We looked up how to get to Japantown via bus, and found the correct stop to wait at. The wait was about 20 minutes or so. Eventually the bus showed up, but stopped way before the actual stop. A bunch of people got out and we assumed that the bus would stop at the actual bus stop to pick us up... but no... it just left. We could have waited a half hour for another bus, but we instead opted for the half hour uphill walk!
It was a long walk, but I'm actually glad that we took it. We got to see people's cool apartments and some really interesting buildings. And some guy's window that had recently gotten shattered on his super nice car.
We were intrigued, but not surprised, how everything started to look nicer as we approached Japantown. People's yard's were more tidy and their houses didn't have layers of grime on them. Hobos were nowhere to be seen. It was super clean! Bailey and I decided that if we were ever to live in San Francisco (which will most likely never happen - we love Utah too much) we would live in Japantown with all those respectful, tidy people.
We came to Japantown with little knowledge of what to do. We only know one person whose been there before (thanks for the suggestions Alli!) and she said to go straight for the food! We accidentally walked into Japan Center, where I thought we could get some info but no... we had walked into a mall! Full of everything Japanese! I was in heaven! The restaurant we wanted to go to wouldn't be open for a little while, so we walked around and visited some shops .
Shopping in Japantown is way better than shopping in Chinatown. The prices aren't quite as low (though still super reasonable), but the products are generally higher quality. And there's much more of a variety! I fangirled over all the Ghibli things we came across, and Bailey had to tell me to turn away a few times while he did some of my Christmas shopping haha.
Finally it was time to eat! We were so hungry for some tasty Japanese food!
I have never had authentic ramen before. It has been my dream to taste some! So we ordered some ramen (and some gyoza... and some sushi...) and oh my. Best meal of our trip! And the cheapest too!
After stuffing as much as we possibly could in our stomachs, it was time to hit the best store in the world. Now you see, I was unaware that this was the best store in the world until a conversation with Chanel a few months ago. She loves Daiso and went there in Japan as well as California! She made it sound amazing, and I told Bailey about it and we proceeded to look up YouTube videos of people who went to Daiso. We got so excited! It is basically a Japanese dollar store. In America everything costs $1.50, though, which is understandable. They have the cutest and best stuff ever! I went crazy over the stationary, the dishcloths, and the washi tape. Bailey found a fountain pen he's so excited about, and loaded us up on bento box supplies. We spent $50 there and I actually wish that we had spent more! Their products are surprisingly high quality, and they seriously have everything! I hope to make it back to Daiso ASAP.
After the dollar store, we finished up looking at pretty much every store in both sides(!!) of the mall before we went back outside.
Online I had found a mochi stop that I wanted to visit. We found the shop, but all they had by that time of the day was mochi with bean paste in it! I would have tried it if I didn't already know how much I dislike bean paste. It is so nasty! Bailey hadn't tried it though, so he bought some green mochi with bean paste and really didn't know how to feel about it. He said he didn't like it but proceeded to eat the whole thing. The consensus was - the mochi itself was AMAZING (I tried it, so I can attest) but bean paste can ruin anything.
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| He's so cute!! |
My goal for the day was to find Milky candy. It was my favorite candy growing up, but about three or four years ago they stopped selling it in Utah or something because I can't find it ANYWHERE near home! I didn't see it in any of the shops in the mall, so after we hit the mochi shop we stopped by the nearest grocery store. And we found Milky candy!! I was so excited I bought three packages! A successful day indeed!
After that we got a bus back to our hotel to pick up our luggage, then it was off the the airport for us. Bailey has bad memories of missing a flight in a foreign country (he missed his first flight home from his mission) so we were sure to go super early to make sure neither of us would stress. We had a lot of waiting time, but enjoyed getting dinner and hanging out together!
So that concludes our San Francisco trip. Unfortunate, right? I wish we could have stayed for the rest of the school semester, but I guess real life has to proceed. I'm so grateful for the opportunity Bailey and I had to go on our second honeymoon. We've truly been blessed to have the means to travel. We really believe that the Lord has blessed us richly for paying our tithing! I love that husband of mine and can't wait for an eternity of adventures with him!
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