Back in Manila, we’d schedule our cafe or bar dates at least once a week. The prospect thrills us and the actual experience is always a delight. On our trip to Sapa in Northern Vietnam, we spent an entire afternoon for our post-lunch cafe crawl. We haven’t had a proper dessert since we got here but first off, we just had to try the popular egg coffee and coconut coffee.
Cong CafeCoconut Coffee now tops my list of iced coffees
This is our first time to try coconut coffee. Cong Ca Phe is 👍that we recommend it — iced! More dessert than coffee, actually. Back in Hanoi, we tried egg coffee but it wasn’t the best so we went in search of good egg coffee here in Sapa. Found one in Le Gecko. In both coffee shops, we took “front seats” to appreciate the street scene. People-watching can be habitual if I were to live here. The cars and motorbikes with passengers or cargo (unbelievable!) passing by is what life is all about here. Sapa may be 6 hours away from cosmopolitan Hanoi but it certainly isn’t a sleepy town or ghost town. Sure, it’s in the boondocks but commerce and tourism has touched this mountain town and even the hill tribe folks are quite comfortable plying their wares in the streets here.
The street scene from Cong Ca Phe. Inside Cong Ca Phe
Cong Ca Phe is in a two-storey building, but the best seats in the shop are those in the porch. There is even a resident fur baby who seems so “at home” here. As for Le Gecko Cafe, it’s in another busy section of this mountain town near the pond area. Again, we took the “front seats” from where we enjoyed our egg coffee and an apple crumble pie.So yum! The egg coffee here is more dense, foamy and frothy than the one we tried in Hanoi. So so good that we actually thought of heading back after our dinner!
El GeckoEgg CoffeeOh, that apple crumble!
P.S. We actually trooped back the following day for another iced coconut cafe and to try the Cot Dua Com Xanh or Coconut Green Rice Coffee. So so refreshingly good!
We are spending 7 days, 6 nights here in Avignon. That’s after 3 nights in Nimes. Soak up a bit of Provençal life and do day trips from this walled city to explore other parts of Provence. My 3rd trip here, actually. The first time, a friend and I drove from Paris through Tours and Lourdes to Provence before meeting up with friends in Barcelona. That was in 2003. Soon after, I headed back after visiting Lourdes, hopping on a train to Toulouse then boarding an onward train all the way to Avignon. In both trips, I felt shortchanged that I didn’t spend as much time as I could. All rushed, busy with day trips to explore Arles, Nimes, Aix en Provence, Le Baux, Saint Remy de Provence and Marseilles. All touch and go. Just “sightseeing”. I’m not doing that again. I’m spending a whole week in Avignon!
Palace of the Popes best viewed & enjoyed with sorbet on a hot day. Having my Quiche Lorraine in my hotel room.
This time, we checked out the Saturday Market in Avignon, did some retail therapy, dined in French restaurants and a pizza parlor in the city center and ate a lot of ice cream and sorbet! I love Provençal cuisine as it blends French with Spanish dishes with a sprinkling of Italian from its being under the Romans for some time. South of France literally means near the border of Northern Spain. Also, Avignon is NOT exactly that provincial — the city vibes are there, in the shops, in the many touristy stalls, cafes, theatres, gelato bars and restaurants. But so much more relaxed and milder in temperament or character than Paris. Easy to cover the entire walled city in 2-3 days but it’s a convenient base for excursions to explore more of Provence. We enjoyed the spacious hotel room we booked, unpacked with comfort, claimed the 3 closets in the room and made good use of the sitting room for our dine-in dinners while our laundry dries.
The Papal Palace GardenAvignon has many “old” and modern spots.
The ticket costs only €13 for the Palace, Garden and the Bridge. The tablet guide they give you is so high-tech it took some time to figure out how to make it work. Took an hour and a half but going to the viewpoint for St. Benezet Bridge or Pont de Avignon requires some uphill climb. If you don’t care to walk or climb, just hop on the tiny, silver Choo-choo train for €10. I won’t tire you with details on the Papal Palace and the Avignon Papacy. Suffice it to say that 7 popes lived in Avignon rather than Rome from 1309 to 1376 because of conflict with the French crown. Thus, Avignon holds that distinction of being the papal capital for some time.
Avignon Bridge or Pont d’ BenezetInside the Palais de Pape
We enjoyed our twice-a-day ice cream sessions here. And the punishing summer heat (29C) must have worked up our appetites too. The outdoor cafes and restaurants offered many options. Paella, steak Charolais, fillet mignon, salmon risotto, entrecôte, salad nicoise, Magret de canard, pizza and pasta. And some ice cream and granita bars offer as many as 74 flavours! You can’t go hungry in Avignon. C’est La vie!
We enjoyed many good meals here. No French portions; the servings overwhelmed me!
The highlight of our recent trip to the Kansai area was the full blooming cherry blossoms or Sakura. So much worth the 3 day extension we made to base ourselves in Kyoto after Osaka. Week earlier, we simply visited Kyoto as a day trip from Osaka. On our last 4 days, we based ourselves in this old corner of Japan to enjoy the Sakura scenery. And to continue our love for the seafood markets of Osaka and Kyoto.
Look at those prawns! Love these lobsters. We had two — with loads of cheese!
Our heads were spinning just looking at these beautiful sea creatures, steaming or grilling. We found this lobster vendor in Kuromon Market in Osaka offering us a small round table behind him so we promptly claimed our seats and pointed out the lobsters, prawns, squid, and unagi to grill. We also asked for oysters but he didn’t have any so we were allowed to order from the next stall, along with some scallops! Asians that we are, he understood we badly needed our rice which he didn’t have. So one of us trooped to the nearby Family Mart to buy steamed rice which the store kindly warmed to complete our very late but sumptuous lunch!
Butter and drops of miso on my scallops! That squid was grilled to perfection!
From Kiyomizu-Dera to Fushimi Inari to Gion the whole morning and a good part of the early afternoon. It started raining in Gion so we decided to call it a day, but not without visiting the Kuromon Market in Nambashi area near Dotonbori. It was well past 3pm but since our last full meal was breakfast at our hotel before setting out, this feast was our very late lunch that may well be early dinner.
We brought home fresh strawberries but they weren’t as sweet as the ones we ate here. Spotted: yes, those were fresh UNI that we sampled after the strawberries! First time I used scissors to cut up my oysters!
Memories of Kuromon persisted till our last day in Kyoto. From our Kyoto hotel, we took the subway to visit Nishiki Fish Market. But we didn’t just eat fish or seafood. Because it rained, we scrapped our trip to Kobe and searched for the premium beef in Nishiki. We weren’t disappointed. We also found more sea creatures here. This time, we ate standing up! No tables in this cramped little space with barrels for tables and smelling of sizzling, grilling, steaming seafood all around. This beats the 4D ride in USJ’s Hogwarts area!
That’s our Kobe steak! Crab Sticks sitting on a bed of Kani miso. Spotted: Octopus on skewers. I actually wanted to try Tako Tamago but found none. Y’know, that octopus with its head standing upright bcoz someone stuffed a quail egg into its small head. Mean, huh? My apologies.
The rainy day may have ruined our plans to visit other Sakura spots around Kyoto but thankfully, we had our fill of cherry blossoms the days before. From Kuromon Market in Osaka to NishikiMarket in Kyoto, it’s a food trip hard to forget. Our jolly bellies speak for ourselves and you bet we’d repeat the adventure in our next visit of Japan like it’s a ritual! Sakura and Food is our version of “hanami” in Kansai!
So many choices in Nishiki! And look at those oysters with Ikura and Uni — all my favorites on a single shell! Holding that Kani miso like it’s a pricey jewel! Love that man behind us! He also enjoyed watching us eat like it’s the last day of our lives.
Our first home base was in Osaka. Right in Namba’s Dotonbori area. The aroma of food wafting from the food stalls and restos kept us going especially on our first night. We have made our wagyu dinner reservations but ended up in the wrong resto branch. And that’s after some time looking all over the place, scanning all the alleys. We were tempted to just skip it and instead check out the many ramen or yakitori or crab places but how can we give up on matsusaka beef 🥩? The staff in the “wrong branch” took us to the right outlet just a few meters away. Seemed like they’re used to guests getting lost or missing the right branch. The night ended well and we were satisfied with our first dinner in Osaka. 👌
Wagyu Dinner at Matsusaka-gyu MFushimi Inari Looking Empty of Visitors
Woke up early the next morning for a train ride to Arashiyama Bamboo Forest, but it seemed most everybody had the same “brilliant idea”. Walked all around until our knees went jello, then moved to Fushimi Inari where once more, a long line of visitors have already assembled. Alas, the gods smiled on us and we found a break in the line so we promptly took snapshots of the shrine’s vermilion gates looking empty. By the time we were done, we took the Keihan Line to Kyoto’s geisha district, Gion. This time, we failed to spot any geisha, geiko nor maiko. But we enjoyed Hanamikoji alley in peace as the sun set in Kyoto.
Another Tourist Trap: Arashiyama Bamboo ParkSundown in Gion District
Osaka and Kyoto are just 15 minutes apart via Shinkansen. So convenient. And from the JR Namba Station near our Osaka crib, we took the rapid express train to Nara Deer Park the next day. Just under an hour. Easy. But not as easy is the trip to Hiroshima and Miyajima. Took the 1.5 hour Shinkansen, the half-hour local train from Hiroshima to Miyajima and finally the 8 minute ferry ride to the island. But hey, if you have the time, and the JR Pass, it’s worth visiting. The pass is good for the Shinkansen, local train and ferry. Just make sure you don’t doze off on the ferry ride or you’d end up making a round trip!
Miyajima IslandNara Deer Park
On our way to Tokyo, we broke our journey in Kyoto for a quick visit to Kiyomizu-dera and to enjoy some Uji matcha delights. Suitcases left in the station’s coin lockers, we were off to take the local train from Kyoto Station to Kiyomizu-gojo via Tofukuji. The uphill climb from Exit 4 took a half hour. The thick crowd we met served no encouragement to truly explore this beautiful temple but we’re not complaining. Time enough for a visit and catching our late afternoon Shinkansen to our next crib, Tokyo. Watch this page for more of our adventures!
This 2022 is a better year judging by how the pandemic woes have eased and how international borders have opened up. Soon after we returned from our Nile cruise early in 2020, we survived a lockdown which saw us cancelling as many as 3 international trips in 2020 and staying in for much of the time throughout 2020-21. Sad news from family and friends we haven’t, couldn’t visit reached us and all we could do was pray and try to stay healthy. My annual visits to my family in Sydney was put on hold until OZ borders opened up in February 2022. I wasted no time and secured a visa to visit Sydney last May 2022. Stayed a good 6 weeks and felt gratitude seeping in that our family is well and in good health.
La Familia. OZ Chapter. It was winter that mid year in Sydney. Lovely to bond with family again, especially since there are just 2 of us sisters in the original branch of the family.
Soon after, it was time to visit a niece now based in Guam. Renewed my US visa to visit this territory in the Northern Pacific and spent a month, thinking there isn’t much to do in this tiny island. I was prepared to get bored and promised not to whinge. Well, I must have done whatever there is to do in Guam from hotel staycations, duty-free shopping, watching a musical, binging on movies in the nearby cinema, trying Chamorro meals, driving and touring around the island, swimming and other water adventures. There were a number of family friends to meet up so there’s aplenty to do and catch up on. Besides, there was a birthday to celebrate!
A day excursion to Bikini IslandAnd a birthday to celebrate!
In between these visits, I made 2 domestic trips. One to holiday in Boracay with dear friends who are my extended family, and another to Cagayan de Oro in Southern Philippines to celebrate a friend’s retirement and birthday. My relationship with these extended families makes me feel so very thankful for their friendship and the bond that ties us forever. Their children are all my godchildren — from baptism to wedding — and our friendship counts decades with the younger members forging an equally strong bond among themselves. This relationship will last beyond our lifetimes!
And then there’s our Fukuoka trip this last month of the year. Not our first time to Kyushu Island in the southern part of Japan, but we were just too eager to travel again as a group. Who cared who was guiding us or where we were going? Destinations hardly mattered. There were just 3 major sights: a garden in autumn foliage, an active volcano and a gorge, and a canal cruise. And onsens and kaiseki in between. Enough. In the company of these travel buddies, we’re good. Fun as always. More fond memories. We are blessed.
Typically, I prefer independent travels. But when you’re a big group, and with bebes, escorted tours suit best. We had a big bus for our group, and kaiseki meals were pre-arranged and looked forward to. As expected, we had what the area offers fresh and best. We may have issues with our Japanese guide on communication and all, but the food department is nothing to complain about. What a relief!
All 9 courses for our first kaiseki. That Aso beef!
In Arden Hotel Aso, we had 2 kaiseki dinners. We grilled our Aso beef the first time, and had it shabu-shabu a second time. The 2nd kaiseki was more filling as we stepped out of the dining hall with our garments bursting at the seams. No wonder the yukatas are preferred wardrobes for this ritual! Wagyu fans can celebrate but in my book, that sea bream carpaccio is tops! Also, that was the best ebi tempura I’ve eaten. The batter is simply too good, way crispier than the usual.
Sea bream carpaccio Everything on this tray is GOOOOOD! Even the pickles.
When we visited Takachiho Gorge, we had a “simple lunch” in this tiny izakaya accessible through 3 flights of stairs. If your bladder bothers you, better do it before climbing up. But I thought the tray presented an attractive meal which we all enjoyed. After all, I was almost nearing my quota for Aso beef (or any beef) and craving for other proteins.
The “hut” lid covered the yummy dish. Cute! How do they do these eggs?
When we headed to Yanagawa, we lunched in this seafood place just before boarding our river boat. What a delight to see them fish out our lunch fresh from the water tanks! I confess I was hoping for an eel lunch but I’m not complaining about the fish we had.
It’s a rather flat no-name fish. Can you tell? I wouldn’t mind those clams and oysters too!
By the time we reached the city and on our own in the dining department, I knew what to eat. Those excursions exploring geological wonders hyped up my appetite for unagi (eels) and more shellfish. Found an unagi place and an oysters bar at the rooftop of Hakata Train Station. Well, on the top 2 floors actually. Cravings satisfied!
Unagi for my last lunch before flying out. Oysters, sardines and zucchini with prosciutto for our last dinner before heading home. Best with beer.
Not to forget, we did partake of that Ichiran ramen too. Not to be missed. You don’t leave Fukuoka without eating this noodle dish in this rich broth. Plus a wagyu lunch somewhere along the route deep down in the island of Kyushu. Sayonara!
When we reached Arden Hotel Aso in Minami-Aso, we didn’t have any high expectations. Lying in a village in Kyushu, Japan, the onsen hotel must have been neglected much throughout the pandemic judging by its peeling wall paint along the corridors. But its vast garden was well-kept and the resident rabbits look well-taken care of. The rooms are very clean though, and the food superb. The kitchen crew must have stayed along with the garden staff. This you can tell by the quality of its kaiseki dinners. As for the onsen and hot spring baths, we had the area nearly all to ourselves. A choice of indoor and outdoor onsen, as the mood dictates. Swell!
Arden Hotel AsoThe Garden is perfect for strolls and meditative breaks. Be prepared to meet the resident rabbits!
In winter, it’s agonizing to decide whether to try the outdoor onsen and hot spring baths or to simply check out the indoor onsen. Just walking from the hotel in yukatas to the spas within the complex — a very short walk, actually — can be an ordeal because of the freezing weather. But the indoor onsen is far from being a poor choice. My only complaint is that I could hardly tolerate the hot temps as I dipped in. That is why the outdoor onsen makes so much sense!
No cams allowed inside so these are photos from the hotel website.
We all enjoyed the onsen prior to dinners and breakfasts while we were here. And in the afternoons soon after our day excursions, the gardens provided some perfect breaks for meditation or just me-times. Our spacious rooms looked out to these gardens and the autumn foliage added much to the garden’s charm. In spring and summer, these gardens seem perfect for weddings. I can imagine round tables littering the beautiful rock garden, the food and cocktails served under the maple trees, a string quartet just around the garden rocks and many rabbits jumping around the lawn.
These are the covered corridors towards the outdoor onsen. Used by both humans and rabbits. Cocktails in spring/summer temps should be good here. This looks out to the garden.
And yes, I mentioned kaiseki dinners. The breakfasts were good too! If one’s skipping the day excursions, staying in for these meals could even be a treat! Our first was topped by Aso beef, a kind of wagyu that may not be of the same quality as your Kobe or Matsusaka beef, but Aso comes from Akaushi cattle raised in this area. You’ve just got to try it!
Aso Beef is this omakase’s highlight! While the Aso beef shabu shabu is good, I was drawn more to the sea bream carpaccio here. And that tempura is really gooooooood!
Touted as the “Venice of Japan”, this canal cruise couldn’t have been more fun if not for our singing gondolier named Nakamura-San. He reminded me of Confucius, with his long face and beard. He sang for us nearly the whole time, and his repertoire included a lullaby for the baby in our group. From time to time, he’d shout “danger, danger” as we passed the low branches of trees or under the bridges while punting along the Yanagawa river. That was our cue to duck lest we hit our heads.
We took off on 2 boats. This is Boat #1And this is Boat #2
Yanagawa is a castle town just an hour away from Fukuoka. The centuries-old narrow waterways used to be moats surrounding the castle that does not exist anymore. Designated as a National Site for Scenic Beauty, there are plans to even expand the grid of artificial moats for a longer, more leisurely punt ride Yanagawa is famous for. I kept thinking the boat ride must be more fun towards sundown or early evenings when the lights are reflected on the river waters. But I’m glad we did it just after lunch and before the temperature dropped further.
The town’s so small it’s such a pleasure to walk along the canal ways. One of the Boat Stations
While the highlight is the boat ride, don’t skip walking around town and along the canals. Even at low temps, it’s such a delight just walking around. On food choices, this town has a good selection of seafood options. Clams, flatfish, crabs, shrimps, eels, oysters, etc. Don’t miss that too.
Seafood galore A Simple Lunch
So there. If you’re in Fukuoka, make a day trip to Yanagawa if only for your seafood fix and try a punt ride along the former moats of a now non-existent castle. Sayonara!
Not sure about what this vendor is selling 🙄Meet Nakamura-San, our Japanese gondolier.
My last trip with these travel buddies was in 2020, returning back home just a mere week before a lockdown was declared. The idea of traveling together again gave us a high and by the time we were ready to go, our number has grown to 23 adults, 4 teens and 2 babies. A whole bus of happy travelers. It didn’t matter much where we were headed but Japan has always been a good idea. Besides, our last trip to Fukuoka in 2017 had a different itinerary.
Our Growing “Family”
On this trip, the abuelas fussed over the bebes while the abuelos trained the teens how to drink smartly. Cocktail hours were longer and more adventurous as the group now includes an award-winning barista who concocted cocktail drinks for the senior, middle-aged and young adults. As always, we enjoyed the company, the private jokes, the food and the onsen. The autumn colors provide good visuals but then again, Japan is good no matter which season.
Da BoysDa Gels
The temps are dropping so we made sure to wrap ourselves good. The ryokan we are staying in now has an outdoor onsen and we made good use of that before our kaiseki dinner. Post dinner cocktails followed before we called it a night. It’d be a long next day with a long drive towards Takachiho Gorge plus a visit to a shrine where Shinto was born. So there. With the drop in temperature, wish us luck.
This Fish Market smelt soooo good. I was adamant to put oysters on the bed of my tongue as soon as I landed in Sydney and those cravings just had to be satisfied. I didn’t expect there were so many oyster choices! Good thing our food guru friend’s instructions were simple enough. Get the smallest oysters. Have the Balmain Bugs cooked with Singapore Chili. Then throw in a piece of lobster, calamari, grilled salmon and octopus on skewers, and some sashimi and Kani salad to start with.
Frankly, I couldn’t tell rock oysters from Coffin Bay oysters (yeah, what a name for a bay that yields really good oysters). Nor whether they were sourced from Sydney or Merimbula. I can only tell the Pacific Oysters are the largest, yet nowhere as large as those served to us in San Francisco, California. Enjoyed these appetizers way too much, along with the freshest tuna, salmon, scallops and other fish sashimi. I could have stopped there and gone home real happy but those bugs are still a-cooking! And the salmon and octopus a-grilling!
Balmain Bugs in Singapore ChiliGrilled Salmon and Octopus with Lobster Mornay
Heaven landed in Nicholas Seafood Bar in Sydney Fish Market in Pyrmont. Next to our table is a band of athletic men feasting on scampi and bottles of wine. They were happy to down their alcoholic delights and the scampi was just an excuse to keep their stomach linings warm and not empty. In fact, they hardly touched them as they got busy with their spirits. Not so with us 3 Oriental ladies who feasted on all these lovely seafood finds like there’s no tomorrow.
An hour and a half passed and we were bursting at the seams. Even before we capped our lunch with a cup of our favourite brew, I was already planning on setting this gastronomic treat as a Sydney tradition. Unforgettable. Each morsel a culinary delight. All that for 3 ladies with discerning tastes. Please don’t judge us 🙄
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