Freshgreen MIGRATION & travel BLOG

Nah, I just like alliteration! So now that I have ur attn:

I must say, it’s the big city for me! So clean! And the Japanese don’t lock their bicycles….and no one dares to think to steal them except the foreigners! I have to admit…I wanted to…kinda….but didn’t…cuz I look Japanese! haha!

So 12 million ppl and safety and no rats or cockroaches! (It’s a new land!) Wow! I ran barefoot (too much clubbing/walking in my 6 new pairs of shoes) in the streets and no cuts or slivers appeared….it’s not Paris nor London, c’est vachement mieux!

What’s hot? The question is: what wasn’t???!!! Tis amazing comme ville et je l’adore vraiment. Ca me fait oublier le Vietnam….

OK, Cathy, be brief!
1.SHOPPING! I spend oodles b/c I hadn’t seen a pair of jeans that cost more than $15 in a good long while! I got one pair this is black denim on one side and dark blue on the other! IT’s hot, subtle but I luv it! Layers (sheer on dark, different materials fused together) and creative designs (shoes that look like frayed jeans and the hottest short, tight dresses I’ve ever seen on girls w/fabulous wild hair and crazy candied nails) and funny store names (Barbie, Pinky Girls) means that the MC card was always in use….”Kon-ba-wa, Mastercard?” — “Hay!”–“OK I buy!…Arigato!”

As an Asian, I could get away with the craziness so I just pretended I was Japanese….blingin’ gold caps, too much jewelry, neon fishnets, handgloves, clothes I’d never wear in Canada. But in DN, I can…they think I’m weird already so I might as well “act out” and go more on the strange side…whatever 🙂 But at the end of the day, I luv Japanese fashion and the notion of wearing whatever you want. My faves: Minnie Mouse, Little Bo Peep (ruffled dresses and a cane!), Rainbow Bright, Jap suit boys (I’m in business but I’m still oh so cute) — just so you know, these were actually outfits worn by real ppl! I was thinking that Hulk Hogan and Lambchop outfits would not go unnoticed….

Another cool thing is that you can have Rainbow Bright gal hanging out w/rocker chick and their other friend might be Hello Kitty. That was cool. Sure, you have the punks n hip hoppers (I luv them) and ppl tend to dress like their friends but there was a nice mixing of crowds too 🙂

2. FOOD = RAMEN, RAMEN, RAMEN! SUSHI, SUSHI! POCKY, POCKY! CANDY! MACHINE BOT RESTO MEALS!

I had to order from a machine to get a meal…I couldn’t do it…I pressed a million buttons and after a million minutes, s/o helped me out. I didn’t know what I ordered except for the gyozas (yeah Vancouver!) and I didn’t know what I was drinking…but I got it and it was delish! (It ended up being noodles in miso or some broth w/iced coffee.) TYO is just like that: you don’t know what you’re doing cuz no one is speaking to you (and they’re pretty quiet as well) and you can’t read many of the signs so you just point and guess but always end up doing smthg fabulous! It’s like “YOU r a WINNER!”…everytime 🙂

Pocky, aka Micado in France, rock! They’re lil sticks dunked in flavour. So the regs include choco and strawberry but why eat that when you can have wasabi and squid and mango cream and green tea and sausage n cheese and tomato and pistachio and seaweed? $50 later… on candy (sparkly) and pickled prunes, your mouth is is heaven and so r ur friends at home who rip into ur bags of Pocky…I still have some left 🙂

SUSHI is fabo here! Van is a good training ground for Jap and HK foodwise but man, nothing beats the real thing! Uni, unagi! Tobiko! Miso! Yummy! Happy! So the best are jellyfish/mint, sea urchin, and my new fave (arigato Aikawa-san!) eel! But I still luv my lil fish roe and spinach!!!! Scallops rock too! Next trip to TYO must include a food translation book to identify all the fish I’m eating 🙂