Surprising the bestie.

A few weeks ago I managed to pull off the best surprise to date. Haruka and I are somewhat used to being apart now, and it’s become easier with time now that we don’t live together, but the fact we’d potentially miss each other in passing this winter was something that I wasn’t going to let happen. For months prior I was scheming with Haruka’s mum, keeping up to date with her plans to return to Japan, all whilst telling Haruka I was “too busy with work” to come and see her. Yeah, right.

My plan played out perfectly. I skyped her like usual so she wouldn’t be suspicious, almost put my foot in it a few times, and gave her ridiculous hints that she didn’t catch on to on the day.

She was clueless, so after bailing from work after 3^rd period, I made it to Kawasaki by 6pm, just in time to knock on the door and leave her in a state of shock before dinner.

Once she’d gotten over the shock (honestly it took until the next morning) it was so nice to fall into our old patterns and spend some time with my second family, the Hattori’s, too. We visited a few new places together during my weekend, so here’s my run down on the places to go.

Alfred Tea Room

“Tea, yes. You, maybe”. With a motto like that, who could resist? This is a definite must-go for tea lovers. Hailing from L.A, there are two shops now located in Tokyo. The one we visited, close to Shinjuku station, gave us some tranquil respite from the craziness of the area.

There’s a variety of milk teas and matcha, things I adore equally, and Haruka will agree it was one of the best we’ve ever had. The matcha was bitter enough, the chai not too sweet and bursting with cinnamon. You can also order from the “fancy pink tea list” if you’d rather have something a little more refined or exotic. 

The store itself fitted right in to my girly pink aesthetic so all in all, Alfred Tea, like is written throughout your stores… “I love you so matcha”.

Cookie Time Harajuku

Mainly for novelty and the smell of baked goods. Right across from Harajuku station, this is somewhere you should visit if your sweet cravings are relentless but you’d rather not wait with hordes of people for some crepes or candy floss. 

Although I didn’t try it myself, there are varieties of milk on tap for you to enjoy with your cookies, along with the most ridiculous milkshakes.  

  

Yomiuriland

Haruka and I somehow always end up at random date locations together, and this visit wasn’t any different. We wanted to find somewhere to look at all the beautiful winter illuminations and instead of heading into Tokyo itself, we settled on a theme park not too far from where she lives. 

 The illuminations were more than I expected, with so many themed areas, constant light shows, illuminated tunnels and a variety of theme park rides and food stalls to add to the atmosphere. The after 4pm pass is also super cheap, so I would totally recommend this place to anyone looking for somewhere in the Tokyo/Yokohama area to see some beautiful illuminations in the winter time.