Kappabashi Day Trip

On my way to the train station I caught a glimpse of Mt. Fuji.

Our first stop in Kappabashi (the kitchen supply district of Tokyo), was this pottery store.

This place was full of beautiful hand made pottery.

This might have been my favorite: super tiny pots for soy sauce.

Right across the street is the famous Chef above another great store.

They even have all you might need to set up an American style restaurant.

Down one of the side streets we spotted the Sky Tree tower.

Mrs. Clause

Iron tea pots in great colors (too heavy to mail though).

Cookie cutters (also used for Bento Box lunches) were everywhere, in every shape imaginable.

This building caught my eye.

This one looked really old, fun discovering as we walked from kitchen district to Azakusa area for souvenir shopping.

Finally found a place to warm up and fill our bellies.

The temple gate.

A family in traditional attire, there for a dedication of children at certain ages.

The temple.

Waterfall in the garden.

My favorite school of koi (so far), had to take more photos 🙂

Ended the day with a double espresso to warm up before train ride home.

 

French Dinner at a Japanese Onsen

This gallery contains 18 photos.

Hakone

This was the route I was supposed to take.

This is my detour (only one station in the wrong direction) before I got off and went back.

This was my lunch at the Hokone Yumoto Station before we took the bus down to the lake.

The bus ride was beautiful but rainy and let’s just say I’m glad I took my Dramamine.

Cold and wet we took a quick coffee break before we caught the hotel shuttle bus.

Our suitcases didn’t really fit on the shuttle bus. My new paints were comfortable.

Approaching the hotel.

My traveling ensemble.

New outfit without the jacket.

Ready for some green tea in great hand made mugs.

Our view was incredible, even with the clouds and rain.

Lenny’s gift from the company business team building trip.

Our snack time before the Onsen bath experience.

The treats…little cakes.

We think the filling might be Chestnut, which I usually don’t like but these were tasty.

 

Taipei Taiwan: Hotel and Office Area

I spy Mt. Fuji from our plane from Tokyo to Taipei.

Mt. Fuji is very large (duh).

In the entry I was greeted by this beauty in front of a gorgeous tapestry (wish I had taken a photo of that too).

Looks like many cities in the States.

A little reminder of USA.

Sculpted trees and shrubs were very impressive.

Near our hotel there was a Catholic Church with this beautiful corner for prayer and meditation, including koi in the fountain.

Sculpture in front of our hotel, one of the many pieces of art to enjoy.

Our hotel.

Such a tropical feel.

Nice display.

Tempted to have this but didn’t have time…I miss nice cuts of beef.

The front of the office Lenny works from while there.

Even the banks take their shrubbery seriously.

So beautiful.

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Art Class in Yokohama

 

 

 

 

I have been mostly watercolor painting for the last few years but I started a new class using Acrylic paints. My Sensai (teacher) specializes in human beings (portrait and figure) so I decided to take the plunge and try to learn from him while I live here. Even though I just finished a beginning drawing class on college level, I did not do much with the human form. So we are starting with drawing and then will move on to acrylic painting. This is today’s assignment. Can you guess who it is? Click through to see the photo I was working from.

Autumn day in Yokohama