Toyohashi: old and new

Since I’ve been in Japan, I’ve been lucky enough to have been “adopted” into a wonderful family, who I’ve had many adventures with. Today, I was invited to Toyohashi for a little pre-birthday lunch.

One of Toyohashi’s specialties is dengaku.  Dengaku, which I adore, is grilled tofu with miso paste. It’s simple, traditional and vegetarian! I love it!

We went to a really old restaurant, which serves dengaku with nameshi (rice with radish leaf and salt). The restaurant has been in Toyohashi for a long time – you can see how old it is:

Although, inside it has been refurbished and even has automatic doors. It was very quaint inside, and had nice little garden displays:

After a very filling lunch, we wandered over to my friend’s grandma’s house. On the way, we window-shopped in some traditional stores:

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I was quite taken by how traditional a town Toyohashi is, once you get past the station area. Around the station, Toyohashi is just the same as any other town where the Shinkansen stops. The station has a Starbucks, and of course McDonald’s is near by.  A western influence is quite apparent…

At my friend’s grandma’s house which, by the way, is really old:

…I was surprised with a birthday cake! Actually, it was not just my birthday, but also my friend’s uncle and grandma both had birthdays in December.

Grandma is turning 93 on December 23rd. おめでとう　おばあさん！

It was so nice to relax and chat with my honorary family. They really are lovely people (and this is only part of the family, by the way!).

So, I called this post “Toyohashi: old and new”. Why? Well, as I walked around Toyohashi I was struck by how traditional it was, once you get away from the modern station and chain stores. But, I have to confess, the main inspiration for this blog title was this:

Obaa-chan playing with my friend’s iPad!!

By the way, this is my entry for this week’s Show Me Japan.  Hop on over to the Show Me Japan site to see a range of wonderful blogs and images about Japan – every week!  I never need an excuse to share Japan with you, but it is nice to have a weekly reason to blog. 🙂