Thursday, February 18, 2016

Auspicious Date!

After the proposal, we spent my last day and my birthday in Seoul. After that came Xmas, then New Year. Then Chinese New Year.

Time pass so fast and I was a bit antsy about having our wedding by end of year.

B's family was abit..not excited about the wedding. B say they are just bad at expressing themselves and that i have gained approval from his family - just because there's no objections.

ok. i will try to manage the expectations of excitement.

On the other hand, my family, esp my mom was very excited. She was excited wayyyy before B proposed. Like she knew it was coming.

So, first thing we need to do, even before booking of our wedding banquet, is to find an auspicious date. Of couse, I have a very traditional mom. 

Luckily she had a contact, so we didnt went around like a headless chicken.

Ban Kah Choon Chinese Geomancy Consultancy.

Uncle that help us with the date seems very sincere and detailed. He threw in a few words of my fortune of 2016 as well. 

There are no fixed rates, i think. We just gave him a $68 angpow (referral rate).

Seems like hes good in doing fengshui for houses as well.

The shop is located near Farrer Park MRT, in a very old and small shophouse.  I think he is just doing this as a passion.

Our 8 characters was a perfect match! After some detailed calculations, the date is finally decided as 3 Dec 2016 or 15 Jan 2017!

What you need to get ready for the visit:

Couple's Birth date and time (No need exact)
Couple Parents' Chinese Zodiac

A new milestone

Its been awhile since i updated on this space.

I just thought it may be nice to document the journey towards a new milestone!

On 4 Dec , B proposed to me under (literally) N Seoul Tower!

 I was really caught off guard as i didnt think he was ready for this. But there were some hints here and there cos he was distracted the whole day and was acting really weird a few minutes before the actual proposal! lol


Look at the shiny rock on my finger! I wish there were clearer pictures though. 

You know girls will always play in their head a thousand times on how the proposal will be like? yea, so this proposal was nothing like that. LOL. But it was more unforgettable, in my favourite setting (winter, night and overseas). No flowers and balloons though.

If you are reading this, WHERE ISH MY BALLOONS!?!?

It is still surreal to me sometimes, that i am actually marrying my childhood sweetheart.

Who would have known? Not even us.

I think it wasn't easy for us to come this far, so much teething problem, fights at the start, but we are good now. :) 5 years into the relationship and everyday still felt like new. I m still excited to see him, but maybe i dress up lesser on dates lah.

Really looking forward to the rest of our lives together!




Thursday, June 6, 2013

天邊風光 身邊的我 都不在你眼中
你的眼中 藏著什麼 我從來都不懂 
沒有關係 你的世界 就讓你擁有 
不打擾 是我的溫柔 ..

Tuesday, April 30, 2013

Tokyo.Sapporo.Obihiro. 11D10N Free & Easy. Japan Drugstore items! 必买药妆!

药妆篇

两年前去日本的时候啊,除了吃的和看的,几乎没有做任何的其他的功课,例如-药妆。

年纪越来越大的我,最近就喜欢试看新的保养/化妆品,上网买了一堆韩国的保养品,好像开始担心衰老了呢。。(不过,担心有点太迟了 T.T) 

所以这一次去日本之前,除了做最爱的 omiyage research 之外,也做了好多关于药妆必买清单!

感谢 日本药妆失心疯 unique vera 花了那么多时间整理的心得&分享。如果我生了小孩,还可以保养得像她一样就好了。可是我的败笔就是 - 懒。可以买很多,却不经常用。悲哀啊!(活该我有皱纹 !)

Vera 人如其名,看她整理的清单,好多又好完整,好像失心疯!我败回来的几乎都是她介绍过的。不过看起来,也没有很多,感觉买太多了,看起来就还好嘛!下次一定多买一些才是,毕竟花了那么多钱买机票了。嘿嘿嘿!

其实啊,Vera在文章里面有提到,日本买东西,最好是货比三家,因为价钱真的可以差一大截。像我就是遇见隔一家店,就便宜了JPY300 左右。

我都有尽量在做比价,可是我觉得旅行求方便,假如只便宜个JPY100 以下,我大概会直接买了。除非买的量很多,不然加加减减因该差不多。

我也会以Vera整理的比价表,参考下手价。

                            

话说,日本药妆店是个很可怕的地方。 而且,每条街大大小小的店面真的多到你数不清。不怕你没钱买,只怕你行李超重。(在机场,看见很多台湾MM大包小包,都在担心行李超重的说。)

而我对药妆店,有着又爱又恨的情感。不买好像对不起自己,买太多又好像用不完。

每经过,都会像被催眠似的往里头钻,如果多人也还好,最怕就是接近凌晨经过,没人的时候 - 最。恐。怖。因为没人和你挤,所以越看越多,越看越买。

不过说真的,怎么会有那么多保养品啊!看不懂日文的话,很多产品都张的很相似。有些连图案都没有,光是字 - 让人看得眼花~

现在逛药妆已经不是女生的专利了,男生的用品也很多。就好像平时不爱逛watsons 的B,就和我逛了很久,也买了不少!谢啦!(还有一两次竟然是我陪他! 囧)

以下价格是凭记忆的,不是100% 准确哦~

B 当然不是买护肤品啦~ 他买了好多DHC的健康食品 - MultiVits,Carb Blocker, Fat burner 之类的东东,害我也跟着他买 -.-


From Left (top): Blueberry Extract (For energy), Carb Blocker, Hydraulic Acid (For skin brightening), Fat Burner, Multi Vitamins, Q10 (overall wellness).

听说专卖店比药妆来的贵。

Multi Vits 很便宜,60日份的才要JPY500. 最贵的时Fat Burner, 好像是JPY 1450左右。

 Lulu Lun Mask. JPY 315.

5in1 PDC Moisturiser. JPY 2,000.


听说这系列的Shishedo不错,所以买了一套sample试试。 JPY1280.

Rosette Hello Kitty Facial Wash. JPY 400.

Rosette Clay Facial Wash. JPY 400.

Mentholatum AD Cream. For Sensitive Skin. Highly raved in many blogs. JPY 2000+


Moor Hot Spring Moisturiser. Only available at Hot Spring resort. JPY 2,300. 这东西非常保湿,且容易吸收。超爱。可是好像只有温泉旅馆在卖。:(


Roller pen for lightening laugh lines. JPY1,050.


Lycee Eye Drop (non contact lens) - JPY498.


Ettu Sais Royal Jelly Lip treament. JPY 1,260 (?)

对”限定“ 两个字难以抗拒。B说都是骗人的,有好像有道理。


便秘药。价钱没印象,好像是JPY1500?


为何说限定是骗人的?我在东京找到了北海道”限定“ 的润唇膏。蓝色- JPY398,樱花- JPY420.

Anessa Sunblock - JPY 2,100+


裸唇色。看起来不错所以买。JPY892.
朋友介绍,修护发水。


休足时间。JPY598. 非常舒服!脚底冰冰凉凉的!


蒸汽面罩。 Self heating eye mask. Relax and makes you sleep better. Comes in 5 & 14 pieces. Highly recommended. JPY 880 (14pcs).

以上是我所败的产品清单,不好意思,价格不太记得了!   (对过receipt,应该没错)  不过,明星商品如蒸汽眼罩&AD 软膏是必买!记得哦!

Tokyo.Sapporo.Obihiro. 11D10N Free & Easy. Budget breakdown & foreword

自从在2011年S&B去了一趟日本旅行后,就一直对日本念念不忘。。美食,风景,天气,虽然是和这次一样是4月底去的,但很幸运有看到美丽的樱花。。 话说当年我们俩还是一对新恋人。。也算是“蜜月旅行”吧(不是结婚那种啦!).所以这一次能旧地重游也算是非常有意义啦! 

虽然上一次我们俩都不是第一次游日本,但是还是觉得一切都好新奇!对我们来说,都是第一次自己排行程 (之前我都是跟家人,所以没骨气的都是跟团),所以就玩得特别开心啦..撇掉那些 tourist traps, 寻找自己的隐藏版美食和attractions! 

对那些不懂日语的人,自助旅游其实并不难。好多地方都会有中英日文,我们还碰到了到日本打工的台南,马来西亚的朋友等等,大家都非常亲切,帮了我们很多忙。多谢各位!其实很多日本朋友都会说中英文啦。。所以真的很简单。。 虽然小妹我学过基本的日语而已,其实也真的很好用,尤其是看菜单的时候,不过通常都是比手画脚和点指兵兵就混过去了。。^.^ 

而事隔两年,终于在去年底,SCOOT promo to Tokyo 的引诱下,买了东京的来回机票。也因为之前去过了京都和大阪,我就决定这次带B去北海道~ (第一次去北海道也是跟团,不过那地方真的太美了!像童话故事一样!) 起初花了好久去 convince B说要去北海道。。对那个 city kid 来说,北海道好像是个鸟不生 蛋的地方,好像只有山有水,没有WiFi! (你看,知错了吧)所以唯一能骗到他的方法就是show他旅游节目啊,部落格的介绍之类的。。当然是以“美食”为主!

 之后,他也就半信半疑的答应了。。 那就是我们苦等5个月的东京北海道11日之旅的开始! 只要一有空就就和坐在我后面的日本达人兼同事聊一聊,不然,就会search一下 ”Hokkaido“ 的资料。却发现 “呃。。资料好少噢!" 除了TripAdvisor, 就几乎没有什么有用的。 结果就开始search ”北海道”试试看,咦。。真的有好多有用的东西啊!大多数都是台湾的朋友写的游记之类的,写得非常详细,又有趣!比价,心得,统统有! 所以我也决定了,要用尽量用中文来写,好像比较容易形容\(︿_︿)(︿_︿)/ 

虽然会花多一点的时间啦,因为比较习惯打英文。写中文的话,好像也没什么新加坡人会看呃。。*烦恼* 随便啦,写了这篇再说吧! 接下来会写一下这次旅行的预算哦。每次出国都会烦恼到底要带多少钱才够,尤其日本那么好买的地方,又怕回来要吃草,所以希望把预算写下来可以给大家做参考。 

首先,先大概说一下我们的行程以及交通方式。 我们从新加坡搭凌晨 0050 的 Scoot 班级飞往台北让后转接到日本羽田机场(Narita Airport),3个小时后从羽田乘搭 1小时45分钟国内航班(Jetstar)至札幌千代机场。 搭地铁到薄野 (Susukino),大约45分钟。 在札幌住在 Watermark Hotel ,第4天租 Mazda 的车到带广(Obihiro),住了一晚豪华的温泉旅馆 -关月苑。隔日乘搭国内航班 (Airdo)到东京成田机场。Airport Limousine 送我们到 Sunroute Plaza Shinjuku 的门口,非常方便。住了个4晚后,乘Airport Limousine 到羽田机场搭Scoot 1230 回国的班机。

Air Ticket (per pax) 

Singapore --> Tokyo Narita ---> Singapore (Scoot) - SGD 550
Tokyo Narita --> Sapporo Chitose Airport (Jetstar) - SGD 90/JPY 6,240*
Obihiro Airport -->  Haneda Airport (Air Do) - SGD 140/JPY 10,970*

 * For domestic flight, u can only book up to 2 months in advance. Book as early as possible, i booked on the 1st day of the 2 months frame, and i got really good discounted ticket. However, if you are taking ANA/JAL/SQ or other major airlines, they have promotion for domestic flight ticket under the same airline. 

Please see here for more information: http://www.japan-guide.com/e/e2365.html

Car Rental (2D1N) Mazda (Basic) - SGD 220/JPY 16,380 

The reason why its so expensive its because we chose to return the car at another city/location. Thus there is a surcharge of JPY 5,000. Do note that not all car rental companies accept return at another location. 

Mazda Car Rental: www.timescar-rental.com/  (Pick up at Susukino Times Station, Return at Obihiro Airport)
Toyota Car Rental: rent.toyota.co.jp/en/
Tocoo: www2.tocoo.jp/

Before driving in Japan, please make sure you obtain a International Driving License from AAS. Charge is SGD 22 and valid for one year. If you fail to produce your IDP, the rental company may refuse to rent the car on the spot.

Toll for highway was about JPY 3,900.

Transport (Basic Day to Day transport by JR or Subway - 5 days in Tokyo) - JPY 5,000

Assuming per day make 3 to 4 trips on subway or JR. One typical trip would cost about JPY 210. For ease of travelling, purchase a PASMO or SUICA, works like our EZlink and can be topped up (min. JPY 1,000 per top up).

To better plan your trip, you may use hyperdia. It will calculate the timing, fare amount & no. of transfers.

A day pass would not make much sense because most of the passes only work on certain subway lines and there will be times u will have to make changes across a few lines.

Transport (Airport Transfer )

Airport Limousine

JPY 1,200 from Haneda Airport to/fro Shinjuku area (Sunroute Shinjuku Entrance)
JPY 3,000 from Narita Airport to/fro Shinjuku (Sunroute Shinjuku Entrance)

Meal 

Very subjective. If you want to eat cheap, your choices range from chain fast food restaurant like Yoshinoya,     our new found Chikarameshi & Sukiya to Sushi Go Round shops found everywhere on the streets. Sushi from these places ranges from JPY80 to JPY 250 for the premium ones.

Do note that cheap does not mean bad food. B is in love w the JPY 330 beef bowl from Chikarameshi(東京チカラめし)

Go to basements of shopping malls to get cheap deals on Bento lunch boxes and sashimi! There are lotsa of sampling too!

Medium budget travellers can go for yummy Ramen shops & Japanese curry. Our favourite being Ichiran (一蘭)ramen & C&C curry house. Pricing about JPY800 - JPY 1000 for a comforting meal.

If you like to indulge, the sky is the limit. I would say a JPY2,500 - JPY 5,000 for a sushi set at Tsukiji Market (筑地市场). Its worth the money, as long as you are willing to queue up to hours for it, especially the famous ones like Sushi Dai (寿司大).

Accomodation (per night)

Watermark Hotel - JPY 7,245 (www.japantravelleronline.com)

Very well located in Tanuki Koji (狸小路6), famous shopping district in Susukino. 5 mins to underground linkway to Susukino subway. 5 mins to 24 hours Donki. Famous ramen Ippudo (一风堂)is just downstairs, along with alot of souvenirs shops.Good value for money. A good alternative will be Richmond Hotel.

Kangetsuen (観月苑) - JPY 20,250 (www.japantravelleronline.com)

This was a last minute decision. I have originally booked a western hotel in Obihiro town for SGD 90, however, 2 weeks before departure i have decided to splurge on this hotspring (Onsen) resort for almost 3 times the original hotel since we are going all the way to Obihiro, whats more the price is including a Kaiseki set dinner & buffet breakfast. The meal was extravagant and the buffet breakfast even comes with an awesome view. Its just too amazing and its worth every penny. Room is huge for 2 - 5 pax.

Its a once in a life time experience, and its cheaper than Daiichi Resort (1st on trip advisor), therefore less touristy. You feel like a distinguished guest there.

Sunroute Plaza Shinjuku - JPY 10,650 (Weekday), JPY 12,650 (weekends)

#1 Shinjuku Hotel on TA. Value for money. 1 min to Shinjuku Subway Station (one of the exits) and 5 mins to main JR station and other lines. 5 mins walk to Takashimaya. Room is not too small, clean and the entire feel is like a 4 star hotel. Best part about staying here is, airport limousine can pick up and drop you off at entrance of the hotel. Very convenient as you dont need to drag your heavy luggage to the bus stop at Shinjuku station.

Will definitely,without a doubt, stay there again.

Overall, i am very happy with the places we stayed during this trip.

Note that for some hotels, it is more worth it to book through 3rd party websites rather than direct from hotel website as they may offer early bird discounts. After comparing i find that japantraveller.com offers good discounts. Only down side is that your credit card will be charged first, however, during cancellation or amendments, the refund was processed rather quickly back into my CC account ( 2 - 3 days). No cancellation charge until travel dates.

不好意思,写review好像还是英文比较顺呀。>,<

再次谢谢以下的日本达人,给了我许多灵感来编排行程 (和必买的药妆,把钱都丢在哪儿了我..T_T, 不过还是谢啦):

http://uniquevera.pixnet.net/blog (日本药妆失心疯)
http://kimi-tourguide.blogspot.sg/ (日本导游的介绍)
http://www.best-of-sapporo-japan.com/ (美食介绍)
http://choyce.pixnet.net/blog 
http://dajy0713.pixnet.net/blog (游记)

当然还有, 食尚玩家&Woman 爱旅行(让我决定去带广)。

好啦!接下来会有药妆篇,美食篇,行程表,自驾心得哦!希望对大家有帮助.


Wednesday, May 16, 2012

Day 1: Beijing


Departed from Singapore at 0050, and arrived in Beijing about 6 hours later. There was a little...drama just before i board the plane because i had a sleeping pill overdose. -.-

So the flight was really pleasant for once because i m someone who have problem sleeping during flights, i dozed off the moment we departed and i dont even remember how i got on the plane. haha.


If you need to buy prepaid card, theres a telco store on the left side upon you exit from the customs. I didnt get it cos the lady in the store cant seem to be bothered to help me. That's the first not-so-helpful individual i met. And prob one of the very few i met during my trip.

We didnt encounter any touts, maybe it was too early in the morning for them to come touting and the airport was rather empty.

Legitimate taxi stand is located at Basement.

En  route to hotel.

Cab fare + toll cost us 93 RMB and the journey time was approx 45 mins. It was a smooth traffic day.

It was supposed to be summer, but the trees and flowers in Beijing tells us its still springtime :)

Our hotel, Orange Hotel JingSong East is located near JingSong Station.

We chose this hotel because it was near my friend's office, dont really like it because of its location. I would definitely choose Orange Hotel next time, but prob one that is nearer to town. Take us abt half an hour by cab to travel out everyday.

But i must say the rooms are huge and beds are comfy. Theres free wifi and most importantly, its very clean.




Freshen up in hotel room for abit before heading out for lunch.

unlike sg, the drivers seat is on the left.

Arrived at our destination for lunch, however, we were distracted by the nice smelling and steaming buns! Bought one each. And we all agreed that the 三鲜 flavour tasted better than the pork.


one for 1.5RMB.
三鲜 flavour bun. Juicy and nice!

Satisfied with appetiser, now we move on to the main lunch!

 For lunch that day, we setteled for 那家小馆 - A famous Manchu Restaurant.
  • Yonganli / Silk Market 永安里秀水街
  • 10 Yonganli Jianguomenwai Dajie, Chaoyang District
  • 朝阳区建国门外大街永安里10号

We were advised to make reservation before we head over, but as it was already quite late (after lunch hours), we thought it wouldnt be hard to get a table, but we were wrong. We waited for almost 40 mins to be seated. Good thing is that, the food were served quite fast


Service was good, they served us tea while we waited.


As we waited, we saw a group of business man in suits arriving at the restaurant. I thought to myself that this must be a pretty good restaurant. 


 
 Me waiting w nice tea.
 Interior - reminds me of those inns we see in HK dramas

Their famous dish - 皇坛子. This is referred to as the "流落民间的皇家菜", meaning the dish was meant for the royalties but pass down to the commoners.

The dish is supposed to slow cook for 12 hours with many expensive ingredients like fish maw, sharks fins etc.

The version we saw on the menu cost abt 208+RMB, too expensive for us, we ordered a version without the sea cucumber.

Tasted really nice, broth is rich and fragrant. Cant really describe how it taste like, but definitely not to be missed!

桂花山药. so-so.
皇坛子. yums
辣虾. This is our favourite, fried till crispy and the shells are edible :)


The total bill for 4 dishes came up to abt 200 RMB. Which i think was pretty reasonable, it would have been much cheaper if we didnt order the 皇坛子 but it was well worth it.

Upon a satisfying lunch, we walked over to the LG twin tower (diagonally opposite the restaurant) to take a train to Tian An Men station.

The station is directly beside the Tian An Men and Forbidden City!
You cant miss this no matter which exit you take, its HUGE.
Took some pictures at the Tian An Men Square and went straight to the Forbidden City

Entrance ticket for Peak Period is 60RMB per person.

Take note that there will be vendors trying to sell you maps of the forbidden city at 10RMB. You can buy if you want. But note that you can grab the same map for free INSIDE one of the hall.

If u are going to ask the ticket counter, most probably they will tell you they dont have the maps.
Or if you are a budget traveller like me, just download the map and print a copy. Works well for me :)

If you wan to better understand the palace, you may want to rent a multi lingual guide device just outside the entrance.

For us, we just tagged along tour groups and listen to the little introductions and stories that their tour guide was telling their tour group. LOL.
This is like a dream come true. Like since young, i have always watched HK dramas and movies and i always see the palace, but i have nv imagine to be seeing the real one.

The palace is huge and beautiful, but just cannot imagine anyone staying behind these walls for their entire life back then.

Just imagine how tiring it must be for the maids and eunuch to make their way from one end to another. A buggy would have been useful for them.

A vat that was used to hold water, in case of fire, the vat will be toppled over to put out the fire. doesnt sound convincing~ =X



the one throne that causes so much war and blood shed.

delicate carvings on each and every doors in the palace. impressive.


Imperial Garden


Back door of the palace.
Although there were baricade to prevent cab touts to enter the perimeter, however, there is literally no way you can flag a cab if you need one fast. They will pester you once you exit the barricade, but all u need to do is smile and say a firm no and you will be fine. Walk further up to the (small road up) Jing Shan Park. We managed to flag one in 5 mins.

Decided to head to this highly raved snack place, 护国寺小吃. Man, we were so disappointed.

For one, those famous ones like 驴打滚 (Lv Da Gun), 艾窝窝 (Ai Wo Wo), 奶油炸糕 (Nai You Zha Gao) are all sold out cos we were there in late noon.

We ordered the 炸酱面 (Zha Jiang Mian), 面茶 (Mian Cha), 碗豆黄 (Wan Dou Huang), 焦圈(Jiao Quan), only the 焦圈 and 碗豆黄 was not bad. For 面茶, we really cannot appreciate it, its totally bland, probably we ate it the wrong way and we are really not very accustomed to the taste of the 炸酱面.

What a shame. I am sure it is due to different taste bud. Like things that locals like may not be what we like. I saw the locals had a great time eating all the food, including the 面茶 (something like a gooey mixture of flour & some other powder). I will definitely go back to try their famous 驴打滚 and 奶油炸糕 :)
And the things are really cheap, most of them are like 5 - 10 RMB?
Btw you can get 驴打滚 and 艾窝窝, their traditional snack in prepacked form, in this shop call 御食园 as souvenirs in airport or Wang Fu Jing.









Left to right: 碗豆黄 (bean pastry), 面茶, 焦圈 (fried dough stick)

We then headed over to Wang Fu Jing for dinner.


We then headed over to Wang Fu Jing for dinner.
This 冰糖雪梨 became my favourite drink in Beijing. Do try the freshly made ones with pear fruits and dates in it.

Dinner was at this 24 hour sichuan hotpot place call, 海底捞 (Haidilao). It was super awesome and very reasonably price.

Never a fan of steamboat, cos the steamboat in Singapore (other than those i have at home), uses cheap ingredients and very salty soup base. But this 海底捞 place impressed me to the max.
We ordered the twin hotpot that comes with Chicken soupbase and Spicy soup base (must try)

Bill comes up to about 50RMB per person and we have alot of left over ingredients!

And this place have really good service, they give you apron, phone covers to protect your phone, remove the layer of oil on your mala soup and were very fast in refilling your water!


Thumbs up for the awesome service! This will be my top return list the next time i go.

Must order: Sliced beef, hand made beef balls!

Also note that, this place allows you to order "half" portion, we ordered 1 portion for alot of things, the waiter ended up looking at us suspiciously and reminded us that we could actually order half portion.

And we realised why when the food came, there must be like 20 meatballs in one portion! The ingredients come in very big portion. So we are glad the waiter gave us a friendly reminded, otherwise we will be left with more food!

We chatted at Haidilao till about 11PM and decided to head back to hotel for rest. And then the most terrible thing happened to us!

We were stranded at Wang Fu Jing. Super stranded. There was no car, no cab, hardly even the black taxis! Took us almost 40 mins of waiting and changing 3 different waiting spots. :(

This is not cool.

I have researched on tripadvisor before on cab issues, and only know that it is hard to get a cab during peak hours like 4 pm. but i didnt know it would be hard to get at 11 +! :( SO this is a warning to all of you who decide to walk ard WFJ late night, be prepared to take a black cab or just take a train back!