Kappabashi-dori, also known just as Kappabashi or Kitchen Town, is a street in Tokyo between Ueno and Asakusa which is almost entirely populated with shops supplying the restaurant trade. These shops sell everything from mass-produced crockery, restaurant furniture, ovens and decorations, through to esoteric items such as the plastic display food or sampuru (サンプル) in Japanese found outside Japanese restaurants.
The street is also an off-beat tourist destination. 
While continuing the effort to find the location to have our lunch, we took the chance to look at the restaurant's wholesale stuff sold here. They includes plastic food called sampuru (which I will blog on that in the next entry), metal spatulas, deep fryers and an immense variety of affordable crockery. Some shops sell only in wholesale quantities, but many are happy to sell single items and factory-made Japanese pottery (which to the casual eye is indistinguishable from the handmade kind) can sell for as little as ¥100 a piece.







First destination was the Chiba city centre.


For the five days I was in Chiba and Tokyo, this is the first and only time I ate outside. Remember I once mentioned that on my next trip to Chiba, the first meal I will have would be at Ippudo.
I made sure I stick to that promise and there we were, at Ippudo for our lunch.





After having out late lunch, we headed to IKEA to shop.
Initially, I wanted to get my futon there but too bad they didn't sell in one whole set, so in the end, I only got a blue pillow haha. But it was fun to shop inside IKEA. I still remember the first and only time I have ever been to IKEA was a few years back, but that was in IKEA at 1Utama.One our way to IKEA, there was one incident which was really silly and we couldn't believe we could be that stupid. We got down at the wrong stations not once, but twice! Neither me nor WinD has ever been this careless. On the first time, we were talking and we forgot to get down at the station we were supposed to get down. What made matter worse is that we were inside the rapid train, which means the next station will be a few stations away. On the second time, we got down a station earlier than we should. Damn stupid, right?
Those mistakes cost us more than thirty minutes to get to the opposite platforms and take the right train.
It was a day full of incidents. I got myself a set of new futon which was packed in a huge cardboard box at LalaPort, a shopping centre just a stone's throw from IKEA. The box was easily more than 1.5m x 1m. On our way back from Lalaport, in which we got to take the shuttle bus to the nearest train station, was the time when everything went wrong. We knew it would happen when we were lining up to board the bus. Even the two guys behind us decided not to board the same bus because it was so packed already, mainly because my box has occupied spaces for about three people haha. The lady who was sitting in the bus saw us, holding on such a huge box and she started to laugh to her friend next to her. The point is, she laugh in such a Japanese way, using her palms to cover her mouth while trying to sneak at our directions lol.
I have been in Japan for more than two years, and I think I have never felt so embarrassed like that haha. I couldn't do anything, so I just buat bodoh and luckily enough, the ride was just a few minutes; otherwise I don't know where I would put my face. Maybe I would hide my face inside the box since it is so huge haha!
Those mistakes cost us more than thirty minutes to get to the opposite platforms and take the right train.
It was a day full of incidents. I got myself a set of new futon which was packed in a huge cardboard box at LalaPort, a shopping centre just a stone's throw from IKEA. The box was easily more than 1.5m x 1m. On our way back from Lalaport, in which we got to take the shuttle bus to the nearest train station, was the time when everything went wrong. We knew it would happen when we were lining up to board the bus. Even the two guys behind us decided not to board the same bus because it was so packed already, mainly because my box has occupied spaces for about three people haha. The lady who was sitting in the bus saw us, holding on such a huge box and she started to laugh to her friend next to her. The point is, she laugh in such a Japanese way, using her palms to cover her mouth while trying to sneak at our directions lol.
I have been in Japan for more than two years, and I think I have never felt so embarrassed like that haha. I couldn't do anything, so I just buat bodoh and luckily enough, the ride was just a few minutes; otherwise I don't know where I would put my face. Maybe I would hide my face inside the box since it is so huge haha!
8 comments:
i tot u finish blogged about tokyo?
@ =chuan guan=:
sorry for all the confusions, mainly due to my long-overdue entries. i was in tokyo one month ago. this is my second trip to tokyo.
I thought Ikea only available in malaysia,my insight is really small,aik >.<
the ramen looked very yummy,haha
@ candlelyn:
ikea is a swedish company, and i heard the product sold in malaysia are unwanted stuff from ikea stores from other countries. not so sure how true is that lol!
yes, the ramen was superb!
My mom gonna loves Kappabashi a lot! Haha... Why the siu mai looks so pale?
Lalaport Bay. A nice name. Lol...
@ ken:
let me guess; you mom loves cooking, doesn't she? xD
it was way too cold, that is why the siew mai looked pale haha!
argh nice food.
and what something so secretive cannot reveal it here...=_=
@ kae vin:
but i still prefer koh lou yok in malaysia >.<
if it is not a secret, i will surely reveal it already. just wait and you will know it soon xD
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