Departure Preparations - Humans

W Cellar Restaurant- our best substitute for not having our own grill (plus we love watching them cook).

So we're down to the final couple of weeks we'll be in Tokyo. Now that Tie-Dye's arrangements are made (read about it here), we can relax and visit some of our favorite places one last time.

Two Rooms - not a wine dinner!

Naturally we go to our preferred restaurants, and say goodbye to the waiters we've frequently visited.  We even learn something new - some of our best wine dinners have been at Two Rooms Restaurant.  We can't make the one scheduled for October, so we eat there another night.  We discover they serve a chef's choice menu, with wines accompanying each course.  It's just as good as the winemaker's dinners have been.  What a shame we learn about it at the end of our stay.

Another place we frequent is the grilled clam restaurant, which opened a satellite site right across the street from our apartment building about a year ago (I'm not sure of the name - it's in Japanese).  The clams are fantastic - served three at a time per person, with a different topping each course (well, six different toppings - then they repeat).  They're all you can eat, i.e., they keep bringing them until you say stop, but you pay by the clam!  They also have a regular menu, which includes the BEST salad - fresh avocados and tomatoes in a carrot puree.  I'll have to try making this at home!

THE BEST SALAD!

My favorite topping - green onions and a butter sauce.

Our sushi restaurant (again, it's in Japanese, so we never learn the name), is located right beside the apartment building.  I don't think we'll be able to eat sashimi and nigiri this good back in the US.  I know we won't find it as close to our house!

Great chefs, and they always remember I don't like wasabi.

wine with a view

We're able to attend a couple of wine events before our departure.  In the last month we're here our apartment building begins tasting parties.  It doesn't get any better than that - no need to even think about transportation, just ride the elevator down nine floors.  We have a multi-course prosecco themed meal, and it's fun discovering the variety between the different sparkling wines.

The Tokyo American Club also has one of the Luciano Sandrone family members hosting a dinner, complete with their wonderful Piedmont wines.  Once again, Steve's excited we're seated at the same table as the winemaker.  But unfortunately, we can't buy any bottles because there's no way we can drink it before we move home.  We've been lucky because while in Tokyo many of the special events have been with wineries from the Piedmont region of Italy, one of our preferred regions.

Our last TAC wine dinner!

With Barbara Sandrone, daughter of the original
winemaker and the current manager of the winery.

It's not all eating out!  We have to empty the refrigerator...and the freezer, too!  My emergency stash of frozen homemade chicken soup is defrosted and eaten, and I think it helps to prevent me from getting sick as we run around taking care of all the moving details.

Mom's recipe - still the best!

We plan to be out most of one weekend, so we send Tie-Dye to the kennel so he can have one last celebration there, instead of sitting home alone and barking the entire time.  We go down to Yokohama to eat at the Cup Noodle Museum - it's still the best Tom Yum soup in the area.  We're planning to wander around eating street food in Chinatown afterwards, but it's pouring rain.  Instead we stop at the Red Brick Warehouse, a collection of little stores and restaurants.  I think most of the vendors are geared towards tourists (lots of gift shops) but it's still fun to explore.

Tom YUM is named appropriately!  Maybe I have two bowls...

Deja vu!

On our way back to Tokyo we stop at the Yebisu Brewery and Tasting Room.  I want to go because Yebisu is my favorite Japanese beer, and we've been to Asahi, Sapporo and Kirin while living here.  I thought we'd never been here before, but as we walk up to the facility both Steve and I recognize it - we came when we visited Tokyo in 2011.  (Side note - afterwards, I try to figure out what led us there.  We both recall "stumbling upon" a brewery in 2011, but we didn't remember it was Yebisu.  I look back at my notes and the guide book from that trip, and I can find nothing that has us in the Ebisu area, or directing us to the brewery.  Based on the pictures we took in the past, we're also at the Imperial Palace that same day, miles away.  Weird!)

I prefer the dark beer!

We each order the tasting sampler, which includes three beers and some snacks.  I love the mini beer glasses, and how they print their images and color coordinate with the beer flavors on the tray.

Love the extra space with these seats.

For one last time, we attend the movies in Japan.  I'm going to miss my pizza flavored french fries...but I look forward to going to a movie theater that sells candy when we return to the US. 


We have one more chance to play the Tokyo Underground Mystery!  Once again we discover new pockets of Tokyo, and explore subway stations we've never heard of in our two years here.  They're designing the game better, too - previously you might find part of a word, and figure out the subway station just from that, instead of solving the puzzle.  Now when you solve the puzzle you have something like, "Go to the station with 7 vowels in its name" instead of the specific subway stop.

Yes!  We get to solve mysteries one last time!

Taking a coffee break while
working on some of the puzzles.

One last Japan pose with the Underground Mystery mascot.

Mystery Selfie

We must be getting smarter....we're able to solve it in about five hours, our best time yet!  And we complete it all in one day, for the first time. (Part of the reason we have Tie-Dye at the kennel is because we don't know how long it will take us to figure it out.)  They've gotten much sneakier about clues, and at one point we have to play Subway Bingo (which we NEVER thought we'd do correctly the first time, but luckily we did) which is a little stressful, but entertaining, too. (I don't know what the other people on the subway thought about it...they probably didn't find it amusing.  We're the only ones playing the game in our subway car.) 

The final answer and message is very meaningful to us.  I won't give away any clues, but here's part of the passage.



















It's not all fun and games!  We start packing up our stuff and preparing for the movers.  Naturally I take care of the important stuff (fabric) and Steve takes apart some of the furniture so it's easier to ship.

Pretty Japan fabrics!

Such a handyman!

Tie-Dye is starting to worry he'll be left behind.  Don't worry - you're going, too (just not in a suitcase)!