[Tokyo] Shibuya Sky

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if you follow me on instagram, you would’ve probably seen a similar picture like the one above with a lot of likes — not for me but for the view. and that’s Shibuya’s latest attraction: Shibuya SKY @ Shibuya Scramble Square; a new shopping mall in the heart of Shibuya.

I’ve never really understood why you should pay so much for a view; Roppongi Hills, Tokyo Skytree… etc. they all costs so much, yet you can go to some free buildings in Ebisu or Shinjuku. but this place, it’s so good that I’d pay to go there again if I were to stop by Tokyo. this was probably the most spectacular observatory deck I’ve ever been to, not to mention it’s also has a lot of picture spots which are so scenic, sofas for resting and even floor hammocks for you to chill at. shame that I forgot to take pictures of it but you just got to go there to experience it. 

Continue reading “[Tokyo] Shibuya Sky”

[Tokyo] Marukin Ramen

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hello all! hope you guys love ramen just like I do. in Japan, ramen is deemed to be a man’s food and me liking it made my friends call me a.. ramen-girl because it’s so odd to have a girl as a ramen fan. I used to eat ramen so often that I could eat it everyday! well, because it’s cheap and it’s just so slurpingly good!

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while many people thinks that Ichiran and Ippudo’s the best, the thing that foreigners don’t know is that.. there is a ramen for everyone, and I highly urge everyone to try out different ramens to find their perfect fit! Continue reading “[Tokyo] Marukin Ramen”

[Tokyo: Tachikawa] Showa Memorial Park

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planning a trip to Tokyo this Autumn but not quite sure on where’s the best place to see those dazzling golden leaves? want to escape the crowd in Tokyo? well, I’ve got you covered. and the place is: Showa Kinen Koen or simply Showa Memorial Park. just a 40minute train ride from Shinjuku. Continue reading “[Tokyo: Tachikawa] Showa Memorial Park”

[Tokyo: Nishi-Ogikubo] Pineapple and Chocolate Ramen?! Papapapapine!

if you’re a hardcore rocketnews24 reader, you might’ve run across this restaurant that serves pineapple ramen so good, they came out with the instant noodle version of it and it can be found at selected convenience stores. except I’ve yet to come across it during my 7 month stay in Japan.

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so Papapapapine is known for their pineapple ramen. but what’s that above? kakakakakao. get it? well, other than its famous pineapple ramen, it is also known for its notorious innovation when it comes to ramen. they had strawberry ramen, banana ramen.. well.. you name it. while their seasonal menu changes all the time, you’d always be able to find pineapple ramen in this shop. Continue reading “[Tokyo: Nishi-Ogikubo] Pineapple and Chocolate Ramen?! Papapapapine!”

[Tokyo: Mitaka] Ghibli Museum

I am not sure if you know, but I am actually a huge Ghibli fan. other than the few latest movies I watched almost all of Hayao Miyazaki’s popular creations and I LOVE IT!!! up till the point that I need to restrict myself from going into a Ghibli store before I spend all my savings on fan items I know I shouldn’t buy.

but this time, since my sister came to visit me in Tokyo last winter, I decided to go online (you can check the availability here) and book the tickets 1 month prior to her arrival. holy cow! one month?! yeap. one month.

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so how do you get the ghibli museum ticket? well.. it’s really easy for those who’s living in Japan. and for those who isn’t living in Japan, you may want to find someone to help you get it in Japan. there’ll be a machine that looks like an ATM machine in LAWSON (a convenience store) and you can buy your tickets there! there are 4 time slots a day and the earlier ones tend to get sold out quickly. and weekends gets sold out faster than the weekdays too. Continue reading “[Tokyo: Mitaka] Ghibli Museum”

[Tokyo: Harajuku] AFURI Ramen

recently I got the nickname “ramen girl” from my Japanese friend because he stated that Ramen isn’t normally loved by women. but if you look through my instagram a month before I leave Japan, you could probably see my love for ramen, which made me the “ramen girl.”

while the best ramen I’ve ever had was still the one from Osaka, from a chain called.. I forgot (update: it’s called 藤平) but it was near Fukushima station, Tokyo has the widest range of ramen in my opinion. it is like, you can find anything in Tokyo. and I love Tokyo for that reason. if you are living in Tokyo and loveee ramen, then Afuri shouldn’t be a name that is unfamiliar to you as it is literally ONE OF THE BEST ramen available in Tokyo.

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you should know how no ramen in Japan would taste the same, Afuri takes a huger leap away from the weird. they are known for their Yuzu ramen, or in other words, Citrus ramen. how would the citrus’ tangy taste taste like with salty ramen? well, that’s why I went to find out! Continue reading “[Tokyo: Harajuku] AFURI Ramen”

[Tokyo: Ginza] Midori Sushi. is it worth it?

I’d like to label people who come to Midori Sushi as.. smart. because for 3,000yen, you can get as follows:

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12 pieces of sushi, egg + one handroll and a miso crab salad!

although the queue would be quite a misery (normally 2 hours. I only queued for 80 minutes ahahhaha ONLY.) you can actually take a number and come back an hour later and wait for only about 20-40 minutes! depending on which branch you go to really. I went to the Ginza branch and I heard the Shibuya branch has the longest queue whereas the one in Kichijoji has almost no queue! Continue reading “[Tokyo: Ginza] Midori Sushi. is it worth it?”

[Tokyo: Ebisu] Itasobakaoriya 板蕎麦 香り家

so this place which I’ve stumbled across in Ebisu while looking for a soba place, is the BEST soba place I’ve ever came across in Japan so far. I was actually around the area looking for the Ebisu illumination but decided to settle for soba instead since it’s a tradition in Japan to eat soba the night before new years (the Japanese NY is on 1.1) and it is said that you should not bite your soba as you eat and gobble it down as a whole until it is all in your mouth and then chew. all that just to live a longer life. well, no harm believing in it right? except I forgot and accidentally bit it off my first bite =X. but I followed the “rules” after that.

soba’s always been my favourite Japanese dish since I was young. although now it’s sushi, I still love soba. but to my surprise, soba in Japan does not taste quite like the soba’s I’ve had in Malaysia and Korea where it was always a little more jelly-like. instead, these buckwheat noodles called soba, are not as smooth and has a stronger buckwheat taste to it in Japan. I wasn’t very used to it the first few times but I came to enjoy it more than the ones I’ve had which I now label, the unoriginal soba.

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I actually read about this place and it has a soaring high 3.52 in tabelog and there were comments on how people waited for this and thought it was totally worth the wait. except because I had it first on NYE I had to queue for 2 hours in the painfully cold weather. and still thought it was very worth it! they even provided us hot tea, beer (yes, BEER!) and hot packs while we were waiting in line outside! Continue reading “[Tokyo: Ebisu] Itasobakaoriya 板蕎麦 香り家”

[Tokyo: Roppongi] Matsurokuya Wagyu Lunch

so what is living in Japan without having tried wagyu? well.. I had (the cheaper) Kobe beef before and I still think (medium priced home-cooked) Hanwoo beef from Korea tastes better =X. but the thing is, after going to Hidenori at Tsukiji and had their 2000yen a piece of raw wagyu beef sushi, I am now hooked onto wagyu. can’t say I prefer it over Hanwoo but I am definitely digging the raw wagyu beef in Japan. but I am a poor student and very unfortunately cannot afford to eat such luxurious food often. so what do I do?

I look for affordable places!

but with a catch, because Matsurokuya only serves 30 portions of this A5 Kurogewagyu everyday. I arrived 40minutes before (10:50) the shop opened at 11:30am and I was already 10th in line. but however, people who arrived just 10minutes before it opened were at like number 20-25. but just to be safe, arrive earlier. as this place is near some university, there may be many Japanese university students lining up for this in the morning.

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but well, fortunately in Japan, cheap does not always mean bad. I searched online before university even started and found this place far out in Roppongi where you can devour a bowl of rice topped with lightly seared A5 Kurogewagyu beef for only 1,500yen! and the best of all? it is served in Hitsumabushi style (will blog about this famous Nagoya eel dish sometime later!) which means you get to enjoy one dish in three ways! Continue reading “[Tokyo: Roppongi] Matsurokuya Wagyu Lunch”