Live Life to the Fullest!!

Ryoutei is a luxurious traditional Japanese restaurant, which served kaiseki style meals for business and formal meetings (source from Wikipedia). Everyone that goes to a Ryoutei has a purpose. It is not just a simple filling the stomach meal. It can be a business meeting, a celebration, a family meeting, a book sharing session, a reunion, a party or any occasion you can think of, which is why the customers going there are usually dressed formally. Having said that, anyone are welcomed to visit a ryoutei to enjoy the exquisite, delicate meal prepared by a qualified chef and served by the beautiful omotenashi-san (something like waitress?). However, do remember to make a reservation in advance as meals are prepared freshly according to the number of customers. The ryoutei I worked in is called Shikiryotei Sukeroku (粋料亭　助六) currently managed by Okami - Chikage Nakamura and her husband, Hideyuki Nakamura, who is also the head chef of Sukeroku. During my whole internship experie

'いらっしゃいませ' (Irasshaimase!)、'ありがとうございます' (Arigatou gozaimasu!) Very common terms but the most polite terms. These 2 terms accompanied me during my whole internship period.  If you do not know, I internship-ed in Japan for 2 months in the service industry. To know how I came across this internship opportunity, click here .  The ryokans, aka Japanese-styled hotel, that I worked in were Takimotokan Yukinosato (滝元館遊季の里) and Umi no Hana (海の花). They are luxury ryokans strategically located closed to tourist attractions, which provide great hospitality and ultimate relaxation to the guests. Both are ryokans with private and public onsen.  Since the main topic today is my internship experience, I'm not going deep into information of both the ryokans today. I will be writing more information on both the ryokans and the surrounding attractions in another post, or if you can't wait for it, please visit their website! 1. Appearance The first thing I