Well loves, it’s been a BIT since I caught up with ya’ll on the wild world of Taegan in retirement (ha!). So let’s rewind to a few weeks back, before you know our new world order during the pandemic of COVID-19. While we’re on that topic, I will note that it was strange to leave the US and return to such a state, Jessica and I were fairly lucky to even be allowed back into the states, had it been one more day or one more week out of the country and I think we would have been locked out! WILD, just wild to think that. Anyways, let’s start and talk about our journey in South East Asia. Fast forward through the 20 hours of travel, and we’re in Japan!
We arrived in the late afternoon and proceeded to check into our hotel, The Nest which was located in Hanzomon right in the city center. Our room was tiny, good thing Jessica and I are also tiny and packed light. We decided to needed to beat the jet lag, so we showered and ventured out for some sushi. It was a bit rainy and chilly that evening so we decided to stay local in our ‘hood. We stumbled upon this great little sushi spot just a few blocks over, 鮨処平河 it was FANTASTIC! The restaurant was tiny and we chose two seats at the sushi bar upon arrival. The entire staff was friendly and accommodating, even provided us with English menus. We opted for a sampler platter and Japanese whiskey. Little did we know that we would get a tom collins glass full of straight whiskey, hello tipsy, but we’d also get schooled on the proper way to consume sushi - no chop sticks so you best use your hands, fish side down in soy sauce never rice first! The tuna was so damn good, ugh we had made it to the promised land of fresh fish and couldn’t be happier after our long travels. We retired early that night and slept incredibly well.
We woke up bright eyed the next morning, and set out on a 14 mile walking excursion. We started out by heading to the Tsukiji Outer Market. WOW, was it delish, yes friends we ate tuna and salmon and oysters for brekkie. Talk about surprise and delight - our tastebuds were elevated beyond belief. The fish was so fresh, so many stalls and vendors to choose from. We probably did about 3 loops before deciding on the best place to sample. We also treated ourselves to matcha lattes, that were not only delicious, but kept us go-go-go for the marathon that lied ahead of us.
After getting our fill at the market we decided to stroll towards some other spots in the city, specifically we wanted to check out a few neighborhoods and open air markets and end at Shibuya City. We found the best little spot to pick up some vintage kimonos - yes folks we were so excited! Jessica found a really beautiful vintage white one, and then we discovered a red vintage one with birds on it for me! I am so excited to debut it around town … whenever that may be, until then it will be enjoyed within the 4 walls of my home.
We finally after 14 miles, made our way to Shibuya City. We were starving so we dined at Shabu shabu and had the best waygu hot pot ever. From there we ventured to this little hidden gem of a speakeasy, where I had the best french 75! Tokyo - you were a blast and we cannot wait to return! After a quick 48 hours we left early the next day and took flight to Kuala Lumpur!