Cafe Marine with Hashi

A few weeks ago we went to a restaurant with Hashi called Cafe Marine in nearby Hayama. They really cater to dogs here - considering dogs outnumber kids in Japan this is a smart business move! They offer free treats, hookups at each table and even a dog menu (no, I am not kidding)! The people food is pretty good too :)

Lovely view

Hashi - hot, but happy

Tables where you can sit with your dog off leash

Yummy food

Wind Bell Festival at Kawasaki Daishi

Kawasaki Daishi temple is best known for the infamous fertility festival (Kanamara Matsuri) at the shrine within its grounds, but every July a wind bell festival (Furin-ichi) is also held for 5 days. There are 30,000 wind bells from all over Japan made of all kinds of materials. Each material makes a different sound. The chiming is supposed to distract you from the heat and humidity and make you feel cooler, among other things.

Glass

Cast iron

Ceramic

Living moss and plant wind bells

Woven basket wind bells from Kyoto

Main Hall

Shopping street leading up to the temple

Lots of daruma for sale

Making deliveries via bicycle

Making and selling traditional candy

Our cast iron wind bell is from a company named Shuzendo located in Awate Prefecture in northern Japan. It weighs over 2 lb.!

Deep Fried Japan

Kushiage/kushikatsu is the deep fried friend of yakitori. We first tried it in Osaka. If you like deep fried food (who doesn't?), you will be in heaven.

Osaka Shinsekai

Must eat lots of cabbage in between

Then a chain called Kushiya Monogatari opened up in our local mall in Yokosuka. They offer fry-it-yourself all you can eat (for 90 min.) kushiage for 1999 yen (that's about $20). Oh, did I mention they also have a salad bar and chocolate fondue dessert bar? Oh yeah. I was too busy eating to take good pictures of that but here are some on another blog. Igor and I managed to eat a respectable 50 sticks but the high school girls next to us put away about 50 sticks EACH.

From the Kushiya Monogatari website

Fried pumpkin, sweet potato, bacon,  cheese, shrimp, salmon, and taiyaki oh my! My favorite were the cheese rolls and Igor liked the salmon.

This would never be allowed in the U.S. Lawsuit!

First you dip it in the batter, then in the crumbs, then fry, then in the sauce!

GET IN MY BELLY - YUM

Hanami in Tokyo & Yokosuka

This year I took a bus tour to see the cherry blossoms (sakura) in Tokyo. It was a beautiful day and the flowers were at their peak. Many people were enjoying hanami (flower viewing), which typically involves lounging on blue tarps and eating and drinking under the trees...with lots and lots of other people!

Sumida Koen

Tokyo Skytree

Weeping sakura (shidarezakura)

Skytree and Sumida River

The most popular place for hanami in Tokyo - Ueno Koen

Hanami time

Awesome setup with shoe cubbies and everything!

Kaneiji Temple

Unusual tree from Kyoto with single/double flowers within the temple grounds

Chidorigafuchi near the Imperial Palace

Yasukuni Shrine

Jizō statues at Zojyoji Temple at the base of the Tokyo Tower

The next set of pictures are from our neighborhood, Sakuragaoka (which literally means "cherry blossom hill"). This year the trees started blooming March 25 and now they are all falling down. In general, the blossoms only last two weeks or less.

Hashi with the sakura in full bloom at a park by our house

Sakura falling

The lanterns are lit up at night

Yozakura - "night sakura"

This is the best my camera can do at night

We walk around this ravine every day

Tokyo skyline with the Skytree way across the bay from our house

Yaezakura - sakura with more than 5 petals

Looking down the hill towards our house