meeting friends

Today, I am meeting my friend from 2nd grade. She is the one who introduced me to ballet. Now, I still do, but it looks like she should be the one still doing :)

We are meeting Starbucks. I was there early. I just looked around the area that has changed so much just in 1 year. Always new things comes in in Japan. Constant changes. This view was totally different when I came back last year.


This is where I meet my friend. I ride a train for 20 minutes and I can see Tiffany, Prada, Cartier... 1000s of new things and best restaurants from all over the world.

I had my new favorite Starbucks. Coffee jelly/jello with fresh cream.

notice how small

I had another one. Green tea cream. VERY small, but a good portion

Here they are!

We talked a while and decided to see her sister who works for tea company.

These teas are not usual teas, which is quietly becoming boom in Japan and even in America

Here are some samples of the tea

Aren't they beautiful?

her sister gave us tasting of some new tea they got.

You need to have "acquired taste" for this. You can't just dump in sugar. It's like wine.

however, You can eat sugary things in between. This looks like a rock sugar, but very interesting textured sugary sweet

You drink out of very nice china, too. That itself make me feel good

Here is the comparison of the dry version and in the pot. It blooms!

these are about $10 each...

Now, it's time to pick up my friend's daughter who is in Kindergarten. My friend rode bicycle, so we decided to meet her a bus stop near her house. It's been long time since I took a bus

I see them! Japanese mom is strong!

This is very normal scene. Her kids are on both side of the bicycle.

Wait. How do I pay the bus? So many choices...

Her daughter took this picture. Her hand made computer on my hands :)

Her picture. snake is trying to eat roll cake and she is observing it :)

my friend made us lunch. typical summer food

she is trying out the sunglasses that I bought for her in the US.

Her mom in law bought this old style ice cream for us

My friend made me this green tea flavor cheese cake.

What a treatment!

We could have talked more, but time for me to leave.

For me, 2 days before the vacation is over, so I have to spend as much time at home.

This day, the dinner was Temaki-sushi. This is how you really do it. The picture is just the fixings.

You pick things you want to eat and wrap it with seaweed with your own hand. If you translate the "Temaki" literally, it says hand rolled or hand wrapped.

The only thing wrong here is that my mom didn't cut them in smaller pieces... but that's no problem with me.

VERY VERY VERY GOOD! So Full!!!