Aloha Tokyo

This weekend there's not one, but two different festivals celebrating Hawaii.  Steve is putting the finishing touches on his book (That's right!  He's about to become a published author.  It's a technical book, so don't look for it on the fiction bestsellers list), so I go off by myself.  I decide to stop at the Aloha Tokyo one, located near the Yebisu Beer Museum and Mitsukoshi department store.

Yebisu Garden Place

No big sign announcing the festival, so I
make do with the posters.

The event has about 25-30 vendors selling food and drink, and I don't know if it's the Hawaii theme, but it seems like I see more English than normal.  That makes ordering easier!  I don't know if the food is really Hawaiian, though....it seems like most items are typical Japanese street foods.  However, most of the vendors are selling Hawaiian beer, so I guess it works!

Grilled sausages - Steve should have come with me!

More choices...and sausages!

Of course, lots of Hawaiian beer!

Near the food booths the performance stage is set up, and many hula acts perform.  

Some things are universal - everyone "aahhs" at the little girls on the stage..

...and chuckles when they become shy or forget to dance.

There are also 40-50 booths selling items, usually Hawaiian in theme.   I try to take a picture of all the vendors, but it's difficult to get a good one, from either end of the festival.

No, really, there's a lot more merchandise
than it appears here.

It extends all the way past the greenery.

Here are some random close-up photos of some of the tents.

Perfect to wear on your
next Hawaiian vacation!

Lots of items made from batik fabrics,
but I didn't buy any.

Tie-dye items (not my dog)

Jewelry and soaps/lotions are very common.

After browsing through everything I make my meal selection and find a place to eat, complete with my bottle of Hawaiian beer.

Yummy lunch!

I really took this picture to message to Steve
so he could see what he was missing.

It says from Hawaii, so I guess it's legit??

After I finish eating, I finally see the Ramen Burger booth.  This place was mentioned in the write up of the event, but I forgot about it until I saw the sign.  I wondered what a ramen burger was, but did not come up with the idea that the noodles make up the bun.  Honestly, I think I would've tried it if I'd seen it before eating, but I was too full by the time I saw the picture.


When I left Aloha Tokyo to head home, I found a much easier way to reach the train station!  To reach Aloha Tokyo I had walked along the streets, following Google's recommendations, but I was completely unaware of the Sky Walk until I happened to notice people going that way when leaving the festival.  It's enclosed (which is nice because a light rain has started falling), and has moving walkways in both directions.  I reach the station in half the time it took me to walk from it.  There's always something new to find in Tokyo!  

Self-explanatory

Tsuta Japanese Soba Noodle

Selfie at the front of Tsuta!

It only takes us 18 months, but we finally visit the first ramen shop to receive a Michelin star, Tsuta Japanese Soba Noodle. 

It's located in northern Tokyo, near Rikugien Garden (where we go to see the trees lit up at night in autumn and at cherry blossom time).  On a Tuesday, Steve makes the 30 minute trip (each way) to get our tickets at 8:00am.  There's no line, so he's able to walk right in the shop to get them (after waiting and watching two other people do the same thing).  We're have reservations for the seating that starts at 11:00am.  Perfect!  (Side Note - while we're there at 11:00am, tourists walk up to the restaurant.  They're able to get tickets for 12:30pm - so at least on a random weekday, they're not selling out all the times first thing in the morning.)

Everything explained in English - nice!

What is this place?

If you're unsure if you're at the right place, just look for this building across the street.  Is it a hotel?  A capsule hotel?  An old church?  We couldn't quite figure it out, but it was interesting to look at while we waited. 

We arrive around 10:50am for our lunch, and there's already about 15 people in line.  We join them, and by 11:00am there's about 10 more people behind us.  About half the crowd is foreigners, the rest are Japanese.  While we stand there, we're able to check out the menu, in English.  

the main menu

At 11:00am they allow the first nine people inside - there are only nine seats at the counter - plus the next few in line, who can wait on a bench inside.  Unfortunately, we're still stuck standing outside in the heat for 20 more minutes.  

As people finish and leave, our turn comes to enter the restaurant.  First stop is the vending machine, where you place and pay for your order.  Cash only!  The numbers on the buttons match the numbers on the menu. 

Steve paying for our lunch at the vending machine.

Steve and I both decide to go with #1, the large size of the Shoyu Soba.  At $17 (regular size is $9, but also doesn't have the egg and wontons), it's a bargain price for a Michelin star meal!  (FYI - a bowl at a regular neighborhood place might be $4-5.)

Michelin star - here's the proof!

We sit on the bench inside the (air conditioned) restaurant for a few more minutes until our seats at the counter are ready, around 11:25am. We're on the end, so we have good views of the chefs at work. Typical with a ramen restaurant in Tokyo at lunch time, no one is talking - you're there to eat and go, so the next person can get to their lunch.

the finishing touches

adding some broth...

In our shoyu soba, the liquid is a mixture of a soy-based sauce and a stock of chicken and asari clams.  There are two types of pork, wontons, bamboo shoots, an egg, onions, seaweed and noodles made in-house.  The final touch is a sprinkling of black truffle powder (the mushrooms, not the chocolate).  The chef, Yuki Onishi, is known for putting western touches in his ramen.  The truffle powder is nice - it's more of a smell than a taste, but it adds an extra layer to the soup. 

My lunch bowl!

Steve eating his ramen (without slirping).

The verdict - overall it's good, but it's too salty for our palates.  The large size is a lot of food - I pass my bowl over to Steve for him to finish for me.  We're glad we tried it, but we probably won't make a special trip to eat at the restaurant again.  Besides, Steve hates the slurping sounds people make while eating ramen, so we don't go out to eat ramen often, anyway.  It's a fun experience, though!

Yamato Antique Market

the east side of the market

Originally I planned to attend the Kawagoe Shrine Sale (read about a previous visit here) at the end of the month, but due to predicted rain I decide it's not worth the trek.  Even though the write-ups say it isn't canceled for bad weather, when reading people's blogs it appears the vendors will pack up if it's a solid rain (and only about 20% show up if there's a drizzle).  

Odakyu line of the Yamato Station

I take the opportunity to fill my need to look at obis, kimonos and other treasures by visiting the Yamato Antique Market, which takes place on the third Saturday of each month.  It's located at Yamato Station, about 20 minutes west of Yokohama.  It's reachable from the Odakyu Enoshima train line and the Sotetsu Main Line (also known as the Sagamai line).  It takes me 70 minutes to reach the station, with one change.  According to Google Maps it's only 50 minutes on weekdays, but apparently the trains run slower (or stop more frequently) early on a weekend morning.  And it's early - my friends tell me you want to be here close to when it opens, at 6:00am.  I arrive at 7:15am, and decide that's close enough!  (When I tell Steve I'm leaving the apartment at 5:45am, he decides he'd rather stay home and keep Tie-Dye company.)

Lots of booths with china!

I'm glad I'm early, because I have no problems finding a seat on the trains for the ride down and for the first hour I'm at the market it's not too crowded.  Everyone's already set up, and there are shoppers, but I might be the only person at a booth (I'm told the serious collectors and people buying for their shops are out en masse at 6:00am.  I'm only out for fun, so I wouldn't know if I stumbled on something extremely valuable, anyway).

One surprising difference with Yamato - they are much more likely to bargain with you.  At other places you may receive a slight discount if you buy multiple items, or be given a small gift for free, but here the dealers are quick to tell you "best price."  One obi I look at has a tag of $80, and he tells me he'll sell it for $40.  I never initiate it, but if I ask for the price and look like I'm going to walk away afterwards, sometimes they offer a lower price.  It's not guaranteed to happen, and it isn't always 50% off, but it's nice when it does occur.

This is one of the easiest markets to visit without a car, because it's literally on either side of the station.  I come out the north exit and walk on the west side and immediately see the plaza full of tents.  I'm happy to see kimono and obi merchants right away!  I have my rolling shopping cart with me, so I'm all set to make purchases.

One of the many kimono & obi tents!

Lots of crafting supplies - yarn, flax, wooden buttons and purse handles...

There are over 200 vendors here, and I can tell it's bigger than Kawagoe - almost twice as many sellers.  One item I see frequently is a rough, loosely woven flax - usually a large piece rolled up and sold like a cut of fabric.  I don't know what people use it for....I'll have to ask someone.

It's not all kimonos and crafting items!  There's many dealers in china, toys, jewelry, etc. I can't tell if they're antique, old, or just used - but they're interesting to look at. 

antique dolls and toys

jewelry

Then there are the spots that look like someone just yanked everything out of the attic and put it on a blanket.  There may be some good items, but you'd have to dig through it.  Since it's about 90 degrees and humid, I decide to limit myself to a quick scan as I walk past.

One man's trash...

...is another man's treasure.

Only a few places have furniture for sale, and no big items.

Driftwood for sale!  Steve wishes I had bought some when I tell him about it.

A popular vendor!

It's summertime, so the longer I'm here the hotter it gets.  By 9:00am everyone has their little paper fans out, including me!  I spend most of my time on the west side of the market, zigzagging among the booths (it's almost like a herringbone pattern - a few rows will be set up in one direction, then a few rows will be set up at a 90 degree angle from them - with my sense of direction I have to really pay attention to make sure I don't skip anything!).  My bag's getting close to full, but I go over to the east side of the market to see what's there.  It's mostly set up as two long rows of tents, so it's a little easier to navigate, especially since it's much more crowded now. 

You can even grab and go - they sell croissants outside.

My friends tell me the French bakery on the east side is very good, though they aren't sure what time it opens (update Sept 2017 - it opens at 8:00am) - when I walk by after 9:00am, it's doing a brisk business.  I look up at it, debating going in, and an American woman waiting outside voluntarily tells me it's good.  However, with the heat I'm not feeling up to eating pastry, so I skip it this time.  I'm told there's a place to sit down inside, too, but I didn't verify it.

After three hours, and with the heat, I've spent enough time shopping (okay, and my bag is full, too).  I probably just breezed past about 25% of the merchants, so it would be easy to spend more time here.  Officially, it continues until 4:00pm.  

I'm able to find seats on the train for the return trip, so that's a relief!  And I only have to lug my bag up a couple of flights of stairs, so my cache makes it safely home!  Here's some of the items:

Old Japanese fishing net weights - very cool!

Two sided obi - and I don't often see navy ones.

I'm finally able to buy an obi in Christmas colors!

I love the silvery white obis!

Hoari jacket - worn over other clothing

I like the lining on this, too!

Silvery-gray kimono

close up of the print

handmade shibori print yukata
(light cotton kimono)

In the petals, you can still see the holes from the thread
used to gather the cloth so the dye didn't cover that
part of the material.