Japan: Relaxing day off in Urayasu~ 2012-09-27

Sunset on my street. 

$6 umbrellas at the grocery store! I like the cheerful image :) 

"Light eyes" fish…hm, peculiar name. 

Ah! Makes sense now.

 

I made my own pumpkin spice creamer mix, as that's not really the sort of flavor combination that the Japanese are familiar with. Pumpkin pie isn't common there, nor do they celebrate Thanksgiving. Their version of pumpkins are kabocha, a small sweet gourd that's similar to acorn squash. 

Kabocha no nimono is a typical Japanese pumpkin dish~

I think my favorite is probably kabocha tempura ^_^ not very healthy, but the sweet flavor the squash is nice and the flesh becomes soft and fluffy under the crispy batter!

I'm not sure precisely what the green herbs are off the top of my head… ^^;;

My neighbor had this absolutely beautiful garden growing in front of a vacant lot next to her home. She was an older lass but full of spunk! We became friends after I complimented her garden, and she gave me a bundle of herbs~ I was shocked to discover that she grew fennel! 

It seems like you never really see fennel…but Yomiura-san, my neighbor, and Jackie, our AirBnB host in San Francisco, both grew the lovely little liquorish scented bulbs!

My lunch~ Breads in Japan are exceptionally nice! I really enjoyed all the varieties and inspired creations of their patisseries. 

I tried durian for the first time! 

It's supposed to be an exceptionally smelly fruit…^^;;

but the flesh itself is sweet and has a texture like a firm custard. 

Not my favorite, but it wasn't bad. I could easily eat durian again if presented with it!

These waterways ran through much of the city, and this one in particular I would pass on my way to the fresh market. It was fun seeing how it changed over the seasons.

These flowers were huge!

Have you ever tried hot dog flavored chips? :) They were interesting…maybe better if you dipped them into ketchup?

Dainty little earrings I picked up while out and about one day. In this case I had managed to get the earring into my tragus piercing, which I had thought to have closed up! I took the jewelry out of it and hadn't worn any in years...