Outside, the weather’s raging. Storm Signal No. 3 for Typhoon Lando is up where I live, and work and classes have been suspended for tomorrow. I love staying home, but not when it’s because the heavy winds and rains are keeping me prisoner. I hope everyone stays safe, and the weather gets better real soon. For now, however, I’m in the mood for some gastronomic remembrances, particularly those that I was able to take photos of when I was in Nagoya. So, tighten your belts, remember your diet, and read on. Continue reading “JapanEats: Food-trippin’ in Nagoya”
Japan 2014: Mata ne, Nagoya~!
To be honest, when I was drawing up an itinerary for the Nagoya leg of my Japan tour (LOLZ. Indulge me, woncha.), there weren’t a lot of attractions in Nagoya that intrigued me. At least, according to those lists of “places to see in Nagoya”. Most were industrial-themed, and I was really more the type to go for culture, history, or nature. On hindsight, I realized there are such places in Nagoya; I just didn’t look hard enough. I suppose that is something to be rectified in the future?
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Nagoya, Japan 2014: The Nagoya Castle Tower
It’s, what, 79 days before Christmas? Yes, in the Philippines, the countdown to Christmas Day started when September came around, and it is now normal to wake up to the early morning TV or radio show reminding you how many days there are left to the big day. Personally, I don’t really feel it yet and, given how short my attention span is, I think that’s a good thing. See, if I start celebrations early, I’ll run out of steam and the arrival of the actual day of Christmas would be… well, for lack of a better word, anticlimactic. So to each his own, I suppose. For now, I want to wrap up my visit to the Nagoya Castle by talking about visiting the Tower itself.
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FF#1: Watching MIRACLE in Japan
I am well aware of the not-so-good connotation that the world “fangirl” brings to many people. And I don’t blame them. That does not mean, however, that I will completely wash my hands clean of the name. I won’t. I am a fangirl, and I realized that one way to show how much I embrace that identity is by starting a ‘FANgirl friday’ series of posts on this blog. And what better way to start things off on an official footing, than with a post related to my most cherished fandom? Let me talk about the time I watched a movie in Japan, and it so happened to be “Miracle“, which starred Aiba, 1/5 of my favorite group of all time, Arashi.
Nagoya, Japan 2014: Nagoya Castle’s Hommaru Palace
As things are starting to wind down for the year and we are about to enter the last quarter of 2015, so are my posts on my trip to Japan last year. I cannot believe it’s almost a year since I was traipsing around the “Land of the Rising Sun”.
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Nagoya, Japan 2014: To The Nagoya Castle
There are probably two ways to spend a holiday: rest or sightsee. For me, I prefer the latter. So, upon arrival at around 1pm in Nagoya via shinkansen from Kyoto, we immediately checked in at BestWestern Hotel Nagoya in Sakae, freshened up a bit (or tried to), and immediately proceeded to pay a visit to Nagoya Castle before heading to the Arashi concert later that evening (I talked about the Digitalian concert in this post.
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Nagoya, Japan 2014: The Izakaya Experience
The Japanese love to drink, and they love beer and spirits. You cannot help but come to this conclusion when you see it done in most every jdorama you watch, or featured in many CFs and promotional material, or even when you are walking around from early evening until late at night in relatively crowded places and see ladies and gentlemen – still wearing their office attires and toting those business cases – stumbling out of well-lit establishments being all boisterous and, yes, drunk. After-work drinks are a norm, and it doesn’t even matter that it is the middle of the week and they have to go to work the next morning. Last November, after watching the CNBLUE concert, I, Peach, Jas and Slow finally felt hunger pangs and decided to look for a place to eat. We found ourselves wandering around Sakae, in the area filled with many drinking places or, as they call it, izakayas.
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CNBLUE 2014 Arena Tour: WAVE… in Nagoya
The first week of December 2014 is a wonderful, wonderful, time to be an Arashi & CNBLUE fangirl in Nagoya. When we were planning the trip, the concerts weren’t really the “main” event, since (a) the Nagoya leg of thw “CNBLUE 2014 Arena Tour: Wave” was originally scheduled sometime October or November. And the odds of us scoring Arashi tickets were, well, very low, indeed. And then, it happened. The CNBLUE cons were moved to December 3 and 4. Our flight home from Nagoya is on December 7. AND THEN Arashi’s Nagoya concert was set for the 5th. Right there and then, we just knew WE HAD TO GO TO ALL THREE. It’s a good thing Peach is a member of the Japan FC, so she was able to get tickets for two nights. Continue reading “CNBLUE 2014 Arena Tour: WAVE… in Nagoya”
Arashi Live Tour 2014: THE DIGITALIAN… in Nagoya
I’m back home from a two-week trip to the Land of the Rising Sun. I’ve seen lots of things, had lots of experiences, met quite a number of people, and been to a considerable number of places, but the first post I am making is that of the concert to top all concerts that I’ve seen live: Arashi Live Tour 2014 – The Digitalian. Continue reading “Arashi Live Tour 2014: THE DIGITALIAN… in Nagoya”