Revisiting My 2nd Home - Japan! (P:art 3: Strawberries picking & the best beriyani in town!)

Day 3.

Morning started just like day-2.
Sent the kids to school
@daycare then off we go to the train station.
A short ride of about 30mins brought us to a little town of
Shibukawa.

Two main targets,

Strawberries picking
&

Lunch at my favourite pakistan
@indian place
!

Strawberries are seasonal in spring..but by february many farms are already in business.
Strawberries picking is already available, but at quite a price.
We took the cab to one of the farms, took abt half an hour to arrive.
There are quite a few, but we decided on this one.

Entered the farm and checked out the price. Yep a bit expensive -1500yen per pax.
But a little tips, when in japan,dont always convert the rates. you'll feel like killing yourself if you do!

We spent the next 40 minutes picking and munching on strawberries! There were a few types..and contrary to popular perception, the biggest ones are the sweetest. Juicy and fresh!

After our time is up, we lepak outside just a while, taking some pics while waiting for our taxi to arrive.

From Shibukawa, we then took the train to Isesaki. Another small town nearby. We just took a walk from teh station to our next destination - teh mosque. It was friday and just time for Jumaat prayers so there was quite a turn up. After prayers, we walked just a few steps a way to this pakistani restaurant. Ok not really a restaurant. More like a small eating place.

This is where for me the best beriyani is. Been back in Malaysia for more than 10years I still havent found beriyani that good.

So I wanted teh lamb beriyani but it was sold out..so made do with chicken beriyani. Still delicious. And some bread and lamb stew.

A poster on maulidurrasul

Madeena Curry House

Ironically the best beriyani..for me~

So now with full stomach and hapy heart hehe...walked back to the eki and back on the way back to Kiryu. Took the cab to Gunma u ampus, where we parted ways and promised to meet up later. Rosa had some errands to run..while I wa ready to walk down some memory lane  :D

Gunma U engineering campus is just a small campus. Every faculty has its building, then there's the library, main hall, office bulding, canteen and coop..and thats it.

The mechanical ENgineering building stood just the way it was. Nothing much has changed. Actually it was newly renovated just a few years before I left. 

It was getting late..and so getting a bit cold. So i just made a quick tour, took a couple of pics. Met up with rosa before dark, pick the kids up and went to a senior's house nearby. K.aja is one of the most senior here, now following her husband, bujin (the one that came to fetch me at the airport) doing PHD.

It was a little reunion for us. I remember 11 years ago in our first year, we always crush K.aja's place whenever we came to KIryu. That time as first year students we were in a different campus.

the main gate

Mechanical System Engineering lobby

..those glory days.

refreshment corner - just outside the building. livesaver during the busy days!

alumni building just beside the main gate..some old historical building.

a normal sight - bicycle dominos!!!! 

That night, while Rosa and family stayed in, doing some last minute packing, they were going to NZ the next day for a conference.

K.aja and Bujin brought me to Papermoon - an italian restaurant, another most go place on my list. OK in case its not that obvious yet, gourmet hunting is part of this trip theme. When it comes to pasta, i had to come here and ordered this --> 魚風パスター＠fisherman's style pasta, a brothy delicious seafood pasta dish.Among our favourite back then.

favourite seafood pasta  :D

Nice dinner with good companies, a little catch up and then decided to call it the day. Before dozing off did some packing up myself as the next day will be on the road again - tokyo here i come!

Tips: When and where you go should be the outline of your itinerary. Each place and each season has its own trademark. Spring means strawberries, sakura, tulips etc. Summer is delicious time for unagi! FAll is for pessimons(pisang kaki) and oyster and of course yellow and red landscape. Nikko and other places with beautiful sceneries are best visited during this time. Winter, well is the best for white landscape and probably...pretty night landscape in the city, pretty lights for christmas and new year celebration.

So research, research and research so you dont miss out!