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Watch out for the traps

Hey guys! So we're coming up on our final days in Japan, it's crazy how fast our time here has gone by. With all the activities and things we've seen it's felt like it's impossible we did it all in just two weeks! I've had the opportunity to try a few more types of street food since the last time I posted. By far my favourite was an ice cream cone I purchased while in Hakone after the stone pavement hike. I'm not sure if it was so delicious because it was a reward for completing the hike, I had been starting to miss more familiar foods, or if it was just genuinely that good, but regardless it has definitely been my favourite street food thus far.
As I talked about in my last blog post, we came across a delicious and authentic crepe stand in Harajuku. The crepes there were some of the best I've ever had. Knowing how amazing the crepes are here, you can't blame me for stopping to get another one when I came across another crepe stand in the middle of Shinjuku; this however was a mistake. Shinjuku is filled with tourists and is what most people picture when they think of Japan. With this, the food stands there what I would consider as tourist traps. The crepes were much more expensive, made as quickly as a pre made burger at McDonalds, and you could taste the preservatives in the ingredients they used. Quite disappointing but my own fault for falling for their clever trap. I am pleased to add that this has been the only street food that I have purchased/come across that hasn't lived up to what I had hoped it would be. It is important for be aware of where you are purchasing street food. Areas with lots of tourists will not street food that is as authentic, delicious, or inexpensive as areas with less tourists.
The other day we went for a walk through Ueno and the park/garden area there. On our way to the park we walked through a large street market with tons of different types of street food stands set up. We saw everything from shawarma stands to fish markets, ramen bars to dessert stands and so much more. I've come to notice that the people here aren't too concerned about things such as salmonella and other bacteria diseases from foods, as they tend to keep their meats and fish out in the open. I've noticed this in not only in street markets but also in grocery stores here. Coming from a country with such high healthy regulations and where it is instilled in us at a young age how to properly keep your food fresh and safe, it is slight confusing and concerning to me that they leave their raw foods out the way they do. Although this is slightly concerning due to how I was taught to keep my food so you don't get sick, I have yet to get any kind of food poisoning during my time here so clearly the way they keep their raw goods here isn't as harmful as westerners may think it would be.
This is all I have for now! I leave Saturday to continue my adventures around Asia but I hope to be able to get my hands on a few more snacks I have yet to try before I depart Saturday morning. I hope this blog post has been helpful for anyone trying to figure out the best stands to stop at in Japan.

Cheers,
Ashley

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