Arimasansoh Goshobessho: Perfection in Arima, Japan
October 30, 2026
The morning after our perfect day on Naoshima came early. Romey was not in the mood for Japanese breakfast again, so we uncovered Little Mermaid (or Ritorumameidotakamatsuekiten リトルマーメイド高松駅店) which served up Danish breakfast in all of its carbohydrate glory. We paid a visit there before hitting the train and heading to Kobe, where we picked up a taxi to Arimasansoh Goshobessho.
I got a special Autumn edition bento at the train station department store just as they opened.
Even the arrival was meaningful as the taxi drove us right past the entrance…discrete and hidden behind a tall wall right on the road. The staff rushed to unload us, and though we were early, finalized our villa as we got permission to eat the bento we had no time for on the plane.
We had our lunch by the huge window in the great room. Slowly nature sank back in.
And then we were escorted the exquisite villa with the “birds nest” onsen where we were to spend the night. The space was outstanding. Hands down the best accommodations of the trip.
The bathroom annex included an onsen shower, the birds nest onsen itself (“golden” being a euphemism for muddy), a sauna, and a dressing area with sinks.
The onsen was very cool indeed. We took a soak.
Goshobessho is filled with art and juxtaposed with Portugal in interesting ways. This was reflected in the food as well.
Even the little “stuff bag” for carrying around your personal items between baths was cool.
After a luxurious and fun afternoon, we headed across the compound to the best kaiseki rykan dinner of the trip. Our server Aoi (あおい is a Japanese word that can mean both “blue” and “green,” depending on the context. It is also a common unisex name in Japan, with various meanings based on the kanji used) was delightful, had some quirky but excellent youtube infected English, and was a sake sommelier who had just passed her exams. We asked for just the right thing when we requested a sake pairing. Exceptional.
In this case the food was even more delicious than it looked, and it looked superb.
The chopstick holders came with intentional design.
This sake is super special. Each came with its own beautiful glassware or pottery
The menu
A poem on the wall says in perfect Portuguese melancholia:
Of Myself
I watch myself burning old letters and contemplate the sad smoke that rises…
This sadness is not for you, who have already passed by.
There is nothing in me.
I am sad with myself for having no sadness.
We were the opposite of sad about dinner, and caused a minor kitchen kerfuffle when we requested to speak to the chef and give him our highest compliments.
And then whiskey and another soak before bed.
There was more magic in store the next morning before we departed. We spent some time exploring the small but beautiful compound.
Morning soak and a leaf trapped in falling. Such peace.
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Breakfast backdrop. The architecture incorporates the outside.
Art
Grounds
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Looking up at the bird’s nest.
And then it was off to reacquaint ourselves with the tourist hordes in Kyoto in a chartered car. The drive was just over an hour.
Bye now. Stay cool.
Five showerheads and a bubble of everlasting peace for the Arimasansoh Goshobessho. We sincerely can’t wait to return.
Takamatsu (and Naoshima): Hanajukai 夕凪の湯HOTEL 花樹海
October 28, 2026
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We start where we left off—on the big travel day, 2 shinkansen trains and a marine liner on our way from Hakone to Takamatsu (which was as close to Naishima as we could stay). Here is the Seto Bridge at sunset from the Marine Liner panorama car (seats 1CD).
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Our taxi ride up the hill from the station co-occurred with a blazing sunset.
Hanajukai is a very Japanese, very regional, and really very awesome. We were welcomed with not much English, and accommodated with humor, grace, and great attention to detail. The extended check-in process involved procuring an all day taxi for Naoshima, working out how and when to route our luggage to Kyoto, and picking meal times. The taxi idea was a new one (hire it all day and take it across on the ferry). We did some laughing. Ultimately, everything came off without a hitch.
We were assigned a Japanese room (108) on the bottom floor corner with a private onsen on the terrace. The room smelled almost edibly of tatami mats. The furnishings had no legs. The security door was made of paper.
I took a quick travel-recovery soak before dinner. This is something NPS should adopt at home.
We each donned a Yukata and proceeded to the best local kaiseki so far this trip. Beat Hakone hands down. Udon, special dispensation for Romey. Fish poached on the spot. Here’s what we had…
Local sake.
Honestly delicious. And then it was back to our futon pods on the floor. (After two nights of this, we were ready for a western bed again.)
I was up with the sun again for a very early onsen.
After we deciphered the elevator instructions, we headed up for a very early breakfast on our Naoshima adventure. We met the taxi at 7:20.
Morning view from the coffee area.
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Naoshima! See the many Naoshima entries: Taxi, ferry, Go’o shrine, chichu, yellow pumpkin, red pumpkin, and sunset ferry.
About the only wrinkle in our Takjamatsu visit came after a magical sunset ferry back to town. We requested a dropoff at Honetsukidori Ikkaku. In retrospect we would never do that again. There are not many unwelcoming assholes in Japan, but we managed to find some. It became a ramen emergency.
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Followed by a quest to break the little toy machine racket.
A late night onsen saved the day.
Up with the sun again.
Five showerheads for this gem of a hotel Hanajukai. Friendly staff, authentic and delicious local delicacies, beautiful rooms and a perfect onsen. This made the heart of our honeymoon beat strong.
Hakone: Hakone Gora Karaku
October 26, 2026
Hakone has gone through some changes in the last decade. Lots more people. But still some amazing things to see. Our second destination after Tokyo was the nearby mountains (easily reached by Shinkansen and local trains (including the Gora one with the switchbacks).
We procured some lunch at the Tokyo Station food basement…super fun and ridiculous. Everything was super easy with our Suica cards at hand.
Gora train.
We reserved a room in the East Building top floor with an open-air bath (Japanese style). Room 102 is superb—with a view second to none in Gora. This is a Ryokan that is counting on the beauty of its buildings and their surroundings to excel. Sadly, the food situation is not up to our very high standards. We had a Kaiseke dinner that looked better than it tasted (a common complaint in Japan), as well as a workaday grill meal. On the other hand, the bakery was great, and we found a bottle of wine produced in France by a family friend at the grill.
But look at this view. We had a soak before dinner.
And we got dressed in our Yukata (for the first but by no means the last time in Japan) to head down for dinner. I had to look up how to properly tie my sash. (Left over right unless you are dead, BTW.)
Our first kaiseki of the trip.
Romey fell asleep early with both her glasses and the light on. I took a last onsen soak. We were up early for a trip one stop down to the Open Air Museum. Wow!
The morning light was beautiful.
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More astounding art. Our main reason for coming to Japan. Romey and I love to do this together.
The Gora mountain train is convenient, even when you take it the wrong direction.
We found soba (a local delecacy).
And we had a private onsen soak at the Rock Bath before dinner.
Dinner flash.
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More light than heat. And early to bed.
Up for sunrise on the terrace.
We had breakfast in the common room before taking a taxi down the mountain. Our big travel day to Naoshima was here!
Time for a shinkansen.
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Four showerheads and best wishes for a better set of chefs befitting the property for Hakone Gora Karaku.
The Peninsula Tokyo: Honeymoon Bookends
October 26, 2026
The Peninsula hotel is beautiful and turns out to be a better place to start a trip to Japan than to end one. But we are getting way ahead of ourselves.
First, an obligatory 777-200 pod shot.
Our arrival from Haneda was chaotic. Small airport, too many planes at once, customs lines crisscrossing, lots of people slipping between the cracks. Plus it was hot and stuffy. But the second that we emerged from Customs chaos, a Peninsula runner was there to greet us. We took a quick side trip to get cash from a 7-11 ATM and two Suica cards to use on trains, and then it was off to meet our loquacious driver.
The road signs were a hint of cultural differences to come.
The drive is very quick and particularly relaxing in a Toyota Century (built for salarymen at the top of the capitalist food chain). We were greeted by a swarm of at least 15 staff members who whisked away our luggage as we ourselves were whisked directly to room 1308. The checkin process was a bit overly thorough and dramatic…though we were ultimately left to shower and order some ramen from room service with zero lines.
There was honeymoon champagne and a nice note from the staff.
The suite with a city view was as nicely appointed as it was laid out.
No sign of plastic in the bathroom.
And a closet/dressing room that is second to none.
Romey appreciated the vegetable ramen option so much that she wanted it again on our second stay.
After dinner, we took the elevator up to the very purple and very ’90s Peter the bar. The view was as OK as the cocktails were overpriced.
The Peninsula is a particularly great place to use as a base of operations in Tokyo because it has metro access in the basement, and is an easy walk to Ginza.
We took the metro to Meiji-Jingu first thing in the morning after breakfast on day 1. Romey found the best organic breakfast in Japan right off the bat. The metro was very silent and orderly even at rush hour.
We did some jean shopping in Tokyo before lunch…at the wrong place that turned out to be the very much right place.
And had an excellent lunch at Yanmo.
Next up was a cab to Azabudai Hills to experience the teamlab borderless light extravaganza. Though there were really way too many people, we would do it again.
And then it was up to the Mori tower (not the JR Mori Tower, mind you) to watch the sun set over Tokyo and the red lights blink on.
This left us with enough time to go to the right jeans shop (which, as you already learned, was the wrong choice) to conjur up some personalized denim.
We returned exhausted enough to pick up some Chinese at Joe’s Shanghai New York.
The next morning we headed to Ginza 6 at its opening bell. Quite the scene.
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And then it was off to the rest of our adventure: Hakone, Takamatsu, Naoshima, Arima, and Kyoto.
We returned to the peninsula on our way out of Japan, arriving by anonymous taxi.
Lets just say that our greeting for the second arrival was entirely different. We were not whisked anywhere, but stood in line to be “upgraded” to a suite in the category we had already paid for (LOL). It seems the Peninsula mask slips a bit when you show up twice in one week by train station taxi.
We spent the last two nights in 1620 with a view of the Imperial Palace park (and its excellent sunset). We enjoyed spreading out (after requesting a nice set of hangars to use)…situation assessment was in order.
We definitely recommend the upgrade by money route.
Of course, it was us…so here is what high disorder looks like.
After arrival two, we headed out to see Zenkō-ji and the Omatesando neighborhood. We were on a quest for PJs and underwear.
To complete her quest, Romey joined an underground Tokyo underwear gang at Uniqlo.
And we had an outstanding, much-needed break at Bar Radio. Dark and quiet with a sophisticated clientele, Bar Radio is everything that Peter the bar is not.
More vegetarian ramen was on the agenda for our 9pm dinner. Guess whose biological clocks were completely synced?
Our last day in Japan was punctuated by high tourism. We started early at the Tokyo tourist mecca…the Tsukiji Outer Market. Get there before 9am (if you get there at all)! Somehow we stayed one step ahead of the tourist hordes all day.
By 9am, we had walked over to Hamarikyu Gardens for some matcha in the teahouse. Just as we left, 2 packed buses of tourists were unloading.
We bought some Hello Kitty stuff (waiting with a small group for the 11am opening ON THE DOT, and some heart things at Commes les Garçons.
And after a short respite at the hotel to freshen up it was off to fancy and very very early sushi dinner at Ginza Kyūbey Ginza Honten 銀座久兵衛 銀座 本店.
Our tourist-driven day was punctuated with a forgettable visit to Tender bar (skip it), and a quick hit to Don Quijote and the lights at Akihabara.
We cabbed home—touristed entirely out. Romey was in no mood for Peter—and neither was I.
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The next morning, it was last licks for the leisurely organic breakfast during which we decided to swing up to Sensō-ji temple on a quest to find Astro Boy and an off-season Yukata.
We took the very very crowded Ginza line back to the Peninsula (well sort of) and snagged a cab after exiting the wrong exit (thanks Claude).
Final packing time was upon us.
Our packing was coming along when we discovered that we needed a new suitcase to get everything home. So we went across the street to Proteca and picked up a new bag.
And then it was time to depart Japan. Arigatō gozaimasu! One great honeymoon.
Five shower heads and an upgrade you paid for yourself for the Peninsula Tokyo. (Things are always better when the mask stays in place.)
Berryville Cross-Post: Provender Garden
September 6, 2026
[Cross posted from apothecaryshed.com]
Provender Kitchen is excellent. And it’s in Berryville. This is not a normal combination. We approve.
Our first visit was on opening weekend. Delicious and intimate. Romey and I really enjoyed ourselves. Kurt and Jodi have a great thing going.
Much of the produce is grown by the owners. Other sourcing is from local farms.
It’s fun to see what the chef(s) come up with using the very same garden ingredients that we have in our garden.
We returned the very next week with friends. The menu was transformed and was once again creative and delicious.
Sweet corn and crab.
Brief Return to Raffles in Boston
September 6, 2026
Seems like we were just here…because we were! This time it was a quick business-driven hit to Boston. And back to raffles.
I did get to have a nice dinner at Field and Vine with Spool. Then it was back to the grindstone.
Checkin has moved down to street level and is nowhere near as nice as it was before. This is a BAD IDEA and management should fix it.
Another suite this time on the 6th floor. 609 maybe?
The bathroom is quite nice and the shower meets our insanely high standards.
All in all, a very quick but also very long trip. Five showerheads for a better business travel experience than Marriott can deal out.
Raffles Boston
August 4, 2026
It’s not Singapore, of course, but there really is a Raffles in Boston. Last time we were in town for David Byrne, we stopped in for a very crowded drink at the upstairs speakeasy.
Of course, we know all about the real Raffles…and the Singapore Sling. It’s pretty hilarious to see this transplanted to Boston. But why not?! Can you say “wicked Sling???”
We are in 1007. This, they tell us, is an upgrade from our requested suite. We’re all for that kind of thing. Thanks y’all.
Extra bathroom.
Not one iota of plastic, of course. And shower pressure that will blow your hair plugs right out of your scalp…assuming you have some.
So how goes it Raffles? It goes, as Sammy would say, pretty not bad. The space is excellent and the staff is top notch. But there are some things that could use some attention and maybe refactoring.
1007 could use some closet space. And engineering needs to fix the drapery. The real problem is inscrutable electronic controls. How do you set the AC to anything less than hurricane? Who knows? And lights? Just press buttons randomly until something happens. About the only other place with these kinds of UI electricity challenges is the College Hotel in Amsterdam.
Greeted with a personal note and a cocktail. Very nice touch. And the Butler thing is actually great. Our man Thomas was hugely helpful and made our visit noticeably better.
Bottom line? Excellent staff (and attention to staff development as well—which we witnessed while working in the libary) but some physical plant work required.
FWIW, the spa is apparently great. Go do that. Ask for Paula. (Side note: if you would like to buy some house perfume and then fly. LOL. Good luck with that. Hotel? Travel size for flyers is pretty much mandatory.)
Oh, and the Long Bar space? Lets upgrade that breakfast menu. Great bar, though. And excellent staff. (The menu could use a dose of the rest of the world…see the Chicago Peninsula.)
Blind Duck was empty and nice when we showed up at opening time. They served this sweet blue thing…
On rainy Monday, we spent some retail therapy time in Copley, the Pru, and then—when it cleared up—Newbury. Then we went to dinner at a very crowded and touristy Saltie Girl (recommended by the concierge/front desk). It’s overly Newbury. If you like being surrounded by people from out of town, this restaurant is for you!
Tuesday was La Padrona (where their computer texts you in Italian but does not like or even understand Italian answers). Delicious food—first time for pistachio lasagna. In the end, really quite poor space layout (our table was in a bizarre booth over in the margins) and staff that needs to be trained (they seem to forget who is paying). This is really more of a Boston issue than a La Padrona issue. Boston’s high end restaurant scene is no longer anywhere near the top edge in our experience. Time to get out of the little pond and see what the big fish are doing out there in the rest of the world, Boston.
Charlie’s is still a dive, but they raised their prices to make some margin. THey have grits!
The neighborhood (and exact apartment) of yore.
Five showerheads and some wicked new hairplugs for Raffles Boston (assuming you used to have those). We’ll be back.
Mimi’s in London: Soho in Ship Shape
August 4, 2026
NPS found Mimi‘s accidentally when in London seeking a Soho cocktail at Henson’s bar. We found great cocktails and also an incredible pile of art. So we figured we would try out Mimi’s on the next London run.
It’s ship shape. Literally. rooms the same size as a cabin on a 42 foot Beneteau. LOL. Lets just say that my partner in crime was not amused. Fortunately it was a quick hit with only a few quick changes.
But we’re not exaggerating about the art. See for yourself.
And it’s a good bar too.
But that was not ENOUGH art. So we went to see some Escher.
We tried to shoot a movie, but the talent was not cooperating.
How do you say “Action!” in Italian?
Faraday seems to be trapped in some kind of cage.
The American bar…take one.
Varvatos has become a regular stop.
The Connaught…though michael has moved to Zurich. Alas for Jacob.
This sign says it all.
Wait…are you SERIOUSLY trying to wear shorts into Duke’s past the woman in the drapery?! Impossible.
The American Bar does not care.
And then a captivating and stimulating version of Arcadia (one of Stoppard’s masterpieces).
So nice to spend time with Noelie and Lisa and Jacob. Romey and I are lucky to have you all.
“The ordinary-sized stuff which is our lives, the things people write poetry about—clouds—daffodils—waterfalls—what happens in a cup of coffee when the cream goes in—these things are full of mystery, as mysterious to us as the heavens were to the Greeks.”
― Tom Stoppard, Arcadia
Five very very small stars for Mimi’s
We were just here…and we’re back, but this time for Madou’s wedding. We stayed in room 15 which has more room to spread out and don a kilt.
We did have an adventure getting to Brugges from Rotterdam, because the Dutch trains were literally a disaster. Apparently an Amsterdam substation fritzed out and took down the entire nation with it. We took a taxi down, driven by an Arfrican flim-flam artist. Ah what fun.
We shared music. This is NPS-led Where’s Aubrey you’re listening to as the Netherlands slips by.
Of course Brugges is magical, even without all of the In Brugges shenanigans going on.
See lots more pictures of Brugges here.
Da Vinchi ice cream is worth a visit!
We had an amazing dinner at De Mangerie, and some excellent breakfasts at Nuba cafe.
How about some fencing??
A pre-wedding fencing fest was absolutely fantastic fun. Lots more fencing photos here.
But we were here for a wedding! So lets get dressed and get out of here.
Follow Romey to Matias and Finn’s excellent wedding.
Five stars and an extra amazing experience. When in Brugges, stay here!
Welp, Hilton has somehow taken over the best boutique hotel in the city
just like it did in Dublin. Sadly that means the Haven hotel is not really up to NPS standards. Alas.
On the other hand, Rotterdam is well worth a visit. Take a water taxi or seven.
Even if you let a Hilton know exactly when you will be arriving early, they will still NEVER be prepared.
Our room had a view…a long long view.
But even a suite here has such a bad layout that you can’t really nest. I mean, who puts a hot tub directly in the room? Or a sauna just across from the shower?
The sauna was actually fun to use.
And the bed was very comfortable.
But the “suite” was not.
Anyway, we were in Rotterdam, so that was a thing. Lots of amazing food: Zeezout was excellent, River Bar was delicious but not as welcoming. We also scoped out a bunch of little street places with mixed results.
The water is a main attraction.
We had a boat tour of the harbor since it was mandatory. It is a great way to experience the architecture.
The felix is definitely worth a visit.
Sunset at the NY hotel is worth a cocktail visit.
Rotterdam has a door to nowhere.
This is an ice cream cone. LOL.
Four showerheads for the Haven. Not our demographic. We will stay elsewhere when we return to Rotterdam.
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