Sunday, October 14, 2018

Back Home!!


I love Japan. But, honestly . . . there is no place like home. Especially when the entirety of this trip was spent in Tokyo, home to over 9 million people, all of whom braved the heat and decided to frequent the places that we were at. 

Sorry, but I hardly took any photos. In fact, my sistahs took more pictures than me. My Fuji camera, even though is maybe one-third of the weight of my precious Canon which I did lug around with me on previous trips, seemed burdensome and mostly stayed back in the hotel room.

BUT I DID SHOP!!  And as usual I have set aside some omiyage for a lucky winner of my omiyage giveaway. Here are some of the items.

The package on the left is yawarakai (soft) ika (squid). Dried salmon and a couple packages of my mom's favorite kaki mochi (rice crackers) are on the right. Don't worry, my mom got a can all to herself.
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This is a bag of miso soup mix . . . a variety of freeze-dried ingredients for you to throw into your home-made miso soup.
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When I first saw this dove cookie last year I wasn't impressed, but after our tour guide passed out samples for us to try . . . ho boy . . . I was hooked. I like it a LOT.
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I also like this shoyu. This is Kikkoman brand and the type is called Marudaizu Shoyu. To me it's milder yet more flavorful than the shoyu that I'm used to.  Here's an explanation that I found online: 

Unlike other soy sauces, which are made from a combination of whole and defattened soy beans, marudaizu soy sauces are made only with whole soy beans. They have a milder yet more complex flavour than standard koikuchi sauces, and are normally more expensive. These soy sauces are best enjoyed as a condiment for sushi or sashimi.
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Of course I had to come back with some dried ume, although I'm trying to cut down on my salt (ahem). I like this one a lot because it's a bit moist.
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OMG, this rayu is da bomb. "Rayu" is a chili oil and "kikurage" is that kinda crunchy cloud ear mushroom thing. Put it on your rice or, if you're trying to cut down on your rice, then put it on your tofu. Either way, after taking a bite, you'll look up to heaven and say "thank you".  Hahahaha!!
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Remember this from back in the day? Each of the three colors represents a different flavor . . . although they tasted the same to me. The seller let me sample each and told me what the flavors were, but sorry, I forget. 
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Okay, you noticed . . . Lee Kum Kee . . . not exactly made in Japan. But it's kochujang paste . . . in a tube. How convenient, right?  
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We visited a Hokkaido antenna shop where I got this melon chew candy. I have no idea why these regional shops are called "antenna" shops, but I like how they carry goods from specific regions.
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Of course I had to include a prize from a gachapon machine for you. 
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There are more small-kine items in the giveaway box, but if you want to see them, you gotta win!

To enter, just leave a comment here or email me at JalnaA@aol.com.  I'll announce the winner in a week, next Sunday October 21. 

Good luck!!

25 comments:

Unknown said...

Welcome back home!!

Anonymous said...

j: OMG I remember those colored stripes, think it was ika?? Small kid time had plenty in da stores but no moe now, yeah? I'd enter your giveaway but got seafood so no can, going be pooho if I should be blessed to win. Love the line 9M folks were at the same place you was at. LOL -N

Kalin's Mommy said...

Wow ume looks yummy! Thank you for the goodies! Kalin ate the pizza chips immediately and loved it!

Chance.em said...

Hi Jalna,

Came across your blog searching for tako recipe then read this recent post and can't pass up anything for free right? lol! I love Japanese food and condiments and the Rayu sounds interesting so if you please, include me in the giveaway. Maybe I'll get lucky and win!

Aloha, W.

Anonymous said...

Welcome back!!! Still looking forward to see your pics that you took. Surprised that the weather was still hot while you were there. The weather here was really humid while you were gone.



Izsmom

Anonymous said...

Yay! You’re back!!! ~matsu

Mark Shelby said...

Wheeee!

More Free Jalna Kine Stuffs! ; )

Chet Colson said...

HI jalna, welcome home, mss your posts. I'd like to be a participant in the give away. My next best place for Japanese snacks is Nijiya Market or Daiei.

Kay said...

Oh what fun! You got a gachapon! My granddaughter would be fascinated. She's addicted to those. I thought the Hato Sabure was from the Atami area, but they must sell them everywhere. I bought those during our trip last year too. So it's still hot, hunh? It was miserable when we were there at the end of June. Sigh... Shopping in air conditioning is great though.

Anonymous said...

I like win pretty please:)
Squidy:)

K and S said...

don’t put me in the giveaway...I’m glad you got to shop! bummed you couldn’t meet satoshi though

kobi said...

Nice selection of omiyage.

jalna said...

Thanks Lena!

N, dunno why but the colorful ika strips reminds me of going to the movies. Must be it was a snack for us when we went to Liliha Theater. Not sure if that's what the theater was called, but when we lived on Hiram Lane, it was right next to us. We used to go watch samurai movies there. Too bad you cannot eat seafood.

You're welcome, Mich!

Hey W! Glad you found my blog. Good luck!

Izsmom, was so hot and soooooo crowded. Sorry, but I really did take only little bit pictures, and the ones that I did take were with my iPad. I'll see if I can scrape together something to post.

Thank you, Matsu!

LOL, Mark.

Thanks Chet. Good luck with the drawing!

Kay, the dove cookie bakery is in Kamakura, but I bought mine at Seibu in Ikebukuro.

Good luck Squidy!

Kat, woulda been so cool to meet Satoshi. Hopefully next time we'll be better prepared with our itinerary.

Kobi, I shopped with you guys in mind! Good luck!

Annie said...

Welcome home sweet home!! Love all your omiyage! Japan gets HOT but at least you didnt get mosquito bites all over your face like me. My eyes were so swollen! Oh yesssss, plz enter me for your omiyage loot!

alibaba37 said...

I am so happy you are home safe! I always always looks forward to your stories.

Anonymous said...

yay, you're back!

Just wanted to say hi so please don't enter me in your give away cuz I going back for Thanksgiving!!!! Nyaa aaah aaah!
v

Honolulu Aunty said...

I can just imagine your suitcase! Okay, I'm in, mahalo for the opportunity!!!

LAH said...

okaerinasai!!!
Please put me in the giveaway.

Leslie's pics said...

welcome home!! Sorry I missed you the other day...thanks so much for my goodies! You got plenty stuff I never see before too. Maybe it's time I go back :)

Susan said...

Yay! you're back : ) Nice omiyage...but leave me out because I'm a past winner!

jalna said...

LOL. Annie. One morning I did wake up with my face all swollen. It was weird. Thanks for entering!

Thanks Alibaba. Good luck!

V!! The best omiyage shopper in the world going back again??!! So fun yah!

Yay, Aunty!!

Hi LAH. You're in!

You're welcome, Les!

Thanks Susan. It's nice to be back!

Akiko said...

Missed your posts and was looking forward to the shopping haul.
You did not disappoint.
Welcome back.

Anonymous said...

Welcome home Jalna! I love your posts when you go to Japan and see things I've never seen or heard of. Please enter me in your giveaway. Thanks! ~e

Unknown said...

Hi Jalna!

I too love Japan! It seems that there is not enough luggage room to bring all the omiyage that are found. Along with the pleasure of sharing a bit of my trip with family and friends, there is nothing like a bite of this and that to remember where it was found, the courteous and appreciative vendor and the fun times during that particular excursion.

Thanks for your blog. It is lovey, uplifting and fun!

jalna said...

Hey Akiko!! Thank you! Good luck with the drawing!

~e, you're in!!

Unknown, you described omiyage sharing perfectly!!