Liar Game The Final Stage

NAO-CHAN!!!! Went and watched the Liar Game Final Stage Movie!! I loved the first season of the drama and enjoyed watching the second season for Akiyama and Katsuragi! It was a no brainer that I had to watch the movie (since the drama did not conclude the game).

The movie was exactly like the drama. Same actors, same way of filming the scenes, same music and opening credit. There was nothing new brought to the table and lacked a bit of intensity. Everything was predictable from Funagawa's betrayal to Akiyama's fit! But isn't this why Japanese Drama are so good! I enjoyed the movie, the last game was interesting enough, but I think it could have been done as a TV special and spare me my 1800 yen.

Osaka Takoyaki

When in Osaka, there are a few specialty that must be tried! Takoyaki is one of them!! They are easy to find, cheap and delicious!! They consist  of little dough balls filled with octopus. They serve it with a special sauce and mayo. You will find them at stands through out the city, at festival and in some Izakaya. The price range from 300 yen to 500 yen. Although they can be found all over Japan, Osaka's Takoyaki are by far the best one in the country!!! Here are a few of my favorite spot in Osaka!

Favorite takoyaki stand in America mura

My number 1 spot is across the plaza in America mura *Shinsaibashi*. They sell for 300 yen and are the best one in the city! Once you get your order you can sit at the plaza across the street with the locals and enjoy the funkiness of the surrounding.

My number 2 spot is right underneath Osaka tower. The last few times I went there, the staff spoke English so it might be a good place to go if you are worried about ordering.

The long way to Osaka!

Here I am, unpacked in beautiful sunny Osaka. But the road to get here was long rainy and windy! Lets go back 4 days in time. Last Wednesday morning my alarm clock did not ring so I ended up waking up 5 minutes before mom was picking me up for the airport. After a mad dash I did it and manage to take a shower, finish packing and say my farewells...

I was flying aircanada on a direct flight. I have to say the direct flight made such a big difference. It was worth spending the extra 113$. It took less than 2 minutes to go through custom and the plane itself was very comfortable. The only down fall was the food that truly sucked!! But I was ready and had packed a lunch of myself.

The flight went well and took just under 13 hours. The landing turned out to be the event as we tried landing in heavy wind. It was scary. Very scary.

When I got to the custom, I ended up waiting more than 1 hour 40 minutes. It was total chaos!!! Hard to believe I was in Japan!!! I finally made it and jumped on the cheap train. Got to Tokyo, Shinjuku. Found my sister no problem and we headed out for dinner. I had Hayashi rice!! I had never had hayashi rice in Japan. I make my own at home in Canada so I was excited to find out if the taste was the same. Well turns out that my hayashi rice taste NOTHING like it should! I will have to find a new recipe.

After dinner, I met up with Lindsay and had a well deserve rest! The next day, we had about 15 hours to kill before the night bus to Osaka. Marie and I went and bought glasses at Coolense *Tokyu Hands, Ikebukuro*. I got a pair of prescription sunglasses for 18 dollars.

On that day we had plan to to go Harajuku and Shibuya but since it was pouring rain we decided to stay in Ikebukuro sunshine city. We played arcade games, did a few Purikura and went to watch a Japanese movie. Liar Game the final stage. You can check out my movie review in a separate post.

For dinner, Marie and I went to the famous ramen street in Shinjuku and had a delicious soup. You can check out my Tokyo Food Guide post about this restaurant.  Before taking of on the night bus, we met with Chingy, Ani and Lindsay for some drinks.

At 11h50 we hopped on the night bus with Chingy and off we left for Osaka. Yesterday morning we finally hit FTO *Funky Town Osaka* and found our way to Banana Guest House where we will be staying. Look for a separate review post about this guest house.

We then made our way to Osaka Jo Hall to buy the concert goods for the show we will be watching today. The place was ridiculously packed with Fans and also Hanami goers. After buying our talking bank and T-shirts, we walked around Dotonbori and ate a delicious Okonomiyaki. Check for a post about this restaurant in my Osaka Food Guide.

Yoshitsune's Footstep

View Yoshitsune Footstep in a larger map

There are only 4 days left before take off. I am growing ever more anxious. I hate flying. I am relieved that this time my flight is a direct one. No stop over, no long wait.
In the last few days, Marie and I have been working out the last details of the trip. First we will spend 2 days in Tokyo, then we will set up camp for 3 weeks in Osaka. From there we will explore the Kansai region, with a quick trip to Hiroshima, Kumamoto, Kanazawa and Hataka. Then we will go back to Tokyo for 3 days. We will go for 1 day to Takasaki and then we will change camp once more and move in with Ayu-chan's family in Chiba. Her father proposed to take us to Fukushima for 2 days and we are also planning a day trip to Kisarazu.

Now the interesting part of our trip is that I decided to visit as many places as possible connected to Yoshitsune. On the map, I listed a few places, obviously there are many more but these are the places I hope to visit (except Kamakura and Haraizumi) during my trip. If you are unsure who Yoshitsune is, check out this web site.

For those who asked, during our stay in Osaka,we will be staying at Banana House. I will try to post a review of the place once we get there.

I will be attending two concerts (Yoko's solo con in Osaka and Tokyo). Check back for concert report as well.

Getting ready to get back on the road, this time Osaka style!

The end of my semester is getting ever so closer! And so is my next trip. Once more this year I am Japan bound. Once more I will be enjoying a different part of the country. I will be staying in the Kansai region for 3 weeks, before going for a home stay in Chiba! My flight will leave 16 hours after my last class. Which means, within these 16 hours I will have driven from Toronto to Barrie, pack my bag, drive back to the airport and jump on a direct flight to Narita!
So stay tune for my next adventure! I promise beautiful pictures since I will have a NikonD90 instead of my cell phone's camera!

I spy with my own little eyes... a Cactus??!!??

I will not go into details for the last few days since they mainly consisted of shopping from outlet to outlet. I will just say, I bought an Izod skirt and sweater, a pair of boots, a pair of Nine West Shoes and a Liz Claiborne Jacket. All this for about 100$.

Yesterday was a bit different. We headed outside of the city to go see Lake Mead and the Hoover Dam. Well lake Mead is a lake and Hoover dam is a dam... neeedless to say I was unimpress. But don't get me wrong... the trip itself ended up being really interesting!!! If the dam was not impressive; the landscape was!!! Cactus!!!!! Real cactus in the wild!!! So on the way there, all you could here in the car was... oh! A cactus!! Oh another one!!! We even stoped to take our pictures with some of them ;-) The other highlights would be standing with one foot in Nevada and one foot in Arizona. I had a foot in the future and a foot in the past!

In the evening, we tried another buffet (Texas Station). It was good but once more I must say I liked the Hilton buffet better. (Mostly because there is an Oyster Bar). We then proceded to the Fremont Experience! I loved that street. By far the best street for souvenir shopping. ABC store is a great place for them. We went inside the Golden Nugget Casino and I saw the coolest waterslide/swimming pool/aquarium. Yep! You slide in a clear tube through a tank filled with sharks and fishes!!!

We played for free at that Casino (just join the players club) and won 30$. After 9 days in Vegas, if I deduct the amount we spent playing (10$ for both of us) we are up 60$.

Last but not least... my lungs are suffering dearly!! I have to say this whole city reeks cigarette smoke. It's absolutely disgusting!!!!

Ohhhhhhhh!

Yesterday was Tristan birthday. And what a day it turned out to be. Being in Vegas, the day started off with a family lunch at the Buffet. This time we went to Redrock Feast. Sadly it wasn't really good and most of the food was overcooked. But being in good company, we had a great time chating and catching up with his cousins aunts and uncles. We then proceeded to watch Tristan pay is birthday luck at the Roulette table. He easily double his 40 dollars and cashed out.

Then it was a shop till you drop bonanza at Vegas Outlet Mall. And I did shop till I drop. I bought nice new black knee high boots and a skirt and sweater. Tristan got some nice square toes black leather shoes. The time flew away as we hopped from store to store. That's when we got into trouble... We had been asked to meet back at 8pm for dinner. At 8:30 we were still shopping... What we didn't know is that we weren't exactly suppose to meet for dinner, as a surprise Tristan's parents had bought us Cirque Du Soleil Tickets to watch O. As we learned that, we dashed full speed across the mall and made it to the parked car. We hopped in and crossed the city. We got there right in time!!!!

OHHHHHHHHH what an amazing show. Absolutely breath taking. The sets, the costumes, the acts!!! We were sitting in the very last row but the view was still amazing. As a matter of fact, I think the view must have been better for us. I strongly recommend watching this show!!!

Gambling...

Here is a tip for effective gambling in Vegas.

• Sign up for the players card, each casino has one. You get free gift and it's free.

So at the Encore we signed in for the players card and got 10$ of free gambling. So Idid good use of it and added 1 dollars from my own pocket. I managed to win 9 dollars then loose it all ;-) Tristan managed to reach 47$ then loose it all. Jacquie went up to 15 then lost it all... ;-) 

We all played the 1 cent machine. In the end the three of us played for 2 hours, and invested a total of 3 dollars ;-) We will probably gamble a little more before we go... but it will be the same patern. ;-)

Hotels Hopping

The last two days were filled with delight... food, architecture, relaxation and good compagny.

For the last two days we have pretty much been hotel hopping. It would be too long to describe everyone of them but there are a few I just have to mention. So far, my top 3 hotels stand in this order:

• Wynn
• Mirage
• Cesar's Palace

The Wynn is just grand and so beautiful. If most of Vegas is tackey and made out of plaster and plastic (I like to refer to it as the P and P city) the wynn stands out by its sheer elegance and artwork. I also like the Mirage for the same reason. This hotel is older but share that same concept of elegance. On the other hand the Cesar is tackey but intriging. You have to the size of the that complex. It is grand!

So for Christmas eve, we went and checked in at the Redrock spa and casino resort on the outskirt of the city. That hotel is very posh and sophisticated. The washroom itself were worth the trip! Because we were overnight guest, we could use the spa!! So I spent most of my Christmas Eve soaking in a jacuzzi and steaming myself with Eucalyptus vapors. Later on that night we all drove back to the strip and attended midnight mass... I have to say, even the priest  had the Vegas showmanship in his blood. It made for a very funny, almost stand up comic like mass. Then we had a very big Chinese food feast...

On Christmas morning, I went again to the spa ;-) Oh, just like Onsen, I love spas, so much. We then checked out and went for buffet at Palms! Crab legs and Clam time ;-) I feel sorry for that amazing creature, but I must have had 3-4 crabs by myself.

We then proceeded to do more hotel hopping, we watch the Volcano explode at the mirage, twice. We took millions of pictures. And got back home with some very very tired feet ;-)

Viva Las Vegas

My first full day in Vegas was filled with excitement. We started off the day with a little visit to In n Out burger for lunch. This place is famous around here and apparently serves more than 8000 burgers a day!!! Then we started out Hotel sightseeing hopping day. We visited Excalibur, Mandalay Bay, Luxor and MGM Grand. I have to say as amazing as the sight is... everything is fake. Fake walls, fake stone floor, fake luxury.... fake boobs.

In Mandalay bay, we visited the reef shark exhibit. It is a nice little aquarium with a few reptile. At MGM Grand, we visited the Lion Habitat (MGM=Lion) and the CSI experience. I have to say, I was glad we had free Tickets for the CSI Experiment. The concept is good but I would have been really angry to pay 31$ (That's how much they charge) for it. The interactive exhibit was just short of being a waste of time. You were given a crime to solve which is great but the crime was for dummy dummies!

We had dinner at the Hilton buffet. I had lots of shrimp, mussel and OYSTER! We ended or day with a visit to Tristan's cousins at the Grand Chateau Mariotte. There we chatted half the night away and got back home at around 2 am.

I have to say, so far I am having a great time... but Vegas is not a place for me. Sex, Alcohol and Gaming. That's really all there is to it. I just can't believe the amount of families here... so many kids??!!?? Yet everywhere you look there are half naked women and half naked men!!

Today we are heading outside of Vegas towards the beautiful mountains surrounding us!!! We are going to stay at Redrock. I am really excited about it. Christmas Eve by the pool ;-)

Have a Merry Christmas Everyone!