After leaving Japan, we decided to stop by Hong Kong to visit friends and enjoy Chinese New Year.  

It was a little bit of a whirlwind week with jammed packed activities everyday.  We tried to capture almost everyday in the video blog, except for the 3rd day of new years which we spent mostly at our friends' homes.  Hopefully it gives you a sense of what it's like leading up to the new year and what it's like afterwards.  Chinese (Lunar) New Year celebration doesn't end at the countdown, but rather it signifies when the celebration starts.  

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Real-time photos on Instagram of our trip from where we are currently:
vu: https://www.instagram.com/vu360/
Isabella: https://www.instagram.com/chillabella/

-Vu

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Even if you are familiar with Japanese culture, it might be a shock the first time you visit Japan (photos above are from all over Japan) and Tokyo. Even the second time around it was still true. I’ve been to Japan and Tokyo many years ago and this time living here for a month gave me a new appreciation for the Tokyo life, which I didn’t get from a shorter visit.

Japan is known for being a discipline and respectful society. Although you do feel that presence, it is definitely an incomplete view of this multifaceted country. Today Japan is a vibrant country, evolving with the times and yet still holding on and celebrating its heritage. Although, it doesn’t fear embracing food and culture from around the world. A matter of fact, in each case it brings a very distinctive Japanese twist. Some may argue even better than the original it appropriated from. We don’t disagree.

It’s an expressive society stemming from a culture that values not trying to standout. So, it creates this awkward and amazing individual expression. Sometimes it is seen as playful cosplay, but often it’s a bold statement that is more subtle in fashion, hair style, or make-up. Although you can argue Japan is a conservative culture, there is much more than a fringe that is pushing and transforming the country that is impacting every aspect of life. There’s no place to see that transformation better than Tokyo.
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So, what are some things you need to know to visit or live in Tokyo? We covered some of this in our Tokyo video blog and we have some additional complimentary details below.
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• Travel pass – in Tokyo, if you are here for a while, it’s best to get a Suica card and add money to it. There’s a deposit for the card, but you will get most of it back when you leave. It’s also good when you travel to many of the areas outside of Tokyo. This means you don’t have to constantly run to the ticket machines. If you are here for a shorter trip or plan to do visit several cities using the intercity rail, then getting a Japan Pass before you come to Japan can save you a lot of money. For instance, you can get a 7-day unlimited Japan Pass for a similar price to a around trip to Osaka from Tokyo. The flexibility of an unlimited pass can be really nice. Unfortunately for us, because we decide so last minute to come to Japan we didn’t have time to order it before we left. You have to receive the ticket outside of Japan. You can still get other passes if you are a visitor to Japan, but they are not nearly as deeply discounted.
• Getting around Tokyo – there are multiple train lines operating in Tokyo (map). You can transfer for free within a line, but if you switch lines you will be charge for that transfer each time. So, if you want to save money, it’s best to use one (or few) train line to get to your destination. What we do is we take one train for the longest segment we need and we walk the rest of the way, but we like walking. This can reduce your daily cost transportation cost by 50% or more. Per the above, you can pay for these with the Suica card, which we highly recommended.
• Restaurants – there are two unique ways to pay that you might not know about. First, you will notice in some of the Japanese restaurants that there are vending machines where you select and pay for everything in advance. For each item you order, there will be a ticket that prints out. For these machines, you always insert the money first and then select what you want. Once you are done, then hit the button to return your change (most time it’s obvious). If you need to study the menu first, do that before you get to the vending machine. Otherwise, you will hold everyone up. If the vending machine doesn’t have English, sometimes they have an English menu and you select based on the button position or picture. The second common way is that they will provide you the check immediately after you are done ordering. When you are ready to pay, you go to the cashier to pay. You will notice that many Japanese restaurants are small and they optimize to help get people in and out. So, if it’s really busy, it’s probably best not to linger. It helps these smaller restaurant, which we find are our favorites.
• Tipping – tipping is not a cultural norm in Japan. If you try to tip, you may create confusion (because they don’t understand what you are trying to do) or insult the person (treating them as panhandler). So, no tipping is necessary.
• Bathrooms – first the Japanese toilets and bathrooms are modern day miracles, if you know how to operate them. Although it can be intimidating. The toilets usually feature heated seats and a bidet, especially in the hotel and home. You don’t have to use the bidet feature, but at least understand how to flush the toilet. Most toilets have handles and buttons on the toilet and allow to flush in low (small) or high flow (big) flushes. Since many of the toilets are electronic, the flush button may be completely separated from the toilet either on a control console on a wall or on an arm to the toilet, which usually has many buttons. This is where you need to recognize two Japanese characters: 大 for a "big flush" and 小 for a "small flush". So why is it so amazing? The best toilet is almost fully automatic, the lid comes up with a touch of the button, the seat is warm, the bidet sprays and dries, toilet paper is pleasantly scented, you stand up it automatically flushes, and lid closes. All of this while you hear bird chirping or ocean waves. Come on! That’s taking a mundane thing and making it like going to a spa.
• Public trash cans – you will not find a public trash can on a Tokyo street. They were removed in the 90s after a terrorist group used the trash cans for a sarin gas attack. The trash cans never came back. You can sometimes find a trash can in the train station usually after you enter the pay gates. Otherwise, some people bring plastics bag with them to keep trash in. Recyclable cans and bottles can be places in recycle bins next to vendor machines, which are usually easy to find. Don’t push trash in those bins.
• Garbage and recycle – Tokyo like many other cities has a strict regiment when it comes to the trash. It’s important to understand that if you plan to live in Tokyo or any other Japanese city. The first thing to note is that you have to sort your trash. Tokyo isn’t bad, there’s only really 4 different categories: combustible trash (red), non-combustible trash (blue), recycle bottle and cans (green), and paper (green). In some cities or wards, there are upwards of twenty. You also have to put out the right category of trash on the right day.
• Grocery store – convenient stories usually will pack your bags for you, but if you go to a bigger grocery store, they will expect that you do it yourself. The protocol is pretty easy. The cashier will transfer your groceries from one basket to another as they scan each item and then provide you with plastic bags. Once you pay for the groceries, you take the basket and the bags to a counter and pack them yourself. It’s quite an efficient way to get everyone through the line quickly.
• Vending machines – you will see vendor machines everywhere in Tokyo. Most are drinks, but there are a lot of different ones. Don’t be afraid to use them. They are really convenient, fast and sometimes better prices than a store. The nicest thing is a warm drink on a cold day when you are doing touristy things. Our favorites are the hot milk coffees or milk teas on a cold winter day. They are so good!
• Sunglasses – we came in the driest and thus a sunny time of the year for Tokyo, winter. We had some really sunny days and it would be hard to find anyone wearing sunglasses. Culturally, it seems like sunglasses are deemed not necessary and can seem pretentious. We are not totally certain about this, but it’s what we read. Although, I don’t think people are offended if you do.

That's it for our tips. If you have any questions, feel free to comment below. I swear we fall in love with each place we visit. I know both Isabella and I didn’t want to leave Japan and Tokyo. We love Tokyo!

-Vu

​Grocery Beer Price Index: Grand Kirin 330ml 228 yen ($2.11)

After Europe and a short break, we headed to Asia.  Our first stop -- Tokyo!

Tokyo has been fabulous!  Even for me the second time visiting Japan, there was still so much to discover.  So we thought we would make a how-to-survive Tokyo episode.  It’s our first “full length” episode.  Woot!  We are kind of excited about that.

 Some thoughts we had immediately landing in Tokyo:

1. Is everything in Japan automated?
2. How come folks don’t wear sunglasses in Tokyo?
3. Why are toilets so complicated?
4. What is the best and cheapest way to get around in Tokyo?
5. What are the most popular neighborhoods (area or wards) to visit in Tokyo?

This episode is called “Not Lost in Translation”, but let us know if we misinterpreted somethings and totally got it wrong.  😊

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Real-time photos on Instagram of our trip from where we are currently:
vu: https://www.instagram.com/vu360/
Isabella: https://www.instagram.com/chillabella/

-Vu

After visiting Denmark, we stopped over in Paris for a week. 

Paris is one of our most favorite cities in the world.  Probably the city we've visited the most in our travels.  So this time we spend much of our time exploring the neighborhoods of Paris and hopefully getting a different perspective on the "city of love".  Follow us as we do a quick walk through of some of our favorite neighborhoods.

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Real-time photos on Instagram of our trip from where we are currently:
vu: https://www.instagram.com/vu360/
Isabella: https://www.instagram.com/chillabella/

Thanks, Vu + Bella

​P.S.
​We are still recovering from the flu which is pretty much a global epidemic, but hopefully we are really through it this time.  So expect more blogs coming soon!  Also in Paris, it was hard to find a local French craft microbrew beer.  Although we know there are some, most of the beers were international and the closest was probably Belgium beers, which we love.  So sorry no GBPI for Paris.

​We landed in Copenhagen in early December and made our way to our room in Nørrebro.  We generally like edgy gentrifying neighborhoods to stay in, which is often more interesting, but usually because it’s cheaper.

In Nørrebro, you will feel the swirl of all the impactful influences of our time – diversification, local and sustainable, and ingenuity and craftsmanship.  Historically it was the working-class neighborhood outside the city limits, but today it is an interesting and affordable places to live and visit.  You can also see the amazing impact of immigrants over the years through food and shops.  This is a neighborhood, where one in six people carry a non-Danish passport.  The neighborhood also has a notorious history of violence and protest, but today it seems like an up-and-coming place to live.  Young entrepreneur, artisans, craftsmen picking it to be the places to start building their business.  For instance, we lived only a couple of blocks away from Relae, which is one of the top restaurants in the world. 

We split our time in Nørrebro and Vesterbro.  Vesterbro was going through major renovation while we were there, but it was clear why this was such an appealing neighborhood to live in.  The streets were lined with intimate shops, restaurants, and pubs and family strolling with their children was a norm.  Or sometimes parents stopping for a quick bite and drink and kids in the stroller parked outside the restaurant.  This is something we would never fathom in the US, but common place in Denmark.  Vesterbro, like the rest of the city, puts a lot of trust in its fellow citizens.

When we wander through out the city, we continue to see the same things over and over again – trust and respect for others, accessibility of resources, creative and ingenuity that spans everything from foods to architecture, and an active lifestyle.  On the latter, it is a sight to see rush-hour bike traffic on major roads like Nørrebrogade, watching mass numbers of bikes orderly maneuvering to get home often in rain or snow.  Copenhagen is a wonderfully progressive place!

​For more, check out our video about our visit, but here are a few tips:

• Top restaurants in the world –  NoMa was closed for renovation when we visited, but Relae delivers on innovative tasty food in a "no muss, no fuss" atmosphere.  It is also one of the top 50 restaurants in the world.  A wonderful meal and at a more "affordable" price point makes Relae a spot to hit.
• Brunch innovation – There are a couple of trends we noted while we were there.  The first being tapas style breakfast and second being gourmet porridge.  We really enjoy trying a lot of different things.  So tapas style breakfast was right up our alley.  Brilliant!  For the porridge, it was delicately made from natural local ingredients, but you really got to like porridge, which we do.  Mad & Kaffe is a great place for what we call the tapas breakfast, but be prepared for long waits.  We also recommend GRØD for porridge.
• Best free visits – Christiansborg Palace is gorgeous from the outside, but there is also a free observation deck in the tower.  It’s probably one of the best vantage point of the city.  A library is not a place people consider going to during their vacation, but Royal Library (Kongelige Bibliotek) is a great blending of new and old.  It sits along the waterfront with a bunch of new building.  It’s a great place to take in architectural style that is defining Copenhagen. 
• Street food – Probably the best place for some street food is on Paper Island, but unfortunately that is now closed as of this writing.  They expect to be back May 2018.  We definitely hope it comes back!  It was a fantastic place to socialize and grab a lot of tasty food in one location.  For a more upscale, but no less tasty check out Torvehallerne.  Note that both these places are very busy and  Torvehallerne is more like a market with very little seating.

The Danes are well known to be some of the happiest people on earth, but for Copenhagen, if I had to come up with a brief description, it would be that Copenhagen epitomizes all the best of what makes a hipster community with little pretense.  Fantastic!  It's a place we can imagine calling home.

-Vu

P.S.  We took some time off in late December for the holidays and now we are both sick with the flu, but expect more post soon!

​Grocery Beer Price Index: 18.95 DKK for Stenol Ale 500ml ($3.10)

After leaving the arctic and the northern lights, we look for a little holiday cheer in Stockholm.  Stockholm is an amazing place to visit for the holidays!  We also hear that Santa Claus is hiding out in Stockholm and we set out to find him and see the city.  ;-)  Merry Christmas!

After leaving Split Croatia, our main focus was Tromso and the northern lights.  We had very rough weather and didn't know if we could see it during our week visit.  We share what happened in the video blog.

You can also check-out all the past episodes here.

The Nordic countries are renown for some of the most balanced governance - better wealth distribution, investment in higher education, more environmentally focused, open and free press, little government corruption, and thriving economies.  So, what do you expect when you land in the largest city of the Nordic countries?  The bar is set high.

There are certainly classic architecture, amazing monuments, and grand parks.  Stockholm has an abundance of museums and theaters.  Everywhere you turn is a school.  The public libraries and other public spaces are filled with kids “studying”.  Then you have the world shaping Swedish brands (IKEA, Spotify, Skype, H&M, Electrolux, AstraZeneca, Volvo) that help drive a healthy Swedish economy.  Of course, you have the classic people-centric European city planning (communal plazas and pedestrian and cycling pathways) designed to connect people.  So, the city lives up to expectation!

Although with every major metropolitan, there is always an unsavory underside; however, in our brief visit, we were a bit surprised to not really find it.  It was a little unexpected. 

Here are some unexpected things about the city:

• Friendly multilingual society – You will be hard press to find a Swede that doesn’t speak fluent English.  Like many European countries, they often study several languages.  They know communication connects people.  That’s why many of Nordic countries learn each other’s languages as well, but it was surprising to hear so much English.
• Hustle and bustle of silence – You can stand in the center of the city and watch rush hour with near silence.  It’s crazy cool!  Honking is only meant for emergencies.  So, you rarely hear it.  Roads and cars are well maintained for minimum noise.  I hear there are even rules on types of tires that are allowed, which further enhance this effect.
• Society moving like clock-work – To say Stockholm is a law and order society is an understatement, because it’s more than that.  It’s about respect and being courteous to your fellow neighbor.  On the streets you see pedestrians, cars, and bikes move in a formulated rhythm.  Vehicles always stop for pedestrians.  Pedestrians don’t interrupt traffic flow by crossing at crosswalks and at the right time.  Bikers know the rules of the road and signal appropriately.  On transit, people give up seats for the elderly or help a mom with a stroller.  We didn’t find graffiti marking up the city or even a homeless person on the street.  At least it wasn’t obvious like the many large metropolitans we visited on this trip.  It’s kind of amazing!
• Swedish food a surprising wonderment – My palate might be Swedish.  I love the pickled herring, cured and smoke salmons, and those meatballs!  Pretty much every Swedish dish we had was delicious.  My only disappointment was that we were on a tight budget.  Tip: Tipping isn’t expected, but the general convention is to round up the bill to even it out, which is a good sign of appreciation.  We can also recommend these restaurants: Oaxen Slip  and Bakfickan.

We really didn’t explore enough of Stockholm to truly understand it, but from what we saw as a tourist, Stockholm might be the perfect city.  It at least makes us want to come back to see and discover more of Stockholm and Sweden.  It’s amazing!

-Vu

P.S.

After Tromso, Stockholm was a little friendlier to the pocket book, which was nice, but don't expect a bargain.
 
 Grocery Beer Price Index: 15.90 SEK for 33cl Bordsol Nils Oscar  ($1.92)

When we downsized and got ready to move across the world to get ready to set sail, we never figured that we would ever need winter clothes again, but with the boat not ready, we found an opportunity to wander to places we’ve not been and do something we been wanting to do. 

So, before we are in perpetual summer, we want to experience a proper snowy winter.  There’s only one place for that.  The arctic circle!

My only reference to a place like that was this show called Northern Exposure.  I never really watched it, but I caught enough episodes to get a sense of what it was like to live in a small town near or in the arctic.  For me, Tromsø has the quirky personality and out-of-this-world seasons of (fictitious) Cicely Alaska meld with Viking modern aesthetic and culture.  Personally, that is attractive enough to come see this place of polar nights (sun never rises) and midnight sun (sun never sets)!

However, we are here to see the northern lights or aurora borealis!  Tromsø is one of the places in the world where you can pretty much see the northern lights all the time, if the sky is clear and dark.  With it in the arctic circle, you can look up and see the aurora circle all around you above.  It’s pretty amazing!  We were definitely not disappointed. 

Within the city, there are several really great tours to help you see the northern lights or you can head out on your own with a rental car (you should have experience driving on ice).  We personally like meeting new people and driving didn’t seem that appealing.  To chase the lights, it was a no brainer to go with guides who knew the best places and were in constant contact with other guides on the best places at the moment.  For us, it made all the difference on a day where it was very cloudy and the aurora was weak.  They were amazing!!!  We would recommend these guys.

Tromsø is setup for tourism and there is a lot of options for outdoor adventures.  Unfortunately for us, either the weather was bad or the adventure wasn’t available on the day we were free.  So, it can be unpredictable, but even on the down days,  Tromsø can be spectacular (see more below)!

Here’s our thoughts on Tromsø:

1. Northern Lights!  Unless you come in the summer, this is probably why you are in Tromsø.  It’s a must do!  Tip: Don't buy a bunch of expensive clothes and gear for this trip, especially if you are going to use it once.  Some of the tours provide what you need or you can rent what you want in town at a very reasonable price.
2. Enjoy an amazing culinary experience!  Tromsø is littered with some fabulous restaurants that deliver on creative Scandinavian cuisine.  For example, we had a great dinner at Mathallen, which we would highly recommend.
3. You get better value with the finer eats!  Folks from outside of Scandinavia will probably suffer a little sticker shock when visiting Tromsø on pretty much everything.  For foods, what we found was a compression of prices.  For example, cheap food cost way more (2x or more) while fine dining is at a slight discount with amazing quality, especially on seafood.  So, if you can afford it, spring for the good stuff.  You will be much happier with your meal and feel like you got a good deal.  We learned the hard way!
4. Don’t forget about the town!  The tours are definitely great, but they are expensive.  It’s worthwhile walking around: 1) Tromsø center and landmarks, 2) Prestvannet, 3) Tromsø arktisk-alpine botaniske hage, 4) Arctic Cathedral, and 5) Tromsø cable car.

Seeing the aurora is an amazing experience!  Something worth doing.  Of course, there are many places where you can see the northern lights, but we can definitely recommend Tromsø. 

If you want to see what it was like, check back in a couple of weeks.  We will have a video that shares some of the things we experienced.
 
-Vu
 
P.S.  If your are looking at the Grocery Beer Price Index (GBPI) in the blog, Tromsø definitely set a new high.
 
Grocery Beer Price Index: 29.50 NOK for 500ml Mack Pilsner ($3.58)

Just about a month ago we had a long layover in London.  In that 11-hour layover, we actually had enough time to see many of the major tourist attractions.  So, what did we do this time?

Being on a budget is really a blessing for us on this visit.  It forced us outside the tourist areas and into a neighborhood that we had never explored and saw so much more of what London is about.  Walking and exploring the neighborhood is how you really discover the soul of a city.  So, we were excited to land in Battersea and wander.  From our home base, we spent much of our time roaming Battersea, Clapham, Chelsea, and Westminster.  Each of theses neighborhoods (district/city), were so unique.  You can see the gentrification and diversity of Battersea and affluence of Chelsea.  Clapham was vibrant with young professional, but maybe a counter to Shoreditch edginess and liveliness, which reminded us of home in the pacific northwest.  Tip: Eating in the many great takeout (mom-and-pop) places in Battersea is the best way to stay on a budget, but the really amazing things are the owners.  They are super friendly and really want to get to know their customers.  Each place made us wandering nomads feel like we were at home.  That's a win in our book!  Oh, they also only accept cash.

We were also able to do a quick getaway to Stonehenge and Bath.  We did it on a tour coach versus public train.  It allowed us to see the country side and it was in the end cheaper and more convenient.  Often people pack their day tours, but we looked for a tour solution that provided us the most free time versus being ushered around and not being able to experience anything.  Oh, and we really enjoyed Bath and Stonehenge!  Definitely go!  Tip: The most common day tour from London is Westminster, Stonehenge, and Bath with a lunch stop, but you are in a constant rush from one place to another with a bunch of driving in between.  The Stonehenge and Bath only (no food) trip gives you guided information on the bus, essentially entertaining transportation, but provides free time once you get to the destination, which was perfect for us.  We had about 1.5 hours at Stonehenge and 3.5 hours in Bath to do whatever we liked.  It was a long day though, starting at 8:30 am and returning around 7:30 pm with traffic.  If you have extra time, I would spend a couple of days in Bath.

Although we were in London for more than 4 days, it was fast.  We had an American Thanksgiving in London, which was the first Thanksgiving abroad for us, and then dinner and cocktails into the early morning on Black Friday with our friends.  No shopping for us.  Sites are nice, but nothing beats time catching up with friends!

-Vu

Grocery Beer Price Index: 2.1 pounds for 500ml Fullers London Pride ($2.75)