Purikura!

What can I say about Purikura except that is is one of the most fun cultural experiences one can have in 10 minutes in Tokyo.

You basically get your picture taken in a booth. They even recommend poses for you, so go wild! The machines have a knack for making you look like a teenager no matter how old you are.

Then decorate your pictures on the computer screen by drawing on them or filling them with cute stamps.

Then it prints out on sticker paper so that you can share them with your friends and stick them all over your cute belongings, including your deco-den!

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Chocolate tart in Tokyo

This yummy chocolate tart had a very nice lemony-lavender scent hidden in the gooey fudge. Perfect with my pretty cappuccino.

At Potluck @ Opening Ceremony in Shibuya.

Tonkatsu

The most expensive Tonkatsu I have ever had was at Mai-Sen in the ritzy Omote-sando neighborhood. This was a special lean Black Pork cutlet and came with a spicy-sweet apple sauce for drizzling over the finely shredded cabbage and rice.

To make this at home, dredge pork cutlets in a cracked egg, then flour, back in the egg, then in panko and deep fry. Cut it into thick strips with a sharp knife, and serve with shredded cabbage. Tonkatsu sauce is key, and you'll probably have to find that at your local Japanese market. For those in my hood, check out Hana. What to do with leftover tonkatsu? layer it between slices of white bread with some sauce for some delicious sammies.

Pool of cherry blossom petals in Tokyo

Onigiri!!!

One of my favorite things about Japan is that you can always find onigiri, a delicious seaweed wrapped rice ball at any of the abundant convenience stores. They come with different fillings - here I am holding up ones filled with ikura (salmon roe) and mentaiko (spicy pollock roe).

Onigiri is pretty easy to make at home, though shaping the rice balls is tricky. Just steam some Japanese rice, wet your hands so that the rice doesn;'t stick to your fingers, flatten some rice between your palms, add some filling (really, whatever you like - I like to use flaked salmon flavored with a few drops of sesame oil and chili flakes) curl your hand up so that the filling falls into a pocket in the rice, add more rice to cover it, then cup both hands on it tightly to form a triangle wedge. This takes practice! Finish by wrapping it in a half a sheet of nori (roasted seaweed sheets).

Tokyo Landscape

Standing Bar in Tokyo

Neon in Tokyo