first time in nippon

Getting a taste of Japan...


Brunch with a cheeky glass of bubbly at Cafe Aux Bacchanales; Ginza, Tokyo


Afternoon tea in stlye at Park Hyatt Tokyo; Shinjuku, Tokyo


Lazy afternoon people-watching at Anniversaire Cafe; Omotesando, Tokyo


Casual wining and dining at a Japanese-Italian izakaya; Futako-tamagawa, Tokyo


Red wine-friendly roasted pigeon for dinner at Boulangerie Patisserie Brasserie Viron; Shibuya, Tokyo


Ekiben with a mandatory beer on the shinkansen bullet train


Tucking in okonomi-yaki and fried noodle at a local okonomi-yaki bar, Kyoto


Room service breakfast to slow start a busy day in town


... someimes with some quick-fix Mimosa, even.

Your one-week visit in Tokyo and Kyoto went by in a flash and before you know it you find yourself back home, unloading your overweight suitcase as you are greeted by your dog with much enthusiasm. You might still be thinking about seared sashimi tuna steaks that turned out to be not as scary as you had thought them to be, while regretting that you did not get around to trying one of those Pocari Sweat (which actually doesn't contain sweat at all) from a random vending machine.

Apart from some dishes that might sometimes have been too fishy to your taste, and certain procedures that would have been overly polite and time-consuming, I hope Japan has treated you good and proved itself to be not all that alien and scary. I may not always be here, you know, but Japan will certainly be here for you should you ever wish to come back - and I hope you will soon.

(photographs from autumn Tokyo [mostly of food] and Kyoto will follow hopefully shortly...)