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Showing posts from December, 2010

Cycling Around Mount Fuji

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Note that this photo is a posed shot. You are supposed to cycling anti-clockwise around the lake! Haha If you are deciding between taking the train to Kawaguchiko or driving, you can check out the car rental prices at   https://www.nipponrentacar.co.jp/english/user-guide/reservations.html   and train prices at   http://www.hyperdia.com/ It depends on whether you’re staying overnight at Kawaguchiko and the number of people travelling. Remember to add toll fees of about ¥4200 one way. We decided to rent a car but forgot about the toll fees so it ended up being more expensive. I’d say if you’re staying for one night and there are at least 3 of you, renting a car is a good option. If there are two of you and you want more freedom to move around (such as going to neighbouring places like Oshino Hakkai, Chureito Pagoda, Yamanakako etc) it is also better to rent a car. You should also be warned that traffic is congested upon leaving and arriving at Tokyo. We parked our car at our ryokan Kozan
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Nanbantei (Far East Plaza Level 5)

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One of the most value for money set lunches in the heart of town is from this Japanese Yakitori restaurant. For a mere $13, you get a bento box consisting of 5 sticks (chicken ball, pork asparagus, pork shiso roll, quail eggs, chicken with leek), rice, pork soboro, mushrooms, seaweed, side salad, miso soup and dessert. ok, the miso soup is a little substandard but the yakitori is nice =) since i love tebasaki, we added an ala carte order as well as more vegetables with miso dipping sauce =) Bill: about $43 If you just order the bento and ask for free tea, it will cost only $26++ for two which is very very reasonable. Dinner is more expensive. Nanbantei: 67335666
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TWG Tea Salon at Ion Orchard ($$$$)

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My goodest bestest girlfriend and I decided to try this tea place at Ion Orchard after lunch at Nanbantei Far East. The ambience is really nice and the tea-sets are very pretty but it's very very expensive. When presented with the menu, we were like, "Golly... sooooooo many types of tea... how to order??" We ordered a pot each of White Earl Grey and Lavender Kiss, and a scoop of mango sorbet. Bill: An exorbitant $46.40!! The tea is nice, no doubt. I like that they remove the tea leaves because I don't like my tea to be over-infused... it gets very bitter (although some people like to have the tea leaves inside so they can ask the waiter to "add water" -.-) but $40 for two pots of tea? That's too extravagant even for me... I can imagine my mum grumbling, "I need to bake 2 boxes of CNY cookies!" $40 can: - feed two very hungry people a relatively good meal - pay for a haircut at a decent salon - get you a decent mani cum pedi - get you a good 45
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Ramen in Japan

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One of our favourite food in Japan is ramen =) we can eat it a few times during a trip and not get sick of it because different regions use different ingredients and the soup has different characteristics. And one of our favourites is the coupon restaurants. To order, you buy a coupon from the vending machine outside the shop for the type of ramen and side dishes you want, hand it to the waiter and get a seat while they prepare your food. It costs about JPY600+ to JPY1000+ per bowl of ramen which is really reasonable =) some of them have pictures so if you have difficulty ordering just ask for help and point to the picture. Or for an easy guide, look out for the following characters しおラーメン for salt soup ramen しょうゆラーメン for soy sauce soup ramen みそラーメン for miso soup ramen 辛味 means spicy 味付玉子 for seasoned soft-boiled egg Have a try when you're in Japan!
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Yokohama, Disneysea, Kyoto video

I think Youtube blocked my video cos I used a Mariah Carey song *grumble grumble* watch it here ba
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Last Christmas (Best Version) - WHAM!

This is what I think is the best version of the song =) by Wham! I bet half the kids out there don't know them LOL
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Izu Peninsula 伊豆 – Shimoda and Jogasaki Coast Video

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Nagano Video =)

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Nagano 長野 – Nawate and Nakamachi streets (16 Dec 2010)

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Shinshu 信 州 is the old name of present Nagano prefecture. Shinshu specialties include soba, apples, tai yaki and sanzoku yaki. Make sure you try them when you are in Matsumoto! Flanked by traditional Japanese architecture, it’s a very pleasant stroll down these streets, especially Nawate street. Do try the たい焼 (tai yaki), a delicious snack in the shape of a sea bream filled with red beans, custard, chocolate etc. We tried the chocolate one and the generous warm chocolate filling oozed out when we bit into it =) Wa, the Fuji apples there is so cheap... only SGD$1.60! We also tried another Matsumoto specialty 松本山賊焼 (sanzoku yaki), chicken coated with miso and deep-fried. Tastes a little like karaage but much nicer =) look for any shop with this banner =)
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Awanoyu 泡の湯 at Shirahone onsen 白骨温泉 (15 Dec 2010)

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We had originally wanted to go skiing in Hakuba Happo One, the 1998 winter Olympics site but insufficient snowfall in that area delayed the opening of the resort so Shirahone onsen was our alternative. Panoramic view from our room A two-hour bus ride through the Norikura highlands on the Matsumoto Dentetsu bus (JPY3400 round trip per person) from Matsumoto bus terminal (go to ESPA building basement) brought us to this beautiful ryokan nestled in the mountains with a public outdoor MIXED hot spring bath (kinda like the one in ‘Memoirs of a Geisha’) where women are allowed to wear a towel into the bath. The hot spring water at Shirahone onsen is opaque white in colour because it contains calcium, magnesium and sulphur among many other minerals. PH level is 6.5 and water temperature is 37-38 deg C so it didn’t feel very warm like in most hot springs, especially in the freezing cold weather but still, soaking in the rotenburo 露天風呂 (natural outdoor hot spring) while gazing up at the picture
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Nagano 長野 – Matsumoto Castle 松本城 (15 Dec 2010)

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Matsumoto castle, also know as "crow's castle" because of it's dark colour is one of the top castles of Japan along with Himeji and Kumamoto. A short 15 min walk from Matsumoto station, it's such a beautiful sight to behold and  we were blessed with very good weather – nice blue sky =)
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Izu Peninsula 伊豆 – Shimoda Yamatokan 下田大和館 (13 Dec 2010)

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We had planned to go to Shimoda via Shuzenji (famous old hot spring town in Izu) and Kawazu Nanadaru (famous 7 waterfalls of Kawazu in Izu) but had to cancel our plans and go straight to Shimoda because of rain. We couldn’t do much in Shimoda too, except to stroll along Perry Road and have a lunch meal of Kinmedai (alfonsin), a local specialty. Shimoda is the first point of entrance by Americans into Japan and Perry Road is named after  Commodore Matthew Calbraith Perry who led the black ships into the bay. Some of the house have the signature black walls with checked white plaster called namakokabe walls. Access to Shimoda from Atami is by the Izukyu line which is not coverd by JR Pass (last station covered by JR pass is Ito) so you have to top up about  JPY2000  (can’t remember exact amount) on the odoriko, one way. Shimoda Yamatokan is a seaside resort ryokan with fantastic view. All rooms have a balcony (which we couldn’t use because it was raining hahaha) and some rooms have pri
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