Kolossal Kit Kat Explosion

This was a post that was supposed to happen last fall, and then again this past winter. Now it's summer and the empty Kit Kat boxes have piled up, waiting for their debut on the ol' blog. There's a lot of them here sure to tantalize your taste buds, folks (for a blast to the past of our other crazy Japanese Kit Kat reviews, head here).

First up in the flavor fiesta is a special edition from the southern islands of Okinawa where the local beni-imo, or purple potato, is extremely popular in foods, drinks, and of course, Kit Kats:

I always wondered when Nestle was gonna get really creative. Here it seems they've done it with a flavor combo pack--cola and Lemon Squash (a softdrink here):

We picked this limited edition from Shikoku (one of Japan's main islands) up on our trip to Hiroshima and it is a delicious citrus blend:

Shhh, don't tell the kiddos, but this is Adult Flavor (meaning dark chocolate):

Bitter Almond, sponsored by the Tokyo Beauty Clinic:

Also from Tokyo Beauty Clinic, Aloe Yogurt:

Hojicha, or roasted Japanese green tea:

Ramune, a type of soda here that comes with a marble in it (??)...usually lemon-lime flavored:

You may think this is a standard package of Kit Kats overly packaged in excessive plastic:

...but this edition comes with a pack of Nescafe and a handy mug to beat the afternoon slump:

Onto more crazy flavors! Kinako, or roasted soybean powder:

Ginger ale:

Matcha, or thick Japanese green tea:

Kinako Ohagi, a type of dessert in Japan which consists of sweet, red adzuki beans stuffed inside a pounded rice cake (mochi), and then rolled in powdered, toasted soybeans:

"Kuchi" (mouth) "doke" (melt) chocolate almond:

Milk coffee spring edition:

The über Japanese flavor of them all, wasabi:

And finally, replacing the limited edition Hokkaido flavors of roasted sweet corn and buttered potato, the new Hokkaido edition of Yubari Melon (which is our fancy name here for cantaloupe):

The extra-large gift box is even ready for mailing as is:

Hungry yet? I hope so, because it seems that Nestle has been lagging in the Kit Kat flavor department since about early spring! Hoping for at least one last flavor post before we shove off in August!

Future

In exactly two months from today, Jacob and I will be headed on a big bird back home to the States, ending the life we've known here in Japan for three years.

In three months from now, I'll be on another bird to my new job in...Ukraine!

I've been accepted as an English Fellow through the Georgetown University English Fellows Program, and will be in the former Soviet Union for 10 months (Russian-study and a new blog to come!). Although the next couple of months will no doubt be stressful and sad, there are some exciting things oozing their way into our future plans, and for that we're truly grateful!

All-Girls Glorious Spring Hokkaido Roadtrip

In the spirit of our grandabulous autumn Hokkaido roadtrip last fall, my partners-in-driving, Krista and Vanessa, and I headed out of Sapporo once again to the north-central part of our island just in-time for the arrival of Spring there. We were greeted with lush gardens, colorful dairy farms galore (made me a bit homesick for Kansas), and some amazing colors that you have to see to believe:

After a night stop with our friends in Engaru, our first destination was the Holland-rip-off tulip gardens in Kami-Yubetsu. Yes, it is anything but Japanese-y, but it was still pretty nonetheless (thanks in part to the gorgeous weather that decided to accompany us):

And from there it was on the road again, only to be lured off by an excessively large crab claw in Monbetsu:

And since we were already there, we thought we'd better join the kids at the park jumping on the Fuwa-Fuwa Dome (translates to "fluffy dome"...these things are everywhere across Japan and are so, so awesome):

Our primary destination was actually spotted on a poster on our last roadtrip. Takinoue is a sweet little town known for mint, turkey farming, it's pink fairy mascot...

...and especially it's acres and acres of shibazakura, or pink moss phlox, which cover the hillsides like a thick 70s-esque-era rug:

It's one of the most gorgeous places I've ever seen:

We saw this guy just a few weeks ago at hanami in Sapporo and were really surprised to see him, bushy eye-brows and fancy get-up galore, up in Takinoue as well:

Gratuitous driving pics (not recommended):

Our original plans included camping out for a night, but unforeseen rains dictated that we make ourselves a car tent and sleep in the michi-no-eki (roadside station) parking lot instead:

The next day, we headed to the beautiful area surrounding the town of Biei. The watery rice paddies encompassing the farms in this part of Hokkaido are so, so dreamy:

The cute little town of Biei looks more like it came out of the Midwest, U.S.A. rather than in northern Japan:

With a quick stop at the area's Blue Pond...

...and the pretty Shirohige Waterfalls:

...and it was back to our city-life in Sapporo with another glorious roadtrip under our belt, and a renewed sense of pride for our beautiful (and uncharacteristically non-Japanese-y) island of Hokkaido!