Japan Trip - Day 2

OK, so continue wth Day 2.

We woke up rather early but still had no real idea where to head to. Oya, usually I would be the one constantly doing research for our trips but due to my finals and work issues, I just ahd no time to research much. In the end, we decided we HAD to see the castle and just go along with whatever attraction that Osaka had to offer.

The best way to actually enjoy Osaka would be to buy the Osaka Unlimited Pass. For 2700 Yen, you get a pass that allows you unlimited rides on the subway and also entrance to the main attractions in Osaka and some discounts to others. We should have bought the pass at the airport so the first 2 hours was spent trying to get to the nearest Information Center (which we found out was at Namba Station...like duh!) and purchse the passes there.

Once we had the passes, we headed straight to Osaka Castle. It had started drizzling when we arrived but not so much that we could still walk there from the station.

This was in front of the big entrance leading up to the castle. You can see teh castle in the background. It was raining slightly and very windy so it was rather cold.

This is the Osaka Castle. There's 7 floors, each floor is dedicated to a different theme but mostly it's about the wars that happened in Osaka and the important people involved. I didn't take many photos here because exhibitions did not allow any photography. So En Rashid and I just took our time walking around, looking at the videos and historical artifacts.

This is the view from the observation platform. That building with the black round dome thingy is the Museum of Natural History. It was closed that day (every Tuesday) but was included as one of the free attractions in our Pass, so we decided to come back and visit it the next day.

En Rashid enjoying the view. There was a gift shop inside too but we didn't buy anything. Bloody keychain cost like RM20!! WTH?!

Oya, forgot to mention that it was my birthday that day. The best gift (other than being in Japan with En Rashid) was dressing up in an authentic kimono! Bestnya!! This was on the ground floor as we were exiting the castle. This lady had set up a stall that had all these kimonos and samurai outfits to choose from. Best thing was it only cost 300 Yen per person. And you could take as many photos as you like.

That samurai sword that En Rashid is waving around is real. Hehehehe, member cukup bangga ngan topi yang dipilih. The biggest and baddest!

Tu dia...The Last Samurai versi Melayu!! Terbaik!!

This pose was actually to show the ribbon at the back but you can't really see it here. Oya, the lady also choose the biggest flower to pin to my tudung. Luckily I was color coordinated. Hahaha.

There were a lot of school children around, on school trips so we could always call on one of them to help take a picture of the two of us. You can't see it here but we were both actually freezing at the time. It was still drizzling and the wind was rather strong.

Right next to the castle, you can visit the Osaka Castle Nishinomaru Garden. Unfortunately for us, the sakura trees had stopped blooming but it was still a pretty sight. This photo was taken in one of the houses there. Apparently the yo-yo is a deadly weapon!! Hehehe.

A photo of the garden from the entrance. You have to pay to enter but with the Pass it's free.

After all that walking around and playing with samurai sword, we were famished. So we headed to Tennoji station to find some food. What I love about the restaurants in Japan is that they display everything on their menu up front. And seriously, what you see is what you get. No false advertising here. We choose this pasta restaurant because it looked delicious and the menu was also written in English.

This was my dish; I think it was calamari and clams in tomato sauce. The specified what type of sauce they used so we felt pretty safe eating here.

En Rashid had Japanese pasta with spinach and salmon, I think. It tasted good despite his facial expression here.

After lunch, we walked around for a bit. It was still raining outside, so we just strolled inside the shopping complex. We got rather addicted to the coffee shops over there; every few hours we would stop to buy hot mocha or capachino. Here we are enjoying a cup while En Rashid is constantly trying to find free wifi. Wifi was available everywhere but you could only access it of you had an account. Even in Starbucks, the wifi was password protected. Sigh...

We had planned to go find the Shitennoji Temple (also free) but it started to rain heavily and both of us had no raincoat or umbrella. So instead we decided to head back to the hotel for prayers and a quick nap. When we got there, this envelope was waiting under our door....

...it was our Sumo tickets!! They had arrived safe and sound. I had purchased them online and had asked the purchaser to post them to the hotel as that would cost less than having them post to Malaysia.

 After a quick dinner (more bread), we headed out to see the Floating Garden Observatory. The directions said "10 minutes walk from the Hankyu station" but we still got a bit lost. Once we got to the building, there was the matter of finding out how to get to the 173rd floor. The directions were in Japanese, so we just kind of deciphered the diagram and finally made our way up. We needed to take a lift to the 3rd floor then change lifts to the 170th floor. Then take the longest escalator ever to the 172nd floor. Then you go up some stairs to the observation deck. This is me trying to stay cool but actually getting a little bit of vertigo feeling.

 Look at the date! It's my birthday!!

We spent half an hour enjoying the sights from the deck. The sky was clear and you could see for miles. This is the view from the ground floor, looking up towards the deck. Pretty cool.

This is the entrance to the building to go up. It doesn't say "Observation deck here" so we were walking around a bit trying to find out how to get up there.

Then we walked over to the HEP FIVE Ferris Wheel. HEP stands for Hankyu Entertainment Park. Sini ada lagi ke Hankyu? Anyway, the ferris wheel was basically on the roof of the Hankyu shopping mall. We were the only ones on it which made it feel slightly more romantic. Hehehe..the ride took around 15 minutes so it was a nice, relaxing way to end the day.

Before heading back to the hotel, we took a quick detour to Hard Rock cafe. Then back to the hotel for some well needed rest.

Day 3 coming soon.

It Really Is The Thought That Counts...

Tadi masa tengah meeting, aku dapat mesej dari ayah.

Ayah: Happy birthday.

Aku: Ayah!! Birthday along 15 May la..bukan 15 June..hahahaha, but thanx for the wishes.

5 minit kemudian...


Ayah: Ok..belated!!

Japan Trip - Day 1

People have been bugging me to write about my Japan trip. Ok, so 3 people have been bugging me to write about my Japan trip. I think I had better start before I forget the details. I can tell you this though; I still have the Osaka vibe with me, seriously...5 days was not enough to experience everything.

Our flight to Kansai airport was at 815am, which meant we had to check in before 6am. Thanks to my brother for spending the night at our house to drive us to the airport at 5am. After checking in, we had breakfast at Oldtown cafe. RM5 for toast, seriously? Hmmm...

The flight was rather long and uneventful. We had ordered food on board but I was too restless to enjoy it. Finally, around 3pm, we touched down in Osaka.

After grabbing our luggage, we headed to the Information Counter to find out the best way to our hotel. The lady there suggested we take the bus into town, the take the subway to our hotel. She gave us directions to the bus terminal and also how to get to our hotel from the subway. We had to take the airport limousine bus to Namba then take the subway from there to our station, Hirobashi. Finding which bus to take was easy; there was a very kind pakcik that help us with our ticket purchases.

The pakcik at the ticket dispenser machine. Everything was written in Japanese, so it really helped having local people assisting. And trust me, all of them were so accommodating and friendly.

Once we had our tickets, we lined up to wait for the bus. It didn't take long for the bus to arrive; the best thing was that it came right on time. Like on the dot!! Super efficient!

All of the bus stops had names of their connecting stops with numbers so its pretty easy to find out which bus you should be taking. Once we had reached Namba, we had to take the subway to our station near the hotel.

En Rashid figuring out what to have for dinner, hehehe. This was while we were waiting for the subway to arrive. The stations were pretty easy to figure out once we had a map and had a few ridden the train a few times.

 Our station was Hirobashi, which was only 4 stops from Namba. It helped that they had the English version of the station names written on the walls.

This is the hotel we stayed at; Chisun Inn Umeda. This was actually our second choice after Dotonbori Hotel which was rather expensive but right smack in Dotonbori. I got a great deal for the rates from Expedia; about RM170 per night. Which meant more money to spend on food and shopping! Heehehe.

This is the view from the front door. Even from here you can see that the room is rather small. Entering the hallway, you have the washer to your left and shoe rack to your right. I had intended to use the washer as we both brought just enough clothes to last us until the last day but all the directions on how to use the damn machine was in Japanese. Calling the front desk wasn't much help since they only spoke basic English. Oh well...

This is the bathroom, small but had everything we needed. I can imagine that it would be a tight squeeze for anyone over 6 feet though. What I loved about the bathroom was the heated toilet seat. I mean, seriously!! It made going to do your business so much more pleasurable. Hahahaha...

The room also had its own kitchenette, complete with plates, mugs and glasses. There was even a small cooker, though we didn't cook anything while we were there. They also had a microwave in the room, plus a hairdryer but no clothes iron.

This was the bed. A bit of a squeeze for both of us but comfy enough. The pillows were a bit too hard for me.

I had booked a double room with tatami mat which turned out to be a good thing because only when we had pushed the table to one side, did we have space for prayers. We did have our breakfast at the table so we at least made some effort to eat like the Japanese. Hee. The TV only had Japanese channels which seemed to always be showing either talk shows or extremely funny Japanese game shows.

For Day 1, we didn't do much since we were rather tired out from the journey. We found a 7-11 and Circle K just across the main road from the hotel so we went and bought bread and 3in1 instant coffee for our dinner.

Day 2 coming soon.

Happy 10th Birthday Dania Jazmin

My eldest daughter is 10 today. TEN!! Double digits!! How is that possible. She's still just a baby. Before I know it, pretty soon she'll be going to boarding school, then university, then she'll be getting a job, getting married, having kids.....uwaaaa!!

This is way too soon for me.

The kids are away at their Grandparent's house and I miss them madly. Their Maksu has promised to take them for a movie today and also to buy Dania a birthday cake.

I still can't over the fact she's all grown up. Grown up into a beautiful, wonderful, amazing daughter that I'm so proud of.

Happy 10th birthday, Dania Jazmin. We love you so much.

Hugs and kisses,

Ibu.

Zombies Are Upon Us!!!!

No, seriously. Read this then tell me we're not at a brink of a zombie Apocalypse!!

http://usnews.msnbc.msn.com/_news/2012/05/28/11923580-witness-to-naked-attack-the-guy-just-kept-eating-the-other-guy-away?lite

*Image taken from here

Bebudak Sekarang Ni...

Yer, yer...post pasal Jepun tengah karang lagi ni. Sabar, sabar...akan ku tayangkan gambar bersama orang Sumo tak lama lagi. Hehehee..

Ni nak share something I got in my email from one of my classmates. Lawak giller. Hai..bebduak sekarang ni...pandai melampau!!

Bagus..kecik2 dah tau konsep meminjam dan akibatnya. Cuma yang aku tak paham, pinjam RM3...tapi collateral sampai kena bagi kasut. Ada ke kasut berharga RM3?! Yang tukang bagi pinjam ada harapan nak jadi Ah Long in the future. Huhuhu...

Hmm..ni kes terlalu logik la plak pemikiran budak ni. Taking the saying "Out of sight, out of mind" literally. Bijaknya nyamuk2 area dia ni...bleh target rumah mana ada orang based on kasut kat luar rumah. Hahahahaa...

Awak, awak...awak sayang kita tak awak? Kita sayang awak tau..sayang sangat2!

Errr...sib baik la dulu masa aku sekolah takde kes2 gedik camni...tulis surat2 "cinta" pada lelaki...tolong la, please say I was not like this...takde kot...time sekolah takde sapa pandang pun kat aku...huhuhu..

Kalau aku jadi cikgu tengah tandakan kertas exam ni, mesti aku tersedak 10 kali baca jawapan ni. Hahahaha...tapi takleh nak salahkan anak murid, kira munasabah gak jawapan dia. Menunjukkan dia prihatin terhadap bil2 yang ayah dia terpaksa bayar tiap2 bulan..

Ni kes lurus bendul ke bangap ke, dua2 bleh la. Lawak tahap gaban betul la. Ni mesti tak pernah pay attention dalam kelas...tak pun tak paham apa soalan ni mau. Hai...sabar je la jadi cikgu matematik dia ni.



Back From Japan

Japan was great!!Expensive as expected but we had a wonderful time just having that Japan experience. If I had to list down the highlights of the trip, it would be the kimono dress up, eating authentic Japanese food, riding the bullet train and watching the sumo match up close and personal. We walked and walked all over Osaka until my back hurt and still couldn't finish all the attractions. I'll write more about what we did there in my next posts...work a-calling...back to the real world.

To All the Moms Out There...

Noresh put up this link in twitter and when I saw it, it made me cry. This not only goes out to all moms out there but also to all the grandmothers, aunts and big sisters who play a huge role in defining our younger generation for the better. You gals are true heros!

Life is What You Make Out Of It...

It's been 2 weeks plus since our maid ran away and seriously...I don't miss her at all. Add on to the stories that my neighbors have FINALLY told me about her, I say good riddance!! I was a bit peeved that my neighbors kept her antics a secret from us but on the other hand, I understand their concerns. Ever since one of our neighbors blew up at the others because we told her about her maid, everyone has been taking the "none of my business" route. Which is such a pity. I really would have appreciated it if they had spoken up sooner...Daria might have gotten better care. But what has happened has happened and I believe all for good reason.

So for now, Dania and Dina transit at their kafa school and Daria goes to the kindergarten behind our home. Dania and Dina have been adapting well but Daria...let's just say it's a drama everytime we drop her off at school. The waterworks start happening and the begging commences. The first time it happened, I got so upset, I cried all the way to work. It hasn't gotten easier (yet) but I'm hoping Daria will adjust better as time goes by. According to her teacher, she only cries for a few minutes before settling down with the other kids.

I miss having help with the housework though. Though I must admit, I get total satisfaction when its done now. I dedicate Saturdays for springcleaning; the best part is that En Rashid helps with the dishes and the kids so it's not too bad. I still feel like crying doing the ironing tho; to ease the pain, I bring all the clothes in front of the TV and do it while watching a movie. At least, I don't feel too bored. I don't mind the cooking; the kids love it when I cook. En Rashid...well, let's just say he loves showing his appreciation. Hehehehe...

My mom has been asking whether we want a new maid. Honestly, I think we're coping just fine without. Previously, I was adamant for a maid because Daria was still a baby. Now, she's nearly 3 and can socialize so I'm not too worried. I still feel bad when we have to stay back at work and pick up the kids late. So far this has happened a few times...the first time it happened Daria was too mad to even look at me!!

But all things considering, we are doing ok. It's going to be a bit hectic next week as both En Rashid and myself are going to Osaka for my birthday (plus 3rd honeymoon) but my mom has agreed to take care of the kids while we're away. To think, one year of planning and we almost cancelled the whole trip because of what happened. I owe my mom so much!!

Oya, I'm 95% done with my MBA now!! Yahoo!! Best of all, no more classes or exams. Just left with my project paper to complete. I can't believe I've almost made it. Finals was ok considering I only had 2 papers to study for this trimester. My International Marketing was a hoot; we had to answer 4 questions and each question was worth 25 marks. The whole time during the exam I was like frantically looking for stuff to write down (it was an open book test) to cater for the 25 marks. In the end, I left the hall 30 minutes early...dah takde idea nak tulis apa. Huhuhuhu....

We're all on forced leave tomorrow thanks to The Company's AGM session with the stakeholders. They should do the AGM more often...hahahaha. En Rashid and I will be going to the Japanese Embassy to pick up our visas...hopefully everything will be ready by then.

So this post is just to update everybody that we're doing ok. Hehehee...thanks to all who inquired and expressed concern.

It's Been Crazy

Sorry Internet for not being able to blog as frequently as I should. As the heading states, it's been crazy here at Casa Along. For starters, our maid ran away. Not only did she break into our room to steal her passport, she also took my two gold bangles as a souvenir. Which my mom bought for me. Which I hadn't even worn yet. Sigh..

Work has been crazy. Crazy enough that I had to postpone my midterms and take them at a later date. Finals are this week. Safe to say I haven't done much studying. Sigh...

But, you know what, I'm not gonna complain. Things could be much worst. At least, the kids are ok, hubby is ok, my family is ok...everything will work out for the better.

I need to do some last minute studying for my Service Marketing paper tonight so until then...be good people.