Ah Ya Shibuya // Japan

Wow things have been out of control on my side of the computer screen so I'm so sorry for the delay in this post! But basically, we just got into mischief when we hit up Shibuya - the trendy/young district full of Harijuku inspired sights.

First thing's first though - put this on....perfect.

Getting off the train, we flooded out with the masses into the throbbing crowds moving across Shibuya's main intersection.

Eyes wide and jaws low to the ground, we goggled at pretty much everything we saw. Mindlessly, we wandered through the fluorescent jungle of materialism. 

Shops were inescapable. Stockings, piercing jewelry, and 6+ inch platform heels galore.

Walking up quite an appetite, we stumbled into this gem of a restaurant.

Kamukura.

Basically, you 'vending machine style' order your food.
Yup, you heard me.

A "vending machine" squats outside the restaurant beaconing passerbys to make a pit stop.
You choose which dish you'd like to eat, pay the machine and - just as you would guess - go inside to eat up your order.

You hand your order tickets that you received outside to the waiters/chefs and they put them on your respective seat.

Within minutes, your hot bowl of Japanese delight awaits to bombard your taste buds with uniqueness and food glory.

The flavors are incredibly simple but all the more delicious. There's something about broth, noodles and a bit of greens & protein that will always be spot on.

Like any plumped little child, we each tottered our way out of the restaurant with "Domo arigato!"s being thrown around behind us and popped us back out onto Shibuya's streets.
Delighted with everything we saw, bought and ate, we made our way back to the central intersection and made our way home.

While I would have loved to have explored more temples, this trip to Japan was still fascinating. The people could not have been friendlier and more accommodating. I very much look forward to taking the bullet train over to Kyoto the next time I'm in Japan to get a better sense of the country's rich cultural origins, but until then, Tokyo has absolutely swept me off my feet. Must have been Japanese in another life because I could without a doubt eat sushi and ramen for every meal...let alone channel my inner-self out in the most zen gardens every day.

Until next time Japan, domo arigato!

You & Sushi Make Miso Happy // Japan

There's no other way to start this post off but with a little sushi pun because this was the day we went to the worlds' largest fist market, Tsukiji.

Having woken up with the birds at 6am, we groggily threw on clothes and swam in the pod of people on the subway towards the market.

Need less I say that we had no expectations going into this, but anything we could've come up with would've been blown out of the water. This market truly is massive! Fish vendors, gift vendors, and best of all sushi vendors galore.

We bumbled around ooing and aahing at all of the fresh sushi, knick knacks and Japanese culture that surrounded us.

It wasn't until poppa Shugs started craving his morning coffee that our leisure browsing came to an end. He spotted this charismatic hole-in-the-wall shop so we took a seat to soaked in some caffeine and the hectic environment that surrounded us.

In between puffs of his cigarette, the 'waiter'/owner artistically poured us each a coffee. He frisbee tossed them onto plates and overhead threw sugar cubes alongside them before placing their steaming goodnesses in front of us.

...this might be a lliiiiitttlleee bit of an exaggeration but trust me, not by much.

Reheated, we headed back outside to kill some more time before meeting friends for sushi.

My pop and I's favorite part of the market I would have to say was the actual fish market. As mum and I were window shopping, I heard my pop yell, "Sam! Fish!" to which I dropped the once interesting tourist shirt to go witness this truly big fish.

After drifting into the actual fish market, we walked around with eyes wide and jaws on the floor as we saw the freshest of fresh sea food.

It goes without saying that pops was so excited he wanted to be part of the action...

Exhausted like children playing in a beach playground, we headed out in a taxi to meet our friends for Japan's world renowned sushi. Greeted by beautiful Japanese women, we were escorted to our private room to feast on the sea's freshest catches.

The kids were over-the-moon excited to dig in.
And that's exactly what they did.

Even a little possessiveness came out at the lunch table.

Eating until entering a food coma had become a regular thing for us, so we walked it off with a stroll in a traditional Japanese garden.

It was one of the most peaceful gardens I've walked in.
Silent. Deafening. Majestic. Tranquil. Chaotic nature coaxing our aching bodies and busy minds into a state of self-reflection and serenity.

Contradictory to the winter season, flowers bloomed from the cherry blossoms trees and splattered the burnt oranges, reds, and vivacious greens with hues of light pink.

Nothing screams perfection quite like eating the world's best sushi for lunch and walking it off in a traditional Japanese tranquil garden....and the modernity of Shibuya of course - but you'll have to wait until the next post for more on that one ;)