xmas morning breakfast!!!

baked tofu cheesecake

we made this yesterday at my cooking circle

it has to be eaten today!!!

xmas eve in japan is a time for a special cake...

sponge cake

covered with fresh cream

decorated with strawberries

eaten on xmas eve

often preceded by fried chicken

usually bought at KFC!!!

made by kazue...not me!!!

please refrain from drunken behaviour...do it at home!!!

...poster at gaiemmae underground station

actually there is a series of posters

about manners on the subway!!!

room with a view...ha ha...

more food...conveyor belt sushi this time...

sushi chefs hard at work

rice-stuffed tofu pouches

with picked ginger and green tea

pintokona...roppongi hills

earthquakes...

i have found the most amazing web site for japanese earthquake info

here

we have had 3 earthquakes already today!!!

tv ad...not a good name!!!

royal milk tea kitkat...not nice!!!

royal milk tea is tea with hot milk...

this is a japanese take on tea with milk...

and in itself it is quite nice

but as a kitkat it just does not work!!!

too sickly!!!

but nice packaging!!!

out-of-town schoolgirls in tokyo (shibuya)...

these schoolgirls are NOT from tokyo i am reliably informed...the giveaway signs are:

1. white socks

2. large coloured rucksacks

3. the design of their collars

4. style of sports shoes

5. they were looking everywhere!!!

the earth moved at 05.56 today...

here for more information...to me it meant i was woken up by the building shaking a bit...it was quite short and not a biggie...but it moved again a little bit at about 8.45 am!!!

we have no idea what will happen in tokyo if a big one hits...apparently it is long overdue!!!

japan airlines (JAL) and british airways (BA)

i was interested in 2 articles about the above 2 national airlines in my newspaper (the japan times) here yesterday

the news about BA is that 92.5% of cabin crew have voted to walk out over the holiday season...from dec 22nd to jan 2nd

the news about JAL is that one measure by the company to regain some stability has been to propose to retirees to cut their pension benefits...in a preliminary survey 75% have given approval!!!

quite an interesting comparison???

jizobosatusu...

at the foot of tokyo tower is a buddhist temple...zojoji

with a lot of these little statues in the grounds

they're called jizobusatusu

they are the buddhist equivalent of angels

and protect the souls of unborn children

people who have lost an unborn child can dedicate an image

and decorate with bonnets, windmills, flowers, etc

upmarket shopping in ginza...not for the likes of me!!!

tokyo tower...333m high...to be outdone in 2012 by the tokyo sky tree...634m!!!

toyko sky tree info here

more food...korean this time...but cooked in tokyo!!!

chijimi

a kind of pancake

tteopoki

spicy sauce with vegetables and rice pasta

i like cake...all kinds are ok!!!

there are still a few persimmons left on the trees...

 (nakameguro)

i don't like karaoke in the uk...

singing in a huge room in front of total drunk strangers is not my idea of fun...but in japan..it is fabulous...we get our own room with just our group...disco lighting...an enormous selection of songs...a good menu of food/drink all delivered by a waiter!!!

which do you prefer?

over-the-top mikimoto...or minimal applemac???

nice patisserie near oyamadai station...

i chose a polonnaise cake

and a hot milk tea

yummy!!!