Japan Super Late Throwback: Part 1 - Osaka

I totally forgot about the blog and everything in general cos' a lot happened (incld. me being lazy) and I totally dropped the whole Japan trip posting from Day 2 LOL. I went for 11 days, so I basically left out 9 whole days.

I don't even remember what I did there anymore, but all I could recall is how beautiful the place is and how much I want to go back there. I'm gonna just throwback to the trips in parts... Hopefully it gets completed, or... There's no or.

To pick up where I left off, we dedicated a full day to USJ and enjoyed ourselves a lot with all the One Piece feels, it was REALLY a great day. The third/fourth day was pretty exciting for me, it was the visit to the Osaka Castle and Cherry Blossom viewing!! One of the main reason we picked that period to travel ♡

Last two photos thanks to Life-Saving iphone app filters, lol. 

Quick Travel Tip : 

I'm not sure if I've mentioned this the previous post, but when you're in Osaka, you can totally consider buying their 1 or 2 days pass; They call it the Osaka Amazing Pass! It's like their ez-link card which allows you to travel unlimited for two days, and they give a lot of tourist privileges like free entrance to certain tourist spots - Osaka castle and the park beside is one of them. See the full list here.  

I'm sure if you google online, there's a lot of people who blogs about this and plan an itinerary base on it, but since Michie and I weren't really into all the places, we only went to some that I wanted to go.  

A few of the free facilities we went to was the Osaka Castle Museum, Osaka Castle Nishinomaru Garden (right beside), and also went on the HEP FIVE Ferris Wheel since we were in the area to shop shop at HEP Five. I had wanted to visit the Floating Garden Observatory as well but cos it was really cold that day, we had to skip it TuT

Other than these free facilities, you get a booklet of coupons where you can use them for discounts to facilities and discounts when you shop! As a cheapo Singaporean (and Japan isn't the cheapest place to tour either), all these discounts and stuffs are really really really really useful and helpful TuT 

One of the places we went was the aquarium (Kaiyukan) and I was really really really happy to be there. I swear everything was so cute, and idk about everyone else, but I think Aquariums calms me down a lot. As usual for Aquariums, it's always nice to find out about Feeding time and stuff to get the best experience, but in general I think the creatures there were pretty active! 

We got our Osaka 2 Days pass at the Namba Station, but apparently you can also buy them from Hotels as well. 

I'll blog about Osaka Castle, Nishinomaru Gardens, Hep Five Ferris Wheel and Kaiyukan ALL behind cut, cos' it's REALLY image intensive omg lol.

Ikkousha Hakata Ramen

https://www.facebook.com/hakataikkousha.singapore / http://www.ikkousha.com/ 
T3, Tanjong Pagar, Chijmes
Operation Hours Varies

Rating: ★★★★★
Wallet-kun Safety Rating: ★★★★★


ヽ(；▽；)ノヽ(；▽；)ノヽ(；▽；)ノヽ(；▽；)ノヽ(；▽；)ノヽ(；▽；)ノヽ(；▽；)ノヽ(；▽；)ノヽ(；▽；)ノ


I gave up on the blog for months, I'm sure you've noticed. Just gonna update the japan trip in a summary post next time, yea, next time. 

Ikkousha was always one of my favourite ramen store back when they were still with Ramen Champion. If I'm not wrong, they've won for a couple of years and then poofed. I was really sad but then Sam found that they opened their own shop so we HAD to go back!! 

I've visited the Chijmes store twice, both during Lunch and for Dinner, although the place is a little small, you didn't really have to wait crazy long for a seat. It's a pretty cosy place too! 

At the door they will pass you a form where you can pick your choice of ramen, the choice of topping (i.e. no spring onion, bamboo shoots, eggs etc) and even choose how hard you want your noodles to be. I thought it was a pretty neat system, like you can decide while you wait, and with that paper, once you are seated, the food comes pretty fast and definitely to the way you like it! The soup are all kontotsu-based so there might not be a lot to choose from, but this is good for people like me who will never be able to decide lol. 

There's free flow drinks and eggs as well~ 

I personally like their Kara one the best, it's spicy enough for me and the taste is strong enough!

Japan Trip Day 02, Universal Studios Japan!

Day 02 Plan

- Visit Universal Studios Japan
- Highlight: One Piece Restaurant, One Piece Premier Show!

Since my friend and I were fans of One Piece and USJ had special shows for OP, we HAD to make a reservation for the restaurant and buy tickets for the show - even though it's in full Japanese. Our plan was to sit whatever rides we could > go to our restaurant reservation > continue rides > One Piece premier show.

Otaku Alert: There's a Jump Store along Universal City Walk towards USJ so do check it out!

One warning: the wait is reallyyyyyyyy long for each ride, we waited about 2 hours for the Spiderman ride. If you're the type who really likes rides (since i totally hate them all), I think it would be wise to invest in a express pass since you're going already anyway, and the queue is wayyyyyyy shorter!

Since our highlight was the show and restaurant, let me blog about that first before I talk about the theme park itself, lol. I think this post will get too lengthy so let's put a read more here (i hope it works, I've never used it before)

Behind Cut:

1. One Piece Premier Show / Restaurant Whatnot
2. USJ tickets whatnot
3. Photos and Park whatnot

(you can tell my priorities)

うん。

Japan Trip Day 01, Osaka Dotonbori - Fun at Night

Most people know I went on a trip with my uni friend to Japan for about 11 days, Apr 2 to Apr 12. It was really enjoyable, Japan is a really beautiful and nice place. I didn't take too many photos since I didn't bring my own camera (lazy) but I'll definitely go back there again one day and act like a proper tourist and take photos like crazy.

I'm gonna try blogging Day by Day so that it's easier to refer to and hopefully provide a "itinerary" for anyone who's planning to visit places that we went.

Day 01 

Our Plan: 
- Land in Tokyo, take Shinkasen to Osaka
- Roam around Dontobori, visit the famous Gulico man.

When we arrived in Tokyo, we sent our Tokyo luggage to our 2nd hotel since we're heading down to Osaka first and then coming back up later. Bought our JR passes and then started our long journey towards Osaka. It was a pity we were rushing for time and didn't manage to buy nice bento at the Tokyo station before we boarded the shinkansen, but the trains itself do sell snacks and bento anyway, so you won't starve.

We stayed at APA Hotel Namba-Shinsabashi which was pretty accessible from the JR Namba station (in fact, the subway as well) and walkable distance to the Dontobori, Shinsaibashi Shopping Arcade area. The rooms are really small, but then again, Japan being Japan, their Hotel rooms are relatively smaller so deal with it. It's a pretty comfortable and cosy hotel, though they had really limited TV channel choices. After checking in, we took a walk around the area and took some photos while we hunted for food.

We had Okonomiyaki for dinner from this place and it was really yummy. Pity that we didn't get to stay and eat in the shop, I really wanted to try cooking the Okonomiyaki myself and stuff. That'd be an experience! Most shops along this street opens till late, so you don't have to worry that you'd starve!

It was also pretty interesting that they have a lot of people on the streets trying to pull customers in - restaurants, karaokes, bars, etc. It's pretty new since we don't get that quite a lot in Singapore, but it was really common there and they tend to put those cute girls and better looking guys out to bring customers in lol. It was pretty cold still, so it must have been hard on them D:

Anyway, Day 1 was a pretty short day since we're heading to Universal Studios Japan the next day, so we rested early and all ready for our One Piece show the next day! Here's some other photos of the area around the hotel in the day time!

Chock Full Of Beans @ Changi Village

Chock Full of Beans @ Changi Village 

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/cfob.changi 

Address: Blk 4 Changi village road #01-2090, Singapore, Singapore 500004

Tel: 6214 8839

Operating Hours: 9:00 am - 10:00 pm

Rating: ★★★★☆
Wallet-kun Safety Rating: ★★★★☆ (4 person, we spent $24/ea after splitting bill)

ヽ(；▽；)ノヽ(；▽；)ノヽ(；▽；)ノヽ(；▽；)ノヽ(；▽；)ノヽ(；▽；)ノヽ(；▽；)ノ

I live in the West and travelling ALL THE WAY TO CHANGI VILLAGE WAS A KILLER. 

Located in the neighbourhood in a very corner of all corners, I think Chock Full of Beans is a very cosy place and pretty decent place to dine in. At least the people there were friendly and smiling, and the place is well-ventilated and I like their tables and chairs (lol) 

It's a bit tinyyyyyyy so I think reservations are definitely recommended, or you could put down your name and number and walk around (nope, there's nothing around) while you wait. 

I only ate the Sasuage Rosti one and I really liked it! The menu is pretty limited, but I think it's more than enough for a brunch place. PLUS, i thought it wouldn't be filling but after eating, I was REALLY full lol.  

The Strawberry shortcake was REALLY yumz. I like the cream a lot and the cake is really fuwa fuwa (fluffy) and soft. I think they draw random stuff for you, so I guess you'll get a pleasant surprise when your cake is served. Ours was Blossom from Powerpuff Girls, omg childhood. 

KEY POINT OF THE CAFE IN MY OPINION. Really cool and well done coffee art omg. The Minnie Mouse looks REALLY accurate. And HOLYSHIT my 3D neko (cat) one was REALLY COOL. This has to be done by Boss though, so I think they do limit it to only ONE per table - or was it two - and you can't make a request, Boss will make a random one for you. Every other drink though, gets a randomly drawn 2D art. Perhaps if you come on a Weekday where it isn't packed, you might get your request fulfilled? Lol. But Thankfully, I got something I wanted hehe. 

It was REALLY cute so I was determined NOT to ruin the cat while I sipped on the coffee carefully. And lol, I succeed (clap clap) \o/ 

It was a really and enjoyable brunch! The distance was worth it I guess, but I probably wouldn't go back there again if no one's driving lol. But ofc, without a car, this place is still really accessible - You can drop at Tanah Merah MRT and take a bus down to Changi Ter. (or rather, the stop before and cross the street). 

After brunch, you can even go Cycling or just chill by the seaside - ofc, with the incoming haze, I wouldn't recommend that. But hey, if it's a clear day, cycling is a good workout (which was what we did and now my legs feel jelly-ish). 

Rolling Rice @ Clarke Quay The Central

Rolling Rice 

https://www.facebook.com/RollingRiceSingapore
6 Eu Tong Sen Street #B1-49, Singapore, Singapore 059817
6222 0801
Operation Hours: 10:30 am - 9:30 pm (for lunch they only start taking orders at 12.......)

Rating: ★★★★☆
Wallet-kun Safety Rating: ★★★★★

ヽ(；▽；)ノヽ(；▽；)ノヽ(；▽；)ノヽ(；▽；)ノヽ(；▽；)ノヽ(；▽；)ノヽ(；▽；)ノヽ(；▽；)ノヽ(；▽；)ノ 

The Central basement has a new addition \o/ 

It's pretty cheap yumyum Korean food place called Rolling Rice (damn cute name) and I really think they're really affordable compared to many Korean food outside and the food is pretty nice! So far haven't tried much on their menu but I really love their rice rolls, idk if they should be called mini kimbap but I shall cos they cute like sushi. And I always order their Spam roll (luncheon meat) and they have other meat too, like fried chicken, etc. 

Set meals are really affordable imo, you can choose a main e.g. noodle, toppoki, or sth else and then a row of roll. You can also have a roll combo at a cheaper price too! Definitely something for everyone hoho. And you can get Korean can drinks too (though a bit pricey but well) 

Very lazy to blog so let the photos tell the story~ 

Post AFASG13 Post

I didn't really know where to post this but since I have a blog here, might as well use it.

AFASG13 marks the debut of our little circle in an event, and it was a memorable and really different and exciting one! Every other year we were excited about going around, buying merch, meeting cool cosplayers and guests that they bring in but this year I was entirely excited and nervous about something totally different.

We managed to get a booth and we named ourselves Kamikiya by putting our names together. It was an enriching experience and I learnt a lot about business, being prepared and a lot of things in general. There were a lot of people who helped us and supported us, and I really really couldn't thank them enough.

Everyone was so nice and such angels and there were a lot of really cute people we met in the event that gave us a moral boost. It was really nerve-wrecking how each person passes by your booth and look at what you have to offer, and to be honest, I was panicking on the first day when we first sold something. It felt good and I feel proud of my very talented friends.

It was a pity that I wasn't the artist and I was merely helping the rest out in selling them at the event. We received a lot of praises about the art and stuff and I really wish I could convey their love and praises to our artists properly TuT I will work hard as well and hopefully contribute to this circle more in future. Thank you my slaves, you've all worked really hard.

There was a lot I learnt this year, and definitely tells a lot about myself and all the planning I've failed to do. Hopefully the next event, if we do do it, we will be able to work harder and bring better products to everyone. I'm really really really thankful to everyone who has helped us out and supported us TuT

You guys are truly the angels in my life!!!