Breakfast; New Akan Hotel
Can you see how much I love the congee there? 😆
Mitsui Factory Outlet
It was all about shopping and walking around on this day. A long 4 hours journey to the Mitsui Outlet Park, Sapporo but I was not as eager for shopping as much as for filling up my stomach! I was craving for Japanese food that is not part of a buffet. We decided on a restaurant with a Japanese Italian combo.
The pasta set comes with a salad and the drink bar. At first, we asked the waitress what drink options do we have. To our surprise, we have a free flow of drinks at the corner and there was a nice variety to choose from. There are different kinds of tea which we serve in small cute pottery and cup. The ice coffee and fruit juice were great as well. We ordered the carbonara and creamy cod roe and squid pasta. The salad whets your appetite with its tangy citrus sauce. The pasta is al dente and rich in taste, greatly satisfying to the tastebud. We added on the toast with avocado and cheese and it was warm and crispy. The total cost for the meal was ¥3496, which is quite reasonable for restaurant standards!
The mall has big brands like Lego, Nike, Crocs, Gap, Fossil, and Under Amour. These are the few brands I can remember seeing. There is an Under Amour sports underwear (free size ¥1026) which I bought and it is seamless and great with those sports leggings. We walked to the new extension and found a shop which sells Japanese sweets, snack and coffee. A staff was distributing complimentary coffee samples of their best seller and my bf wanted to have one. Seeing that I only have about 15 minutes left, I told my bf to take a seat instead while I go do my fast shopping! He is so troublesome sometimes hahaha :x.
I went into this shop which sells accessories and bags. I believe the shop name is called Heartland. What attracted me was the Anello sling bag ( ¥2160) which comes in 3 colours. There are many fake Anello bags out there but this should be genuine since I'm buying it in Japan. I think a real Anello has a statement like this printed on the front; "Created to improve life. Good for all seasons". It is printed on my Legato Largo bag that I bought on Qoo10 as well. Both are really good for all seasons due to the lightweight and waterproof material used. Plus, you would not face the problem of those artificial leather peeling off after a certain amount of time.
So anyway, I had to decide quickly and I chose the red one. Bringing it to the staff, I asked whether there was a new one. Unfortunately, I think she said that she only have 1 piece each. So I checked and paid for it. When she thanked me for my purchase, I replied "Arigato". She laughed and had the surprised face that I actually spoke Japanese to her lol.
狸小路
The next shopping destination is a long stretch of street called 狸小路. From number 1 to 7, there are tons of things to see, although 7 looked kind of old and empty. We were there to buy our food goodies with an additional 9% discount at this one shop. We walked down the lane first instead while everyone bought their food souvenirs. When we were back, the shop was packed with people from a Chinese tour group, there was barely space to move about. Anyway, we did not want to purchase much from Hokkaido, and we did not get any from this shop, if not there would be too much baggage when we transfer to Tokyo.
We saw a DDR machine as we walked inside the arcade! But someone was playing and someone was waiting to play. If not, we would have tried and sweat buckets inside our jacket. There was a level below the arcade, but along the stairs, a sign was displayed. It was confusing because we couldn't understand it fully. So I went downstairs to see if I saw any males around. Then I realized it was a neoprint area meant mainly for females, but the males can tag along with their female friend or girlfriend. Interesting concept.
I saw this round container at another UFO machine game store. It has many pieces of paper flying around and we were supposed to put our hand in and grab one to claim a prize. It was ¥100 per try so we each tried it once. I got a minion kids stamp, and so did he! Lol I guess that is the most common price to receive.
Along the street, there is a two storey pet shop and all the cute little kittens and puppies were in those display cubes. They were all so cute and fluffy! Their storefront shows a picture of a pug/bulldog but there wasn't any of my favorite type of dog in the store :(. In Singapore, we seldom get to see baby dogs and cats in pet shops.
Tokyo Dome Hotel;
We took the bus back to Tokyo Dome Hotel, before we returned here to have dinner. It was planned this way so that it was more convenient for other tour members with boxes of souvenirs to leave them in the hotel first. Our ordered items were also delivered to the hotel and we were to collect from our tour guide. Our food items were nicely packed in a box and sealed up for check in.
Dinner; Unagi
At 6pm, we met at the lobby and our tour guide walked us back to 狸小路 and made sure we remembered the landmarks and direction back. In Sapporo, the snow was almost like ice and the ground was blackened by the pollution of the vehicles. It was a winding and difficult walk because it was really slippery. And then I started to really appreciate the snow in other parts of Hokkaido.
Bf requested for Shallen to bring us to a Unagi place but it was quite a long walk from 狸小路. All I remembered was that this shop is located at the building with the Coca Cola lights and directly under this Bishi Bashi signboard. I assume that is not the bishi bashi at the arcade haha.
This restaurant is small and traditional, specializing only in grilled unagi/eel dishes. To ensure all customers have a good experience, they want people to limit movement other than visiting the restroom. Do we agree to these terms? Of course we do! We have walked a long way for you.
We sat at the area where no footwear was allowed. We could sit in the traditional style or put our legs in the space under the table. Beside us, I noticed how a Japanese lady sat the traditional Seiza way while the Japanese gentleman sat the usual way. In my mind, I was wondering whether gender differences came into play. The menu is all about grilled unagi, just different in the amount of eel and the type of presentation. I love unagi, which is why my bf wanted me to have a real authentic experience although he himself is not a fan of any fish, or seafood with tiny bones like fish.
The first bite into the eel is smooth and flavourful. It has plenty of the 'fish meat' texture instead of all 'slimy skin' texture. Then I ate the other piece, which was the other half of the eel. There were so many tiny bones (a lot more than I have ever eaten) and it starts to be a little too prickly at the throat. The bones were chew-able and edible I supposed, but the experience of eating it was greatly reduced. I took away all those obvious bones sticking out but there was still a great amount left. I swallowed the rice at the end to ensure all bones get pushed down properly. Otherwise, the first half of the unagi is really delicious and well grilled! (total ¥5151 with tax)
After dinner, we had a large Macdonald's fries at ¥320 :P. And it does not stop here. We went to the takoyaki shop along 狸小路 as I was craving for some takoballs! They did not allow us to sit in if we only ordered one portion so we had to take away. The takoyaki (¥500) are piping hot, crispy on the outside and soft on the inside. They also have red pickled ginger in the takoyaki batter which is quite different from the Singapore ones.
Daiso
And the next part of my whole day was the most exciting! There is a DAISO somewhere along number 2 or 3 and it has 5 whole levels!! I thought 100 yen shops would have more presence in Japan than Daiso but Daiso is really conveniently located in different areas of Tokyo. In Singapore, all single Daiso items are S$2 but in Japan, it is not always ¥100. Certain items are ¥200, ¥300 or ¥500 depending on the type of product and quality.
I was shopping excitedly until they announced they were closing at 9pm. I quickly glanced through the levels and went down to pay. They have an area for customers to wrap and pack their items themselves. We saw a Singapore Kopitiam along the way back but it was closed on a Tuesday! I wonder how authentic the food is.
The walk back was long and slippery. But I enjoyed how we held onto each other tightly as we made our way back gingerly <3. We didn't have to walk back according to the landmarks because my 'google map' used his google map and found a more direct way!
Dinner; Unagi
At 6pm, we met at the lobby and our tour guide walked us back to 狸小路 and made sure we remembered the landmarks and direction back. In Sapporo, the snow was almost like ice and the ground was blackened by the pollution of the vehicles. It was a winding and difficult walk because it was really slippery. And then I started to really appreciate the snow in other parts of Hokkaido.
Bf requested for Shallen to bring us to a Unagi place but it was quite a long walk from 狸小路. All I remembered was that this shop is located at the building with the Coca Cola lights and directly under this Bishi Bashi signboard. I assume that is not the bishi bashi at the arcade haha.
This restaurant is small and traditional, specializing only in grilled unagi/eel dishes. To ensure all customers have a good experience, they want people to limit movement other than visiting the restroom. Do we agree to these terms? Of course we do! We have walked a long way for you.
We sat at the area where no footwear was allowed. We could sit in the traditional style or put our legs in the space under the table. Beside us, I noticed how a Japanese lady sat the traditional Seiza way while the Japanese gentleman sat the usual way. In my mind, I was wondering whether gender differences came into play. The menu is all about grilled unagi, just different in the amount of eel and the type of presentation. I love unagi, which is why my bf wanted me to have a real authentic experience although he himself is not a fan of any fish, or seafood with tiny bones like fish.
The first bite into the eel is smooth and flavourful. It has plenty of the 'fish meat' texture instead of all 'slimy skin' texture. Then I ate the other piece, which was the other half of the eel. There were so many tiny bones (a lot more than I have ever eaten) and it starts to be a little too prickly at the throat. The bones were chew-able and edible I supposed, but the experience of eating it was greatly reduced. I took away all those obvious bones sticking out but there was still a great amount left. I swallowed the rice at the end to ensure all bones get pushed down properly. Otherwise, the first half of the unagi is really delicious and well grilled! (total ¥5151 with tax)
After dinner, we had a large Macdonald's fries at ¥320 :P. And it does not stop here. We went to the takoyaki shop along 狸小路 as I was craving for some takoballs! They did not allow us to sit in if we only ordered one portion so we had to take away. The takoyaki (¥500) are piping hot, crispy on the outside and soft on the inside. They also have red pickled ginger in the takoyaki batter which is quite different from the Singapore ones.
Daiso
And the next part of my whole day was the most exciting! There is a DAISO somewhere along number 2 or 3 and it has 5 whole levels!! I thought 100 yen shops would have more presence in Japan than Daiso but Daiso is really conveniently located in different areas of Tokyo. In Singapore, all single Daiso items are S$2 but in Japan, it is not always ¥100. Certain items are ¥200, ¥300 or ¥500 depending on the type of product and quality.
I was shopping excitedly until they announced they were closing at 9pm. I quickly glanced through the levels and went down to pay. They have an area for customers to wrap and pack their items themselves. We saw a Singapore Kopitiam along the way back but it was closed on a Tuesday! I wonder how authentic the food is.
The walk back was long and slippery. But I enjoyed how we held onto each other tightly as we made our way back gingerly <3. We didn't have to walk back according to the landmarks because my 'google map' used his google map and found a more direct way!
Our Hokkaido time was official ending.
Thank you Chan Brothers for their great itinerary and service!
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