I finally tried the chocolate chip mint gelato at Yamagataya in Miyazaki City, which is currently being featured at the Hokkaido Product Exhibition. It does have a mint flavor, but it is not as strong as I expected.

[Purchase Location] Ueno Matsunoya 6th floor, Early Summer Hokkaido Local Products Fair, April 26th (Wednesday) to May 9th (Tuesday) - First Half [Date/Time/Conditions/Crowdedness/Payment Method] Friday around 1:00 PM, Rakuten Pay [Food Consumed] Chocomint Cup Ice Cream for 432 yen. There was also salt mint ice cream, but I was drawn to the Belgian couverture and chose the chocolate option... which may have been a mistake. It's more like chocolate ice cream than mint. The chocolate ice cream is very rich and delicious, but the mint flavor is lacking. It's in a takeout cup, so you can take it home with a cold pack. I enjoyed it as a snack on the rooftop of Matsunoya. [Revisit/Items I Want to Buy Next Time] Interested in trying the sandwich cookie-like item.

Rachel often has accidents in the toilet and ends up on the futon. When I closed the door to prevent her from going, she actually did it on the floor. She even stepped on it (seriously). The other day, she did it in the slippery washroom. She seems to be in a "chocomint boom" phase. I found this 60 yen Chocomint ice cream by Akagi Dairy and have been eating it every day because it's so good. It caught my eye, so I decided to try it. It has chocolate bits in a mint candy. It's a bit bitter? The mint is strong, but it's delicious.

My mother received a box of hackberry candy from her colleague at work. It seems to be famous as it won the Minister's Award at the National Confectionery Exhibition in 1968 and the President's Award in 1973. The box contains 270g of candy, which is a lot. Even though it's mint flavored, it doesn't have a strong cooling sensation.

The company relocated and built a new building in 2019 on the south side of the old building. It seems like they built the new building on the site of a closed bento factory, as the old building had a traditional office building feel, while the new building is modern and welcoming with white, wood, and mint colors. When you enter, you take off your shoes and wear slippers on the first floor. Inside, there are panels and models showcasing the history of the company and the old factory, which shows that they have made an effort to cater to the general public. The shop, which used to be on the second floor in the old building, is now on the first floor along with the exhibit area, making it easily accessible. Although I couldn't find the internal telephone mentioned for shop use, the employees from the mirrored second-floor office noticed me and came down to assist. The shop features a display area for products using peppermint (not for sale, just showcasing products from other manufacturers that use peppermint) and shelves displaying their own products with price tags. If you want to purchase something, you inform the staff of the desired item and quantity, and they bring the actual product from the back for you to pay at the register. While not many locals may be aware that you can shop here, they do accept credit cards, showing that they have considered general customer use. I bought "MENBIS," a mint-flavored chocolate sandwiched between langues de chat cookies, and was impressed that they even provided a company shop original paper bag. It may be inconvenient to have to inform the staff of your choice based on the display, but since there are no staff permanently stationed in the shop, it's understandable for security reasons. MENBIS comes in a box with two types: one with black mint-flavored chocolate on white cookies and the other with green mint-flavored chocolate on black cookies, each accounting for half. The subtle and refreshing mint flavor added a nice touch to the usual langues de chat texture and taste. They didn't overpower it with too much mint, which can sometimes make it taste like toothpaste, so I think the amount of mint in MENBIS is just right. For general customers, it's recommended to park in the company's parking lot at the back of the building.

I visited the 24th Autumn Hokkaido Fair at JR Nagoya Takashimaya, so I lined up before opening on the 12th floor. I was lucky to be able to buy without waiting in line. I bought a 110g Sanrio characters peppermint candy for 297 yen. It was a great deal and delicious. It was convenient to use PayPay for payment.

It's a national holiday on Tuesday. A sea otter with watery eyes and a runny nose devoured Tianjin rice bowl and dumplings at a Chinese restaurant in Jinbocho. Now, off to Sanseido maybe, walking down the street, but oh no! Can't do it! My eyes are itchy, so itchy. My nose is dripping even inside my mask. Ugh, it's tough. I take out a handkerchief from my pocket and blow my nose at the entrance of Sanseido. Ahh, ahh, is that... menthol? Oh, I just had a good idea. Maybe if I inhale some menthol oil, my head and nose will feel refreshed, or so I hope, a sea otter approaching the wagon with this amateur idea. "Here, have a menthol candy," says the part-time female worker, handing out a sample to the sea otter. "Huh, can I have it?" I put it in my mouth right there and buy a bag of them and a mint oil-infused hand towel. After a while, ahh, my nose is clear. No more runny nose feeling! My eyes aren't itchy either. Is this the power of menthol? Yeah, no doubt. The sea otter's intuition was correct. The effect lasts for two hours. Good news for those suffering from pollen allergies. If you see menthol in the town, be sure to buy it immediately. And thank you for the meal. Note: It turns out it might have been the dumplings' effect after all. Aha! \(//∇//)\

While tidying up the kitchen at home, I found 2 bags of Hokkaido peppermint candy. I don't remember buying them, so someone in my family must have purchased them and forgotten about it. It seems pretty famous since it's listed on Tabelog. I decided to try one. Hmm, it's cool~ I think it would be better to have it during hot weather instead of winter. Thank you for the treat.

At the Meitetsu Hokkaido Product Fair, I tried the Hokkaido Hakka ice cream from the famous Hokkaido Hakka company for the first time. Since they specialize in Hakka products, I decided to try the three most popular mint ice cream flavors they offered. - Salt Milk: This ice cream had a taste similar to the Kasugai Milk candy with a hint of salt. It was okay, but not my favorite. - Chocolate Chip Mint: This ice cream was made with spinach extract for natural coloring, mixed with mint milk ice cream and chocolate chips. It had a strong mint flavor, but it wasn't quite what I was looking for. Perhaps this is the scent of Japanese Hakka? It wasn't really to my liking. - Chocolate Mint: This ice cream combined 73% cocoa chocolate ice cream with mint flavor. The bitter cocoa ice cream with the refreshing mint aroma was the best of the three, in my opinion. Overall, I didn't really enjoy any of the ice cream flavors, possibly because I'm not a fan of Hakka candy. It seems that the Japanese Hakka ingredients might not agree with my taste. Personally, I prefer a milder, gentle mint flavor with a hint of blue, rather than the sharpness of Hakka. Thank you for the meal!

I'm in Kitami. I aimed for a restaurant for lunch but it was closed suddenly, so I ended up having lunch at Tobu. I usually don't eat lunch, but when I leave my hometown, I tend to eat. It's a waste, but today I did that. I usually don't eat like that. I was thinking of finding another restaurant to lift my mood, but I'm feeling too lazy now, so I gave up. I found a new item in Tobu that I've never heard of before, but I couldn't figure out where it was written and where it wasn't. I was surprised to find out that I can actually write about it. I'm not a fan of mint, but I thought maybe mint beans would be okay. However, they are unexpectedly high in calories. I thought about mint candy instead. If I eat one, I can write easily and not get carried away. I put it in my mouth and thought, "Wow, I love this!" There was a woman who was excited about it, saying, "I love this!" She's a woman, so she doesn't sing enka songs. Mint doesn't seem as effective as it used to be, which is good for me. The cool feeling is nice though. It's not a candy that I would usually buy for myself. The rest will go to Yome-san.

There are food items available, but we are using peppermint oil for coronavirus prevention measures. Living with a mask on every day, the inside of the mask can become bothersome. So, by spraying this peppermint oil inside or outside the mask, the refreshing peppermint scent and sterilizing effect are very useful. During this time, it is effective for the throat and perfect for people like me who suffer from hay fever. It can also be used for cooking, but in this situation, it is a highly recommended product!

1/13 Sunny. Today I went to Ikebukuro. Had lunch at a restaurant in the busy area near the north exit, then went back to the station and visited Tobu's Hokkaido exhibition. Looking for affordable and attractive items. Bought something, not sure if I should also get some Hakkayu or Hakkacandy this time. Maybe next time. Tonight will be a Hakkabath.