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Category: Asia

The continent of Asia is stunning and diverse. There are so many incredible countries to explore and so little time, so let’s get started!

Eco-Friendly Coffee near BTS in Bangkok

If you’re looking for an eco-friendly coffee option while in Bangkok, Better Moon x Refill Station has you covered. They serve fantastic coffee and food and are doing their part to help the environment. Better Moon x Refill Station is conveniently located just a 5-minute walk from the On Nut BTS station. I went there for breakfast and tried the mixed berry acai bowl and it was so refreshing! When the weather is hot, I prefer something cold, so an iced Americano and this cold acai bowl hit the spot!

Coffee Near BTS

Better Moon x Refill Station is starting a trend of reducing plastic waste in Bangkok. It’s a huge mission, but everyone has to start somewhere! Even my straw was made of metal. So if you’re looking for a great coffee near the BTS, Better Moon x Refill station is about a 5-minute walk from the OnNut BTS station and I highly recommend it!

They have a large open space with plenty of comfy seating choices as well as outdoor seating. They also sell kombucha and homemade soaps, bags and re-usable silicone water bottles (I purchased one and it has been so handy on this trip). Check them out and support a local business trying to help improve their community. Not to mention you’ll be rewarded with a cup of real coffee – no instant stuff here!

Where:

Better Moon x Refill Station
2031 Better Moon Cafe, Sukhumvit 77/1 Alley, Klongtoey Nuea, Khet Watthana, Krung Thep Maha Nakhon 10110

If you like this please check out our other articles at Le Cafe & Travel. And if you want to learn more about the mission behind Better Moon x Refill Station, check out this great blog article from Coconuts Bangkok.

Have an amazing day and go get yourself some coffee too!

February 10, 2019
Nikko The Grand Spring Festival

We got up early to get some breakfast before catching our train from Tokyo to Nikko. And although our “there’s always something open in Tokyo” concept may have worked the night before when we were getting ramen at 10:00 at night, we discovered, that not even Starbucks was open at 8:00 in the morning in Tokyo! Coming from Seattle we were not expecting that!

Thankfully I pack a backup breakfast option, my own personal French press and also some instant oatmeal packets. These are great when you don’t have time to go out or if you just want to save some money.

So we returned to our hotel to eat in our room.

Eating our instant oatmeal with chopsticks. Note to self: bring plastic silverware next time.

Then we were off to Nikko. We discovered that our trip coincided with their annual Spring Festival or the Shunki Reitaisai. So we were excited to be able to join in the festivities. The festival celebrates the funeral procession for one of their great leaders Tokugawa leyasu and is a memorial to how his remains were transported to Nikko in the early 1600’s.

We chose to walk from the train station all the way up to the top of the town where the procession would start. There was the option to take the bus, however, the lines were very long for that. The walk turned out to be a scenic one and with the crowds only took about 30 minutes.

River running through part of the town.

Shinkyo Bridge in Nikko

It was wonderful timing for us to be able to experience this celebration and local custom firsthand. They even had English translations during the procession to explain what was happening and what each of the men in the procession represented.

We stopped to eat some dango on our way back down to the train station. These yummy treats are sort of like mochi, they boil them and then grill them. You can see in the picture he is grilling one over charcoal. You can choose from different sauces and styles. I highly recommend them!

A mid afternoon snack, grilled Mochi anyone?

We also passed by a restaurant with these displayed in its window outside. You will find this to be very typical of restaurants in Japan to have rubber replicas of the food so you can see what each thing will look like before deciding whether to go in or not.

They sure can make rubber food look appetizing!

One very big bowl of rice!

Nikko is a very beautiful and charming town with little shops and places to eat. It is only a two and a half hour train ride from Tokyo, making it a wonderful day trip option. I highly recommend it on any trip to Japan!

Getting to Nikko from Tokyo:

We chose to purchase a 14 day Japan Rail Pass prior to our trip and we absolutely loved having this. It saved us so much money and was so easy and convenient to use. You can just hop on and hop off trains as needed. For more information about the pass and how to use it to visit Nikko check out the website Japan Rail Pass website.

July 19, 2018
Traveling to Japan & Fulfilling a Dream

Japan: Our First Night in Tokyo
It was my husband’s childhood dream to travel to Japan and he was finally getting to accomplish it. His interest in video games, computers and all things technology started as a very young child. So this trip was a bucket list trip for him. I was also excited to be traveling to Japan, but I think on this trip his anticipation beat mine.
Here’s a picture of him at the airport waiting for our flight to Tokyo. He’s just a wee bit excited!
Waiting for our flight to Tokyo
Side Note:
I happen to like airplane food. Okay, not really the food I guess, but the experience of the food they give you. Depending on where you travel you are typically served food that is consistent with that area. Since we were traveling to Japan we were given options like miso soup, udon noodles and green tea. When I’m flying I look forward to seeing what mystery meal I will get. I know I’m weird and easily amused, but there you have it!
The chicken option.
And the beef option.

First Night in Tokyo:
We arrived at our hotel in the Ikebukuro neighborhood of Tokyo at around 8:00 p.m. and after checking in and freshening up, (and learning how to use the toilet) it was nearly 9:00 p.m. by the time we headed out for dinner.
Fancy controls on our toilet
We don’t normally eat that late, however with our internal clocks still set for Pacific time back home, we decided: Hey, it’s Tokyo, there’s always something open!
So we did a quick Google search to find the nearest restaurants and decided to go to Mutekiya, a ramen shop that was just a short walk from our hotel in Ikebukuro. Mutekiya got great reviews and this would be our first experience eating authentic Japanese ramen vs those $0.20 packets of dried noodles we were fed for lunch as kids.
A staple food for both kids and college students.
It took us a little bit to actually find the place, as Google maps was having difficulty getting a lock on our GPS, we weren’t sure if it was due to all the tall buildings, or some other interference.
This is a common issue you might have when traveling, it can also depend on the SIM card or local cell phone service you get when you arrive, we chose to use a data only SIM by DoCoMo, which we purchased at an airport vending machine. (Another cool thing about Japan, you can buy almost anything from a vending machine!)
Shortly after crossing the street we found the restaurant and also a line that wrapped around the building and up the street! I couldn’t believe that we were waiting in line at 10:00 at night to eat ramen!
Painted sign outside restaurant detailing the ramen we would soon eat.
45 minutes later we were seated on two bar stools discovering a new love for ramen. This is not your store bought ramen! Wow! The ramen was delicious! The broth was full of flavor, the soft boiled eggs were cooked just right and mine had delicious crispy garlic toppings. It was a great experience and the perfect way to begin our time in Tokyo.
The most delicious bowl of ramen we had ever eaten.
I recommend that you jump right in when you first arrive at your destination. It forces your body to get adjusted to the local time zone. Even if it’s only for a couple of hours before you go back to your hotel and crash. It sets your trip out on the right foot and the excitement you get from exploring your new surroundings will usually overcome your jet lag – at least for a few hours.
Traveling to Japan opened our eyes up to the country’s varied and delicious cuisines. And although eating a bowl of ramen at almost 11:00 at night was never on my list of to-dos, it turned out to be a great first experience in Tokyo!

Try Something New Today!

February 23, 2018