Today I am going to share with you one of my favourite Japanese recipes: Onigiri – aka Japanese Rice Balls. As you know, in the last 2 years, my family and I have visited Japan twice (check out my 2015 post and my 2017 post). We literally love the country and its food! Not only,…
Fushimi Inari – Japan Guide
During our trip to Japan, we stayed 7 nights in Kyoto. We really needed some time to unwind and we didn’t want to move around too much, so we mainly stayed in town. The only time we did venture outside was during our half day trip to Fushimi Inari. We had already visited this amazing…
Hello Kitty Cafe Kyoto – Review
One of the places we wanted to see in Kyoto was the Hello Kitty Café. Lucky for us, it was very close to “our house”, in Ninenzaka. The Hello Kitty Saryo (Tea House) is like a lot of typical tea houses in Kyoto… except for the fact that everything somehow features Kitty-chan (as she’s known…
Setsubun and Geisha in Kyoto
Setsubun (which literally means “seasonal division”) is a festival held every year on the 3rd or 4th of February, one day before the beginning of spring according to the Japanese lunar calendar. We were lucky enough to be in Kyoto at that time, so we managed to see some of the celebrations!
Kyoto – Off the Beaten Path
During our recent trip to Japan, we spent a few days in Kyoto. We had already visited it in 2015 and we had completely fallen in love with the city. To me, it is possibly the most beautiful city on earth! And if I could, I would easily move and live there. Many tourists divide…
Kinosaki Onsen Guide – Japan
During our latest trip to Japan, we decided we wanted to try the onsen experience. Winter is the best time to soak in hot water after a day in the cold! We picked a few ryokans which had their own onsen throughout the journey, but we also wanted to try the public baths. There are…
Onsen Etiquette – Japan Guide
Even though we had stayed at some onsen towns during our first trip to Japan, we had never tried taken a bath in the hot springs. Our kids were very young and we felt the water would be too hot for them. But I must confess that the real reason was probably the thought of…
Himeji Guide – Japan
During our recent trip to Japan, we visited Himeji, a town most famous for its magnificent castle, Himeji Castle, which is considered Japan’s most beautiful surviving feudal castle. The castle is designated both a national treasure and a UNESCO world heritage site.
Kurashiki Guide – Japan
Kurashiki is located in Okayama Prefecture, not far from the prefectural capital of Okayama. I had always been intrigued by this town and I was sorry to leave it out of our 2015 itinerary, so this time I made sure to include it. Kurashiki has a preserved canal area that dates back to the Edo…
Hiroshima Guide 2017 – Japan
During our recent trip to Japan, we also visited Hiroshima. We had already been there in 2015, so we could have easily skipped it this time around. I know many people go to Japan and don’t feel the need to visit. We, however, just had to be back. We were in Miyajima after all and…
Miyajima Guide 2017 – Japan
Oh Miyajima! This has to be, together with Kyoto, my favourite place in whole of Japan! When we drafted our itinerary for our latest holiday in Japan, we had no doubt we would include Miyajima in it. It was a given, actually. We had fallen in love with it during our 2015 visit, and when…
Matcha White Chocolate Shortbread Cookies
During our recent holiday in Japan, we enjoyed some delicious matcha cookies. In Kyoto there is a shop called Malebranche that sells amazing sweets. Our favourite are langues de chat… 2 wafer thin matcha cookies sandwiched with a layer of white chocolate in between. We had them during our first trip and we got some…
Nagashima and Nabana No Sato Guide – Japan
Nagashima was the place we visited after leaving Kawaguchiko. We had always wanted to see the winter illuminations of Nabana no Sato, so this time we made sure to include it in our itinerary. Read my Nagashima and Nabana no Sato Guide for great tips and photos!
Kawaguchiko Guide – Japan
Kawaguchiko was the first place we visited after leaving Tokyo. We had always wanted to see Mount Fuji, but when we visited Japan in 2015 we had to leave it out of our already too busy schedule. So, this time we made sure to include it in our itinerary. Read my Kawaguchiko Guide for great…
Sakura Panna Cotta
As you know, my family and I recently travelled to Japan for the second time in less than 3 years. We absolutely adore this country: its culture, its cities, its scenery and… its food. One of the the things we discovered this year was sakura, as a flavour I mean. I had no idea that…
Nikko Guide – Japan
During our latest holiday in Japan, we spent a few days in Tokyo. As we had already been there in 2015, we decided to go out on a couple of day trips to nearby places. One of these places was Nikko (and the other one was Kamakura).
Kamakura Guide – Japan
During our recent trip to Japan, we spent a few days in Tokyo. As we had already visited this amazing city, we took this opportunity to go out on a couple of day trips to nearby places. One of these places was Kamakura.
Tokyo – Off The Beaten Path
During our recent trip to Japan, we spent a few days in Tokyo. It is a huge city and each area has its own characteristics… they are almost separate towns that make up a huge metropolis. Having already been there in 2015, we had already visited all the “must-see” places on our list, so this…
Nutella Dorayaki
If you follow me on Instagram, Facebook or Twitter you will know that I have been travelling through Japan! Unfortunately, we are now back home and trying to get readjusted to our usual routine. I will be sharing the details of my my trip as soon as I finish to sort out all the photos…
Doraemon Cake
My youngest daughter turned 7 on the 1st of December. She fell in love with Doraemon when we visited Japan a couple of years ago and this year she requested a Japanese themed birthday party and a Doraemon cake! As I too love Japan and grew up watching Japanese anime (Doraemon included!), I was very…
Skinny Tuna Sushi Roll
Today I want to share with you one of my favourite recipes: Skinny Tuna Sushi Roll. While waiting for my gallbladder surgery I was on a strict low fat diet and this Skinny Tuna Sushi Roll was my dinner for almost 1 full month! I kept on making it, as it tasted really good even…
Salmon Sashimi with Ponzu
I love Salmon Sashimi! In the last couple of years I have learnt to really appreciate Japanese food. Even more so after our trip to Japan last year, where I learnt that Japanese food is so much more than what the majority of people who live abroad think it is.
