Ramen: A Bowl of Happiness

After a long day at the Chionji Handicraft Market in Kyoto, my parents and I caught the train back to Kobe, but stopped by a ramen restaurant in Sannomiya for dinner. We hadn't had a proper lunch, focusing our time on the market and other destinations so we starving. A hot, bowl of ramen was the perfect answer to our growling tummies :) My dad got the shoyu pork ramen while my mom and I opted for the miso and veggie ramen. I don't eat ramen a lot, preferring to eat soba, but this bowl was an exceptionally delicious one ^^ 

Thank you so much for reading and I hope you have a wonderful week!

Minatogawakoen Handicraft Market: Buy Local

I haven't gone to the Minatogawakoen Handicraft Market since summer, but decided to go this past weekend :) It's held on the fourth Saturday of every month and is located literally on top of the station at Minatogawakoen! Just go up the stairs as you exit and you'll find yourself at a large park area with all of the tents. There were some new vendors in addition to some familiar ones as well and I was able to pick up a couple of gifts for my parents there! :D I love supporting local businesses so I asked vendors for their business cards or blog sites if I took pictures of their products. I'll have those sites below in the pictures if they gave me one! ^^Please be sure to check them out :) They would make wonderful gifts and omiyage as well!

This was one of the first vendors that I stopped by and I couldn't decide what I wanted to get so I ended up coming back again :) I'll link the blog in their last picture.

So you can carry your water bottle in style :) It'll be the cutest one out there!

Musubi pouch? Too good to be true :D

Their blog can be found here

I was really tempted to buy more from this vendor! He and his wife were very nice to me while I asked them about a couple of their products. They have a blog so I'll link it at the last picture.

Blog can be found here

The owner was extremely nice to me when I asked her if I could photograph her sweets. She nodded enthusiastically and asked if I could put it on my blog and then gave me her business card as well! ^^ Ended up buying some chicken curry and those cute animal cookies on the right :) 

She also sold an assortment of jams and the yuzu jam looked really tempting to buy! Her blog can be found here and her online site here

More bakery goodness :)

Really liked her setup :)

Blog can be found here

Blog can be found here

Online store can be found here

Site can be found here

One of my favorite vendors. Chatted with him for awhile and he told me that this was his first time selling at a market so he didn't have a blog or site yet, but he encouraged me to take lots of pictures :)

If I had a real-life tree house like this, I wouldn't come out of it :D

This man made clocks out of everyday items!

Blog can be found here

Thank you so much for reading and I hope you all have a wonderful week! 

Golden Dew Cafe

I've taken quite a liking to the various cafes in Kobe because of their charm, food and atmosphere. There was a lot of time to kill before the Kobe Luminarie started, so I decided to try out a cafe that I hadn't been to before. Golden Dew Cafe is just one street before the Daimaru in Sannomiya and the menu prices are pretty reasonable, but the main draw for me was the second floor window seats that allow you to have a nice view of the downtown area.

I really wanted to sit on one of these tables, but it probably wouldn't have been a good idea..

Christmas tree decorated for the holidays :) 

Window seat! I ended up moving seats to one that wasn't being hit directly by the sun. 

Their pineapple soda which was pretty good. I accidentally ordered it (not a fan of soda), but ended up liking my drink :)

Shrimp curry with kabocha, sweet potatoes, broccoli, and bell peppers. Japanese curry usually isn't spicy at all (despite their various levels of spiciness), but this curry had a nice kick to it. My lunch set came with  small cup of soup, a drink and a mango pudding dessert :) All for about 1,300 yen or so. 

This cafe is also known for their desserts so be sure to stop by if you're passing by! Thank you so much for reading and I hope you all have a wonderful weekend ^^

Tunnel of Lights: Kobe Luminarie

With Christmas coming in less than two weeks, I just had to post something with Christmas lights! :) The Kobe Luminarie started in December of 1995 to commemorate those who died in the Great Hanshin Earthquake, which devastated a large area of Kobe. The lights gave hope to the citizens of Kobe and became immensely popular, becoming a tourist location during the month of December (it is held during the first two weeks of December).  It has since been held every year and draws over a million locals and tourists alike to the intricately designed lights which were donated by the Italian government. The design changes every year and I was not going to miss this year's one! Last year's one can be seen here.

Crowds along the street waiting for the Luminarie to begin.

Even from far away, the lights were still very impressive.

And it only got better as we got closer :)

Once you pass the entrance, you enter a tunnel of lights that extends almost a hundred yards. 

Once you exit, you're greeted by another design as well as smaller ones throughout the park.

Thank you so much for reading and I hope you all have a wonderful week :) Stay warm! 

Takeda Castle Ruins: Castle in the Sky

I hope you've all been keeping warm!

Located in Asago City (in Wakayama), Takeda Castle Ruins has shot up in popularity after being shown on TV. Although not much of the castle remains, it still remains very much impressive and has become a must-see destination for those visiting Hyogo. During fall, visitors who make it to the top can see the castle surrounded by clouds as the first rays of the sun hit the castle. Thus, it is also called by many as the "castle floating in the sky" (think Laputa: Castle in the Sky by Hayao Miyazaki). Thanks to the organization skills of one of the Kobe JETs (shout out to Sandy for organizing the entire thing!), around thirty of us were able to make it to the top before sunrise :) This involved catching the last train out to Sannomiya where we all met up at one in the morning before splitting up into groups and making our way to Asago.

There are buses that will take you up part of the way (500 yen fee one way), but you will still need to walk a good twenty minutes or so until you reach the ruins. When we finally made it, the wind was quite brutal. It was cloudy and drizzling, so we weren't able to catch the sunrise, but were still able to see some clouds surrounding the ruins :)

I could definitely get used to a view like this :)

Thank you so much for reading and I hope you have a wonderful week! ^^