Friday, June 1, 2018

Nosaka (野さか) - Chichibu, Japan

Piggily Heaven
Hiking, onsen and pork: the holy trinity.  If you're ever in Tokyo and want to get away from the concrete, jump on a train and head west to Chichibu for some hiking, a hot soak and a heavenly dose of "rosu-don" which is a bowl of rice, topped with fatty slices of pork grilled over charcoal.  Nosaka does it about as well as anyone, anywhere.

Saturday, January 13, 2018

Pontochoux - Paris

The More Things Change....
Having spent years in Asia I should've accepted the core of Buddhism by now - change as a constant.  I hate change.  In Paris I feel like an old man, mourning my dead friends.  My old favorite Jean Millet was bought over and turned into a bright spaceship. What kind of god allows this while Berko goes untouched?  Au Levain du Marais looks the same from the outside, but it's not.  They used to have the "go-to" croissant.  Au Duc de Montmorency - gone.  I want everything to be as it was - there are too many hamburger places now, too much English spoken.  Vegan?  In Paris?  Thankfully, some of the oldies are still around, and some have sprouted.  The folks from Chez Taeko opened Pontochoux, a change I can deal with.