Japan Journals: Kyoto

Good Day Everyone,

  

Today I am finally getting back to my Japan Journals. I started this series last year after our trip to Japan but only got half way through. Then with all my health issues, moving to Japan and a couple of trips back home to England, they just got pushed further and further back. To the point where I almost felt intimidated by the sheer amount of work it was going to take me to do the remaining ones. I finally took the bull by the horn and spent a couple of days this week revisiting the brochures, ticket stubs and notes from the trip to bring you this post. If you’d like to refresh your memories then you can read about the previous post here and the one before that here.

The Oi River in Arashiyama, Western Kyoto

We left Osaka on a Monday morning and caught the bullet train (shinkansen) to Kyoto. The journey took just 15 minutes.  Luckily Kyoto only has one central station. Often cities in Japan served by the bullet train will have a separate station for the bullet train, and they’re not always as close to the main station as you might expect. For example, in Yokohama we live by the main Yokohama train station, but the bullet train goes from a separate train station called Shin-Yokohama, which is over 10 minutes away on the train from the main Yokohama station.

At Kyoto station we made our way down into the subway as we needed to go up two stops to get to the station closest to our hotel. Trying to buy subway tickets from the automated ticket machines was a challenge in itself. Once we’d selected our destination we were expecting the machine to tell us how much to pay but it wouldn’t. Without payment obviously there’s no ticket. With my hubby close to tearing his hair out from sheer frustration, we asked a young Japanese girl for some help. It transpired that we actually needed to put some money into the machine first, before selecting our destination. The machine then alerts you as to whether you need to top up the payment for a ticket to your chosen destination… Go figure?!

We stayed at the Mitsui Garden Hotel in Shijo, Kyoto and I have to say it was a bit of a shock after the spacious twin room we had in Osaka. There wasn’t even enough room to swing a cat, never mind open a couple of suitcases. You can see the whole room from the two iPhone photos below. It was tiny and the bathroom felt crowded when I was in it by myself ;o) I guess this is what people mean when they say rooms are small in Japan. Whilst the reception area was modern and breezy, the hotel rooms themselves were definitely in need of a refurbishment and a bit of TLC. Again, like the hotel in Osaka robes and night clothes were provided. 

 

This hotel also had a Japanese public bath (communal steam bath) that guests could use. There was one for men and a separate one for women. I was a bit too shy to try it given that you’re completely naked with strangers but my hubby tried the mens and really enjoyed it. That was until the second night when another male guest got in without washing himself clean first! A big no no here in Japan when it comes to bath etiquette. Needless to say my hubby made for a quick exit ;o)

Once we’d checked into the hotel, we headed out for the remainder of the day. First stop was Nishiki Market which was walking distance from our hotel. Historically, Nishiki Market used to be a fish wholesale area but is now a retail market that spans five blocks and is a long narrow street. The market, often referred to as ‘Kyoto’s kitchen’ specialises in all things food related from fresh seafood to dried fish, vegetable, sushi, knives, chopsticks and cookware. There are food stalls selling snacks as well as a few small sit down affairs. It is incredibly crowded and enjoyed by both locals and tourists alike. 

Fried snack stall

Chopstick holders

Coming off one end of the market is a more modern mall area with coffee shops, and stores selling clothes, footwear and accessories.  Hubby and I did try a potato and pumpkin based snack from one of the food stalls, but it tasted and smelt sooo fishy as it had been fried in the same oil as all of the fish based snacks, that we just couldn’t stomach it. As I’ve said in one of my previous Japan Journal blog posts, the one area that I won’t be able to give you much insight on is Japanese food (sorry). 

Cute cookies

After stopping of at a coffee shop where we had some pancakes, we headed off to the Kyoto Imperial Park. The Kyoto Imperial Palace is based inside the park and used to be the residence of Japan’s Imperial Family until the emperor and the capital were moved to Tokyo in 1868. Unfortunately, the palace grounds can only be entered on guided tours which have to be booked in advance, although sometimes it is possible to book on the day, provided spots are available. However, the tour only runs until 5pm and it was late afternoon by the time we got there so it was too late for us to book one. As it was getting cold and dark, we settled for a quick walk around the park, admiring the cherry blossoms. 

One of the entrance gates to the Kyoto Imperial Park

Whilst walking around we saw a wedding couple having their professional photos taken amongst the cherry blossoms. It was quite funny to see the bride lift up her wedding gown to reveal the jeans and trainers she was wearing under her dress to stop her from freezing. It really was very cold. We didn’t spend too long at the park as we had an early start the next day and so headed back to our hotel, stopping off for some supper at a little tapas place.

Tuesday was our one full day in Kyoto and for this I had done lots of research in advance and planned a day out to Arashiyama in the outskirts of Western Kyoto. It is an area famous for its natural beauty particularly during the cherry blossom season and autumn when the leaves change colour. We caught the local Japan Rail line from Kyoto station as that was covered by our JR pass to Saga Arashiyama station. It was nice to travel on the train without any suitcases in tow for a change.

Once we arrived, we headed straight to the Torokko Saga Station which is right next to the Saga Arashiyama station as I wanted to book tickets for us to go on the Sagano Scenic Railway. It is a sightseeing train that runs along the Hozugawa River, winding its way along the mountains at a leisurely pace and it gets booked up early in the day. Luckily, we managed to get seated tickets for the 4pm train and booked a return journey. Once that was booked we were free to explore the area. We picked up a local map from the Tourist Information centre next to the station, which surprisingly was in English, unlike most touristy things to date and started walking. It was a beautiful warm sunny day. We followed the crowds and headed towards the Togetsukyo Bridge, which literally means ‘moon crossing bridge’ and crosses the River Oi.

On the walk to the Togetsukyo Bridge we came across many little shops selling souvenirs, crafts and restaurants and coffee shops. We also saw a number of traditional rickshaws, pulled by young men that you could hire. The Togetsukyo Bridge looked particularly beautiful against the forested mountain backdrop. We could see pockets of pale pink in the mountainside where the cherry blossoms had come through. 

It was busy day along the riverside with people having picnics in the parks and admiring the cherry blossom trees. On the way to the bridge we also stopped off at Arashiyama Station to admire the Kimono Forest. This is a path at the Arashiyama Station lined with numerous poles displaying a variety of kimono fabric designs. The fabric colours and patterns were simply stunning and I can imagine the Kimono Forest looking particularly beautiful at night, when the poles are illuminated.

Kimono Forest at Arashiyama Station

As we made our way back from the Togetsukyo Bridge for the Sagano Scenic Railway, we stopped off at the Tenryu-ji Temple. If you’re ever going to visit a temple in Arashiyama then I would highly recommend this one as it is the most important one in the area, ranked first amongst the cities top 5 Zen temples, as is now a UNESCO registered world heritage site. 

Main Hall entrance

Interestingly, the temple serves traditional Zen vegetarian cuisine, which we had sadly missed the time for. The temple buildings were repeatedly lost in fires and wars over the centuries and so most of the current buildings date only as far back as 1868-1912, the Meiji Period. Whilst the original temple buildings may not have survived, the garden did and remains in its original form. 

The garden features a central pond containing many brightly coloured koi carp surrounded by rocks, pine trees and the forested Arashiyama Mountains. The garden epitomises Japanese gardening with its use of water, fish, bamboo, rocks and gravel to create beautiful landscapes. 

We could easily have spent twice as long as we did exploring the garden with its brightly coloured moss, cherry blossoms and a variety of flowers. It was a real treat to see some Japanese women enjoying the garden in traditional dress. 

After the Tenryu-Ji temple we walked back to the Torokko Saga station. As we waited to board the old fashioned train with its wooden benches, there was a member of staff directing passengers into various queues, however, as he only spoke in Japanese we kind of just went out on a limb and joined a queue. We were lucky in that it just happened to be the right one for where we were sat on the train. 

 

After all the walking, this little train ride was a welcomed treat and rest for our feet. The train travelled a slow speed taking 25minutes to do the 7 kilometre journey each way, giving us ample time to relax and enjoy the stunning views. Capturing the views on camera was very difficult from within the moving train and so the photos don’t really do them any justice. 

There is a small train museum next to the Torokko Saga station, which we didn’t go into but we did go and have a look at the 3D full size train in front of it, before heading back to Kyoto. 

From Kyoto station we caught a glimpse of Kyoto Tower all lit up and headed into a large shopping mall for our evening meal. We found a lovely, albeit very busy, Italian restaurant. After our meal we walked to the roof of the mall where we took in some amazing views of Kyoto before stopping of to do a little bit of shopping in the department store. 

Kyoto Tower

The next morning we packed up our bags and caught the bullet train to Tokyo, our final destination. In hindsight, I feel that we didn’t really have enough time to explore Kyoto as much as we had liked but then I feel like that about all of the cities we visited in Japan. In fact, I feel like that about almost every place I’ve ever visited ;o) I hope you enjoyed this little insight into Kyoto and I plan bring you Tokyo next week :o)

Love Sheen xxx

JVlog #2: Doggy Prams & Sekichu Home Center

Good Day Everyone,

On the weekend we went to a home center store called Sekichu. If you're living in England then imagine a B&Q (DIY) store combined with a supermarket... that is Sekichu and we decided to take you along with us :o). You can literally find anything and everything in this store from DIY tools, makeup and toiletries, food, furniture, bicycles, electrical appliances and even doggy prams... That's right doggy prams, as well as puppies and kittens. You can actually buy pets at this store plus there is a pet parlour. Doggy prams are everywhere here. People in Japan seem to have a real passion for little dogs. Not a day goes by when we don't see a doggy pram and a well groomed and dressed puppy. This is Japan after all and everyone, including pets dress well ;o) There are stores in shopping malls dedicated to pets, selling prams, toys, clothes, and accessories as well as the pets themselves.

Lovely Japanese gentleman out with his dogs in their doggy pram

Most stores also have a pet parlour where you can watch pets having their hair and nails cut. We've noticed that it's mainly the older Japanese that tend to have these pets. Perhaps for the companionship and/or routine, as we often see them out in the evenings walking their little dogs. The Japanese gentleman in the photo above was kind enough to allow me to take a photo of him with his dogs in the pram :o)

Doggy Prams

Doggy clothes and accessories

We also show you a few other interesting things in the video. For example, in Japan people do not sign official documents with their signature.  Instead everyone has a 'seal' which is a stamp of their name that they carry around with them. At places such as banks and the post office you will be asked for your seal, where in England we'd be asked for our signature.

One of the things hubby and I miss most about home (England) is having are own garden and being able to grow our own fruit and vegetables. So when I came across a Japanese store selling 'grow your own tomatoes in a tin'  thing, there was no way I was going to pass it up, especially as tomatoes are my hubby's favourite food...EVER!

Tomato seeds planted

Some of the tomato plants at 3 months  

Inside the tin was a small bag of soil with some seeds. Whilst we couldn't read the Japanese instructions leaflet, it was safe to assume that the soil goes in the tin and the seeds into the soil. We planted the seeds in October and were surprised by the large number of shoots that came through. We've since bought a larger container and re-potted some of the shoots. However, these re-potted shoots don't seem to be doing as well as the ones in the original tin. So on the weekend, we headed out to see if we could get some sort of tomato food for the plants, and that was the reason for our visit to Sekichu.

I hope you enjoyed this second Japan vlog. I think our voices were a bit more normal in this video ;o) If you have any comments or questions, or if there is a particular aspect of our life in Japan that you would like us to vlog, just leave it in the comments section below and I'll see what we can do :o)

Feet Favourites

Good Day Everyone,

Today I wanted to talk about a few products that my feet have been loving lately. Since moving to Japan we walk a lot more than we used to in Singapore. In Singapore, there was a bus stop right outside our apartment block and the public transport system is all in English which made it very easy to just jump on the subway or the bus. In Japan it is extremely difficult to travel on the buses if you don't speak or read Japanese. Taxis are super expensive here. As a result, hubby and I walk almost everywhere. All this walking and the colder weather started to take a bit of a toll on my poor arthritic feet.

Feet are one part of my body that often get neglected when it comes to beauty and skincare. With all the walking, I noticed that I'd started to get very dry heels, and not only that, but the soles of my feet were becoming dry and flaky (eeeww, I know!). This led to me finally cracking open (haa haa see what I did there ;o)) the Soap & Glory Heel Genius foot cream that I had in my stash. This foot cream has worked wonders, I kid you not! After just a few uses it was goodbye to dry flaky soles and hello silky smooth skin. I know there's a lot of hype around this foot cream within the beauty world but I can honestly tell you that the hype is justified. After all, how many beauty/skincare products have a '93% would repurchase' percentage on MakeupAlley... Not many let me tell you ;o)

The foot cream is a pale sky blue colour with a slightly fruity come minty/menthol scent. It's not in the least bit overpowering. Even if you aren't particularly partial to the scent, it's going on your feet which is about as far away from your nose as possible on your body ;o). The cream has a balmy consistency and it sinks into the skin well without leaving a greasy residue. I tend to massage this into the soles and sides of my feet in the evenings, as well as a tiny bit around my toe nails, before popping on my comfiest, fluffiest socks and letting the cream do its magic. I don't wear my socks to bed, even though the packaging does say to pop on cotton socks and let the cream soak in as you sleep. In the morning I wake up to the softest skin my feet have ever had. It really is genius!

This brings me nicely on to the second thing that my feet have been loving lately and that's my fluffy, bright pink, Christmas socks.Whilst at home, instead of wearing slippers, I wear these socks that enable my feet to feel the heat coming through from the underfloor heating. I picked these socks up from H&M here in Japan and they are lined with this fleecy fabric.The inside of the socks is incredibly soft and oh so warm. I tend to wear these in the evening, after putting on my Heel Genius foot cream. Together, these two items not only keep my feet warm but in tip top condition. The socks were so comfortable that I picked up a blue pair for my hubby and told him that I got them from the men's section. It was the only way to get him to wear them ;o). Now we are one of those couples with his 'n' her matching socks lol.

Since I developed arthritis in both my feet and toes, I've been unable to wear shoes with any form of a heel. This was fine in the warmer climates of Singapore where I lived in flat sandals and ballet flats but the weather in Japan is similar to England, which means it's pretty cold right now. Ballet flats just don't cut the mustard when it comes to keeping my feet warm. The cold goes right through the soles of my shoes and so my feet are constantly freezing. When I was back home last month, in my ballet flats, trying to navigate the street puddles, I finally decided enough was enough... I needed some warmer shoes, or ideally boots. After spending two days trawling the shops trying to find boots that were completely flat but failing miserably, I came across these in H&M. They're basically a spin off of the UGG boots but without the hefty price tag. I'll be honest, they're not my favourite style of footwear but they are sooo comfortable. Most importantly they keep my feet nice and warm, and dry. I've been living out of these since we got back to Japan. They're all I where when I go outside and they'll be pretty much all I wear for the next three months or so until the warmer weather arrives :o).

I hope you enjoyed this little post. What are your feet liking these days? Have you tried the Heel Genius foot cream? What did you think of it?

Love Sheen xxx

Recipe: Easy Tuna Fish Cakes With A Twist

Good Day Everyone,

Many people use the new year as an opportunity to kick start their healthy eating, after indulging in the Christmas festivities. Today, I have a very easy tuna fish cake recipe for you with a little twist. I usually have most of the required ingredients sat at home, as they're pretty much staples in our kitchen. So if I'm ever stuck on what to make hubby for supper, this is something that I can turn to with ease.

Ingredients: Fish Cake

The basic ingredients for the mixture

4 medium sized potatoes
1 can of tuna fish
3 spring onions
1 lemon
Few parsley sprigs
Salt & pepper

Optional Ingredients:
75gr grated cheddar cheese
Chilli flakes
Mustard
1/2 tspn turmeric powder

Coating Ingredients:
2 slices of slightly stale bread
1-2 eggs
1 tbsp olive oil for shallow frying 

Instructions:
1. Peel, wash, slice, and boil the potatoes until cooked through.
2. In the meantime, wash and thinly slice the spring onions and parsley, and put to one side.
3. Grate the zest of the lemon and add to the spring onions and parsley.
4. Once the potatoes are cooked, drain the water and put the potatoes into a mixing bowl.
5. Squeeze the juice of half a lemon on top of the potatoes and mash them roughly (lumps are allowed ;o)).
6. To the mashed potatoes add the spring onions, parsley, lemon zest, tuna, and salt and pepper to taste.
7. You can leave the fish cake mixture as is at this stage, or you can choose to add whichever of the optional ingredients you desire. I chose to add the grated cheese and some chill flakes on this particular day. I have, in the past, added turmeric (a great anti-inflammatory for arthritis sufferers like me), and it wasn't over powering, nor did it turn the fish cakes bright yellow, in case you were wondering ;o).
8. Now it's time to roll your sleeves up and get stuck in to mix all the ingredients together. I always wear some plastic food gloves to do this.

Time to get mixing

9. Take a bit of the mixture into your hands and roll it into a ball and then flatten and pop onto a large plate/tray.
10. Repeat until you have completely used up the mixture to make the fish cakes. I typically get 8 fish cakes from this quantity of ingredients. At this stage you can store the fish cakes in the fridge until you are ready to cook them. You can also freeze the fish cakes at this stage to use at a later date. Just be sure to defrost them fully before going ahead with the coating and frying them.

11. Blitz the bread slices in a blender to form breadcrumbs and pour into a breakfast bowl.
12. Whisk the eggs in a bowl.
13. Heat up a non stick frying pan with the tablespoon of olive oil.
14. Take a fish cake and dip it into the egg, then straight into the breadcrumbs before putting it into the frying pan. Repeat for however many fish cakes fit into your frying pan at one time. I can get 4 fish cakes in my frying pan.
15. Cook the fish cakes on a medium heat for about 3 minutes on each side, until golden brown.
16. Repeat the above 2 steps for the remaining fish cakes and serve with some fresh lemon.

In the summer, we usually have our fish cakes with a colourful salad, but as it's currently winter, we ate ours with some vegetable ribbons lightly cooked in olive oil and a drop of balsamic vinegar.

 

I hope you try this recipe out and don't let the number of instructions put you off. It is a lot easier than it looks, and best of all they taste delicious :o)

Love Sheen xxx

JVlog #1: Happy New Year!

Good Day Everyone,

Happy New Year to you all! I hope you all had an amazing new year's eve and ended 2014 on a high note. It was rather strange waking up this morning on January 1st 2015, whilst most of my family and friends were still in 2014, waiting for the clock to strike 12... the joy of living in different time zones ;o)

I spent quite a bit of time Googling yesterday trying to find out what happens in Yokohama on new year's eve but failed to find anything in English. I then resorted to searching on YouTube and saw that for the past couple of years there has been a firework display at the giant ferris wheel in Cosmo World (an amusement park). Hubby and I wrapped up warm and headed out just before 10pm, but as it got closer to 11pm the amusement park was strangely a lot quieter than one would expect on new year's eve, plus we couldn't see any signs of a firework display.

Luckily the lady at the information desk spoke a little English and we discovered that the fireworks had been moved down to the Red Brick Warehouse this year. So we headed to that part of town and it was crazy! There were so many people there that there was no doubt about us being in the right place.

As we made our way to the waterfront we were surprised to see rows and rows of people sat calmly on the floor waiting for midnight. There was a jolly atmosphere and people didn't seem to mind squeezing along to make room for others. There was no big countdown from 10 to midnight. One second we were stood looking at our clocks and the next thing we knew some people started shouting "5, 4, 3" and the rest of us joined in.

I'll be honest, the fireworks were not blow your socks off kind of amazing. Unlike the ones back home in London, or the ones we've been lucky enough to see in Sydney and Singapore. Nonetheless is was nice to mark the occasion. Once the fireworks were over, people calmly started to make their way back into town. It was whilst walking back that we saw one of the lanes on the main road come to a complete standstill as groups of young men lined the street with the boots of their cars open, displaying all their amplifiers and music systems. Crowds had gathered around the back of cars to watch people dancing and strutting their stuff... their was even some twerking going on ;o)

What surprised me in particular was that not a single car driver beeped their horn at these guys blocking the road or the scores of people that started dancing and gathering around, literally in the middle of the road. It was quite a sight. The Cosmo World amusement park was still open with people celebrating the arrival of 2015 on the various rides and roller coaster.

 Hubby and I went out with our camera and captured a few short clips just so that we could share our first new year's eve in Japan with you all. I'll be honest the video does make me cringe a little as neither of us are comfortable in front of the camera (as you'll see) plus my editing isn't great. However, I'm determined to share this with you all, and hopefully some more short videos in the future. We get so many people asking us about Japan and what it's like to live here, that what better way to explain, than to show you :o)

Did you have a good new year's eve? How did you celebrate?

Love Sheen xxx