Happy Holiday!

Christmas is coming soon!!!

I wish my blog readers are going to have a Happy Holidays!!

Laobian dumpling

Laobian dumpling (老邊餃子館) is famous restaurant in Shenyang. It was established in 1829 by elder Bian (邊福). They do business over 180 years now.

If you go this restaurant, there are two specialty menu. First one is flower tea.
Tea pot is funny looking and their flower tea blend is unique.
Isn't this nine???

And second specialty is laobian steamed dumpling. It was so soft and tasty!
I didn't use soy sauce because inside of meat and vegetable have special flavor.

This dumpling was not listed house specialty, but it was recommended by waiter.
As you see the photo, taste was ggggggreat:)))

Fuling Tomb

Fuling Tomb (福陵)

This place is mausoleum of Nurhachi who is founding emperor of the Qing Dynasty. This site is locating northeast of Shenyang downtown(20 min by car). All the buildings are beautiful and awesome!!!! I understand why this site become UNESCO World Heritage Site.

This is an entrance.
108 steps to the main building. 108 is a common number for Buddism.
First building has big stone monument inside.
Great view of main building!
It looks like main building.
Then tomb are end of the site. Nurhaci is sleeping hereunder.

Dinner at "xinhongji"

Dining Xinhongji (新洪記) restaurant was my first food experience in Shenyang, China. We, Internship members arrived at Shenyang airport around 2:00PM and affiliated company's employee picked us up from there to Hotel. Company employee (Chinese) seems nice and they speak fluent Japanese. It was great to have Japanese speaker when we checked in Hotel.

Xinhongji restaurant prepared nice private room for us.Then welcome party had begun.
It was clean and nice restaurant. I was so amazed how tasty all the food were. Especially boiled dumpling and baked dumpling. Dumpling is this area's specialty food.

Our arrival day was same as affiliated company's President Birthday. We all cerebrated together with this pink cake.
I believed I wouldn't be starving to death in China:)

Mukuden Palace in Shenyang, China

Shenyang Imperial Palace is known as "Mukuden Palace".

In 1625, Nurhachi established capital in here. Nurhachi and his son Huang Taiji (First Emperor of Qing) were lived here.

Entrance of the palace.
Here is the most famous building called "Dazhang hall". This is one of the earliest establishment.
Building architecture is so beautiful.
This building called "Phoenix tower" and it have third levels. It was highest building in the city at that time.

Shenyang is a big city!!!

I'm back in Japan:)

I'm sorry I didn't update this blog for a while.
Unfortunately, I could not access this blog from China. I assume Government or Provider block access:( Now I'm back to the on-line world, so I'm going to write my experiences in Shenyang city.

It was great experience to be Internship in China. I've learned so many things and met wonderful people. Amazingly, I didn't get sick or any stomach trouble over there. It was such a fun stay in Shenyang, China.

What do you think of this photo???
This is a window view from hotel room.
Shenyang is really city!! As you can guess, I was thrilled to be here:)

I'll be in Shenyang, China!

During my job hunting, I got short term Internship at Business consulting company in Shenyang, China.

Shenyang used be called Mukuden. It's 5th largest city in China and main industrial place in Northest China. Red circle is Shenyang on the map of China.


I'll be in Shenyang 3 weeks starting from August 11th. It would be such an experience to be there, so I'm thrilled:)

Popular food in Hiroshima

***Hiroshima Okonomi-yaki***

I always say Okonomi-yaki is Japanese style of pizza to American friends:))

# Okonomi-yaki (お好み焼き in Japanese)

- Okonomi = your choice
- Yaki = pan-fried

Each region have their original taste of Okonomi-yaki in Japan. Hiroshima is one of the best city to have that.

Here is what I had!
You pick up your favorite vegetable, meat or seafood to cook with flower dough.

This collage show you how to cook it.As you see on the collage, it use thin slice of cabbage, bean sprout, green onion, slice pork, flower dough, egg and egg noodle. And it usually grilled huge iron plate.

That was fun to watch cooking and eat hot okonomi-yaki in front of chief. It makes me hungry now...

Thinking of Hiroshima

Hiroshima Atomic-bomb day

August 6 is the day Hiroshima got Atomic-bomb during World War II. This building remain the devastation of bomb at that time. City of Hiroshima died in one second...

August 9 is the day Nagasaki got second Atomic-bomb. I think August is the time to think of peace for Japanese.

I visited Nagasaki Memorial Park when I was high school. I can't forget about shocking images of atomic bomb devastation. I always think of world peace after that experience.

Early this year, I had a chance to visit Hiroshima, so I stopped by Memorial park.
Hope you can see the alignment of monument, sacred fire and affected building from above image.

It's very quiet park. Million people are sleeping under stone monument. We all pray for the souls of the dead and eliminate atomic-bomb for our peace.

It was happened for some reason. We don't blame the fact anymore, we think of our peaceful future.

Itsukushima-shrine in Hiroshima

I visited one of famous shrine that located Miyajima in Hiroshima, Japan.
Miyajima is an small island where Gods and People live together. God will come here through this gate in the ocean.

Here is the main building in the Itsukushima Shrine.


Miyajima is know as deer park like Nara park. We can see the deer on the way to Shrine. I think they are cute!!Miyajima is well-known in the world these days. It's worth visiting there if you have chance.

Useful Miyajima English website is here.

Birthday cake!

July 16 is my Birthday!!!

I got peach roll cake from pastry store called "Natsume" near my home.

This cake melted in my tongue. Sponge cake was so soft and peach was perfectly ripe:)

It was delicious:))

Hydrangea = Ajisai

Hydrangea is flower of June!

Hydrangea is called "Ajisai" in Japanese. "Ajisai" always bloom Japanese rainy season in June. Variety of Hydrangea look so beautiful under the rain.

Today I visited flower exhibition and found Hydrangea arrangement.

Hydrangea looks much better on the ground:))

In the Garden

Lovely rose garden inside of Gotemba Premium Outlet Shopping Center in Shizuoka Prefecture.

Do some shopping and have a peaceful rest in here:)

Bamboo bush

I had a chance to see bamboo bush in late April.
Bamboo is called "Take" in Japanese.



These tall bamboo didn't fit my camera finder:)
It was nice to be surrounding bamboo under the sun shine.

Do you see small brown things on the bottom??

It's a young bamboo ("Takenoko" in Japanese).
Green bamboo is very hard, but young bamboo which is brown one is still soft and eatable.
Especially young bamboo growing under the ground, those are tasty one.

This brown bamboo is too late to eat, but if we go bamboo bush early April, we can find nice one. Find a very young bamboo that bamboo head is still under the ground. If you feel the bamboo head, then you dig bamboo root from the ground and peel brown skin part like artichoke to get bamboo core.

Bamboo core is going to be boiled bamboo, grilled bamboo or cook with rice etc.

Bamboo is another plant to tell of the arrival of spring in:)

Delicious eel in Japan

I went Eel (Unagi in Japanese) restaurant for lunch. We held uncle's 57th BD party over there.

Unagi doesn't look so pretty in the ocean, but taste is so good when it's cooked. Popular way of cooking is broiled Unagi and dipped in special soy sauce.

This picture is tasty Unagi bowl I had today.

Unagi was so soft and didn't have fishy flavor at all. It was delicious!!


This restaurant was well-known to have rice porridge with Unagi, so we shared that plate.
Rice porridge is here!!!

As you see pot is really hot! it's boiling on the table without fire.

Rice, egg, carrot, burdock, honewort were cooked with Japanese soup stock on the stone pot in the kitchen. It was delivered to the table so quickly.

We enjoyed good company and taste of Unagi bowl & rice porridge:))

Godzilla in Japan

Who is staring at you???



It's a world famous Godzilla!!!




I met this guy when I had a opportunity to visit Imperial hotel for event and had a lunch at Hibiya Shanter building.

It's locating in front of Hibiya Shanter building near "Hibiya" subway station. Many people take a photo.

Children's Day, May 5th

Children's day

May 5th is "Children's Day".

This national holiday was established in 1948 to promote the happiness and well-being of Japanese children.

In ancient times, many people suffered from disease during this season due to (the) high temperatures and humidity.

Around the time of the holiday, families with boys often display warrior dolls and miniature armor in their homes.

This is one of the display example.
Samurai worrier used to wear this Kabuto when they have fight in the old time.

Fantastic Wisteria

Ashikaga flower park (Tochigi, Japan) have a lot of "Wisteria". It was great timing to visit my friend's family who lives near this park today. Satomi, Shun and new born baby Taiyo are doing well here.

I want to share some great view of Wisteria.
Light up brings us fantastic world:))


Do you see this is only one root on the bottom??

Shiny part is wisteria flower and root of the flower is in the middle.


Here is the main tree of this park. This wisteria is 140-year-old tree and it's so amazing how wide the flower part.

Just beautiful!!

Another great view is here. Two wisteria reach here from both side on the top and Azalea is full blooming in the ground.

Beauty collaboration of Wisteria and Azalea!!

End of April through early May is the great time to visit Ashikaga Flower Park. It takes 60 minutes train ride from metro Tokyo.

Flower Park Website (Japanese):
http://www.ashikaga.co.jp/index2.html

* * * * *
"Wisteria" call "Fuji" in Japaese.
This fuji is not same as Mt. Fuji. Chinese character is different each other. Wisteria use "藤" and Mt. Fuji use "富士".

Japanese sweets "たいやき"

Have you seen this figure??

It's Japanese sweet snack called "Taiyaki".

• Japanese "Tai" means "Sea-bream"
• Japanese "Yaki" means "Baked"

Always best if you can buy fresh baked Taiyaki at a night stall or side street.

It require special fish figure iron-pan on the grill. Baking procedure is pour pancake dough to the pan and put on the sweet soy bean paste "Azuki" and cover that by the pancake dough. Then use another fish figure iron-pan to press it. After 5 minutes later, there is a fresh baked "Taiyaki" in front of you:))

It's hard to get this fish figure iron-pan at home, so I usually eat it outside:) Taiyaki is popular for all the generation in Japan. Nowadays, you can find a Taiyaki ice-cream at a store.

Flower and Mt. Fuji

I visited small island called "Awashima" in Shizuoka prefecture. Awashima have Aquarium and fine hotel. If you can visit fine day to island, there are several great views of Mt. Fuji from hotel.

When I left at home, it was clouded, but next morning was gorgeous. I enjoyed view of Mr. Fuji from hot springs, hotel room and hotel garden. This picture was taken at hotel garden.



Such a beautiful place!


This hotel has fine Italian restaurant. I enjoyed lovely dinner with my family at night.

Food was great and this photo looks so professional!
I love my Ricoh camera:))

Sakura is blooming well!!

"Harumeki" Sakura is full blooming right now.

Sakura's blooming time is so short, so I was so pleased to see full blooming today. It was such a nice day to walk around under the Sakura.

Could you tell where is Mt. Fuji on the picture above? There is a white spot on the left side of the picture. Mt. Fuji is covered with the snow this time of the season, so this is a view of Mt. Fuji from here.

This area called "Haruki-michi" locating next to Kano river in Kanagawa, Japan.

Great contrast of light pink sakura and yellow nanohana:)

"Nanohana" means "field mustard".