In this post I'll elaborate more about the hotel I had stayed in: Sun Royal Hotel. It's a bit farther away from the main train station and malls than other hotels in Kagoshima, but it provides with an excellent view of the volcano (which I later learned was active at the time of our stay, and had erupted three years ago). A cute crane welcomed us in our room. Along with the complimentary yukata. They even gave away samples of the volcanic ash (which is sitting peacefully on

The first restaurant we tried as we arrived in Kagoshima was Kawakyu as Kagoshima is known for its kurobuta (black pork). Kawakyu serves a variety of dishes that center around donkatsu, and although it is more mainly known for its roast katsu type I went for a katsu-don instead, as I find cooking katsu-don at home in particular takes hours. You have to make the donkatsu which requires flour, egg, panko, oil, and frying then later have to do more on top of that with pouring th

I had been given the opportunity to go to Kagoshima with a dear and lovely friend of mine, and although I was not a stranger to trips to Japan, it had been exciting and a delight nonetheless because of the company and sights. One must always check out Lawson when possible. It originally was a Dairy company and later morphed into a mini-mart chain, and for that reason you can trust their egg-salad sandwiches. You can find the sandwiches in the chilled aisles. A special corner

Ironically despite I being the U.S. citizen and my father being the Korean citizen it is he who loves and at times craves hamburgers viciously at times. There is a burger chain called: Brooklyn The Burger Joint scattered around Seoul which is a tad expensive compared to the burgers provided in the States, but decent in taste, decor and service. They also provide English menus for foreigners. The utensil cover cutely describes how to eat a hamburger. One does not use forks on

There's a small stand near CGV located right by the Exit 3 of Apgujeong Station. It's behind McDonald's and you can locate it by the smell of the grilling. It's name is simple: Apgujeong Ddak Kkochi (압구정 닭꼬치) There are two kinds of chicken skewers: gochujang-marinated and soy-sauce-marinated. I had asked if the gochujang-marinated was really spicy, and he had said just to be safe it'd be best to stick with the soy-sauce based ones for those that can't handle spicy. But if you

There's a really nice croissant place located in Bukchon along the road of Gye-Dong: Artisan Croissant. Gye-Dong, itself, is a fun and charming street filled with small shops, cafes and restaurants- a lot similar to how Garosu-gil was in the early years of its popularity. Artisan Croissant has limited seating inside (around enough seats for two at a time), but the seats are usually available as most customers just take-out the croissants. A variety of croissants, but I had go

I really liked this bakery, and I used to frequent it more, as I don't know of anywhere else that provides Yakisoba-pan daily, but sadly I haven't been able to visit it in some time. It doesn't mean I can't speak of its goodness. You can always find their cutely decorated custard-filled breads, but I tend to go for more savory than sweet with my purchases. The last time I had gotten my usual yakisoba-pan and to try something new on their menu I had bought the garlic bread pie

A lot of the times when you're travelling overseas you'll find that the Starbucks back in the States... back in the place where they originally began... is perhaps the most boring and bland Starbucks. The Starbucks that are available overseas such as in Seoul are perhaps one of the cleanest and cutest. While we do have special drinks once in a blue moon such as the unicorn frappuccino (which I felt tasted like glitter- not a bad taste), we certainly don't amp up the cuteness

I've loved red-bean fish breads all my life. I think the design of them was what drew me to them initially, but later I also craved the taste of them. You can find stalls where they cook them on the spot along most populated streets in Seoul: Very cheap too: two of them are less than a dollar. Here is a short video clip for those interested in the making of one:

There are certain U.S. restaurant chains that have slight or severe differences in their menu or aesthetic when compared with its Asian counterparts- one such that displays severe difference is Dunkin' Donuts. I'm not sure how Dunkin' Donuts exactly is perceived in other states or cities, but in Los Angeles it isn't exactly a place where couples would agree to meet at or friends would happily gather to chat for hours in- not to say either scenario isn't likely- just that the