Cuisine & Culture the Chinese Family Way
If you head to any Chinese supermarket, you’re likely to find a range of different flavoured mochi in the fridge section. I love plain mochi without any filling, especially in pandan flavour. I tend not to buy the mochi with red bean paste or green bean (mung bean) paste or with the skin coated in coconut flakes.
This is my second supernatural encounter in a hotel, but this time, the location was in Osaka. Before I go into details, why not check out my post on Chinese superstitions entering hotel room.
This happened in 16 May 2010; my sister-in-law, husband and I went to Japan for a holiday. On this occasion, my sister-in-law stayed in one room by herself, whilst my husband and I were in another room. It was a very compact room, but it had everything we needed. The moment you open the door, there was the landing and a toilet on our left. Then there was a double bed and a small table with books near the window. The room was bright and well decorated. I was very surprised to see a range of holy books displayed on the table. I did not look into the details but I’m pretty sure they were the Shinto holy book and bible.
Let’s travel with illustrator and graphic designer Amaia Arrazola on her four-week trip through the beating heart of Tokyo via her new book Tokyo Travel Sketchbook. This book is published by Tuttle Publishing and is available to buy now in good book stores and Amazon. Please do note that this book is suitable for aged 14 and above as it does contain some erotic content!
Super Cute Origami is a brand new origami kit that will appeal to all ages! This super cute collection of easy origami crafts can be customized in endless ways. It comes with 10 delightfully adorable designs which you can very easily personalise them in thousands of ways. The possibilities are limitless!
Sometimes travelling to a foreign country can be quite daunting, especially if you don’t know how to speak the language. You could be really thorough and take up language classes before you travel or you could wing your way through your journey, with a little help from a book like this Instant Japanese phrase book. Best of all, this is not just a boring phrase book filled with words, the book contains fun manga illustrations!
Japan is a fascinating place, packed full of traditions dating back thousands of years and with their multifaceted cultural, it has never failed to fascinate me. Even though I have been there five times with my family and friends, each time it still intrigues me and makes me want to learn more about their culture. So I am delighted to have received this book to read along with my children.
A Geek In Japan is a comprehensive book that covers a broad set of topics in short articles accompanied by sidebars and numerous gorgeous, vibrant photographs, providing a lively digest of the society and culture of Japan. Designed to appeal to the generations of Westerners who grew up on Pokémon, manga and video games, A Geek in Japan reinvents the culture guide for readers in the Internet age.
Gyoza The Ultimate Dumpling Cookbook by Paradise Yamamoto is a simple and easy to learn dumpling making book for all beginners! His step-by-step instructions with photos and tips are so useful and his dumplings are surprisingly easy to make once you learn a few basic techniques! There is no head scratching nor complicated techniques to follow. I also love that he is so creative with his recipes that will suit the western younger generation’s taste buds, please picky eaters and gyoza connoisseurs alike!
Galleoneers is a monthly recipe subscription of recipe kits for families with children aged between 3 to 12 years old to discover a cuisine from around the world. Through Galleoneers, your child gets to learn about geography and explore new cultures with arts & crafts, fun and educational activities related to the month’s cuisine.
When you visit Osaka, you may wish to pay a visit to Universal Studios Osaka! It is easily accessed by their local transport and very clearly signalled from the train station.
Japan is foodie heaven, from fresh sushi to cotton soft cheesecake and from matcha ice cream to cotton pancakes. I am not a big fan of sushi (I’m not keen on raw fish) but I am a huge fan of their desserts! I know it’s a bit silly to not try their fresh sushi products from their sushi chef! The best places to eat sushi are the sushi restaurants near the fish market in Tokyo.
Anyway, this trip is all about desserts and their yummy Wagyu beef! I am a big sweet tooth and had researched extensively to try out their delicious desserts! These are the few desserts I had tried during my trip in Osaka!
The Momofuku Ando Instant Ramen Museum is an interactive museum dedicated to instant noodles and Cup Noodles, as well as its creator and founder, Momofuku Ando. They open daily except Tuesdays. Do plan well before you travel. It was very easy to access by train and is within walking distance from the train station to the museum. We took the express train and reached there in 20 minutes time from the main station, Umeda station.
One of our highlights for our Osaka trip besides checking out the Pokémon centre, was to experience Japanese culture, in particular, learning samurai. I found out about this class while researching for things to do in Osaka and was so pleased that we tried a lesson!
Last week on 29th April 2016, the most anticipated Japanese cultural phenomenon YO-KAI WATCH ® for Nintendo 3DS family systems launched across Europe with over 10 million units in the series shipped to date! We joined many others in playing it since launch!
Did you know that Monchhichi has been around for over 40 years now? Monchhichi was first created by Mr K. Sekiguchi from Japan. He developed a human like monkey doll who sucked his thumb to become everyone’s friend and to deliver messages of peace and love around the world.
