misstinapie

+ Umeda Sky Building + The Umeda Sky Building is a long walk from Osaka station. It's also noticeably more modern than what we have witnessed earlier today which was laid back. It has a BGC feel to it wherein it feels more western and everything is tall and shiny. The sky building is not exactly a tourist area, just the top floor so be mindful of where you go in. The entrance is actually near the back (this is if you came from Osaka station) where people will usher you on which elevators to take. We have arrived an opportune moment because the crowd has started to grow thick. By crowd I mean Koreans. I am not so sure why they are plenty of them in Japan but they are noticeably plenty on any tower we went to. The floor at the top brought the child in me for only because of something as simple effect as glow in the dark pebbles or whatever it is they embedded the floor with. It's so cute! It's like walking on stars! It is also noticeable if you have any white on so if you...

We are off to a good start. Himeji Castle can be seen from afar from the station, probably a good 20 mins stretch. We chose to walk. From there we found a cafe to eat our first meal of the day- Cafe Jr. + Cafe Jr + Reagan had a pretty breakfast with so much on his plate (no photo) and I had simple pancake. I've been craving for it that even if maple syrup is not available, I still chose the meal. Anyway, their hot matcha is really good. [gallery ids="6285,6286,6287" type="rectangular"] Price: + Himeji Castle + Himeji is a popular destination especially at Spring when the cherry trees that pepper the vicinity of the castle is in bloom. Since we came on their winter season, we could only see the trees on their bare form. I could imagine how pretty it might have been. However, I still liked that we didn't have to line up for hours just to get inside the castle. Other than the snob photographer who is irritated that we are ruining his shots, we enjoyed a good st...

+ Yoshinoya + I have 3 fast food joints I would like to try out in Japan. From our trip we only got a chance to try 2/3. The first one was Yoshinoya, the nearest and the only open fast food near our Osaka apartment (it was almost midnight already). I have ordered their beef bowl  with miso soup. I was hoping that the claim of being the best bowl in Japan would be true here because it clearly wasn't to me in the Philippines. I have tried my best to like what they offer back in Manila but no matter how many times I eat there I still find myself pissed after every meal. I braced myself and ate a spoonful. Damn it. Why?! Even in Japan I still find it bland. The only redeeming factor of this meal is how their miso soup (as we realize later on) have tiny clams on it. At this cold we are both very grateful for any soup. + Konbini! + We're regular patrons and for our stay in Japan we've visited all 3 major konbinis: Lawson, 7-11 and Mini Stop. All have the same offerings as far as ...

Sorry Coke Vanilla, I just found my new favorite flavor in Japan! We were supposed to start our tour as soon as we arrive but all of our schedules for the day were pushed because of the 2 hour delay. We did get a bottle of water, 2 Magic Flakes and Presto cookies from CebPac for the inconvenience. It's funny how some groups had to panic lining up for food in a fashion like as if they haven't eaten anything yet. The immigration in Japan is quite easy albeit long. There are sometimes that the scanner fails to work, to which the Japanese at the machine commented "why is it always Chinese?" Yes. Reagan failed the first fingerprint scanner so he had to do it on the next counter. When we arrived at Narita Airport, we were gauging on how cold it was. We didn't notice it via the airport to Tokyo transfer (Narita Express) too. But as soon as we found ourselves near the door at Tokyo station, we realized were not going to survive with what were wearing. What's more is I...

Obviously this has not missed my radar. The first time I have heard of it I immediately followed their PH page and made them appear first on my feed. And on a strike of luck while we were on a train at Japan I checked Facebook to see a fresh post of them giving away passes. Later on I would find out that not only did I win, but I was THE FIRST to reply. I was really meant to go! Initially I wanted to forgo the passes. But knowing the culture when it comes to book sales and going on a Saturday AFTER a holiday Friday is not a wise decision, I decided to just come on the Preview Day (Thursday). I will just render under time. Reagan came with (we met at Ayala, I really hate going there it's so hard to commute) to help me with my purchases. A friend of mine also came with (2 passes = 4 people) in case he could find books to add to his collection. The first moment I came in I was overwhelmed. There's so much to see! At first we didn't have a system until Reagan and I decided to p...