Ramen is one of the most delicious and japanesey things to taste while you're in Japan. There are a plethora of ramen shops in this town and almost all are very, very good. But there are a few that get especially rave reviews and Ichiran Ramen is one of them. 

We took a fun four-day trip to Sydney for Palantir's Holiday Party. Palantir has several holiday parties around the world and this location included all of the asian offices. It was an amazing opportunity to visit The Land Down Under - Tim's second trip and my first.

Japan is not a country of Christians, so it makes sense that Christmas here is really about the Santa/Christmas tree/sparkling lights side of the holiday. According to some expats we talked to, Christmas Day is really no different than any other day here. Good thing, because we'll be in Vietnam! 

Here's a little taste of the holiday cheer you can find on Tokyo streets in December.

This fall there have been so many moments where I've been caught off guard by the vivid reds, yellows, and oranges of the season. Here are just a few of those moments.

I decided to take a stroll around the Imperial Palace after seeing a Central Tokyo walking tour in my little guidebook. Before we get any further I have to warn you that this day ended up being a bit disappointing. You cannot just show up and walk into the palace grounds (because it's being occupied by the imperial family!). 

We decided to take a trip out to Odaiba on a rainy Saturday.  

Odaiba is a man-made island full of spas, onsens, hotels, themed restaurants, malls, and amusement parks, connected to the city by the Rainbow Bridge. It's also home to the well-known National Museum of Emerging Science and Innovation (Miraikan), which was our first stop.

Tim had Thanksgiving break off of work so we took the four-day weekend and made a short trip of it. Our first stop was to Kyoto, a city we hadn't visited since 2012. 

Tim's east coast cousin, Brian, happened to pop into Tokyo for a couple of nights so of course we had to get together! I had never met him before, so it was quite a pleasure to finally get the chance. 

We joined Brian and a couple of his friends at an izakaya a few train stops away.

I decided to go on a walking tour of Minato, a part of town with a surprising number of gems.

The first stop was a shrine hidden within a busy business district, Atago Jinja. It was quiet and peaceful, with a gorgeous pond, and it appeared to be a convenient spot for businessmen to stop by on their breaks.

We decided to head out early on a Saturday for a quick weekend trip to Osaka. This is the second largest city in Japan, known for it's good food and loud, friendly people. By catching a 7am shinkansen we were able to get into the city by 10:30am and start our tour.

The Museum of Ebisu Beer is located in Ebisu Garden Place, right next to our old apartment. Every time I walked by it called to me so eventually I had to stop in and check it out. 

We didn't really know what Japanese Halloweens were about. We knew that Japan had recently adopted the holiday (sounds like the Disney parks' Halloween-themed celebrations leaked into popular culture five to ten years ago) but we didn't know to what extent.

Jeff and Michelle came for a Japanese adventure and we were so excited to see them!

Tim spent some time showing them around Tokyo before they headed off to Kyoto. On their last night in Japan we went to a delicious yakiniku spot (where we had our own private room) and got the chance to catch up on their travels.

We recently had the opportunity to eat at La Table, Joel Robuchon's TWO Michelin star restaurant here in Ebisu. Tim and several of his coworkers made the reservation and I (and the other Palantir wife) were lucky enough to come along.

We finally relocated to our very own Tokyo apartment!

A couple of weeks ago Tim and I went to a furniture leasing store and selected some pieces. They said it would take about a week to deliver so in the meantime I prepared for the move.

Tim had journeyed to Kamakura with a co-worker before I came to Tokyo and he wanted to share the experience with me, so we set out on a Kamakura adventure.

This city is about one hour away by local train and is much more rural and residential than Tokyo. It was a nice change of pace and breath of fresh air after so much busy city life. Our first stop was the great buddha - Daibutsu.

Here in Tokyo, trash disposal is an extremely important part of daily life. When you are out and about you will see that highly organized trash systems are in place in every shop, cafe, and sidewalk. Space is at a premium so responsible trash disposal is a must. In fact, if you are one of the few being lazy and not following the rules to a T, you'll seriously lose face and supposedly the neighborhood trash monitor (grandma lady) will call you out in front of everyone (I haven't seen it but I read that somewhere!).

We were excited to be back at Tokyo Disney Sea! It's a must for any Disney fan, the main reason being that it's unlike any other Disney park. In America, there are the Magic Kingdom parks (there's one here, too), California Adventure, Hollywood Studios, Epcot, and the Wild Animal Kingdom. This one contains completely different lands, many different rides, and different eats!

It's kind of a strange subject but Japan really is the place to go if you want state-of-the-art toilets. You will not come across a plain toilet here (unless, of course, it's the old school squatting style).

They are equipped with the basic bidet-like washing capabilities but they also have lovely sounds to mask embarrassing noises and the seats can be warmed, if you like. Need to deodorize? No problem! Just push the button.

My friend, Diana, and I decided to meet for a week-long trip to Korea in the beginning of September. She happened to be visiting family in China and given that I was in Japan, it was an easy trip for both of us. 

We spent the first three nights in Seoul, north of the Han River, in the older districts of the city. We accidentally stayed right in the middle of Myeongdong, the skincare and street food district - two of the biggest reasons for coming! :)