Japan - A Review of Tokyo and Kyoto - Lots of Food!

I went to Japan in April and I have just discovered this board. Here is my in depth review with a lot of pictures (tons of food pictures).

Japan is an awesome country with a culture that is very different from ours. I was initially taken aback by how quiet and courteous everyone is. No shouting in public, and even talking on cell phones is at a minimum, especially on trains.

Another thing I noticed right off the bat is how there are almost no overweight people. I know that part of this is just genetics, but as I ate my way through Japan I found that not only is most of their food healthy, but the portions are just reasonable. Americans and the rest of the western world could learn a lot.

Japan is also incredibly clean! Tokyo has got to be the cleanest large city on the planet. Nobody litters, and everything is just immaculate. I was also surprised to see almost no homeless people the whole time I was there, also rare for a big city.

Having said all those good things, the culture is definitely lacking in diversity. I am white, and was in a very small minority. It is kind of strange to be somewhere that is so overwhelmingly one race.

When I arrived after a 14 hour flight, I made my way to Tokyo by bus and trains. The subway system is fantastic and runs on time seemingly to the second. Here is the view from my first hotel:



Tokyo is just a massive city that seems to go on forever.

I was greeted with this for the AC controls! Luckily, there was a little paper that translated everything.



I have to post a picture of the toilet as this is a huge thing in Japan. Their toilets are very high tech. They have seat warmers and bidets and showers. It was a new experience for me, but when I came home I was tempted to have one installed in my house!



Here is my first of many amazing meals. It is a traditional Japanese ramen noodle dish with pork. Not like top ramen! Very flavorful and I loved the soft boiled egg. This is very common in many Japanese dishes.



So there is a huge vending machine culture in Japan that I was not expecting. They are everywhere! You literally can't walk more than a block or two in the city without seeing one. This is typical as it has water, green tea, soft drinks, and coffee. Coffee is a big deal in Japan, the vending machines cans come in both cold and hot. Very cool. Also, everything is priced so well! A bottle of water from a vending machine is just a dollar (100 yen is approximately a dollar).



So breakfast over there is not really different from their other meals. They usually just eat miso soup for breakfast. For the most part I had "western" breakfasts while I was there. Most of my other meals were traditional Japanese but I just didn't want to eat seafood for breakfast! Here is a picture from the menu in a Hawaiian themed breakfast restaurant. How would you like your slut cooked? Some things are definitely lost in translation...



My pancakes were delicious with a ton of whipped cream.



I checked out the Tokyo Imperial Palace on day one of sightseeing. It was actually my least favorite as far as touristy things go. You could not go inside the actual palace, so it was just a tour of the gardens, etc. Very pretty, but I got bored quickly. You could definitely skip it and not miss anything. Here is a photo with some Tokyo buildings in the background.



Bamboo



The cherry blossoms were also blooming when I was there which is a really big deal to them. They are pretty, but I am just not a huge fan of flowers, gardens, etc.



Japanese curry which I really enjoyed. The plain boiled potatoes as a side was a bit odd though.



There are luxury car and super car dealerships all over the area I stayed (Aoyama). The people working in the Lamborghini dealership completely ignored me when I went inside. I guess I looked like a tourist...



An example of the hot coffee in cans that is everywhere. We really should have this in America.



Tokyo at night.



I took a day trip to Kamakura. Amazing little town south of Tokyo. i really enjoyed this and definitely recommend taking a day to see it. Great Buddha built in 1252.



Had sushi for lunch in a small mom and pop sushi shop in Kamakura. Hard to find, but it was worth it. They spoke almost no English, so I just pointed to what I wanted. Excellent sushi, but a bit too much wasabi for me.









Small street in Kamakura. Notice the masks they are wearing. This is very common! Not only it is a way to keep germs in and keep them away, but many people do it so people won't be able to see their face. Sometimes women just don't want to put on makeup or some of the younger people just want to hide from the public. They are strange people in many ways..(to us at least)



I had a gourmet Chinese meal one night. It was white table fine dining and the food was fantastic.









Very odd little cheese plate, the only time I has cheese the whole time I was there



I took a tour to a shinto shrine up in the mountains. This is on the gondola ride up. Also on the coast.



The shrine itself.



This is a green tea farm. Green tea is everywhere in Japan. It is almost served like water at most meals, especially sushi.



This is an example of a very cheap sushi lunch. It was like 10 bucks for all of this. I did notice a difference in the quality though.



I spent four damn hours traveling to see Mt. Fuji and this was the view! Clouds and fog completely covered it up...



I assumed this was beef jerky and was correct. Excellent!



A non Japanese meal of Indian food from southern India. Quite tasty.



I recommend Tokyo Disney if you have kids. Otherwise it is very similar to Disney parks here in America. Not a must do thing.



Tempura and udon noodles. Very traditional stuff.



Ice cream and various gelatin pieces dessert. The gelatin thing is very common for desserts. Very different but pretty tasty.



This review continues a few posts down!