Our first day in Tokyo! We decided to explore Ikebukuro and the first stop is brunch. RJ found a highly rated curry place via Google Maps and we set off to look for it. It was walking distance from Sunshine City, in a populated area which looked like a popular lunch spot. Crowded curry eating place buffet style! When we entered, each person was given a plate and directed to a seat. Really liked the vibe here!
The curry was so different from the ones I ate in SG. It was very tasty, and had a somewhat bitter after taste, not too different from that of a citrus. It made me wonder if the curry was orange flavoured. The udon had a good chewy texture and was yummy! RJ and I had seconds of that haha. I had some difficulty finishing the curry as I had taken too much sauce and found it too sweet/salty etc. I thoroughly enjoyed this lunch and how the place was decorated with liberal use of paint.
Sadly, I had a reaction to the food after we moved on to Sunshine City. The heart pumping, malaise, salivating, bodyache type of reaction that comes with consuming over flavoured food. I am still unsure if I am allergic to certain MSG or just certain flavouring. In any case, no more curry for the day!
Sunshine City is home to J World, Namja Town and Pokemon Centre. I was tempted to take a look at J World but was easily deterred by the small entrance fee. I took several pictures at Pokemon Centre for a friend, and I concur, they are cute!
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| Wah, cute! |
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| Don't know what this is but I found it v.cute |
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| Quite a few shops like this, selling cartoon cutesy stuff. |
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| Waiting for RJ to come out |
After walking about the shopping centre, we decided to go to Tokyu Hands across the road.
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| So nice but so expensive! |
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| The Buddhas, deities, monks stickers are so darn cute |
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| Look at e geishas and sushiii |
Really loved the stickers but I had to tell myself again and again that I really do not need them. Sigh! Was amazed by the giant cup noodles and realised that they were kind of like rations in times of natural disaster.
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| Another thing that I had to convince myself that I do not need. SIGH! |
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| These chalk pastels are so cool!! |
RJ went on a shopping spree here buying moulds and craft stuff. I got 2 pairs of socks which I liked as gifts and decided to spend 1000yen on 250g of Modena air dry polymer clay. Hope it's good to use!
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| The socks so cute lol 500yen! |
I won't mention how much was spent at Tokyu hands, just look at that figure on the cash register. LOL.
So after Tokyu Hands, it was time for dinner. Sadly we were both out of sorts and dinner was a silent affair. I kind of liked the dinner place which sold pasta in varying sizes because of the geeky decorations. I assumed the owner of the place was around my age since the posters appear to be from my era.
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| Days of young Takuya Kimura |
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| Ultraman Astroboy Slamdunk and the likes |
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| Had to comment on the heap of noodles the slim lady in front was consuming. Life is just unfair that way |
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| My small sized spicy tomato pasta |
The pasta was like hearty home cooked ones and the noodles had pretty good texture. After a quiet dinner, I thought some alone time was in order. So off we went on our separate ways. I walked around and came across a band performing. They were good! Found out that people do show appreciation for street talent in Japan. It shows they are a passionate bunch!
I passed by a brightly lit shop with a long queue. And my brain commanded my legs to join the queue after I figured it was some sort of pastry. I happily held out my fingers to indicate to the staff walking down the queue that I intended to get 2 and was given a laminated number 2.
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| Ringo is Apple, so it's an apple pastry! |
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| Warm pastry smell yummyyy |
The apple pie was indeed yummy!! The crust was soft and crispy, the apple custard was light and flavourful. It was gooooood. I was happy that I queued up for a yummy thing. I'm such a food motivated tourist.
After that, I went off in search for the Ikebukuro branch of Ichiran Ramen which I had failed to eat in Osaka. Found that it seemed to be located near some 'exciting' looking places and a strip club and noted that there was no queue outside it. As I was too full from the pasta, I decided to return another day and took a slow walk back to the apartment.
When I was nearing, I saw that there was a guy at the door of our apartment conversing with RJ. It was the airbnb guy whom we had rented the room from.The funniest thing was that RJ had a mask on. ROFL and the guy didn't seem to feel that he should give her some privacy. Through the conversation, we found that Mr Airbnb came from China and is in Japan with dreams of entrepreneurship. We concluded the conversation after brief chatting and he went on his way back to his room, which was just a door away.
We turned in soon after in preparation for next day's visit to Gala Yuzawa Snow Resort for ski lessons and my first time seeing big snoowwww!
