The morning after returning from my summer vacation trip, it took a lot of willpower to get my body out of bed, which felt as heavy as lead (lol). Was it just my mind that felt refreshed!? No, travel fatigue can be surprisingly common. Despite this being my first day back at work, I had work scheduled for the evening...
...Enjoy Japan's nature with a 1-night, 2-day trip to Atami Onsen during your summer vacation! ~Table of Contents~
This is a photo taken in front of this inn, a place my husband and I always take a commemorative photo whenever we visit Yugawara, a place we love. Our usually docile white car, which is only used for city driving, showed off its smooth performance on the Shin-Tomei Expressway. The autumn foliage is beautiful in the summer, but we're also looking forward to the fall colors! Also...
...Primavera at Clematis Hill is one of Shizuoka's top Italian restaurants.
Located within "Clematis Hill," a cultural complex on the slopes of Mt. Ashitaka in Nagaizumi Town, is the Italian restaurant "Ristorante Primavera," which focuses on flowers, art, and food. Clematis Hill offers more than just art to admire...
...Stay at the members-only hotel "Tokyu Harvest Club Atami Izusan & VIALA" and watch the Atami Sea Fireworks Festival
The Tokyu Harvest Club, a members-only resort hotel that offers the joy of owning a private villa combined with the comfort and ease of a hotel, opened a new location last summer, on August 11, 2013: "Tokyu Harvest Club Atami Izusan & VIALA"...
...Renewed and reopened: "Kitchen Ito Style," a Western-style restaurant produced by Chef Ito.
Chef Junichi Ito of the French restaurant "HERLEQUIN BIS" is producing a new Western-style restaurant, "KITCHEN BY ITO STYLE," which will open in 201 as a sister restaurant to HERLEQUIN BIS...
...Enjoy a dappled sunlight-filled lunch and a luxurious footbath surrounded by a bamboo grove at "El Lucambis".
There's a French restaurant I always visit whenever I go to Yugawara. Climbing a narrow, steep slope, surrounded by a bamboo forest, it creates a fantastical atmosphere, offering authentic French cuisine that incorporates Japanese sensibilities and refined Japanese techniques. It's called "HERLEQUIN BIS...".
...Vintage tableware "cups and saucers" by leading Scandinavian designers.
"Relief Series Teacup & Saucer" by Jens H. Quistgaard. Designed by Danish designer Jens H. Quistgaard...
...A first-year part-time employee at "Okonomiyaki Kokoro" is currently training by working around the grill.
Along the street in Sumiyoshi, near Seirei Hamamatsu Hospital, there's a shop with a noren (traditional Japanese curtain) displaying the three hiragana characters "Kokoro." It opened in April 2007 and is celebrating its 7th anniversary this year, 2014. Since coming to Hamamatsu, for me, "Kokoro is the go-to place for okonomiyaki"...
...I celebrated my memorable 38th birthday with a special omakase dinner at "Ichimi Shin Genjo".
Located on the first floor of the Richmond Hotel Hamamatsu, very close to Viola Tamachi, is the French restaurant "Ichimi Shin Motoshiro." Being within a hotel, it offers a calm atmosphere, a modern and stylish space, and a luxurious feel. It also serves Italian cuisine...
..."at.nail" offers a cool blue-green that evokes the summer sea and resembles a seashell.
Ayane Kaizu (now Shinmura), who has been running her nail salon "at.nail" in a corner of her family home in Hayade-cho since 2010, is a housewife and mother who has been juggling her business while raising her son. A year has passed since then, and her son is growing up healthy and strong, now able to walk while holding onto things...
...At "Kappo Shinhama," the daily lunch special is a great deal that regulars frequent every day!
Turning onto Futamata Street from Yanagi Street and heading towards Motohama, you'll see the sign for "Kappo Shinhama." Founded in the early Meiji era as "Shinhama Fish Shop," the current owner, Mitsuhiro Nagatani, is the fourth generation, and the restaurant is beloved by its regulars and bustling with customers day and night. The interior offers a view of the kitchen...
...I went to a Maserati dealership in Rome to see the new Ghibli, which hadn't yet been released in Japan!
One evening in Rome, while everyone on the tour was shopping at Mitsukoshi Rome, my husband and I asked our tour guide for some precious free time. We then took a taxi to the Maserati dealership in Rome, "SAMOCA...", which we had been eager to visit.
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