Tokyo: August 31 – Sept 6

 

 

Tokyo. To me, it will always be New York’s Asian cool cousin. And those that know – I love NYC.

Same busy vibe. Great food. Architecture, design and fashion. Now, on the cusp of the 2020 Olympics – I’m finding less of a language barrier than I did 5 years ago and even less than 10 years ago.

This time, the journey surrounded a climb of Mt. Fuji, which engulfed my focus two months prior. I had no idea what I was getting into. And there were really no expectations – I even forgot there was a possibility that I wasn’t going to see the sunrise. (Note: For the record, I saw it).

The arrival day was spent getting organized at the Grand Hyatt Tokyo (Roppongi Hills) and checking out the touristy spot Gonpachi (known best for the Crazy 88 fight scene in Quentin Tarantino’s Kill Bill) for some izakaya.

The next day was a ‘lazy day’ having a tour of the beautiful Grand Hyatt Tokyo, eating a traditional bento box lunch and indulging in some beautiful nail art at the house spa. That night we attended the amazing artist collaborative, teamLab. The sensory art installation was nothing short than amazing. It was a true feast for the eyes with so much interaction. Music, lights and a huge disco ball were just a few of the highlights.

Bright and early we travelled to Mt. Fuji (which was a long 3 hour bus ride). I bought my walking stick and we were on our way starting the actual climb at noon until 5pm where we rested in a mountain hut for 5.5 hours. We had a hamburger and rice dinner and rested. In all honesty, the rest area was so cramped that my friend and I had to go out in the open common area and reorganize our bag and eat some cup of noodles before we ascended at 10:30pm. We got to the summit at 4:45am by taking a detour – the mountain was so busy! By 5:12am we caught the sunrise and I got my last logo on the walking stick. And then we were on the descend and 3 hours later were waiting for the bus to take to drive us back into the city.

The day after the climb was a hard one. I had no idea the effects of a downhill climb would be on my thighs. They burned. So much so that I wanted to avoid anything that involved walking; which is hard because that’s what exploring a city like Tokyo is all about it.

That same day, I checked into the stylish and pretty Andaz Tokyo Toranomon Hills for the remainder of my stay. After indulging in some pastries from the Pastry Shop, we had another informative hotel tour.  After we checked out an Owl café in Harajuku (yes – I felt bad after). We had dinner at a secret shabu shabu restaurant with the best beef I have ever tasted in my entire life. The beef was melt in your mouth great!

The last full day, exploring the city meant checking out the 4 level Gucci store in Ginza, having lunch at Aoyama Flower Market cafe and indulging in a sake tasting at a hidden spot in Kappabashi called Sanwa 720. I learned that sake from the north is quite dry and sake from the west is sweet. After, we headed to the store that sells everything under the rising sun – Don Quijote. It was the perfect spot to grab souvenirs and packs of milk tea (my favourite!).

Before heading to the airport to leave we made a stop to the Nikon museum. It was cool to see the vast history of the world famous camera company.

It was great to be back and this trip made me realize that Tokyo still remains my favourite bustling big asian city.

ELENA:)

 

Hong Kong (Jan 31 – Feb 6)

upper house, Swire, Hotel, Hong Kong

 

I always celebrate my birthday in a memorable way, be it a circus-themed party (complete with popcorn and cotton candy) or a Vancouver Aquarium dance party and dessert bar. The past few years, I have opted on travel adventures; last year was Loreto, Mexico and this year, I chose Hong Kong.

So after a lengthy 13 hour direct flight and 3 movies (Suicide Squad, Miss. Peregrines home for the peculiar and The girl on the train) I caught the Airport Express into the city and landed at my first stop, The Pottinger. With a central location, I can see why it was voted Asia’s Best City Boutique Hotel in 2014 by the World Boutique Hotels and one of Forbes Travel Guide Recommended Hotels for 2017.

Adjacent to the historic Pottinger Street, I spent a few afternoons checking out the vendors wares. They basically sold everything under the sun. I found the intimate 68-room hotel a tranquil oasis of bespoke décor with a touch of Asian flair. The beautiful pastel pink bird headboard and the blue/grey wallpaper at one of the hotel’s restaurants – Gradini Ristorante E Bar Italiano were my favourites. I loved the lobby’s sitting area decorated in full for Chinese New Year.

I love hotel welcome fruit. Welcome anything is great in my books, but after a long flight – being completely disorientated to space and time I gratefully inhaled the dragon fruit left for me.  I appreciated the huge vanity, as I was able to spread out my toiletries for days! Another shout out for strong water pressure in the shower. Although I never got around to it – the soaker tub looked amazing.

When I travelled to the Tsim Sha Tsui (TST) side via the Star Ferry, I noticed there was more of the bamboo scaffolding. Although I didn’t spend much time there, the streets seemed completely crowded and there was a difference in atmosphere noted.

After three nights at the Pottinger, I stayed at the Island Shangri-La for my remaining two nights. The Island Shangri-La is situated atop Pacific Place, a high-end fashion mecca in Central’s financial district of Hong Kong Island. I got trapped looking for an ATM and passed all the wonderful stores (on my last day – I quickly did a window shop).

The entire hotel is lavish and grand with amazing panoramic views of Victoria Harbor. I managed to get to The Peak on Sunday afternoon and was slightly disappointed that my view from my room was so much better! I could have stayed in and enjoyed more of the treats (tea, chocolates, sour plum candies) – but by the time I had checked out everything was gone 😉

For some reason, I wasn’t ready for how much I would be eating and drinking. Kennedy Town Catchick Street neighbors, Catch and Mamma Malouf were yummy. I feel like there is a Catch everywhere (NY, HK and now LA – I went there in March!).

ON Dining Kitchen and Lounge, Onegroni version #2 concoction is rested in a 4L original Giancarlo Mancino clay pot for at least one week before being batched in bottles, thus heightening their flavour. It was SO good.

The Japanese izakaya, Yardbird, takes no reservations and has limited quantities of menu items, thereby creating a warranted demand. It’s all about chicken here, and different cuts are grilled over traditional Binchotan charcoal. Yardbird is so popular, they now had a pop up  with the beautiful hotel, The Upper House. At Café Gray Deluxe (Upper House’s 49th floor restaurant), upon recommendation I had the famous Earl Gray Martini.

I know that Hong Kong is a shopper’s paradise – but rather than spend money on some luxury good. I came home with some athleisure clothes from Caleum Green and this bright green embroidered sweater that replaced this Gucci 6K sweater that I lusted after for the longest time.

I luckily and two wonderful massages on my trip – one at the Skin Gym, on Wyndham Street. My full body massage ironed out all my airplane kinks and left me in a peaceful slumber.The second was at the (Forbes Travel Guide 2017) beautiful Oriental Spa at the Landmark Mandarin Oriental.

A great intro trip to Hong Kong, with a few surprises along the way.

ELENA:)

Day 7: Today in Tokyo

After a really early flight from Manila, we were off to Tokyo! Yeah! I love Tokyo. So different than any other large city around. There are even subtle differences, for example…. a little boy on the train wanted to see out the window. Normally, at home the boy would jump on the seat and away we go… but not here. The boy took off his shoes to kneelon the seat to see out the window. Amazing respect for the environment.

So many people everywhere. So busy. It’s acutally kind of nice.

We checked into are hotel and settled into our very small room. We aren’t at the Shangri-la anymore! But this is Tokyo…. why would we stay in our room?

For dinner we met up with some of my friends friends at an izakaya. Not so smokey thank goodness…. the food and the company was outstanding. Bacon wrapped scallops with asparagus, Caesar salad with noodles and egg, and Cassius cola.

We sat and talked for hours about the engagements and popping the question. Their stories gave me shivers. It’s interesting to talk to couples from all walks of life of how they got together. For the longest time i thought that i should hold off on marriage until i complete some of my goals (get my own TV show, buy my first place etc. etc.), but since the breakup was i really reconsidering my stance on everything, including marriage? I don’t know. Actually… i do know what it is. I think that I’m kind of worried that because i have become so goal orientated things that want in the future (marriage, 1 or no children) might pass me by. Funny thing is, i want it all and i have no doubt in my mind that i will get it all. So this feeling that i have is almost like a passing cloud.

It’s almost midnight here…. tomorrow is shopping (therapy) better rest up.

ELENA:)