Japan

Savory Egg Custard (Chawanmushi)

Japanese Comfort Food My friend Yoko from Japan, directed me step by step on how to make this dish.  We were served this several times while we were there. Chawanmushi literally means “tea cup steam” or “steamed in a tea bowl”. It is a Japanese egg custard. Chawanmushi can be eaten either hot, cold or […]

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  July 15, 2014   No comments

Day 14 – My Trip to Japan

Day 14 – My Trip to Japan Today was the last full day in Japan. We were invited to lunch with a business colleague of my husband to Saryo in Akasaka.  We were served in an elegant private room, furnished with hanging scrolls, flower arrangements and hori-kotatsu seating (tatami mats with a hole in the floor around […]

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  June 18, 2014   1 comment

Day 13 – My Trip to Japan

Day 13 – My Trip to Japan We visited Kamakura, which is a city located in Kanagawa Prefecture, Japan, about 31 miles south-south-west of Tokyo.   Kamakura is renowned for the famous Daibutsu. Daibutsu means great Buddha statue and its formal name is Amida-nyorai-zazou. The Buddha statue here was made in 1252 and is the […]

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  June 17, 2014   2 comments

Day 12 – My Trip to Japan

Day 12 – My Trip to Japan Today was a special day because it was set aside to visit my stepmother’s family and to visit the grave of her parents.  The family lives all over the Tokyo area so the plan was to meet in Shiki, a northern suburb of Tokyo for a family luncheon […]

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  June 16, 2014   2 comments

Day 11 – My Trip to Japan

Day 11 – My Trip to Japan We were taken to a restaurant called CICADA by our very good friends and their family.  It is situated in historic Omotesando, and has Mediterranean-style cuisine along with fine wines in an oasis of lush greens, soothing waterfalls, and gentle lights. CICADA moved to a 50-year old building built […]

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  June 15, 2014   No comments

Day 10 – My Trip to Japan

Day 10 – My Trip to Japan Today was a visit to the Meiji Jingu, which is a Shinto shrine.  This shrine is dedicated to the divine souls of Emperor Meiji and his consort Empress Shoken.  They passed away in 1912 and 1914 and people wanted to commemorate their virtues by donating over 100,000 trees from all […]

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  June 14, 2014   2 comments

Day 9 – My Trip to Japan

Day 9 – My Trip to Japan Eric and I went off on our own.  We found the Sengakuji Temple, which is the grave site of the 47 Samuri who avenged their master by beheading his enemy.  This is the story we heard about at Kabuki yesterday and so it was particularly resonant to visit […]

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  June 13, 2014   2 comments

Day 8 – My Trip to Japan

Day 8 – My Trip to Japan Today we were taken to the Kabukiza Theater for a full day of kabuki theater.   The theater is located in Ginza Area in Tokyo.  Kabuki is a classical Japanese dance-drama. Kabuki theatre is known for the stylization of its drama and for the elaborate make-up worn by […]

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  June 12, 2014   No comments

Day 7 – My Trip to Japan

Day 7 – My Trip to Japan Today was really fantastic.  I was taken to the Tsukiji Market.  It was the most fascinating and frenetic place I have ever been. Thank you Reiko for the wonderful tour!! Tsukiji Market is a large wholesale market for fish, fruits and vegetables in central Tokyo. It is the most […]

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  June 11, 2014   2 comments

Day 6 – My Trip to Japan

Day 6 – My Trip to Japan  We went to Gakushuin University on a tour.  Noriko, my step mother, went there.  Her niece was very kind and picked us up from there and toured us around in her car.  We went to a department store called Tokyu Hands, which has an amazing cooking / kitchen equipment department. […]

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  June 10, 2014   4 comments