I have a backlog of topics I’d like to post about, but I’ve been trying to focus on finishing my current novel, which is due next week (I’ve already asked my editor for two deadline extensions, so this is it!).

Immersion in writing about Japan has got me, not only wishing I could go back for another visit, but also craving a different Japanese food each week. Last week it was yam sushi, this week it’s Kakinotane peanuts, a few weeks ago it was yuzu (a kind of citrus fruit) tea, before that it was Gaba chocolates, vegetable tempura, and so on…..

So, for now I’ll leave you with three images to taste: a delicious cup of yuzu tea and chocolate cake (which I had at a tiny cafe in Nara after ducking in out of the rain), Gaba chocolates, and cherry blossom KitKat (apparently only available in Japan and only during cherry blossom season, and especially popular with students taking exams — as a kind of edible good luck charm).