.

Simon had been waiting to come here to buy the fortunate cats for days!!! I couldn't help but be amazed by the Japanese craftsmanship.

At the end of the shopping street was Sensoji Temple, Tokyo's most famous temple. A giant grass shoe hanging on the wall. A very friendly Japanese old man proposed to take a picture for us .

It's a Buddhist temple so is very similar to those in China. And I am not surprised to see the fortunate-telling box. For 100 yen, I rattled the box until a stick came out through a small hole. The number shown on the stick was 50 and I took a pre-printed sheet from the corresponding box numbered 50.

My fortune's good one.

Simon got number 81 and the paper shows "small fortune".

We were not keen on entering the temple. Instead we returned to one of the shops we had been in earlier.

Simon was spoiled with choices. Although it was a hard decision, he finally chose 2 fortune cats out of millions. He could have brought home more if there had been no luggage limit.

We then transferred to the Kappabashi street ( some people call it Kitchen Town) nearby. This is actually a kitchen equipment area and had pretty much anything that you might need to start and furnish a restaurant. But it has now become a famous tourist attraction for souvenirs.

I've always been fascinated by the plastic food that every Japanese restaurant displays outside.

Heaps of plastic models and they have every type of sushi you can think of.

Totally convincing bowls of ramen. We wandered up the street for a while then headed back to the hotel as we couldn't wait to drop our luggage in the hotel.

Out in Shinjuku again. This is one of many department stores in Shinjuku and is called "Isetan".

We will have first half of our dinner in this Yakitori Alley tonight. Yakitori ( meats on stick), a roasted skewer of bite-sized pieces of meat, usually different parts of chicken such as heart, skin, liver, tongue etc. The is the entrance to the small and famous yakitori Alley in Shinjuku.

Omoide Yokocho 1-2-11 Nishi-Shinjuku

We picked any one of the restaurant and order 2 drinks and a plate of this set with different part of the chicken to try. With the sit-down charge, it came to about 2000 yen. A rip-off for the first time in Japan but no regret as it was an experience. A warning: don't dress nicely if you want to come here as the area was so smoky that by the time I left my whole body smelt stink.

We then need to have the second half of our dinner. There was no way of us being full after just a few sticks of meat to share. They were more like appetizers. I found a Yoshinoya (吉野屋) just around the corner. Perfect! I always wanted to try that. It is a chained fast food restaurant that sells beef on rice (牛丼).

Wow. That was one of the biggest surprises. The beef was so tender that you could never imagine they came from a fast food restaurant. And the sauce was perfect companion. More importantly, the food was served hot literally 1 minute after we ordered.

My beef set with grilled fish (牛鮭定食). Just the right portion for me. I am not a fan of fast food. But I can take this every day. Magical.

The total of the bill was a pleasant surprise, came under 1200 yen. It was a perfect finish of the day.

Go to Day 8 Part 1

Tokyo Gourmet Trip --Day 7 Part 1 ( Hakone--Asakusa 浅草)

2009-11-25T10:30:00.000-08:00

Tuesday 19 May 2009

Simon woke up at 7am in the morning to enjoy the bath. So early! This is the morning view from the onsen. It's such a divine.

We were then greeted with breakfast. Breakfast was an equal banquet.

We had the rice for breakfast for the very first time. A bit strange though.

After the breakfast, we had a bath for the very last time before checking out reluctantly.

It was by far the most expensive stay at 72,00 yen. Was it worth it? Oh god yes as this essentially included a Michelin level dinner/breakfast.

I love every minute of it. By the time we left i felt so refreshed and rejuvenated.

When departed I was again amazed at the Japanese services. Our shoes were ready when we came to the entrance ( how did they manage to know which shoes belong to whom?).

Then the lady who served us breakfast walked us to the main street to see us off. She bowed until we disappeared!

We got on the bus from cross the road to Odawara, where we took the Shinkansen (World famous bullet train) back to Tokyo station.

The bus journey took about 45 minutes. It was quite a long time considering there was no traffic at all. But on every stop, the driver didn't set off until all the passengers were seated. And we also found that the drive had to keep on announcing something on the speaker ( in Japanese). During the 45 minutes, the time he was on the speaker must have been at least 40 minutes. I would have been thirsty to death if I were him.

By the time we arrived at Odawara station, there was 10 minutes left before our train arrived (Trains in Japan all arrive and leave on time). Fortunately we already had the tickets. We could have took the Romance Car to Shinjuku but Simon was desperate to try the Shinkansen and therefore we paid extra for the experience.

The train ran so smoothly that we didn't feel we were on a bullet train, but the views from the window told me that it was very fast. All the seat were in pairs and big in size with a lot of leg room which made it feel very spacious, but what was surprising was they all pointed in the same direction as the train was heading.

30 minutes later we were at Tokyo, 1 hour faster than the EXPRESS Romance Car. Yes, 1 hours early. When we got off the train, we noticed 2 women cleaning the carriages (not that there was any mess or litter left by the travellers) and they kicked a foot pedal on the side of all the seats and that would spin the seat around (so that it would face the same direction as the train is going).

We then transferred to Asakusa. By this time, we were quite hungry. And we had lunch at the following tempura restaurant.

葵丸進--東京都台東区浅草1-4-4

Sitting and eating on Tatami for the first time.

My tempura udon set menu.

Simon's Prawn tempura set (天丼). Both sets were about 1000 yen as far as I remember.

Go to Day 7 Part 2

Tokyo Gourmet Trip --Day 6 Part 2 ( Kinnotake Ryokan 金乃竹)

2009-11-19T10:17:00.001-08:00

Monday 18th May 2009

Getting off at Daigatake bus stop, it was in the middle of the hill directly opposite. But it took us a while to find as we didn't see the signpost. Here we go at the entrance of the Ryokan. It was so peaceful and quiet.

Kinnotake 金乃竹

Because of the name "金乃竹", bamboos were found all over the Ryokan for decoration. This was the reception. We took our shoes off before stepping in. On pressing the bell, the hostess appeared with a welcoming smile and said that they were waiting for us for a long time!

We were then taken to our room "HARUKA (遥)". There are only 10 guest rooms in this Ryokan and each room has different layouts and features. All of the rooms have a private onsen (hot spring bath).

Entering the room, the toilet was on the left. Again super high tech.

Our room was beautifully designed with 2 floors. The lounge and toilet were downstairs while the bedroom with the in-room onsen upstairs. The Japanese lady gave us a tour of the bedroom and confirmed the dinner time we wanted. Then the room was all ours. I couldn't wait but ran up the stairs to see the onsen.

WOW!!!! That was absolutely amazing! The view was breathtaking overlooking the mountains and greenery.

I wanted to jump in at once. There was a shower area on the left which was very convenient.

Next to the bath is the little dressing room with modern design. I like the glass tap. This area was cleverly separated from the bedroom with a glass door.

No need to bring anything. Like all the hotels in Japan, they had all the amenities you could possibly need. They were all branded skincare. Love them!

This was the super huge and comfortable bed.

To enjoy the whole experience of Ryokan genuinely, we also tried on the Yukata. This is the dinning area downstairs where our dinner and breakfast would be served. The view was equally amazing.

Simon looked like a Japanese in Yukata. Haha!

We then started our bathing immediately. For 72,000 yen a night ( about £500), of course we had to make the best of it. With the stunning views, the bathing/soaping was very very relaxing and soulful. That was such a unique and lifetime experience that it was worth every penny.

About 1 hour later, our own personal server started to serve our dinner in our room. She treated us with great respect and courtesy in traditional Japanese manners. e.g. bow everytimes she came in the room or went out of the room, showcasing the best that Japanese hospitality has to offer.

This was our dinner menu. Over 10 course Kaiseki meal which featured seasonal and regional specialties. We were spoiled rotten.

Every dish was presented so beautifully like a piece of art.

So creatively arranged that you don't want to ruin it.

Desserts. I don't remember what they were but they tasted wonderful and a perfect ending to our spectacular dinner.

The whole dinner lasted about 2 hours.

After dinner, we watched TV for a while then started our bathing experience again. I have lost count on how many times we had a bath on that night.

Go to Day 7 Part 1

Tokyo Gourmet Trip --Day 6 Part 1 ( Hakone 箱根)

2009-11-19T10:11:00.000-08:00

Monday 18 May 2009

I have been waiting for this day for so long. We were going to Hakone, a well-known natural hot-spring resorts with beautiful scenery and a view of the nearby Mt. Fuji if we were lucky enough. We would stay in a Ryokan( Japanese Inn) with private Onsen(hot spring bath) tonight. Can't wait....

We first headed into Odakyu department store to grab some lunch bites for later and this was a perfect opportunity for me to try the Tonkasu sandwiches from Maisen まい泉. They have quite a few stores across Tokyo in different department store food basement.

Out train was on platform 2, the 10:40 to Hakone-Yumoto (箱根汤本).

I had made a very good decision to have reserved to seats on the observation deck. With no extra charges, we had the best view ahead.

Time for some snacks. We were actually not that hungry, but couldn't resist the temptation. I couldn't wait any longer to taste the Tonkasu from Maisen.

What can I say! They were so tasty and juicy that it has become our biggest regret not to have come home with a few packs. They were all well packed.

Let's have some desserts. My chestnut cake was creamy with real chestnut on the top. It's not too sweat which is great, I hate over powering desserts.

Simon's strawberry cake with beautiful layers.

Got off at Hakone-Yumoto, we started the Hakone Loop ( travel route) by getting on the Tozan Bus to Moto Hakone Port, from where we would board the sightseeing ship. Here below was Moto Hakone Port. It was actually quite a warm day and I couldn't help trying the green tea ice cream cone. Wow, it was so creamy and smooth.

The cruise lasted 30 minutes and would get us across Lake Ashi to Togendai Port.

The cruise offered a wonderful mountain-ringed scenery. On a good day with clear sky, we should be able to enjoy the views of Mount Fuji from the lake. But we were not lucky enough because on the day, although it was nice and warm, it was yet very cloudy.

The captain!

At Togendai, we transferred on to the Hakone Ropeway, perfect to enjoy Hakone's panoramic scenery.

From this map in the car, we knew that on clear days, Mount Fuji is visible. Again, we were not lucky.

A very nice and friendly couple in the same car offered to take a picture for us together. They were so kind. And then they told us pointing at the back of the window that Mount Fuji was "there". But where?

We got off at Owakudani. From behind you can see the steam rising from the volcano. Actually it was thrilling to see that down below when were in the ropeway car.

Bubbling pools with a strong smell of sulfur.

A trip to Owakudani is usually combined with trying the black eggs which are cooked in the naturally hot water. The shells are blackened by the sulphur. I didn't like the smell so we didn't try them. But I like this Hello Kitty in black egg shape. So cute!

we popped back into the Ropeway for 1 more stop to Sounzan and from here we transferred to Tozan Cable car to Goria.

The cable car runs on a hill and we could see the degree of incline from inside the car.

From Gora Station we took the Tozan bus again heading to our final destination for today: Kinnotake Ryokan.

Go to Day 6 Part 2

Tokyo Gourmet Trip --Day 5 Part 2 ( Shibuya 涩谷)

2009-11-19T09:52:00.001-08:00

Sunday 17 May 2009

After dropping our stuff at the hotel, we set off again to our next stop Shibuya.

This is a prominent landmark of Shibuya--the large intersection in front of the station. It's the busiest pedestrian cross in the world. Crowds were coming from every direction at all time of the day. The landmark has been in featured in movie such as Fast and Furious 3 (Tokyo Drift) and Lost in Translation. The car chase in F&F 3 wasn't actually filmed in Shibuya as no way was the streets wide enough to do all those drifting and with the traffic level was so high, no form of racing can ever be done in reality.

Sitting on top of the station is the Tokyu Department store (东急). We couldn't help but headed to the basement again. It had now become my habit of wandering the depachika ( department food basement) in Japan as it is purely a sensory treat. My favorite section has always been the Japanese confectioneries.

What can I say! The cakes were simply works of art. This heart shaped cake was so enticing.

And this green slice. I so regret now that I didn't buy and try it. We were too busy taking pictures.

Gold fish?

Oh this, cooked Unagi(eel). At about 1260yen per rack, it's very expensive. But they were all beautifully cooked. Crispy skin and fatty texture. We came home with 2 packs ( they were well wrapped with foil paper). I wish we had bought more.

A wide range of Wagashi ( Japanese sweets). We got a smaller version of the green ones in the middle. They were valid for just a month and we finished within a week on return. Perfectly sweetened with fresh melon bits.

I think Japan offers the best customer services in the world. 10 out of 10 shop assistants smile and bow all day. The non-stop smiling must be very tiring. thank God that I don't work in Japan. But as a customer, you will be treated like a VIP. I saw this lady when serving an elderly woman actually coming out the counter and handed the box with a bow.

Shibuya is the playground of Tokyo's youth and Shibuya 109 is the centre of Shibuya's youth fashions. We didn't visit this building partly because I am not too keen on buying any Japanese clothes on this trip and also because we had to get to the restaurant on time as the queues were frequent for this one. Oh, but out of plan, I bought 3 pairs of Japanese shoe liners and they were amazingly comfortable yet stylish. Can't find any similar in the UK. Wish I had bought more pairs.

The shop on the right in the picture with yellow neon light is a Japanese version of Boots, which you can find all over Japan. I visited at least one store on every single day and of course I bagged loads of stuff.

We didn't spent too much time on window shopping as we must get to the restaurant early for the dinner. This restaurant was so popular that queues were frequent.

It's all you can eat buffet Shabu Shabu for only 1890 yen person for 45 minutes. If you go at lunch time, you can eat all you can for a mind blowing 1000 yen.

モ～モ～パラダイス (Momo Paradise)-- BEAM 6th Floor, 31-2 Udagawacho, Shibuya-ku (宇田川町31-2)

It's a pot filled with boiling soup , Thinly sliced beef or pork and vegetables are prepared and dipped in the soup. It's similar to Chinese "Hot-Pot".

Pork on the left and beef on the right. Once the plate was empty, the assistant gave us another plate even before we asked. Oh, and the sesami sauce was brilliant.

After dinner, we wandered around Center Gai (street), a pedestrain street lined with shops.

The iconic intersection is best viewed and watched from the second floor of Starbucks. This is a must do when you come to Shibuya at night. The photo was taken at around 10-11pm and still the place was crowded with people.

It's perfect to enjoy the view with a Mocha latte. I love this latte and I love everything to do with green tea. I wish they did it in the UK.

Go to Day 6 Part 1

Tokyo Gourmet Trip --Day 5 Part 1 ( Harajuku 原宿 )

2009-11-18T13:42:00.001-08:00

Sunday 17 May 2009

First on our agenda today was to go to one the must-see sites in Tokyo, the Meiji-Shrine 明治神宮. On our way to the station , again we couldn't help but popped into the food basement of Lumine department store. I bought one the bun in pink on the left in the middle section. Seriously, that was absolutely delicious with strong peach flavour. It was not too sweet. I wish I had bought more.

Came out of Harajuku station, we saw them. On every Sunday, young people gather around Harajuku Station and engage in cosplay ("costume play"). Pictures are welcome as it is regarded as the highest form of flattery.

Here is the iconic torii gate at the entrance to the Meiji Shrine. There was quite a long walk between this gate and the shrine. But it was a pleasant walk with trees on both sides.

Kimonos are fascinating.

The shrine is a sacred place and everybody was supposed to cleanse hands and mouth at this washing stone basin before entering the shrine.

Many women came to workship in Kimonos.

I planned to come to the Shrine on Sunday because there are many Shinto wedding ceremonies going on with the brides and grooms in traditional dress.

Much time was spent making sure everything is perfect. We waited about 15 minutes for the photographer to make sure this family was properly posed for their photo.

Many visitors will buy one of these wooden plates at the shrine and wrote down their wishes on it then hang it on this board. We didn't though.

Came out of the Shrine, there were now even more cosplay around Harajuku station.

They seemed to enjoy being taken pictures.

Harajuku is the center of Japan's most extreme teenage cultures and fashion styles. The focal point of Harajuku's teenage culture is Takeshita Dori (Takeshita Street). This is the entrance. The shop on the right with orange logo is Yoshinoya 吉野屋, a fast food restaurant which does amazing beef on rice (牛丼). We didn't try it today but will give a go on Wednesday night. I will go into it further then.

Wow, look at the solid mass of crowd. It's normal at weekends.

There were quite a few crêpe stands on this narrow pedestrianised street and Sweet Shop is one of the most famed. The following on display were all plastic models. The good thing about Japan is that they have plastic models of the food displayed in most of the restaurants, which has made this country so tourist friendly. Even though you don't know Japanese you won't find it difficult to order. Even the menus are full of pictures. Even better, the actual dishes usually look the same as the plastic models or as shown on the menu.

We bought one to share. I think it was strawberry and cream. It tasted a bit different from French crêpes as the Japanese ones had more fruits in it. Opposite Sweet Box is Daiso, one of the largest 100 yen shops in Tokyo with multiple floors. We bought quite a few stuff over there and therefore had to pop back to hotel later before going to Shibuya.

I planned to have lunch at Shibuya on our itinerary. But we were quite hungry by now plus we needed to drop the stuff we have bought at the hotel first. So we decided to have lunch at Harajuku. I found the Tenya ( 天丼) I wanted to try.

Tenya is a chain of fast food tempura. It was pretty fast. The food was served in 5 minutes. They have hundreds of branches in Japan.

海老天丼 ( Tempura Prawn on rice with miso soup)

天丼てんや--東京都渋谷区神宮前4-31--http://www.tenya.co.jp/

After the lunch, we went to the nearby Omotesando (表参道), a tree lined avenue with numerous shops, boutiques and restaurants. We saw many prestige cars over here.

This avenue is often referred to as Tokyo's Champs-Elysees probably becuase the world's leading fashion brands all have branches here and each building is unique and different. Love this Dior building, so stylish.

We didn't spend too much time over here. At the end of the day, European clothing is cheaper in Europe. I only wanted to buy Japanese stuff in Japan. We then returned to hote.

Go to Day 5 part 2

Tokyo Gourmet Trip --Day 4 Part 2 ( Super Autobacs--Roppongi 六本木)

2009-11-17T13:40:00.000-08:00

Saturday 16 May 2009

We left Odaiba for Shinonome (東雲) to visit Super Autobacs--a huge car accessories store (東雲２丁目７番２０号). It was 3 minutes walk from the station. This place has anything and everything to do with car modifications, ranging from the smallest things like key rings to sports seats, exhaust system, car entertainment, tyres etc etc. Forget Halfords.

Simon was in heaven at this place. He is a big fan of Alpine car audio equipments so he spent a long time playing around with various head unit, amps, speakers and subwoofers

Wow! There was such a wide range of car air fresheners that I wanted to buy them all. It was difficult to decide which ones to get but I finally got 5. I have one in my car and the fragrance it produces is so much more pleasant and you can't find it anywhere in the UK.

Simon again was giving his full attention on the various types of exhaust systems.

When we came out of the store, it was already in dark. Our final spot today was Roppongi, Tokyo's most popular nightlife district among foreigners

From here you can get the best night view of Tokyo Tower. We didn't plan to get there as there was not much to see. Plus it is not as tall as Eiffel Tower.

We were going to have dinner in this Ramen chain store and MOS burger next door.

Kohmen(光麺) -- 六本木7丁目14-3---http://www.kohmen.com/

Ramen in one bowl and the soup in another. They were better than the one I had yesterday at Ameyoko Market

We then had the second part of the dinner at the MOS Burger next door. I wanted to try this seafood rice burger for a long time and it was not disappointing. The baps were made of Japanese rice and in between were seafoods such as prawns . It was the best burger I had ever had. Delicious!!!!! It was only 300 yen.

MOS Burger--六本木7-14-6 --www.mos.co.jp

We bought some sweets at the am/pm ( convenient store) across the street from the hotel and had our desserts in our room.

They didn't taste like they were from a convenience store but more like proper desserts. We were so full and happy now.

I liked this probiotic drink and had it for at least 5 times in Tokyo.

Go to Day 5 Part 1

Tokyo Gourmet Trip --Day 4 Part 1 (Odaiba 台场)

2009-11-17T13:34:00.001-08:00

Saturday 16 May 2009

This was the only place we found open for breakfast(9:30am) around the hotel area. I couldn't believe it was that difficult to find a restaurant open at this time in Shinjuku. We preferred a hot breakfast to a coffee and croissant. This one was actually quite good. Value for money and we needed to try Udon in Japan anyway. No problem ordering with pictures all posted on the board. I found out days later that one of the assistant behind the counter actually spoke Chinese.

It was going to be a big day today for Simon as he is such a big motors fan. We were going to spend a lot of time in Odaiba ( Tokyo Bay). It is a man made island on which there are several shopping and entertainment centres. We took the Yurikamome (an un-manned elevated train, similar to Docklands Light railway in London) from Shiodome to Odaiba. The train uses the Rainbow Bridge to get to Odaiba and offers spectacular views of the harbor and the Tokyo waterfront area. This is the rainbow bridge.

We first headed into the Decks ( shopping centre). Advised by a traveller on Tripadvisor, there is a Monster Burger in the Muscle Park on the 5th floor. Here it is.

Simon was desperate to try the Lobster burger. He loved it and still talks about it from time to time. I think he likes everything to do with Lobster. I didn't have anything as I was not hungry at this moment plus I need to get my stomach ready for the Takoyaki.

I can tell they are students because of their unique Japanese styled school uniforms.

Came out of Decks and walked towards Aqua City ( another shopping centre), we found the Takoyaki stall recommended by the same traveller.

I enjoyed watch he making Takoyaki. He did it so quickly.

My lunch.

I added a lot of of fish flakes. They go perfectly with the Takoyaki. They taste beautiful!

We then moved on to Mega Web, a massive Toyota showroom, where both Toyota and Lexus's newest model were on display. The first thing we did on arrival was to book a test drive of a Toyota car. Would be better if we could try a Lexus, but only Toyota were available. We reserved the car model and time using one of their booking terminals and a ticket was printed out. The next test drive section was 2 hours later.

There were 3 Lexus models on display (forgot to take pictures of them), LS, IS and SC. Very luxury cars. The back seats in the LS model had built-in massage functions. Simon was busy taking pictures of the Lexus Hybird engines

After siting in some of the cars that we were interested. We then took the Yurikamome to Panasonic centre. It wasn't too far on foot but we had to come back on time for the test drive. Outside of the station, I found a vending machine at last selling hot drinks. I had a hot tea and it was incredibly good.

Here we were at the Panasonic Centre. On display in this showroom are the newest cameras, TV screens, computers, Nintendo Wii, home appliances and more. Pictures were not allowed though. They had on display the largest plasma screen (103 inches). We attended one of their small shows which lasted 15 minutes. It was showing their latest home cinema\media system where you can file away music, photos and video files and they can be view on a massive projector powered to the wall. It has a sensor to detect your body movements so it allows the person to move files around the system (a bit like in the film Minority Report). It also has educational functions and activities for the kids to play with.

There was a little incident here. Finishing her presentation, the presenter raised a question in Japanese of course and she picked Simon to answer. We didn't even understand the question. It was quite embarrassing.

This is the only spot in the showroom where we could take picture. Me and Mario. I should have stood on his right hand side.

Back to Mega Web, before heading to the test drive "Ride One" area, Simon took the following pictures. He took more of these pictures on the next Wednesday.

Picture of the Forumla One engine and car which is from the 2008 season

OK, it's time for the test drive. We were required to pay at the machine( 300 yen) and take the receipt to the counter. The assistant then took a photocopy of Simon's international driving permit ( He applied it 1 week before our trip). Then there was a 5 minutes briefing with all the drivers, of course in Japanese and we didn't understand a word.

The model is "Harrier". I have never seen it in the UK. Probably not for the European market. It looked like the Lexus RX model but didn't feel as luxury inside, feeled just like a normal Toyota, too much plastic. It's a 2-lap test course with a max speed of 40 mph.

I like the litter mirror at the front of the car which makes parallelled parking so much easier.

The test course consists of different road layouts including green/red traffic lights, roundabouts, bends and hills so that you can get a feel of the car on different road conditions. I think this is a brilliant idea. We did the test drive just for fun as I think Simon is more keen on European cars.

Go to Day 4 Part 2

Tokyo Gourmet Trip --Day 3 Part 3 (Akihabara 秋叶原)

2009-11-15T14:21:00.001-08:00

Friday 15 May 2009

Our next stop is Akihabara 秋叶原--the world's famous electric Town. Once we came out of the station, it seemed as if we were on a different planet.

There are hundreds of blocks of electronics buildings in this area. You just don't know where to start.

The building in blue is Sofmap, one of the major stores which operate dozens of branches in Akihabara area. Each one has 7 to 8 floors with each floor specialising in different section e.g. computers, camera, TV, appliances etc. Just imagine each floor in every building is about 5 times bigger than your local high street shop (for UK that would be your local Dixons and US will be Bestbuy), and there are hundreds of such buildings in Akihabara. You could spend a whole day in just one building.

We started our journey in Sofmap. Simon was busy checking out the prices of the memory cards. I think it turned out to be more expensive than UK (because of the exchange rate at the time)

Manga mania. You can tell how much the Japanese love their manga by the fact that there are areas in every building devoting to these comic books.

Simon was testing the PS3. Does he understands Japanese?

The toilets in Japan are so technologically advanced with many features rarely seen outside the country that I feel I must talk about them over here. These unique functions include heated seats; water jet with warm water ( The water jet's position can be controlled as well as the spray pattern, on some models there is one button for men and the other button for women); the seat is raised with a button ( the cover of the toilet could rise automatically upon entering the bathroom); butt air dryer after the cleaning; magic button for women which produces the sound of flushing water so that others can't hear any embarrassing sounds ( How considerate!)

These toilets are apparently quite expensive but are commonly used in normal household.

Maid-cafés outnumber standard cafés in Akihabara. That's why you will see loads of manga-style maids standing on the streets to distribute flyers. In maid-cafés, the costumed young ladies serve tea and cakes. They typically shriek 'Welcome home, master!' when customers enter the door and they serve customers as if they are their masters.

We planned to try this one of the most popular maid-cafés in Akihabara-- @home Café-4th-7th floors Mitsuwa bldg. 1-11-4 Sotokanda, Akihabara station exit 3 (http://www.cafe-athome.com/)

We went to possibly 6th floor and decided to give it a miss. We were not too keen at the first place plus we found that there were extra fees per person on top of the already quite expensive tea and cakes, but the place was packed with young school boys (wonder why??)

Instead, we went into the Mister Donuts not far away. That was a good decision.

I can't remember the name of this donut but tastes better than Crispy Creme for sure.

A whole building for panchinko.

We went into another major store called Laox with 6 floors. Very similar to Sofmap. We spent probably 1 hour on the floor specialising in appliances to check everything out.

Boots dryer?

Oh, you must try this. They have massagers of all kinds. It feels so good after a day's walking.

We came across this large sex shop of 5 of 6 floors on a side street. They have everything you can or cannot imagine on sales.

Basically photographs are not allowed. But I still managed to take a few secretly. Shhhh! After a careful consideration, the following are the only 2 that can be published here. I don't want my blog to be banned. What are they? Well, loads of sex toys of all sorts and condoms of different variety and flavors. What caught our eyes the most was the blow up sex dolls. They are made to look so realistic and guys who buys these can change the hair wigs and colour nails etc etc etc, the list just go on and on.

This is the biggest shop in this area--Yodobashi Camera, an electronic giant. There are many restaurants on the top floor of this building and we decided to have dinner over here tonight.

We found that in Japan there is such ticket machine in front of most of the Ramen shops. You choose the Ramen you want, press the button and pay at the machine. A ticket is printed out. Take the ticket to the counter to get your Ramen. This is actually a very good idea. I have to try this. But not tonight.

My plan was to try Tonkasu (breaded and deep-fried pork cutlets) tonight in another building in Akihabara. But we started to feel tired and decided to find a Tonkasu restaurant in this building. We found this one. Haha. We joined the queue at once. There was a queue to almost every restaurant in Tokyo both lunch time and dinner time. Why do the Japanese people all dine out at night even at weekdays? They don't cook? The restaurant was quite considerate to have put a bench outside the restaurant for people to wait.

浜勝--8F Yodobashi Camera,1-1 Kanda hanaoka-cho http://www.hamakatsu.jp/

In the mean time, we were handed the menu while waiting and the waitress took the order. By the time our table was ready, our meals were served. How efficient! Just looking at the menu is mouthwatering.

There is a bell on every table. Just press the button to call for service and someone will be with you in seconds. Love Japanese creativity.

Starter: cold tofu. Nice!

Simon's set menu: 1449 yen. They taste crispy and fabulous, perfect with the sesame on the right. In all Tonkasu shops, you get free refill of rice, Miso soup and salads.

My set: smaller version but taste equally nice. Same price. The total bill came out exactly 1449x2=2898 yen. There were not any extra charges. The tea was free. Not all Japanese foods are expensive. In Japan, tipping will cause more confusions than appreciations. They will return it to you.

We were so full now and must do some walking in this massive building.

Below are Simon's comments on the screeens. He can go on and on about them.

Here's a picture of the world's largest plasma screen made by Panasonic. A whooping 103 inches and it's setup so nicely that the picture was so crisp and clear. We were also checking out the Pioneer section for the setup of their plasma and home entertainment system, my god am I impressed. Unlike any shops in UK for sure, the plasmas were setup beautifully. Not just the picture, the sound as well. All the big screens in this section were showing BlueRay movies, only the smaller models were showing normal Japanese TV (nevertheless the quality was excellent as they have done digital for many years already).

The closing time was 10pm ish. By this time our feet were so tired. We headed back to the hotel.

Go to Day 4 Part 1

Tokyo Gourmet Trip --Day 3 Part 2 (Ameyoko Market )

2009-11-15T14:10:00.001-08:00

Friday 15 May 2009

After fish market, we headed back to the hotel and took a nap. Probably 2 hours later, we were ready to set off.

Now we needed to sort out some tickets. We first popped into the JR office to get 2 single tickets for Tuesday to come back from Odawara on Shinkansan ( Bullet train). That was 3600 yen per person, expensive isn't it? But it is a must try.

We then moved on to the Limousine bus stop outside Keio Department store to purchase 2 sets of one way Limousine bus ticket to the airport on next Thursday + 1 day metro pass. This is a good value for money package. With an extra 100 yen you get the 1 day metro pass with unlimited rides on all Tokyo metro lines which would have cost 710 yen. (The pass is just for Tokyo metro lines though and can't be used on Toei subway lines. Tokyo's subway network is operated by two companies, the Toei Subways with four lines, and Tokyo Metro with nine lines

Finally, we got to the Odakyu Sightseeing Service Center at Shinjuku Station West Exit to pay for 2 Hakone Pass ( round trip travel on Odakyu line to Hakone + 2 days unlimited boarding on all the transports at Hakone). I sent them an email one month in advance to request 2 seats at the observation deck on the Odakyu Romance Car for free. This is definitely recommended. The total cost are: 11,740 yen.

All the tickets had now been sorted out. We popped down to the food basement of Odakyu department store to do some "window shopping". OMG, everything looked so attractive that we didn't know what to get first. We were overwhelmed by the choices and forgot to actually buy anything. Can't believe it.

Japanese cakes and sweets in beautiful presentation. Perfect for souvenirs.

I had already had breakfast, otherwise I would have tried one of these. Why can't we have that many choices of bread and cakes in the UK???????

Now we headed to "Ameyoko Market アメ横". From Shinjuku, we took the JR Yamanote Line. I like the idea of showing such a screen on the train. The numbers above each station indicates the time required to get to that station. e.g. in 23 minutes, we would arrive in Ueno. The screen switched between Japanese and English.

When we came out of Ueno station, we saw this Micra with the WING. So cute.

Here we were at the Ameyoko Market. It's in Ueno and is a retail market with hundreds of shops.

Simon was starving, so we went into a Ramen shop first thing when we were there. This is Simon's set meal.

My Raman in Tonkotsu sauce(Pork bone sauce). Not too bad. Could be better. I like the spoon though. It's specially designed to sit at the edge of the bowl.

There are loads of snacks and sweets shops in this market and they all have reasonable prices. From this shop I bought a big pack of dried scallops( not the ones for soup but the ones as snacks). I didn't even try to bargain but this nice old man on the left volunteered to offer me a discount.

Although I was quite full, I couldn't help buying a pack of Takoyaki ( Octopus Balls) when I came across this stall as Takoyaki is my all time favourite.

Yummy!

Go to Day 3 Part 3

Tokyo Gourmet Trip --Day 3 Part 1 (Tsukiji Market 築地市場)

2009-11-15T14:06:00.000-08:00

Friday 15 May 2009

Due to jet lag, we woke up at around 4am in the morning. To take advantage of this, I suggested to pay an early visit to the wholesale fish market at Tsukiji, one of Tokyo's most memorable sights. The Oedo subway line entrance to the market is immediately next to the hotel via a lift.

Our first ride on the Tokyo metro. With no surprise, the train arrived on time to the seconds(Actually, it was late by 1 second, too bad). Japanese transport systems are universally well known for their efficiency. We didn't experience a single delay in our entire trip. To us, who are from London where delays on the underground are happening almost every day, this is just a luxury.

We noticed that every time we ride on a train, almost half of the Japanese there were dozing off. I remember seeing an article on a newspaper saying that dozing is so common among Japanese that even the Prime Minister dozed off while having a cabinet meeting. They say dozing means they work hard. Not sure if that's true.

Arrived at the fish market. we first walked through the inner market and managed to catch the last bits of the famous Tuna Auction.

I don't understand why the Tuna's heads and tails get chopped off.

We wandered around the inner market and saw many kinds of fish that we have never seen before.

We then moved on to the outer market. A trip to Tsukiji Market is not complete without a fresh sushi breakfast in one of the stalls: expensive but the freshest in Tokyo. The two stalls that are mostly talked about on the web and usually with massive queues are Sushi Dai and Daiwa Sushi. People usually queue up for 1 hours. It was still very early when we got there and we got the last 2 seats at Daiwa Sushi. People behind us started to queue. How lucky!

We had the set menu that everybody was having. These were just a few pieces to start with. The chef brought out more as we kept on eating. Unfortunately there was only one picture as we were too busy eating to take any more pictures. Plus the spaces in the restaurant were too small for us to make any movement.

Simon tried the raw fish for the first time and he absolutely loved it. The Uni(Sea Urchin) was incredible. It cost about 3600 yen per person(£50 for 2) and was undoubtedly the most expensive breakfast I had ever had. But they were absolutely worth while.

Go to Day 3 Part 2

Tokyo Gourmet Trip --Day 2 Part 3 ( Dinner--Shinjuku)

2009-11-12T13:19:00.001-08:00

13th May 2009

My plan was to try different Japanese food for every meal so that we could try as much different food as possible in the next 8 days.

Our dinner spot was: Botejyu ぼてぢゅう--Subnade department store basement near Kabuki-cho(歌舞伎町) in East Shinjuku.

Okonomiyaki is a popular pan fried food that consists of batter and cabbage, selected toppings and ingredients are added

I was so clever to have printed out a 10% coupon from a Japanese website when doing researches. This is what we call " Well-prepared" !

Here came the starter: Takoyaki (Octopus balls), they were OK, I had better.

Simon's 広島焼, 1,400円. Not bad, much better than mine.

My pancake, it tastes no different from a normal pancake. A bit disappointed. I am not saying it is bad as they say you can't find terrible food in Japan, which is so true. But this was not as good as I had expected. It's 1,400円 too.

After dinner, we walked to the nearby Kabuki-cho(歌舞伎町), Japan's largest red light district features countless restaurants, bars, pachinko parlors, love hotels and a wide variety of red light establishments.

One of the thousands of posts in this area. Don't ask me what it says as I have no idea. GP? I doubt it.

There are numerous pachinko shops on the streets in Japan and almost every shop is packed. Why are the Japanese so crazy about these gaming machines?

If you think that this area is just about night life, you are wrong. There are also many restaurants here. To be honest, I feel quite safe wherever I go in Tokyo.

This is one of the Ramen shops. She's cute.

Yes, we are eating again. I'm not sure if we really felt hungry or we forced ourselves to feel hungry. Never mind, we justified it by the fact that we had done many walking.

Japanese sweets in a fast food restaurant around the corner on our way back to the hotel.

On the left, green tea ice cream drink; On the right, ice cream with red beans and Japanese mochi.

Oh, I love everything with green tea. This is me. Blime, I look tired.

Our first day in Tokyo finished.

Go to Day 3 Part 1

Tokyo Gourmet Trip --Day 2 (Part 2: Hotel-Shinjuku 新宿)

2009-11-12T13:03:00.000-08:00

13th May 2009

After the lunch, we wandered around the department store and the Tokyu Hand next door. At the basement food court, we found these Wagyu beef counter (black-haired Japanese cattle, the most well-known type is Kobe beef). Yes, they are expensive. But look at the marbles, aren't they gorgeous? In Japan, the basement floor of most major department stores are purely for food. There will be a wide variety of ready made food available from sushi to tempura at pretty decent prices. However, unlike other countries in far east, they are not proper food courts as there are no tables or seats for you to sit down. They are for take away only.

It's time to check in. We started to head back to the hotel. On our way back, we passed this Crispy Creme. I couldn't believe there was such a big queue for it. Is it just me or the Crispy Creme donuts are just mediocre. In Japan, they have a Japanese version of donuts chains called Mister Donuts. Their donuts taste miles better.

This is the hotel we will stay for the next 7 nights. Sunroute Plaza Shinjuku Hotel

This is our room. Small yet comfy. The bed is surprising comfortable. The hotel supplies all the amenities: Slippers, Shampoo, conditioner, liquid shower soap - all in large bottles, foaming face wash.. razors, q-tips, comb and brush, and toothbrush and toothpaste all in a basket. The black cotton buds, yes black, are the best ever cotton buds we have ever used. All these are refilled every day.

By this time, we were totally knackered and decided to sleep for a couple of hours. We couldn't even bothered to take a picture of the super high-tech toilet. We will come to that later.

Zzzzz...... 2 hours later, we woke up after one of the most deep sleep I have ever had. I will give crecit to the bed. But also because of jetlag. We are now ready to go out.

It's already in dark. Night time Shinjuku.

Let's get a drink from the vending machines. Have never seen so many vending machinese in a country. There are literally some on every street. Some of them even sell cigarettes. The price is reasonable(from 100 to 300 yen). Simon seems a bit confused.

Go to Day 2 Part 3

Tokyo Gourmet Trip --Day 2 (Part 1: Narita-Hotel-Lunch)

2009-11-12T07:32:00.000-08:00

Thursday, 14th May 2009

After about 12 hours, we finally landed at Narita Airport.

We decided to travel to Shinjuku via Narita Express in order to benefit from the Suica and NEX package. For 3,500 yen, the combo consists of 1,500 yen Narita Express and connecting trains rides to your final destination in the greater Tokyo Area, a 500 yen suica card which is refundable after use and 1,500 yen suica credit that can be used on any public transportation and many shops in and around Tokyo, and can be topped up via the ticket machine.

Unfortunately, the train to Shinjuku has just gone. The next one is 1 hour later. Therefore, we took the advise from this friendly lady at the tourist centre ( She speaks good English) and took the train to Tokyo Station and change Tokyo Metro over there.

Here we are at the hotel--Sunroute Plaza Shinjuku Hotel. Check in is at 2pm. So we deposit our luggage and started our first meal in Tokyo.

We had our lunch on the 14th floor of this department store. (Yes, that's the sunglasses Simon bought at the airport)

Restaurant: 赤坂ふきぬき--14th floor of Takashimaya Time Square, Shinjuku

My eel set menu. Nagoya style. At 2100 yen for lunch time( price is double for dinner). The eels were incredibly delicious. The restaurant has a great view too looking out on the square.

One of the good thing of dining in Japan is there is no extra fees on the final bill. After you sit down, a glass of water or a cup of green tea will be served for free and later refilled. You also receive a wet towel (oshibori) for cleaning your hands

This is Simon's set. I don't remember what style it is called. 1600 yen. Equally tasty.

Go to Day 2 Part 2

Tokyo Gourmet Trip --Day 1

2009-11-12T07:15:00.000-08:00

Wednesday, 13th May 2009

After months of preparation and research, our exciting Tokyo trip has finally started.

For the first time ever, we departed from London city airport, which is a much more convenient location. It took us just 30 minutes and £25 to get there from home. We flied with KLM.

The departure lounge is very small and there are only 2 or 3 shops there. But can you believe that we started to spend even before boarding. It was Simon. He forgot to bring his sunglasses and he fancied a pair of Oakley from the duty free. OK, OK. It's holiday. Never mind.....

To Day 2 Part 1