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Sesungguhnya aku malas nak buat apa2 pun. Malas nak kerja, malas nak kemas rumah, malas nak menulis, malas nak pijak entrance fitness center. Jibril pun kadang2 tak terurus tapi tidurku still ala2 tak cukup. Dah 2 malam, they left me sleeping alone depan tv in the hall! Yg tak malas cuma bab makan and tengok tv. I refuse to step on the weighing scale.

Diam tak diam, dah March 2012. Bukan diaorang kata end of the world is this year? Bila agaknya. End of my days here will be on late April. Kepada yg tak tau, aku dah quit everything work-wise. Why? Biarlah rahsia.. ke tak rahsia pun? Whateverr! Yg sebenarnya, aku penat serba-serbi after so many yrs; tak kaya atau berjaya pun, hutang tak berkurang pun! Btw define "berjaya" to me? There was a point in this recent life, i was thinking..i've been working for so many yrs, bila nak retire? Ala lambatnya lagi. Dulu berangan nak gapai Kilimanjaro, till now masih berangan, but in reality, i'm contented just to be with Jib (but not mengadap dia 24-7-365). Gila tak ambitious aku ni! Ke dah patah sayap, tergolek dog?!! Nasib baik, ada org yg murah hati nak bayarkan big part of my debts so hati ini lapang sikit. Esok lusa if takde duit, kawan2 sudilah kiranya belanja i minum kopi and karipap murah :P Insya Allah i'll be back doing something cuma for now, i nak soul-searching (cue: read sleep,read,tv peacefully). Other than that, i can just picture sending and fetching Jib to and fro school on a bicycle..Cute tak? We promise to wear helmets!

waiting for class to start sambil menghabiskan air kotak.

Speaking of Jib, he has settled well in school but lately lambat pulak sampai sekolah agama. Sure February report wont be favorable. Dia susah betul nak bangun awal n siap cepat2. But otherwise he's a happy kid. So proud of his schools. Macam dia sajalah yg pegi sekolah and sekolah dia saja yg hebat! Cehh football field pun xde. Unlike my now-defunct lee.kuan.yew primary school! So happy with many friends. So happy with the school van. GBS yo!

recess time yg heavenly!

Bab belajar aku rasa he's coping fine, macam tau je apa yg he's learning in school but boys being boys; mmg lazy or susah nak focus. Highlight of his day is recess! Memang dia sungguh2 makan. Mula2 kemaruk makan nasi ayam minus the ayam (can you figure this out?), then ada choc waffles phase, then roti canai, lately asyik nak mashed potatoes. There was a day he brought RM3. Mashed potato 1 cup = RM1.20. He bought 3. Cuba congak how dia or the canteen operator kira? Duit yg bagi tak penah ada balance! Walau daily bawak bekal air kotak; sometimes bekal food and air kosong too. Nasiblah hidup zaman now dgn parents yg mampu. If tak bagi duit, kesian pulak nanti lapar. Pegi and balik sekolah pun makan heavy.. biarlah. The standard 1 kids in his school macam rupa darjah 3, including him. Tu blm bab stationeries, tak pernah dia blk sekolah with full stationeries neatly in pencil case! Almost daily, aku naik hantu. Then the baju and kasut sekolah yg masya Allah like belacan; i am constantly super-duper stressful! I don't know how moms with lots of kids handle all these w/out turning insane. There were days yg aku rasa aku nak bakar je bag sekolah dia when either semua benda takde or kotor nak mampos! Ni blm mengadap him full-time dah rant like org gila!

Perarakan maulidur rasul sekitar kedai2 di BJ. Pls note mak yg gagal siapkan anak in his best baju melayu..ingat it was a normal school day uniform required.

Then there was a day he accidentally blurted out to my brother someone had been punching him daily in school. Korek punya korek barulah dia story..nasiblah dia x buat stunts tak nak go to school ke apa. I went to confront and report; tak tau lah apa update the kid. Nampak macam he had no friends but why must you punch your own classmate? Nevertheless i hope these kids will grow to be fine individuals. Yg anak aku ni, baik sgt dgn semua org..org kalau buat dia pun dia diamkan aje; asyik cakap the other kid lg kuat. Jenuhla we psyched him to be stern with others; barulah tak kena buli or stationeries asyik hilang. Ni dah masuk tae kwon do class, hopefully ada outlet nak release his abundant energy and helps build his self-confidence.

Lastly, Luis Suarez belajar taekwondo selepas gagal menyumbang gol dlm kekalahan pd Arsenal! (baju blm ada size!)

Oh i miss you jib when you're not around.

Yet my blood pressure rises whenever you're around!

Is that a rhyme? :P

Tokyo

Tokyo
Day 4

takuya kimura and i; kekasih awal dan akhir :P

because of him i bought a nikon camera!

After exiting Mt Fuji area, we are off to Tokyo. Very excited but wondered whether Tokyo has much to offer as the places we've been to. Quite a journey from Fuji-Hakone area; end of expressway, no more R&R..we were eager to drink up our last kopi kilimanjaro. Org M'sia taste harus M'sian..that coffee tastes like our local black brew..very nice!

Upon arrival, barulah nampak the skyscrapers and slightly more colorful, uniquely designed buildings but i found buildings in KL have more design and character. Then we noticed most of the windows are tagged with red triangle stickers - this is to indicate that the window could be opened in case an earthquake occurs. There seemed to be lack of giant billboards in Tokyo despite the famous neon lights of Shinjuku we pictured constantly in our minds previously. In fact the office areas are mostly grey and unappealing, unlike in Singapore or KL. The only billboard i could recall there was of the latest Honda CRV. In fact cars were not congested like they are supposed to be in a mega city; must be the limited and expensive parking then. Most Tokyo people use public transport for daily use; the cars are reserved for weekends.

First stop to Asakusa. At first we thought, not another temple/ shrine! Rupanya at the end of the way there was a long street full of Japs kitsch..ooh lala we were in heaven. You want swords/ kimono/ fans/ cookies - it's all here! So kami mulalah aggressively shopping. No, i did not get myself a kimono - it was too expensive, around thousands RM, kang blk M'sia - when and how to wear it? But he did get himself a samurai sword! It wasn't an actual thing, more of a replica but real nicely crafted and pricey. But later that sword was subject to a series of thorough checks at the airports and kena tahan by customs. *Note: if you want to buy a sword or the likes, pls get a letter okaying it from the Chief Police in M'sia before you can enter it locally. sekian community message sekejap ni * Back to the place, i bought Jib the full ninja outfit. He requested for drums again. And a few other nonsense we bought. I didn't count back how much those really cost cause i knew i'd faint after conversion! Nasib mr banker just stashed lots of yen into my bag earlier so malas nak pikir. We were the champs of shopping there!

Lunch at a Japanese restaurant. Since we were served mostly vegetables and seafood, we watched the chef slicing the fish expertly in front of us while eating. See the sotong kurita hanging? Lunch is mostly in bento boxes and cheaper than dinner.


After that, we were brought to Ginza for shopping. Ginza is like Orchard Road with all the designer labels left and right. The guide told us most of the labels are cheaper in M'sia or comparably priced. Only Burberry was cheaper and offered more choices there. So he stopped us at Burberry. The clothes were still over the top expensive. The famous trench coat cost RM 8k! But i did get myself a bag..mula2 macam ala2 takde perasaan, lama2 suka+syg gila sbb rupanya Burberry bags are quite mahal in M'sia..akak clueless pulak! Most of the other shops tak pergi survey pun due to limited time. Unlike in KL where we have giant malls, here they have many shops selling their own products. Like if you go to Chanel, all 7 floors of the building/ shop will be just Chanel. Same goes for the other brands like Prada/ Gap/ whatever. But we did spend lots of time at Hakuhinkan Toy Shop at an intersection. The place was believed to be more than a 100 years old. All the weird, latest, classic toys could be found there. Jangan kata Jibril, makpak Jib pun syok gila duduk sini. But boys being boys; whether in Singapore, KL or Tokyo - Ultraman tetap di hati! Dia boleh stock up on raksaksa Ultraman here. Lantak pi lah, price sama je in KL. We even took a picture of him and transform it into a ninja keychain..yeay! Everyone seronok melayan Jib. Sejak ke sana, semangat Ultraman dia makin meluap-luap. He did ask, where are all the ultramans? I replied..Japan now is a safe and peaceful place so they don't need ultramans at the moment. Now the ultramans are sleeping; recharging their powers LOL! Dlm bus pun menyanyi lagu Jepun ultraman sampai the driver and guide suka and praised him..kata what he sang was correct! Blk sini, dia perasan can speak Japanese cos he managed to sing the song well!

Then we went to take pictures of yellow, yellow trees..cantik! Dari jauh, x nampak cantik sgt sampai ada tour member usik the guide, tak cantik pun! It is near the National Diet of Japan. At first i wondered what's national diet..rupanya parliament. On our way here, we passed the palace- official residence of the Emperor. The palace was situated very near to Ginza and surrounded by a lake. Katanya this is the only palace for the emperor and family. Unlike in many other countries where there are many palaces for the rulers and their kins.

Last itinerary for the day was shopping time at Shinjuku..yeay! But since it was drizzling constantly and temperatures ranged between 5 to 8 degrees celcius, sejuk gila! Potong mood nak shop. Nasib indoors semua heated. Our gathering place was the underground station at gate number aku tak ingat dah. Here, the underground place was huge as Shinjuku was the main station and carried many different train lines. It is believed millions use this station daily therefore if you agree to meet someone or assemble, you must know at which precise exit yg berjanji tu. One of the exits led straight to Labi, an electrical megastore that seemed like the biggest in Shinjuku. Are the stuff cheap? Well comparable prices to Malaysia BUT here if you buy in 1 set, you will get more accessories tapi if beli asing2, lg mahal! For example, DSLR yg semua wannabe-photographers want tu, for about RM2.7k - you will a complete set with an additional lens. Ok i didn't buy DSLR lah..leceh nak carry bersiar-siar but i am nevertheless seduced by Takuya Kimura hawking for Nikon. So belilah yg kecik comel yg we said to Jib; it's yours! Habis dia snapped segala gambar pavement, cement, tree barks etc..shish! Then we just moved around from one shop to another but since time was limited and we were cold, we didn't buy anything. We just soaked up the atmosphere :)

That night we retired to Keio Plaza Shinjuku Hotel. That place was enormous; the lobby was swarming with people of different nationalities. Dah macam United Nations. Loved the room; spacious and luxurious. There is also a daily free shuttle to and fro Disneyland there; kena book aje. That night walau penat and sleepy, Jib and i just couldn't miss exploring the shops in the hotel. Jibril lg psychotic-pakai baju ninja complete with plastic sword! Kalau di negara omputih, harus kena tahan label suspected terrorist hehehe!!

Jib versus the volcano

HAKONE & MT FUJI

Day 3

After a wonderful night at Act City Okura Hotel, Hamamatsu, we bade farewell to the city. Dlm perjalanan barulah nampak 1 Indian restaurant; must be for the foreigners who work and live at the automotive companies nearby. Adalah nampak Eneos petrol station there, if di M'sia Eneos ni kedai car accessories at Jusco. Now we were slowly on our way to Tokyo but for day 3, we would stop over at Hakone National Park and Mt Fuji. Spirits were high but the journey was quite far and long. Jibril raja tidur in the bus. Since we both were seated right behind the driver, everyone saw him and thought he did not sleep well each night padahal mmg suka tidur in moving vehicles. Since he's a baby! When we stopped for r n' r, he'd be asleep and i just left him under supervision of the driver while us all explored the vending machines and what nots. Jangan tak tau Japan mmg penuh benda2 merepek and moi, even at 33, couldn't resist buying sticker books or erasers! Dahle rasa nak bertapa dlm toilet..warm and bloody clean. Malu aku sebagai umat di negara Islam, our cleanliness is nothing compared to these Japs. Bak kata guide, since they don't have Banglas or Indos to clean their shits, so they care for their toilets with full kasih syg! Ada paper cover for the toilet seats, plus cleaning gel, ada flushing sounds in case you want to be discreet while doing your business (kira cover bunyi lah!), ada control knobs on speed of water bidet.. senang cerita part of reason i think i can survive there is the cleanliness and efficiency of the toilets :)

Then during the long journey, i was surprised to see not many cars on the highway. The highways mainly consist of 2 lanes only and drivers adhere to the speed limits. The guide explained that while car purchase is cheap in Japan, the ownership is not. Before buying a car, you have to buy a parking lot first and rent it on yearly basis. Then each year when you renew your road tax, the car will be inspected to make sure it is in excellent state minus any bumps/dents/traffic offences. So that explains why reconditioned cars from Japan are in very good condition with low mileage. They only use it for weekends! Plus the highways are damn expensive. Katanya the toll cost from Osaka to Tokyo reach RM6k! (expensive even by Japanese standards) That's why the public transport there is excellent. Tapi shinkansen (bullet train) tupun x ramai guna sbb it ain't cheap either-good for intercity connections but it can cost up to RM400 per trip depending on the distance and time. Masa naik, takde rasa laju sgt but i'm no speed gauge. He told us that the Japs use courier service(Citylink) which are cheap by their standards to ship off heavy items like rice/cooking oil/groceries to their homes after purchase or if they need to bring luggages to the airports prior to trips.

At Hakone National Park. Cold..brrrrr! Here we experienced smoke coming out of our mouths as we spoke but no snow. Mmg jakun. Dahle we had to climb like a thousand steps to reach part of the summit to get best view of Mt Fuji in the background. The smoke in the pictures are sulphur, there was even hot springs at the site whereby eggs are boiled on the spot. Walaupun J peminat tegar eggs, tak sanggup we all nak eat the eggs yg black due to the high sulphur. Dgn the strong smell lg! There's also egg ice cream sold at the convenience store at the grounds; tak sempat nak try cos other half sibuk ambil gambar sampai nak kiamat! The ice cream was yellow n did look yummy..hmmm :(



Lihatlah Mt Fuji! It is still an active volcano but instead of spewing crazily like Merapi, it blew off small sparks of larva frequently. Dan lihatlah beribu-ribu steps itu. Walau hanya 1050m above ground, i felt like dying! The old aunties and grandmas in these pics were definitely healthier and fitter than me; siap potong aku tau! (kalau panjat dgn jun, sure kita seronok maki2an bersama!)




Down from Hakone, we stopped by for lunch at Lake Ashi; also in the vicinity. Oh cantiknya tasik ni.. akak in love with this place! Dgn pirate ships, the swan boats; syg those were not included in our itinerary..somehow these boats looked familiar when i was younger. Was it from images on tv/mags or did we have a boat like that somewhere around in the 80s? And look at the food served. Fish/seafood/vege fried with batter (tempura), rice, chawan mushi, miso soup..daily routine. Jib had yakult only! Oh in Japan, Yakult IS big. I did not see any Vitagen. In fact i grew up more to yakult in Singapore dulu. Yg dlm small glass kecik tu wine apa jadah ntah which we substituted with Yakult~



This was at some memorial at the foot of Hakone; supposedly offered good views of Mt Fuji too. Kami dah penat pose! Bapaknya masih x puashati dgn the pics..ya ampun!! Aku rasa nak mati, as usual, mendaki n menuruni lembah2 curam di sini. Patutla the Japs hidup lama, they are fitter than me.

At last Mt Fuji..

So much for the snow we anticipated LOL! This was stage 4 of the Mt Fuji reserve open to public. Stage 5 had been closed due to heavy snow; vehicles cant access due to slippery roads. We didn't get to frolick, roll or lie on the snow. But jakuns being jakuns, still wanted to touch it a bit. Pity the kids, scraping for bits of snow to make balls and threw to each other. Jib sempat said to Ultraman; see, saya dah bawa awak balik kg di Fuji! Here we bumped into some Indos, Indos ramai dtg Japan-they seem to be very fascinated by the culture/ lifestyle, tak bolehla kami nak kutuk2/ maki2 freely due to the same language spoken. In fact the souvenir shop lady here spoke good English and bits of Indo/ Malay!

And..for the night we retired to Fuji Mihana Hotel nearby. We were to sleep on just mattress and tatami beds. The hotel was fronting Lake Kawaguchi. Hatiku meronta-ronta nak naik those swan boats but it was getting dark even though time was around 4pm. Akak kechiwa! Agenda that night was to assemble for dinner in kimonos provided in each room. Oh how we complied..what a sporting tour group we were! Mine was short; mesti sbb perempuan Jepun pendek2 chet. Lakiku obsessed nak ikat n betulkan us all; dah rupa shogun dah! The kids were so cute in it..Jiben anak Jepun! The funny thing was earlier they took a bath at the onsen (hot spring) there naked! But separated la males and females. Me of course, tak kuasa nak pegi sbb kena totally nude. I think most of the ladies did not go but the guys did. Other half took Jib so i told him to mind Jib's mouth in case he were to utter something stupid..sudahnya bapaknya yg pulang dgn macam2 cerita merepek and tak senonoh hahahaha! Jib was just in awe :) That night we had buffet dinner- mixed Jap and continental menu and Hokkaido king crabs. The Japs use actual kitchen scissors to cut the big steamed crabs. Mula2 rasa tak manis pun; rupanya part yg sgt manis is at kaki2 ketam tu. Sedap gak! We were totally relaxed after that; buying loads of knick knacks and souvenirs from the hotel souvenir shop, updating my fb/twitter/games since baru jumpa wi fi. Apparently since the March 2011 earthquake and nuclear reactor disaster, the Japs have been very concerned with the levels of radiation. Every few kilometers on the roads there will be a signage indicating the level of radiation at that particular place. Therefore most places (hotels inclusive) use dial up internet instead of wifi which is mostly available at the lobby area to minimize radiation. Terseksa jiwaku terputus hubungan luar sbb only brought ipad n phone!

Note: next time, kena cari tempat yg betul2 snow resort if nak merasa main snow. But no, Tokyo tak ada. Maybe at Sapporo/ Niigata.

*On this day, I wore Zara top with Uniqglo heat-tech inner tee, Burberry jeans and Benetton sweater(50% off at Parkson Pavillion) yg very warm! Jib wore RL tee, Esprit jeans and Wintertime gloves and coat. His boots are from Isetan KL. Org beli, dia pun sibuk nak jugak!*

Kyoto

Kyoto - the cultural capital of Japan. Everything about this place is breathtakingly beautiful. Sampai aku berangan nak duduk sana! It is also the city of geishas but too bad, we did not see/ meet any geisha. Should i meet one, haruslah ada drama2 Memoirs of a Geisha (that is my fav book!) in my head :P But geishas nowadays (in limited numbers) are surely of a different pedigree of the geishas of the past; surely not as enchanting or intriguing!

Day 2

Early morning, we bade farewell to Osaka and journeyed to Kyoto. It was about an hour journey. Upon reaching the city, everything looked pretty as the trees mostly were turning red or at certain parts of the city, they turned yellow since it's late autumn approaching winter. I was so in love with the picturesque sights..subhanallah!

And so we walked up the steep touristy streets leading to Kiyomizu-Dera, pretty shops along the way selling tourist knick-knacks and snacks. Of course even though it was cold, we had to have ice cream like the Japs. I had matcha ice cream. See the price of the fans behind me? 1000 yen=RM40 for one! (trick to comprehend jap yen is to eliminate the two zeros at the back, then multiply by 4 for our exchange rate. kira macam 10 hengget tp sbb duit dia tinggi, sila kali 4!)



This is Kiyomizu-Dera. Cantik sgt! It's a hilltop temple (Unesco heritage site) yg katanya built minus any nails since ages ago. The compound and background tersangatlah indah.


Inside temple area. The notes hung with red ribbons are wishes made (doa2 & harapan) at the temple n written by visitors on small wooden plaques. Jib egged me to buy one and write something but the dad tak bagi; takut lari akidah :P


Upon descending to the exit, we found this fresh spring water which came cascading into poles like these. Jib egged me again to queue and tried drinking. Since it's water, why not? The Japs konon adalah bayar duit to buy cawan ajaib yg works miracles katanya to drink it. Kami tadah dgn the long cups provided yg disterilize in a machine right there and drank a bit. Oh talk about hygiene and efficiency!


Cantikkan? This is outdoor cafe there berlatarbelakangkan real beautiful trees. Lihatlah dedaunan merah itu!


Next we went to another temple yg tak nampak hebat sgt but according to history, the site marked where the former palace ke city council of Kyoto was then. And once, it was burnt down but rebuilt again. Sbb tu the place penuh batu2 kecik, takut terbakar lagi. I swore at this place i saw a boy or something on top of a tree at the right side of entrance. I tried pointing out to others tapi semua buat bodoh. Apakah?? Tapi i had no nightmares or gangguan perasaan that night!

And lastly we rounded off Kyoto visit to this Golden Temple, another Unesco heritage site nearby the Kyoto Botanic gardens. This place was also very beautiful but we didn't go overboard taking pics this time around. Katanya the temple behind was built entirely in gold centuries ago; ntahkan ye totally in gold. Tengoklah Jib posing sakan, dah macam the killer in Urba Legend!

Later on we took a long ride out of Kyoto to our next destination yg aku x ingat mana..took a shinkansen ride to Hamamatsu city. There were many car factories en route including Toyota city; seronok tgk rows and rows of car waiting to be shipped to other destinations. We also saw lots of crazy roller coasters by the roads; rupanya in Japan, there are many theme parks and semua penuh org! R&R on the highways pun sgt best. The guide introduced us to kopi kilimanjaro, bought from vending machines. We could see how the coffee was prepared to the tune of kopi dangdut! Well Japan is vending machines galore; other half asyik buy drinks while Jib nak ice cream again n again! The toilets are impressive; clean, fascinating, ada air nak cebok (the chinese yg x reti guna), heated sbb sejuk and omg, seriously i can live in Japan! Upon reaching Hamamatsu station, we had dinner and shopped. The station has a 7 storey-mall! Hotel pun across the road so no need to rush as the bus had brought our luggages there and unload them. We, as usual were the last ones to arrive. Ada je benda merepek nak see and buy. Dlm pusing nak cari hotel, terjumpa kedai Bic Camera which closed bit later at 9pm. Apa lg shop lagilah..this is not a camera shop but more of an electronics megastore; ada toys and other what-nots lagi! Sampai bilik, dah penat sudah..hotel room was very big and beautiful..tak jadi tido terus, sempat watch The Tourist finally!

* This day,i wore Uniqglo white shirt and jeans, DVF jacket. Jib wore RL shirt, Esprit jeans and Winter Time jacket *

osaka

Day 1

Touchdown at Kansai, Osaka's airport at 6.30 am. Early, groggy due to lack of sleep. Night flight of almost 6 hours with plenty of entertainment. At 3am, J was still giggling..sigh..Kansai airport was very bare, plain but it was located on a man-made island; constructed just for the airport. Initially, we didn't feel much difference till we stepped outside..bak kata Jib, it was like being at the frozen food section! Temp: 12 degrees celcius. Hopped onto our bus with our guide, Chow. Aiyo very the apek one; he either spoke cantonese/ mandarin or very broken Malay which sounded very Indonesian. Ada ke bus, dia sebut burst! Rupanya he always takes on tours from Indo too.

And to Universal Studios we arrived at 8.45am. It was cold outdoors. Thank goodness i managed to prep J and I with warm clothing prior to the flight. The place opened at 10am. We had to queue and wait for more than an hour. It was amazing to see the entrance packed to the brim in neat rows as mostly Japs and us, tourists patiently waited to enter sharply at 10. Nak duduk atas bench or on the floor pun cannot..our butts were freezing!




Once inside, it was total lost in translation! Everything's in japanese. We couldn't understand a thing if they went on yakking and yakking and suddenly everyone laughed. Arnold Schwarzennegger pun cakap Jepun in Terminator! Macam episod Istana Takeshi meets Iron Chef! But the rides and atmosphere were awesome. Yelah akak kan jakun, blm pernah sampai USS before. Tapi best! When it got cold, we would walk indoors to heat ourselves then dah ok, keluar lagi..explore, naik rides, maki2 org :P Jib upon seeing multitudes of merchandise, semua nak beli tapi bila maknya looked at the price..all multiplied by 4. Letak balik la nak, simple keychain pun jadi RM40! Nak makan pun payah, bismillahi tawakkal jelah apa2 vegetarian. But here actually, you can smuggle in food. Cuma when i'm hungry and it's cold, i want hot food! Hot choc and churros never tasted better ;)

After 3.45pm there, we headed out to Osaka city. According to the guide, it is Japan's second busiest city. The evidence was there, we could see the busy port operations, the hustle bustle of the city. Cuma what caught me surprised was that the buildings lack fine architecture. Everything looked boxy, plain, grey (bkn sbb habuk ye!) and orderly. Rupanya the action was at the backlanes; all the neon lights, endless human traffic. The guide told us Japs love using the backlanes for entry and exit of places. That night we dined on shabu-shabu but there, the shabu2 was only meats and vege. No seafood. Aishh go vege and eggs la kami. Toilet di restaurant ni was very clean and spacious, seriously Jibril was so in awe sampai nak tidur there! Siap marah aku tak susun slipper elok2 after using it.(we were barefoot inside) Me? Was super excited to check out the lights and shops outside. Ada H&M just behind the hotel but because peserta dua org lagi tu v sleepy and tired, no time to check it out. sob sob. The shops stretch for kilometers at the backlanes, but yg maybe murah sikit than shops in M'sia was only Uniqglo. Oh see here - the iconic neon light of the Glico man. And there's the Shinsaibashi river by the shops; very clean, very scenic. Shops generally close at 8pm while restaurants at 10pm.

Checked in Cross Osaka Hotel. The place was nice. Ada org mula2 sampai termenung at lobby, next minute dah snoring there! I was in love with the toilets. So cantik and the bath foams and shampoo were Shiseido! I like, i like, i like!! Cuma they were packaged in big bottles so janganlah rembat. Toothbrush, toothbrush, razors were all packed nicely and aplenty. Itu kami angkut. Outside each hotel floor ada vending machine to buy drinks or TV card. If tak beli tv card, mmg layanlah tv bahasa jepun semata-mata. Btw that was the view from J's bedside. The front section of Osaka city roads. Compare it to the earlier pictures of the vibrant backlanes.

*on this day, i wore Uniqglo heat-tech green turtleneck, burberry jeans and DVF jacket. Boots by Snowfly, 50% off at Isetan KL. V comfy and durable. Jib wore RL tee, Gap jeans and Hard Rock Macau sweater.*