Shoufuku Ji

Shoufuku Ji (正福寺) is a Zen Buddhist temple in Higashi Murayama (東村山). The Shoufuku Jizo Hall is registered as one of the National Treasure of Japan. It is considered to be the oldest intact building in Tokyo Prefecture and a unique example of Kamakura era architecture.

Inside the hall are thousands of small Jizo statues that were offered by worshippers during the Edo Period. Every year on November 3rd, they have a festival there. During the festival, the hall is opened and you could see the Jizo statues.

Dim + Tomo Pre Wedding

Boy Meets Girl. Like a match made in heaven, they had a romantic encounter and fell in love with each other.

I was given the opportunity to photograph them last year in Yokohama. It was the first time for me to shoot a Japanese style pre wedding. It was lovely and super fun. <3

Koshintei Arbor

I discovered this place, Koshintei (湖心亭) Arbor, when I got lost trying to meet my friend. Gorgeous place.

Hiroshima Okonomiyaki

Most of you probably have heard about Okonomiyaki (お好み焼き). Some people call it the Japanese Pancake, others called it the Japanese Pizza. The name came from the word okonomi (to one's liking) and yaki (grill/cook). As the name implies, you could put whatever ingredients you want (cabbage, egg, cheese, meat, shrimp, scallop, pork, kimchi, etc) and cook it on top of an iron griddle called teppan.

Although there are many kinds of toppings and ingredients involved, you could separate okonomiyaki into two types, Osaka (or Kansai) Okonomiyaki and Hiroshima Okonomiyaki. In Osaka, we mix the batter and ingredients first inside a bowl and then cook it on the teppan. In Hiroshima, we layer the ingredients one by one on the teppan and then press it down together while cooking. If the Hiroshima okonomiyaki is served with a layer of noodles (either yakisoba or udon), the dish is called modanyaki (modern yaki).

Most restaurants in Tokyo serve the Osaka style Okonomiyaki. Recently, I had a chance to go to Hiroshima and taste the 'real' Hiroshima style Okonomiyaki.