In Tokyo for a couple days and visiting ramen and coffee places mostly.

NW Montana is too cold so I flew into Narita on my way to Cebu and then Palawan. I usually do a lot of walking and even more eating in Tokyo. That does not seem to be changing…
There is something oddly comforting about revisiting a foreign city that has good memories and Tokyo is one of those for me. From the older gentleman bowing and repeating Konnichiwa to us as we arrive to the friendly team at the Airport bus platform, it is just familiar and welcome.

Drove by Disney Tokyo and failed to get the phone out fast enough to get a shot of their light show. Nothing spectacular by Tokyo standards but nice. One of the things about Tokyo I enjoy are the sky bridges and elevated rail systems. Most American cities are boringly 2 dimensional. Tokyo is 3 dimensional. Roads go where they need to be, disregarding height and air rights in a way that is almost, though not quite, reminiscent of the Jetsons.
Bus dropped me at Tokyo Station and it is just an 8 or 9 minute walk to Hotel Intergate Kyobashi. Small, simple newer place. Very friendly and nice. Tiny rooms but a nice shower. Hit the bed and FELL OUT!! Woke 9 hours later still groggy but refreshed.
Love the kadomatsu displays of bamboo for New Years! Thank you Tokushima Cook for letting me know what they are called!
I hope i spelled it correctly.

Immediately hit Tully’s coffee for the drink I never remember the name of and a small tiramisu. Royal Cream Tea? Royal Milk Tea? Not sure, but I enjoy it every time I have it. It is like desert in a mug. Add a tiramisu for sweetness overload. Nothing succeeds like excess sugar.

Then it was a walk around the station so that I could wait long enough for the Hoshino SouffleDoria to become available at 11am. Funky dish, white rice with ketchup, ham and beaten egg whites (?) but it is delicious! The coffee is fairly good, not great. There is something about both Tully’s and Hoshino. Neither is really great at what they do but they are consistently good, and that is good enough.

Dinner was at another Google_Gourmet reco, Torikizoku Yakitori up on the 8th floor of a nondescript building near the Nihombashi Takashimaya department store, a place that is worth a book all on its own… But the yakitori was good and the recommended highball was outstanding. Odd how some trips are remembered in part due to Aperol Spritz, some to Pisco Sours, this may be my Whiskey Highball vacation. Never had one, they are pretty darned tasty! Had the edamame, boiled eggs and the pickled cucumber which is a favorite of mine plus the fried gristle and the chicken thighs with leeks. All good but the cucumber and the thighs were outstanding.


Staggered home a bit, December winds making the walk south a bit frosty. Large numbers of locals with the odd tourist mixed in, most pushing a wheeled steamer trunk of sorts.

The next day was a quick set of errands followed by a return to Ichiran Shimbashi, one of my favorites from last year. Followed my now standard technique of ordering whatever is at the top left of the ordering machine, not sure if that was Google Gourmet or Tokushima Cook who recommended that technique to me, but in the absence of a recommendation, ordering what the house thinks is there strong suit seems to work.
I ordered it with spicier sauce and softer noodles, but it was not that spicy and the noodles were still slightly al dente. I wonder how much those order sheets are followed by the chef?
But the beer was cold and the extra soft boiled egg was nicely jammy. The wait was slightly claustrophobic in that spiraling stairway but the line moved fairly quickly.

I liked the wooden notes to the server. One of the ones i did not turn over was “It is too noisy in here!” Not sure what the server is supposed to do about that…

Then I just walked around the downtown part of Tokyo, mostly Ginza but Kyobashi and Shimbashi as well. What a great city!
An incredible number of high end cars, plus the odd Morris Mini or the English 3 wheeled car that Top Gear had so much fun wrecking. The Reliant?
Right hand drivers seat means old English cars are pretty popular here, apparently.
I love this city.

20 Likes

So glad you are back on your travels and taking us with you!!

7 Likes

Enjoy. I loved Japan. That was my last big trip in January 2020 before my world traveling came to an end.

I love Tokyo and I wish I had travelled to Japan several times instead of just once. Hindsight.

I really like the food halls and the restaurant floor in the high-end department stores in Tokyo.

I really like the Royal Milk Tea and coffee shops.

I remember seeing Blue Bottle and a couple other Californian outposts near Shinjuku.

3 Likes

Fun reading about your latest visit to Tokyo but I’m even more excited about reading about this portion of your trip. I’ve not been to Cebu but I loved Palawan. As always, safe travels and happy eating!

5 Likes

I decided to do something a little different, for me, and check out a shopping street. And, as is my wont, I did not do a lot of research, I just got on the underground and took off. And stumbled into about the exact opposite of what I expected. I was thinking small shops and vendors but I went to Ueno-Ameyoko Shopping Street which is a madhouse full of people buying what I assume are fake designer parkas, inexpensive Tokyo shirts and knockoff toys of every description. And it is simply jammed with people! Japan Rail trains crashing by overhead, kids yelling for their parents, people yelling to find their friends… Channeling my inner Yogi Berra, “No one goes there anymore, it is too crowded!”

Next time, I will do some net surfing and find something closer to what I like.
I then went to Tokyo Station for what was supposed to be pretty good tempura. Firecracker shrimp at Shiroebi-Tei Tokyo Station are ok, but not my favorite. And sadly, my highball was not nearly as good as the one at the Torikizoku. And yet again, I am amazed at how much of Tokyo is underground and how complex the system of shops and cafes and corridors are.

On a MUCH more successful note, I visited Zozo-Ji Temple on my way to the Tokyo Tower. LOVED both of them!!

Zozo-Ji is impressive on its own but the part that struck me was the sculpture garden for unborn children. The parents buy the sculptures, apparently, then they visit it from time to time and put little warm hats on them in the winter to keep them warm.

At first it was just cute, then I did my research after I took the photo. Made me want to go back and take a better picture. But I was off on my way to the Tokyo Tower which is right behind Zozo-ji. What a remarkable structure! It is not huge by modern standards but it is just impressive and striking. I got the ticket for both the 150 meter observation deck and the 250 meter deck. Both were incredible! The views of Tokyo are outstanding and you can even see Mount Fuji way off in the distance! If this link actually works, the video pans quickly from a slightly smoggy view of Mt. Fuji to downtown Tokyo to the view through the glass floor towards the parking lot and a van pulling away, 150 meters below my shoes.
That is a wakeup call!!
The most amusing part of the visit to Tokyo Tower is that they jam 8 or 9 of you onto the tiny elevator up from the 150M deck to the 250M deck. And there is a relatively sharp bump as you get near the top. Each elevator has an elevator attendant at the controls and the woman operating the little upper elevator had a small but devilish grin on her face as everyone on the elevator reacted to the jolt. She was one of the highlights of the Tokyo Tower for me. And, yes, my real first name is Mark. :slight_smile:

I like how the shadow of the tower goes right through the soccer pitch.

Back on the foodie front, I spotted a wood-fire baked yam seller operating out of a small van on my way back to the subway and bought one for 500¥ and it was a sweet treat. No butter or cream like the vendors in China but really good.

And to close out my trip to Tokyo, I had to go back to Yoshinoya and try something new there, the black curry. It looks more brown to me but it was good, not great. I added a side dish of kimchi and a big helping of the pickled cabbage so it was a fun last meal.

1116¥ is just $7.10US. And I thought Tokyo was always expensive.

As a last note, I just have to mention how cool most locals are in Tokyo. It is a huge city and people are everywhere in huge numbers, which is even more of a jolt after a couple years back in Montana. But the moment you slow down, look at someone and ask a question, if they speak English they do their best to help. (Big “if” there, which is part of the reason I like Tokyo!)
For a city this size, and this busy, the people are remarkably helpful and kind.
I love Tokyo.

17 Likes

@ZivBnd where are you and what have you been eating???

3 Likes

I got to Cebu (Philippines) a few days ago, checked in to Bluewater Maribago and got fly struck immediately. LOL! Funny now. Then? Not so much.

Not a bad case but i had to cancel my snorkeling trip and my flight to San Vicente/Palawan. Visited ARC hospital and they prescribed Cyprofloxin, worked quickly, but it was too late to rebook my flight.

I did not want to get too far from my room so did not wander far from the resort. I walked a short way down the road to Labuyo Native for their kalderata. Beef, not goat, but good. Huge chunks of meat and a really rich gravy. Excellent dish!

I went back to the breakfast place that got me sick but hit the noodle soup place instead, figuring blanching the noodles should kill most of the bacteria.
That was a tasty, healthy breakfast.

Finished up w a marginal Hawaiian pizza that was kind of lame but the view was nice.

Oyster Bar was great! Love the people at both Bluewater and Marco Polo, very outgoing and real.

Checked out after a few days though and went to Marco Polo Plaza Hotel in Cebu City. Sweet! 19th floor views.

A friend from Montana reposted this “authentic” photo from home. Our horses may not be tall but they are tough!

The odd thing about that FB meme is that i swear the girl on the right went to HS w me.

10 Likes

Sorry you were sick!! Glad you are feeling better! Thanks for the update and nice pics.

4 Likes

???

1 Like

I was trying to think of a way to say that my breakfast had several flies around it and then I got diarrhea shortly thereafter. Without using the D word.
Same thing happened to me in Cabo after Hurricane Odile and in Kathmandu.
None of those were quite as bad as what happened to me west of Ulleri (Nepal) or in (and after) Vientiane (Laos) though.
Ulleri was simple stupidity on my part, drinking a lemon squeeze with two ice cubes of questionable origin.
Vientiane was just me being an idiot. Pork ceviche. What could go wrong?
In 31 years of international travel it could have been a lot worse.

8 Likes

Oh dear—sorry that this happened to you! I was so looking forward to hearing about the Philippines portion of your trip. I guess you are home now?

B and I affectionately refer to this situation as Montezuma’s Revenge; he almost always suffered from bouts of varying degrees of it while I almost always managed not to (might have been due to him eating meat but I ate more street food than he did) except in Delhi. His worst was in Yangon/Rangoon, Burma. I had thoughts of going to the US Embassy, he was that ill. Luckily, he was able to direct me to nurse him back to health.

3 Likes

Yikes! :grimacing: Glad to hear it wasn’t too bad.

2 Likes

Hi Digga! I am sidetracked but not defeated. I am staying at a very nice hotel in Cebu City and I will still take my flight to Bangkok on the 8th. Thailand seems like a safe haven for me and I miss the cafes there.
So 3 weeks in Thailand, then the Greek Islands, then home for a week or two to check on the house.
Not sure where then, but maybe a road trip around Montana if the roads are clear. I have friends I have not seen for several months.
Rangoon sounds exotic to me. I have never gotten past Kawthoung (visa runs) and I have wanted to snorkel several spots on the Mergui Archipelago for years. So many places to see. But seeing it while sick? Not nearly as much fun. The sad part is that I remember so many details of the days I was sick. In detail. I imagine it was the same for your B.

4 Likes

Sounds fabulous—you must have mentioned your enviable itinerary previously but I had lost track. Your fans will be rooting for an uneventful (health-wise) remainder of your trip. Too much snow in Montana (the meme is hilarious; I’m a native Rhode Islander…the degrees of separation are very low so in that respect, we may be similar to Montanans).

2 Likes

I am sorry to say that i accomplished little in my last 3 days in Cebu, and enjoyed it greatly!
I moved from the beach resort to a nice 4 star hotel up on the hills north of Cebu.

Marco Polo Plaza Hotel is a very friendly, well run place that has great rooms, a very nice pool and thoroughly mediocre cocktails.

I worked my way from margarita, rocks, no salt, to a lime daiquiri to an old fashioned to a mojito over the course of three days and did not have a decent basic drink. Maybe they do the newer style cocktails better? Not sure, but i have my doubts.
But i had pork belly/lechon on my mind so i was off to the Ayala Center to try a recommended version of it at Laguna Garden. Only so so, though incredibly rich with nice crackly skin bits. The veg were steamed to mush and the garlic rice ok. Not a great choice on my part.

One thing that caught me eye as i was walking about after the meal was a mall cafe that i thought at first was an Orange Julius. I will admit that in 1980 an ice cold Orange Julius was one of my favorite drinks. None at Orange Brutus, sadly.

Then i stumbled upon the Brandy and Communion Wafer section of the Supermarket. The juxtaposition of the two was rather amusing.

But i have to admit here that i do not properly plan my perigrinations, neither geographically or with regards to dining. So i choose some meals that in retrospect make no sense. Choosing to dine on dim sum at a Cantonese hotel restaraunt (Hai Shin Lou at Marco Polo) while in the middle of the Philippines :philippines: has me shaking my head in dismay.
The Xiao Long Bao were forgettable, the Wonton Noodle soup little better and for the life of me i cannot remember what my third order was. Sisig something? Not sure, but the filling was reasonably tasty, so there is that.

I apologize for the lack of dining recos for Cebu City, i was not on my game this week…

Off to Bangkok now
One of my favorite cities.

14 Likes

Thanks for posting your trip–you’re bringing me joy!

3 Likes

Glad to hear from you!! The hotel looks pretty - so does the weather!

1 Like

LOL. I had the worst pasta dish I’ve ever encountered - fettuccine Alfredo, which is something that I don’t even eat at home in the States - in the fancy Manila Hotel lounge. To this day, I still don’t know what the heck I was thinking. Foggy travel-brain?

3 Likes

Thx for 'splaining. I looked up “fly strike” and that sounded much, much worse.

1 Like