Konnichiwa

Konnichiwa! I just returned from a quick three day trip to Yokohama, Japan to support my husband and the Banan boys in opening their first international franchise! I couldn't have imagined when they first started three years ago out of a food truck that they would one day be going overseas! I am so extremely proud of all their hard work. There are so many things that go into creating and running a successful food business. I have witnessed a lot of their hard work but there are so many little details in finances, legalities, marketing, branding, store build outs, hiring, employee training, product development that I cannot even begin to fully appreciate. It was really exciting to see the crowd on opening day and continue throughout the weekend. I love that the boys made it a priority to stay true to the company values and philosophy to use local produce and products. The Japanese Locals Only is a banana base (just bananas!), freeze dried Azuki beans, mochi, yuzu jam, and a sprinkle of matcha on top. I think it might be my new favorite!

Neat fact... I studied Japanese in school for six years. I forgot a lot since I graduated but picked up a "Japanese for Dummies" book and did a little refresh on the plane ride there. A lot of the sentence structure came back fairly quickly but I need some work on re-learning a lot of the vocabulary. I enjoyed trying to find my way around and communicate in a different language. The food in Japan is fantastic! Lots of noodles, sushi, katsu... Everything had so much flavor! I am a massive Matcha (green tea) fan and they had it in every form imaginable. Green tea cake, green tea ice cream, green tea chocolate, green tea Kit Kat bars. Let's just say I ate my way through the past few days.

I find the Japanese culture fascinating. Everyone is so respectful and polite. Luke and I had to pay a fee to use the hotel gym, it was a little absurd but the lady was so cute and polite about it that I didn't bother to be upset. She kept bowing and saying, "I'm so sorry. You have to pay this fee to use the gym. I am so sorry." If the people at the airport who charged me ridiculous board fees were more like this, it wouldn't be so hard to hand over my credit card. Haha. The fashion was very interesting. I started to notice that the "it" outfit right now for women in Japan is a high waisted flowing skirt and a loose tucked in blouse. Or a loose dress or overalls with a shirt underneath. Almost every woman wore this! I tried to shop for the latest trend but the biggest size in most stores was a size two so I gave up.

I'm home for a few days and then on a plane again to California for a little wave pool training before the event in early September. Lots of love to all of you.

Xx,

Carissa