Exploring Kyoto (part 1)

Our group took an early morning plane trip from Haneda Airport to Osaka airport, took the limousine bus and checked-in at a hotel in Universal City.

Since our rooms will only be available at around 1PM, we maximized our stay by leaving our luggages with the hotel concierge and walked to the train station to go to Kyoto.

Kyoto is the ancient capital of Japan where one can see a mix of ancient architecture and modern metropolis. 

One will surely appreciate seeing the structures of historical temples and cultural heritage sites as well as modern buildings such as the Kyoto train station, hotels and shopping centers.

The first thing that you will notice at Kyoto is the modern look of the city’s train station.

The interiors of the Kyoto train station 

Once you step out of the Kyoto station, the Kyoto Tower can be seen.

The Kyoto Tower stands 131 meters tall and is
 Kyoto's tallest building

The Kyoto Tower is located just across the Kyoto train station. It is Kyoto’s tallest building and has a viewing platform located 100 meters above ground where visitors can get a 360 degree view of Kyoto. The tower was completed in 1964 which is the same year when as the opening of the shinkansen and the Tokyo Olympics.

Kyoto served as Japan's capital and the emperor's residence from years 794 until 1868. It is now the country's seventh largest city with a population of around 1.4 million people.

Over the centuries, Kyoto was destroyed by many wars and fires, but due to its historic value, the city was dropped from the list of target cities for the atomic bomb and spared from air raids during World War II . Today, many tourists visit Kyoto since it has preserved temples, shrines and historical structures which takes one to Japan's nostalgic past.

In order to visit the shrines in a comfortable and hassle-free manner, our host family rented two cars with drivers for our group.

Our first stop was the Fushimi Inari Shrine, which is known for the ultimate torii gate experience.

Visitors walk through the torii gates

Fushimi Inari Shrine is famous for its thousands of vermilion torii gates in bright orange colour. It is what is locally referred to as Senbon torii (Senbon means “a thousand” in Japanese). The torii gates and its network of structures lead to  the the hiking trails that goes into the woods and goes to the sacred Mount Inari, which stands at 233 meters and belongs to the shrine grounds.

Fushimi Inari is the most important of several thousands of shrines dedicated to Inari, the Shinto god of rice. It is a shrine visited by locals and tourists and is believed to be a shrine that is the deity of business prosperity.

Friendly Japanese women wearing traditional
kimono outfits visiting the shrine smile
 for a photo

The back of the torii gates are inscribed with the names of the donators.

The torii gates along the entire trail are donations by individuals and companies, and you will find the donator's name and the date of the donation inscribed on the back of each gate. The cost starts around 400,000 yen for a small sized gate and increases to over one million yen for a large gate.

Visitors may write their wishes

Cards with fox design containing written
wishes  are hanged by visitors

It takes around 2 to 3 hours to hike to the summit of Mount Inari, however, visitors are free to walk just as far as they wish before turning back. Along the way, there are multiple smaller shrines with stacks of miniature torii gates that were donated by visitors with smaller budgets.

Aside from the torii gates walking experience, visitors also go to the coin tossing area to wish for luck and love. 

Visitors also visit the horse placed inside an orange house structure. Some even drop their business cards inside since locals believe it brings luck to the individual and their business.

The face of the horse that is believed to bring
good luck or prosperity to one's business.

Other visitors may also get a miniature torii gate which they can get as a souvenir or write on with their wishes prior to hanging them.

 
The torii gate experience at Fushimi Inari shrine was good. The vibe is very peaceful and the striking orange coloured toriis made us feel happy.

More posts on Kyoto in my next blog post. Cheers!

Celebrating My Birthday in Japan

This October, I travelled to Japan for the second time this year.

I am truly blessed to have a generous friend who treats me like a sister, knows that I love to travel and treated me to a fun trip to Japan for my birthday.

I did not mind waking up early on my birthday since I was so excited to travel and see new places in Japan. I heard so many good things from people who travel there during fall that I really wanted to see it and explore the historical sites too.

On the day that I arrived at Narita airport via a JAL flight with two other girls, my friend and her family picked us up from the airport. 

My friend and her family hosted a nice Japanese dinner as a welcome dinner and birthday celebration for me at a restaurant frequented by locals for special occasions called Ichiko.

The food was a Japanese tasting menu since they served us several dishes.

Appetizers included tofu, chowan mushi and pickled vegetables

The noodle dish was something different since we cooked it on our table using a wooden steamer.

Noodles, vegetables and sukiyaki cut meat in a wooden
steamer

As we were cooking our noodle dish, we ate tempura dipped in green tea and sea salt mix and other dishes.

Prawn and vegetable tempura

A vegetable gratin dish  was a surprise for us since we did
not expect to have this in a Japanese restaurant

Fish dish with special sauce

Japanese style omelet with fish roe and cheese inside

Assorted sushi 

 Since it was my birthday, the restaurant gave me a creme brulee
in a pot and some flowers.

Strawberry shortcake that my friend ordered from
one of her favourite bakers

We enjoyed our dinner. Our group composed of 11 people had so much fun talking to each other as we cooked our noodle dish and tried the different dishes. 

It was a happy dinner and a good start for our Japan adventure. Cheers!

Authentic Thai Cuisine at Nara

Nara is an upscale Thai bistro located on the 7th floor of Central Wordl Mall in Bangkok. It is a place that is frequented by locals and travellers in Thailand.

We tried it when my friend and I went to Central World Mall for lunch during a recent trip to Bangkok.

The place is casual yet it features elegant and classic decor with a mix of dark wood, tropical plants, wicker chairs and a high ceiling that simply enhances the overall interiors of the cozy restaurant.

We ordered four dishes and we liked the presentation and taste of the dishes we got.

Prawn Pomelo Salad with edible flowers

Tom Yum Prawn soup

Pad Thai noodle dish

Chicken in Red Curry 

Nara is a good place to have authentic Thai cuisine. The location is accessible since it is located inside Central World Mall.

It is definitely a place where you can relax and chat as you enjoy your favourite Thai dishes. Another travel tip is to visit Central World Mall's gourmet food market located on the same floor as Nara and buy Thai food finds such as powdered Thai Milk tea, Spicy tamarind, herbs and spices, etc. that you might want to bring back home. Cheers!

Yummy Street Food in Bangkok

My friend and I like trying local food when we go on trips abroad.

During a recent visit to Bangkok, we tried different street food for our afternoon snack.

Here are our food picks when we went to the food court at Siam Paragon mall:

Pork skewers marinated in coconut milk

Each stick of the Thai style pork bbq is only Baht 15 

If you like Pinoy style sausages( also known as longganisa) then you would have to try the Thai style sausages in Bangkok. It was something that my brother let me try years ago during one of our fun trips.

You may try different kinds such as Thai style sausage,
garlic sausage and basil sausage when you get one order

My friend let me try one of her favourite street food treats, a steamed bun with salted egg and custard lava.

Steamed bun with salted egg and custard lava

And we surely got excited when we saw one of our favourite desserts in Bangkok, the coconut ice cream which we got from one of the food stalls outside a food fair in Central World Mall. This is also something you can find at the weekend markets in Bangkok.

You an opt to have toppings such as peanuts and cornflakes
for an added crunch

My friend and I still prefer the plain coconut ice cream which is served in a shell with shredded coconut meat at the bottom.

Coconut ice cream which comes
in a coconut shell

Bangkok is certainly a good place for foodies and travellers. Apart from the rich culture that you can see, the variety of good and affordable food is always available in this vibrant city. Cheers!

NYC Style Desserts at CHIKALICIOUS Bangkok

A friend of mine who visited Bangkok with his family suggested that I go to Central Embassy Mall in Bangkok and try CHIKALICIOUS Dessert Bar.

Being the fun and curious foodies that we are, my friend and I went to CHIKALICIOUS to try it after one of our dinners during our trip last month.

CHIKALICIOUS is a dessert bar that originated from New York City. It was established at NYC in 2003 and has branched out to Bangkok and Tokyo. It offers different 3-course dessert menus which includes an amuse, dessert of your choice and assorted petit fours. Their staff becomes your sommelier as they give suggestions on the beverages that can be best paired with your desserts. You can choose from a good selection of wine, coffee and tea from their menu. 

The wall design adds a NYC vibe  at  CHIKALICIOUS

What is interesting about this place is that  focuses on making desserts and offers customers a chance to watch pastry chefs prepare desserts like works of art in an open kitchen set-up. If you are a foodie who enjoys watching how food is prepared then it is best to get a seat near the bar and open kitchen area of the cafe.

My good friend Eia having tea while we wait for our  3-course dessert.

 A pastry chef prepares delightful desserts
 at the bar at ChikaLicious

Below are the desserts that we tried.

Cantaloupe and fresh mint ice cream

Warm Chocolate Tart with Pink Peppercorn Ice Cream
and Red Wine Sauce and a pot of tea

Petit Fours

The casual and chic ambiance at CHIKALICIOUS adds to one's pleasant experience of having freshly prepared gourmet desserts at a relaxing atmosphere. It is a nice place to hangout with friends after having lunch or dinner at Central Embassy mall.

Erawan Tea Room Revisited

It has been quite awhile since I have been to the Erawan Tea Room by the Grand Hyatt Hotel in Bangkok, Thailand. The tea room is located on the 2nd floor of the Erawan Boutique Mall which is conveniently attached to the Grand Hyatt Erawan Hotel along Sukhumvit road. 

I remember that the first time I went there was years ago during a trip with my brother who likes to visit well-designed places.

During my recent visit to Bangkok last month, I was able to revisit the Erawan Tea room with a friend and had lunch there. 

Erawan Tea Room Grand Hyatt Bangkok

The Erawan Tea room features classic decor and was designed by internationally claimed designer Tony Chi. The nostalgic atmosphere provides a cozy and relaxing vibe. Plus, the panoramic windows provides customers a view of the well-known Erawan Shrine.

The dark wooden furniture, hanging lamps and comfortable red lounge
chairs make the Erawan tea room a stylish and virbrant place.

The wall is  filled with evocative photos which makes one feel
that one is dining at a lovely historical home.

Apart from the nice and relaxing casual setting, the Erawan Tea room serves good food and drinks.

I tried the Thai Set Menu which is a tasting menu of popular Thai dishes which was certainly filling and flavourful. Here are the dishes included in the set menu.

Spicy Pomelo Shrimp Salad

Grilled pork neck with herbed chilli sauce

 

Stir-fried morning glory vegetables with
 chili and soy bean paste

Beef Panaeng Curry

Coconut milk soup with chicken and Jasmine rice

When I asked the staff what would be a good beverage to go with my meal, she suggested that I try their freshly made lemongrass iced tea. It was a good choice since the lemongrass iced tea was a refreshing drink that had complemented well my traditional Thai cuisine lunch.

A serving of fresh fruits was also included in the set menu

The Erawan Tea room offers a wide range of tea selections sourced from India, China, Sri Lanka, and Thailand.

They also sell the lovely tea pots and cups.

The Erawan tea room is a good place to visit for afternoon tea, lunch or dinner when one visits Bangkok. The staff are well-trained and the service is good.

It is easy to find since it is located just across Gaysorn mall and Intercon Hotel  on Sukhumvit road.