Omiyage are actually supposed to be shared with co-workers (and friends), but couldn't resist nibbling!
As a bonus for not having the room made or futons laid out, we received cash vouchers to spend in the hotel so picked up a couple boxes of Shiroi Koibito sandwich cookies - butter cookies layered with milk chocolate or white chocolate. We were introduced to these delights the first time we went to Hokkaido in 2005. We spent an extra night in Sapporo and went to the Ishiya chocolate factory Shiroi Koibito Theme Park (no rides, but exhibits, view of manufacturing, etc) as part of our own "group of friends tour" and we went to Osaka that trip as well - to the Aquarium Kaiyukan and Universal Studios (rides there!) This trip pre-dates my blog here - before I had one on Geocities that got closed down.
In transit at Kansai bought two kinds of yatsuhashi (made with glutinous rice flour and cinnamon) from Kyoto - one yaki (baked) and one nama (some people say it's raw, but it's actually steamed as part of the dough making process). The baked ones are cinnamon-y and pleasantly crunchy and the nama is soft and chewy with a light cinnamon flavor that complement the flavor of the filling. The traditional ones are filled with azuki red bean paste, but I bought the ones filled with shiro-an (sweet white bean paste) and yuzu (citrus). Tried these treats on a trip to
Kyoto in 2007.
