Michiko-san!: Eat. Shop. Sing.

I became a shutterbug today. This post is full of pictures. You have now been warned. Begin.

I slept in a bit until 8 am, but I needed to get some homework done before the fun could start! As soon as I rolled up my futon and opened my bedroom door, I was greeted by these two little munchkins! They were helping Papa with the laundry! So cute.

Breakfast! Why does everything taste so much better here? The bread softer, the cucumbers fresher, the bacon ham-ier...

...and just look at the runny egg. Just look.

It is actually that orange and shiny.

Kaho was really liking the bacon. She kept on saying, "Ham-u! Ham-u!" She reminded me so much of Ponyo, the character from the movie Ponyo, a Studio Ghibli film. Ponyo loves ham. Kaho loves ham. Twinsies? I think so.

After doing some homework, the family and I went shopping at the Meitetsu Miza Department Store, connected to the Omi-cho Fish Market!

Could it be the start of つゆ rainy season? Haruki's ready!

First, we took it to the top floor for some major food ogling and sampling! They were having a sorts of "Sweets Festival,"where there were tons of food stalls selling everything from olive oil udon to the excessively (out the door and up the stairs-line) popular Bruleed Baumkuchen!

It was crazy busy, but I liked that it had the atmosphere of a bustling street market, all conveniently located next to the Kimono in a department store! Sweeeet. Literally!

Just look below at the Mochi Dango man mixing the chewy rice cakes with bright green bean paste!

Flippin dem Takoyaki like a BOSS.

Gotta get one of those molds for the home.

Tsukemono. Taste the rainbow.

Here are some cute little shrimp dumplings! I want to draw little faces on them they're so cute!

These were delicious little packages of happiness. Do you know how I know?

SAMPLES. What. up. Move over Costco. You need to take a lesson from the Japanese.

I also got to sample this tea. With a beautiful ceramic tea cup and all. In hot and cold styles.

Classy. and quite grassy.

I also spent quite a bit of time looking at all the beautiful Kimono and yukata!

My mom said that when girls turn 20, they wear these beautiful, colorful, and long kimono as part of the coming of age celebration. Wait a minute...I'm 19, so...

Just amazing. If I had the money to buy one, I'd wear it everyday.

You know, keep it casual....or maybe not.

Ok...so I couldn't indulge in my kimono-wearing fantasy, but I could indulge in some of the freshest sushi you could find!

The Omicho Market, connected underground to the department store, sells everything. In every type. In every size. My eyes just kept wandering everywhere! Every kind of "every" imaginable.

There are also numerous food stalls and restaurants, scattered between the stalls of abalone, fruits, vegetables...it keeps going on, so I'll just stop. You just look.

If "locavores" and foodies swear by the farmers' markets in America, then here, they would...(fill in the blank here" in their pants. That simple.

After looking around at all the fresh seafood, how could you NOT eat it? Especially when it is served to you in a boat. On a rotating conveyor belt. From a table side touch screen.

Cue the kaiten sushi slideshow!

Hmm...Haruki dreams of....

SUSHI!!!

And soba...

Negitoro with ginger

Hello Mr. Fish Head! Nice to eat you! Muahahaha...

Action shot! What a sushi eating pro. Look at that form.

Kani Mayo. I've never seen this in America, but Crab + Kewpie Mayo = better than any Krabby Patty Spongebob has ever eaten.

I also had this Baigai ばいがい　shellfish, which according to my extensive search on google, is known a Japanese Toyama specialty Babylon shell fish, and is known as the King of Shellfish. I don't really know if all of that is true...but I approve! Nom nom. We shall meet again soon.

After lunch, more market exploring! It was like watching the Oceans episode of Planet Earth, if all the fish were lined up in perfect rows and the shrimp were the size of small lobsters!

My mom buying some snapper for dinner this week! うれしい！

As our last stop, we went to a bakery, where they sell chocolate croissants my mom really likes! If you've been reading, you know how I feel about Japanese bakeries...

Being the incredibly generous and thoughtful host mother that she is, she surprised me with a snack to take with me later!

It's a horn-like croissant! (or is that a headband...Blair Waldorf, I'll need your expertise on this matter).

Anyways, Kaho was exhausted at this point....

So they dropped me off at the Katamachi/ Kohrinbo Shopping District to meet up with some of my peeps!

photo creds to the one and only Marina Kaneko.

An-Pan Man! The superhero of our generation.

This was the first time I actually went clothes shopping in Japan, and I have to say...some of the clothes are nUtZ! I especially love the nonsensical t-shirts and store names. Engrish at its finest.

The following two photos were brought to you by Welch's. Just kidding! Emmy Williams caught this madness on camera.

??? ok. Cushy.

Rodeo Crowns. I'll take one of those, please!

We also walked a bit around the Daiwa department store, though the Gucci and Louis Vuitton were a bit out of our price range...next time perhaps? Japanese departos, compared to American department stores, are like comparing First class Singapore Airlines to Economy Southwest. Let's just say they don't really match up.

Below looks perhaps like the jewelry section? WRONG. It's the depachika! The food floor! Even Harrod's can't touch this. (Hammer time).

After walking around all day and afternoon, we finally decided to refuel with some Okonomiyaki and Yakisoba!

Okonomiyaki Step 1:

Order the ingredients of choice. We got one with pork, and one with asparagus and shrimp. The ingredients were then presented to us in a bowl for us to mix. Then...

Step 2: Pour it on the grill yo! It's getting HOT.