Toppo the world!

My first encounter with Toppo was a memorable one. It was the day I was going to Urasa and surprise Mark on his birthday.



I arrived at the Shinkansen platform past noon, and I haven't had lunch and only had a meager breakfast. Needless to say, my stomach was already protesting that time. But since the train was about to arrive, I simply looked around the nearest kiosk for something edible. And what did I grab? A bottle of water, a can of Coke light and a box of Toppo.

Strangely though, once the train was on its way to Urasa, my hunger disappeared. It was probably because of the excitement building up that my brain suddenly ignored my stomach's plea for food. But after we passed the 2nd station, my stomach said: "enough!" Then it grumbled. Of course, I reached for the Toppo and started noshing on it.

It was love at first bite!

Basically, Toppo is a pretzel that's filled with cream. This sounds like an unlikely combination, but it definitely tastes better than it sounds. The crunchy and plain taste of the pretzel complements the sweet cream that's inside. It feels like eating a much lighter and less sweeter version of Presto Creams. And considering that I loved Presto Creams as a child, and even up to now, this love for Toppo wouldn't be unfounded.

It's been more than a month since I got back from Japan, and I haven't seen Toppo in Okashi Land in Hong Kong. According to Lilia, though, they would have it in some Japanese specialty shops. I've been missing Toppo, but thankfully, there's Pocky and Hello Panda to fill in the void.

But two weeks ago, my stomach once again grumbled upon seeing the contents of the birthday package that Mark sent. There were three packs of Toppo! The first pack was gone a day after I got it, and i'm saving the other two packs for a Toppo emergency.

My first encounter with Toppo was a memorable one. It was a day full of surprise and memories that don't deserve to be simply called "happy memories" - "ecstatic memories" would be more appropriate. That's why eating the first pack of Toppo felt like a walk back to the Shinkansen station that day. It really brought back so many good memories of my trip to Japan.

That's why it's just fitting that the same person I relate Toppo with was the same person who sent it to me.