Himeji Castle (姫路城), also known as White Heron Castle (白鷺城), it’s one of Japan’s three premier castles (along with Matsumoto Castle and Kumamoto Castle). Unlike many other Japanese castles, Himeji Castle has survived through the wars, earthquakes, and other nature disasters. This over-400-year-old castle remains one of twelve original castles in Japan. It is a designated National Treasures (国宝) as well […]
Tokyo Skytree, located in Sumida ward, is the world’s tallest free-standing broadcasting tower with a height of 634.0 meters. Opened in May 2012, Tokyo Skytree (東京スカイツリー) has become a new symbol of Tokyo and remains one of the city’s most popular landmark. Usually there is a long waiting time for admission tickets. On a normal day the wait time […]
I love Yuzu… and I can never have enough delicious Japanese cuisines made with fresh Yuzu. Yuzu (ゆず), a Japanese citrus originated from China, is one of the most popular fruits in Japan. Yuzu’s flavor is sour and tart, but its aroma is incredibly amazing. It is rarely eaten as fruit, though it has been widely used in Japanese cuisines as […]
My daughter loves blueberries so I decided to make these mini blueberry muffins for her as a quick breakfast or healthy snack. These mini muffins are perfectly moist and delicious. I tried to keep the recipe simple and easy. I didn’t add vanilla extract or crumb topping but you can if you prefer. You can also substitute fresh blueberries […]
It had been a while since my last visit to Yokohama. Although it was very close to Tokyo it didn’t make into my itineraries for the last few trips. This time we decided to spend a whole day in Yokohama for Stephanie by visiting the Cup Noodle Museum and Yokohama Anpanman Children’s Museum. Located about half an hour south […]
Ghibli Museum (Mitaka/Kichijōji) My last visit to Ghibli Museum was more than 10 years ago, when I was a student and doing study aboard in Japan. I can still remember how amazed I was when I first saw the 5-meter-tall Robot Soldier (from Laputa: Castle in the Sky 天空の城ラピュタ) on the rooftop of Ghibli Museum. (Laputa: Castle in the Sky is […]
This January, we took Stephanie on her second international trip to Japan and Taiwan (again). For this trip, we had decided to make Tokyo our first destination. At first, I was hesitant on whether or not we should stay in Tokyo before heading to Kansai (関西). One of my biggest worries was getting around Tokyo with my 2-year-old. I […]
I sure like this gorgeous board book so much that I decided to write about it. Busy Alice in Wonderland was a new release title in July by Campbell Books to celebrate the 150th anniversary of Lewis Carroll’s Alice In Wonderland. It features super cute illustrations by Colonel Moutarde, and the PULL, PUSH or SLIDE mechanism on every spread […]
Braised pork belly is perfect to serve in Donburi (丼, Japanese traditional “rice bowl dish”) style, and Donburi is one of my top choice on a lazy weekend day. I usually prepare the dish on Friday night and let it sit in the fridge overnight to allow the meat to absorb more flavor. On Saturday, I simply reheat the pork belly before serving. Ingredients: […]
A while ago, my husband text me a photo of a Strawberry Parfait he brought from the coffee shop at work. It looked simple but delicious that I decided to make my own at home. I simply combined yogurt with granola and some fresh berries to create a colorful Mixed Berry Yogurt Parfait. It was simply tasty, and I loved it. Since then Yogurt […]
