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.

Merry Christmas and 明けおめ！

Over winter break I went up to Kanagawa to spend time with my best friend’s family. As strange as it sounds, we did a “family swap”, with Haruka spending Christmas with my family, since she’s still studying in England. Mimi, their pug, sealed the deal for me.

I was as sick as anything for the first few days of the trip, so I was super grateful for being in an actual home rather than my apartment. Don’t get me wrong, I love my apartment, but it doesn’t quite have the homely feel you want when you’re feeling under the weather. I’ll admit, eating Christmas dinner was the first time I’ve felt really homesick my entire time in Japan. As you can see, I’ve got my priorities straight… missing roast dinners with my Dad’s gravy takes precedence over anything.

I choose not to speak Japanese around Haruka’s family, mainly because I never have done and don’t need to. Much to Haruka’s mums delight, she declared Christmas day was “Japanese day” because friends of the family were coming round for Christmas dinner. I thought she was joking until I was greeted by a cheerful “おはようございます” after just waking up, but it wasn’t as bad as I thought, more just weird talking to them in anything but English.

New Years was a fabulous experience: getting to eat toshikoshi soba at midnight, drinking sake to ring in New Year’s Day, and eating traditional ozōni and osechi-ryōri despite it being a texture nightmare (I’m looking at you, kamaboko). New Year was made even better by going on a morning stroll while Skyping my parents and getting a glimpse of Mt. Fuji in the distance; it really cemented the fact that I’m in Japan and I’ve actually started this whole ‘adulting’ thing.

During my time there I met up with a few friends, Cathy and Jae in Tokyo, Daichi in Yokohama; along with doing some exploring of my own. Here’s a little breakdown of some gems I found during my time there, and I’d definitely recommend going to if you’re ever up in the Tokyo area!

Dominique Ansel Bakery, Omotesando – I’ll admit I found this place scrolling through Instagram, but it’s so-called blossoming hot chocolate had me sold. It’s hidden in the back streets, and a cool place to go to get some strangely innovative desserts. I didn’t get my hands on one of their frozen s’mores (which they put on a stick and toast, might I add), or a cookie shot glass filled with milk, but I did try my first ever cronut... strawberry jam, chocolate elderflower ganache and mint sugar magic.

FYI: they change the cronut flavours monthly. If that’s not an invitation to return, I don’t know what is.

Starbucks Neighbourhood and Café, Tama Plaza Terrace – I’d heard a lot about these elusive Starbucks where you could by alcohol, and was pleased to find that although there’s 13 dotted around Japan, one of them was on my way home from Yokohama. 

I’m seriously bitter that my Starbucks wasn’t like this; selling beer, wine and allowing you to customise your coffee with whatever bean they had. I treated myself to a local Hokkaido beer which was recommended to me, and their food looked fabulous too. If you’re a fan of a chill atmosphere, whatever coffee you want and a little bit of booze, go, it’s very different from other Starbucks you’ll have been to.

 Kawaii Monster Café, Harajuku – A pink, sparkly, cute paradise. For me, at least. I’ve been wanting to go for a while and its outrageousness didn’t disappoint at all! It’s one of those places that leaves you wondering why it’s a thing, but I wasn’t complaining in the slightest.
The food was surprisingly nice, and I managed to time my visit to coincide with a show performed by the ‘Monster Girls’. 

It’s also given me some rather far-fetched ideas for my apartment. Hold that thought, in a few months I may have crafted some papier mâché macaroons for my bedroom.

T-site, Daikanyama – I never would have found this on my own if Haruka’s brother hadn’t recommended it to me. I took a trip to this Tsuruya book store one afternoon where you can browse to your hearts content and read anything you want. 

It’s got a whole at one with nature vibe, and is really more than just a regular bookstore. I was quite content with a coffee, reading a book about Kyoto, in what is considered to be one of the 20 most beautiful bookstores in the world.

Red Rock, Takadanobaba - Beef. Lots of it. A runny egg. Need I say more?