OUR TRIP OF A LIFETIME

MARCH 23RD - APRIL 14TH, 2010
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Friday, April 2, 2010

DAY 11: UME NO HANA IS AMAZING!

first here are some views from our room during the day :)
the ocean!




mountains right behind our hotel


we walked around a bit today since we didn't really have anything planned, besides dinner


saw this cool dior store



and of course i had to take our picture in the little mirrors on the dior building haha


these are like our orange barrels back home...only they are monkeys haha


thought this sign was cute. if you ride your bike here, all japanese people of all ages will apparently be so disappointed in you haha ;)

found another arcade, and these prizes were crazy! cat paws! and they felt SO REAL it was freaky! the pads were made out of a jelly-rubber so it really felt like a cat paw haha...and check out the cartoon of the guy on the poster in the background hahahahahaa


this lady thought her puppies were her children i guess


and japan has every flavor of pringles ever!


we had a few food places in mind that we wanted to try thanks to our internet friend, keith (kobekeith on the trip advisor forums), who gave us the heads up on some amazing places to try!


first were the delicious gyoza from akaman. these things were so good! homemade potstickers that they prepare for the day, and then just close up shop once they sell out!

and then tonight we also had reservations for a place called ume no hana, which was AMAZING. keith told us how great it was, but we had no idea just HOW good until we got there tonight! it really was a VERY memorable dinner that we LOVED! also, keith was so great as to reserve a special private room for us since it's our honeymoon!!! normally these private rooms are for 4 or more people, but they allowed us to have our own room since it was our honeymoon! it was the BEST!!!


our private room!!!!!


cute table


AWESOME view of the city!




both ready for our 15-course meal. yes, 15-courses haha


our place setting with green tea


courses #1, #2, & #3.
#1) boiled green vegetable seasoned with soysauce and fish stock
#2) tofu-like food made from milk, fresh cream and arrowroot starch
#3) cold yuba


#4) cup of savory steamed egg custard containing shrimp, mushrooms, dumpling, and ginkgo nut


#5) sashimi


#6) chinese-style dumpling made with tofu


#7) deep-fried wheat-gluten coated with miso paste


#8) lotus root dumplings topped with fish stock sauce


#9) boiled tofu (eaten with soy starchy sauce, grind sesame seeds, and grated ginger)
#10) deep-fried yuba roll with ground whitefish


#11) yuba gratin


#12) savory steamed glutinous rice 
#13) clear soup with yuba
#14) japanese pickled vegetables


#15) dessert! 
i chose the soy ice cream with sugar syrup, and erik chose the strawberry ice cream. both were SO good


everything was AMAZING. the only one we weren't crazy about was the boiled tofu. i think it was a texture thing, but the whole experience was just so memorable. no one there really spoke any engligh, and luckily our server was a girl who looked to be about our age, so we all had fun together trying to figure out what each other was saying hahaha...she was trying so hard with her english, and we were picking up the very few japanese words we know, and we all did a lot of laughing together because it was pretty funny trying to watch one-another struggle to try to get across what we were trying to say :) she liked when we would say things in japanese though! it was such an awesome night :) 

6 comments:

  1. you know, i just absolutely love all of the interior design of all these restaurants and hotels: the simplicity and bold color schemes, and then always incorporating nature into it. its like constant ikebana.

    that just makes me even more excited for you to see your bridal shower invitations and centerpieces since thats the concept i utilized. your mom and aunt love the invites, and i cant wait for you to see them!

    ill be going to check on kahlua and sadie tomorrow and ill have more pictures for you then. i didnt get a chance to go yesterday because i had to go find out if my mask got into the student art show, and it did! but i will go get you more peeks at your baby, and hopefully i can coax sadie out since fred and his jingly wallet probably scared her.

    you guys all over your sniffles?

    also...cheese dog pringles? what other crazy flavors were there?

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  2. ahhh! i cannot WAIT to see those invites!!! so, so excited :D

    and thanks again so much for checking up on our babies hehe :) i miss my lil boy so much!!! maybe try the catnip with sadie lol...it's her weakness, and maybe she will break down enough to come out if she hears it shaking in it's container haha...and that's GREAT NEWS about your mask!!!!! :D i love it SO much!

    as for sniffles, i'm completely done, but erik still has some :( hopefully they will be gone soon!!!

    and lol about the pringles!!! we have also bought the cheese fries and chicken wing kinds, but we have also seen soup flavor (not sure what kind of soup though lol). crazy weird flavors! it's pretty cool :)

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  3. I can't believe that meal (have no idea what most of the food is)! It all looks so amazing. All of your pre-planning will make the trip even more memorable! XO

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  4. Aunt Ria here ... It is fun to follow your trip and enjoy your fabulous photos. My favorite was the cherry blossoms and little blue boats. Many other great shots too. BTW, Jenn's invites are perfect and you will LOVE them! Get over the colds and keep enjoying each day.

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  5. i can't wait to see those invites!!! and luckily my cold is completely gone, and erik's is just about there too :) each day here is an adventure, and being sick just got in the way! haha

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  6. Hey!!

    Just saw your blog and its amazing what Japan has to offer!!
    I will be going to Tokyo, Kyoto & Osaka in 3 weeks and can't wait to visit the most amazing places, restaurants and culture of the place!!

    Just one question...where is this restaurant exactly and how much are the prices approx?
    Please email me on tiziana.ellul@gmail.com with the reply since I am really looking forward for a good experience like this one :)

    Thanks again!
    Tiz

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