nippon ga daisuki dayo

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日本! *clap clap clap* 日本! *clap clap clap*

Anyone who knows me, knows that I adore Japan and Japanese culture. There is something mysterious and moving about Japan that sweeps you off your feet, and pretty soon you find yourself being caught up in this dynamic culture. From the timeless beauty of olden traditions to the upbeat modern life, there’s just so much to experience with Japan and its culture.

Music

Japanese pop has been a great part of my life. Till today, I prefer Japanese music over any other music.

 

My love for Japanese culture really began with music. About 15 years ago when I was in secondary school, the 哈日风 (Japanese craze) hit Singapore’s shores. Japanese TV and music were the first things that seeped in quickly. I will always remember watching Music Station, a famous Japanese music programme where artistes would sing their latest singles. It was a great music programme as I got introduced to Japanese music and got to know about new artistes. And of course, Singaporeans were very much into SPEED and “White Love”, while my sister and I fell in love with MAX. Yup, MAX became the first Japanese music group that I liked.

If you’re female, it would be quite accurate to say that you have fangirled a Johnny’s boy/group some time in your life. Oh yes, the mysterious marketing powers of (the) Johnny’s Entertainment empire that makes every teenage girl (and some Japanese ah mas…I really kid you not) weak in her knees. I started out as a great Arashi fan…so much that I carved the members’ names on my secondary 3 school desk. Then, NewS came along. 🙂

Over the years, I got introduced to more and more Japanese artistes. If you take a look at my music play list now, you’ll see that Japanese music dominates it. When I go to KTV, I look for Japanese songs to sing. Yes, that’s how much I love Japanese music.

If you ask me why the love for Japanese music, it’s not something that I can quite explain in words why. It’s just different…plus there’s lots of eye candy.

Dramas and Movies

Back then, local TV was showing Japanese dramas…just like how Korean dramas proliferate it now. Being closely linked to music, I of course, had to watch dramas starring my favourite artistes. If TV wasn’t enough, the video shops were selling (pirated) vcds so you could easily keep up with the J-dorama marathon. Sad to say, all that came to an end when Japan started to clamp down on piracy. Soon, the Japanese craze in Singapore died down. BUT, my love for Japanese stuff did not die along with the exit of the Japanese craze.

School work got heavier for me as the years went by and I found it hard to keep up with Japanese dramas, so I turned to Japanese movies. The storyline and theatrics for some movies are just so good. Simple, yet thought-provoking.

Manga and Anime

When we talk about Japanese stuff, who can forget about manga and anime? Japanese manga and anime has been a part of my life since primary school. Oh yes, Sailor Moon. That laid the foundation for my liking of the shoujo genre in manga and anime.

Thanks to a poly friend, I was introduced to Ai Yazawa and NANA. Two of her best works — NANA and Paradise Kiss — are now my favourites. I love how she portrays the difficulties and complexities of life in a way that is so brutally honest and real.

Language

How can you truly love Japanese music, film and animation, without loving the language. You can rely on translations all your life, but soon you will realise that it is hard to get the exact feel and description without understanding the work in its original language.

But of course, learning a new language isn’t easy. Yet, I took the plunge. After going through intensive Japanese classes in college, I completed the intermediate level. Sadly, it is still not enough to understand music lyrics and conversations in its entirety…not to even mention how tough it is for me to actually hold a conversation in Japanese. Haha, I can probably only manage anime that’s meant for elementary school kids if I were to watch something with subtitles. But at least, I get the gist of some sentences in lyrics and films.

日本語を勉強は難しいけど、私は絶対頑張ります。

Tradition

If you thought that my love for Japanese culture is only skin deep, you’re wrong. As I grew up and entered college, something made me want to learn more about Japanese culture. I took a minor in East Asian Languages and Culture, with a focus on Japan. I took classes on Japanese history and literature. As I dug deeper, I began to see things in a whole new light and started to appreciate Japanese culture in all its glory and simplistic beauty. Before college, my family had made Japan an annual holiday location. Back then, when I walked the grounds of castles, temples and old streets, they never left a strong impact on me. After college, armed with a better understanding of Japanese history, I revisited some of the places so I could soak in the atmosphere and feel the true meaning of how the past has changed and influenced the future. The dynamic nature of trends can transform Japan and make it attractive to the modern world, but the beauty of olden traditions will always get passed down and leave a lasting impression (like the finishing touches to an art piece).

Japanese culture is also experienced through the arts. Although I do not have a firm grasp of the language, I’ve been to traditional theatre performances such as Noh and Bunraku. There’s something intriguing about these performances as it mixes storytelling, folklore and religious practices.

Back in Singapore, I try to immerse myself in Japanese tradition by taking part in Japanese-related activities such as the annual Natsu Matsuri (Japanese summer festival). Wearing a yukata is a must for me and my sister!

Fashion

After talking about the tradition, one must talk about trends. If you love Japan and its culture, then you gotta love its fashion. The Japanese fashion trend is pretty fast paced. If you remember the loose Japanese school girl socks, those are now passe. How about the 109 辣妹 look (probably referring to the yamanba phase in gyaru fashion)? That is long gone too.

For me, I fell in love with lolita fashion when I was in college. Lolita fashion itself has gone through a lot of changes since the beginning of it (with Mana and the gothic look). I’m not going to delve to much into what is lolita fashion and which styles I love as you can know more through my other blog entries specifically on lolita fashion. Just know that I love the aesthetics of the fashion — the grace and elegance that it stands for. I love it so much that I had to wear a lolita dress and dress my helpers in lolita outfits for my wedding.

Food

ラーメンが大～大～大好き～～～<3

I have covered almost every conceivable topic on Japan and Japanese culture, but wait…there’s one more. Food! There’s just so many dishes in Japanese cuisine that you have to try, other than sushi and sashimi. There’s tempura, udon, soba, somen, okonomiyaki, curry rice, onigiri, tako yaki, etc. Just listing all of this is making my mouth water. You can find all the tastes in Japanese cuisine…sweet, salty, sour, bitter, spicy…and not forgetting, umami. There are different foods for the different seasons too — think sakura mochi and ice-cream in spring, yaki soba (fried soba) and mitarashi dango (soy sauce dango) in summer, kuri (chestnuts) in autumn and nabe (hot pot) in winter…mmmm…. So many different tastes and choices, what’s there not to love about Japanese food? You’ll never get bored with Japanese food!

If you’re still not convinced that you’ll never be bored with Japanese food, just look at Japanese Kit Kat as an example. Have you seen the variety of flavours for it? Even with ice-cream, there’s flavours like miso and squid ink. The Japanese are rather creative with their food. Haha. XD

But, my one true love in Japanese food is…RAMEN! Sorry, but as I told a friend before, my love for Japanese ramen is not just about how popular the stall is. It’s not just simply downing a bowl of ramen and rating is good or bad. It’s about how every ingredient tastes in the bowl of ramen and how it contributes to the overall enjoyment of eating. Generally speaking, I like the fresh noodles that’s not too thick or thin; stick ramen does not sit well with me. For the broth, I prefer tonkotsu or miso as they have a more full and robust flavour. For toppings, I especially love ajitama (soy sauce flavoured soft-boiled egg).

PS: I’m still looking for a good tsukemen in Singapore.

 

So after all this talk about my love for Japan and Japanese culture, what exactly am I getting at? Well, you see…KFC has some new wings on their menu and it’s a tough choice between the Umadare wings or Yang Yeum wings.

BATTLE OF THE KFC WINGS

Freshly breaded in-store with a special batter, these juicy wings are cooked to crispy perfection and coated in your choice of two bold flavours – choose between the Japanese-inspired tangy yet savoury Umadare and the Korean-inspired sweet and spicy Yang Yeum. Who will be crowned king of the wings? You decide.

Pick a side and be part of KFC’s greatest wing-off. Hashtag #kfcoishii to support Umadare or #kfcmashisoyo to support Yang Yeum on Instagram!

I vote for #kfcoishii. What about you?

One wing got eaten up before I could take the picture. Too oishii to resist…

having faith

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Spirit lead me where my trust is without borders, let me walk upon the waters, wherever you will call me. Take me deeper than my feet could ever wander, and my faith will be made stronger in the presence of my saviour.

— Hillsong United “Oceans (Where Feet May Fail)”

I just wrote an entry in my other blog about prayer and faith, and this song came to mind. I first heard this song at the Jayesslee concert and fell in love with this part of the song. The words are very powerful and seek to motivate.

Disclaimer: I’m neither of Christian nor Catholic faith. I’m just a free thinker who believes there is a God or higher power/s up there.

SG50 funpack

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The funpack is usually only given to National Day Parade spectators, but because this year is special — Singapore’s 50th birthday — and everything also SG50, every household gets a funpack.

First, it’s good to note that this year’s bag is a canvas tote bag. Feels thick and of good quality. Even has a zip.

Second, there are a couple of designs printed on the tote bag. Some are submitted by common folk. You can view all the designs here.

Third, items in the bag are largely similar though there may be a few variations. (Sometimes I think it’s because some item ran out so it is being replaced by something else.)

So, what did my family get?

I was hoping for one of those with a “uniquely Singapore” icon like the dragon playground or singlish phrase. I got Dick Lee’s design which features the lyrics to “Home”. Not too bad I guess. I like how it’s “handwritten” and not in a typed out font. Feels more authentic and genuine.

Items included:

  • Singapore flag with stand — Seems like they include this in the funpack since like two to three years back? Great for collecting and trolling your colleagues.
  • Bottle of NEWater
  • Sample packs of Super coffee and cereal beverage
  • Sample pack of UIC washing detergent
  • The “ingenious” balloon torchlight — Yup, it’s always sponsored by AKIRA.
  • Haw flakes and lollipop — Supposed to be tidbits/candy from your childhood to bring back that sense of familiarity and nostalgia. My in-laws got the Smarties-wannabe candy in the 8 blister pack.
  • Pack of SNAP cards and country erasers — Another one of those items from your childhood. Of course, the country featured on the eraser is Singapore. My in-laws got the blow up paper ball and chapteh.
  • Singa figurine — In case you don’t know, Singa is the lion mascot from the national courtesy campaign. Our Singa figurine is wearing the police uniform. My in-laws got a Singa figurine wearing the old Army uniform.
  • Some temporary tattoos
  • Card with the Proclamation of Singapore — A piece of history — back to when Singapore first gained independence.
  • Map of National Day activities

Would have been more thrilled to receive more tidbits like KAKA, Tora/Ding Dang chocolate balls, Mamee, Bee Bee or even the 10 cents bubble gum with a temporary tattoo wrapper. Oh well.

Enjoy your funpack and look forward to this 9 August. 🙂

see you again someday, my friend

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Every morning when I wake up, the first thing I do is to check my phone. The usual…Whatsapp, LINE, Facebook, etc. Social media has indeed made the world a little smaller; news reaches us a lot faster. Except, I really didn’t want to wake up to this piece of sad news.

I wish it were some cruel joke or rumour that we sometimes see being passed around on Facebook. But no, the source of the news is credible. Days ago, I was still commenting on an article that you posted about Tesco making a blunder. And now, you are gone.

I remember you being an advocate of social media and its uses in the modern world for PR and communications. As much as you were a teacher, you were also keen to learn from your students. I saw the twinkle in your eye when you viewed our presentations for an assignment. I imagined that you were amazed at what some of your students could do.

You were more than a TA and mentor to me; you were a friend. When I graduated and went to say goodbye, you sat me down and talked to me about my future plans for education. Despite your wish that I consider going to grad school, you respected my decision that I was not ready yet, and that I wanted to go home and settle down with work and family. When you became a Professor, you were kind enough to keep reminding me that your promise of writing me a letter of recommendation for grad school still stood. When I decided to stop working, I wrote to you about it and you respected my decision. You have always respected my decisions in life (education) and work. Thank you so much.

If I have one regret, that would be that I’ll never have the chance to show you around my home. I have been hoping that one day you will stop by Singapore and I can let you taste all the good food we have here.

Life is indeed too precious and time waits for no one.

I will miss you, my friend. I will especially miss writing to you every Christmas.

Rest in peace, Owen Kulemeka. Till we meet again someday.

mummy to baby

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I haven’t been blogging here much recently, but that’s because I’m busy enjoying my pregnancy and blogging at my other blog — MUMMY TO BABY. XD

This is my first time trying out writing with a theme. It’s pretty much a blog that shares information about pregnancy and parenting. A lot of baby-related stuff there.

This will still be running as it’s my personal space to share my thoughts, so do check back once in a while. Alternatively, you can follow my Twitter account to get updates as every blog post is announced on it.

finding the time to invest

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I have been a full-time housewife for a while now. While most would assume that I’m living it up, I’m actually gaining knowledge on personal finance and investment. Of course, I still find the time to do a lot of leisure things that I wouldn’t be able to do previously.

During the day, I read finance blog articles and one caught my eye — How Do You Find the Time to Learn Investing. Everybody says the same thing whether they are keen or not in learning about investing, they simply have no time to start. The author of the article argues that it’s not about time management but how we harness our energy.

That’s a possibly theory, but I really think it’s about how much you want to get your butt down to things. Trust me, I had zilch knowledge when I started and to make things worse, I was somewhat “forced” to learn about it. My only idea of money then was: the more the better because that means I can buy more stuff that I like. Of course, the husband would not take no for an answer to learning about personal finance and investment. It was either you learn and start making yourself useful or you jolly well go out to work. So one of the goals of investing simply became to earn enough through investments to justify why I’m not working. It may sound rather silly to set such a goal, but I guess that gave me a push and a little reason to start learning.

The ride hasn’t been easy at all. As we all know, we tend to drag our feet on tasks that we simply have no interest in. Till this day, even after I’ve already levelled up a little on my investment knowledge, I still drag my feet sometimes to read those printed investment articles or find the answers to investment-related questions the husband has. The temptation to do a million other leisure things is just too great compared to reading up on asset allocation or how to hedge currency risk when buying foreign ETFs.

But there are times when I find the energy to search for answers to things I don’t know. Like how I borrowed a book by Adam Khoo on stocks from the library and made it a point to actually read all of it. By the way, that really helped me understand a lot more about investing in stocks. Or how about when I had a debate with my friend on bonds and endowment plans? I had no idea what an endowment plan was and I actually researched on it. To be quite honest, my recent meeting with an insurance agent who was trying to sell me an endowment plan spurred me even further.

There’s still a lot I don’t know, but that just means I got to keep learning. There’s really no easy way out if you want to learn about personal finance and investment. Even when you start investing, you simply cannot have the naive thinking that you’ll make big bucks overnight. It takes time, effort and perhaps a few mistakes along the way. But isn’t that the same for learning any other thing?

So, to my friends who have showed a little interest in the subject, please ditch your “I don’t have time” or “I don’t know where to begin” excuses. I am the proof you need to tell you that it’s doable. If you really want to begin but need a little guidance, I am more than happy to point you to a few resources for beginners, but the rest is up to you.

And to those who say they have no money and cannot be bothered with personal finance, good luck to your future. If you don’t want to begin to change things, nobody can help you. But be warned that we live in a world where reality is harsh. If you don’t already know, the rate of inflation is higher than the bank’s rate of interest for your money in your savings account. I’m not saying that you must do what I do, after all, our financial backgrounds are all different. What I’m saying is that you need to begin saving and planning for your future. If you find yourself chronically in debt or living paycheck to paycheck, examine what has gone wrong in your planning and make the necessary adjustments to make sure your savings are actually growing and not dwindling.

three’s not a crowd

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Finally. I’ve been waiting to do this for a long time now. Having observed the first trimester wait, I proudly announce that hubby and I are expecting our first child.

This was my little announcement via Instagram and Facebook:

And then there were three…

Unfortunately, some didn’t understand this picture. I think it would have been clearer with shoes, but we haven’t bought any baby clothes. The pair of chick socks was given by my sister. It’s actually meant for a one-year-old but she wanted to give us something cute for the baby, so she got this. We don’t know the gender of baby yet, so everything bought will be gender neutral for now.

This entry has been cross posted at MUMMY TO BABY, a newly set up blog that chronicles my motherhood journey. I’ll be sharing lots of thoughts, goodies and parenting tips there. So do check it out now and then. No worries, this blog will still be around as it is still my personal ground for ranting and discussing thoughts.

it isn’t the same i suppose

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Humans are humans. We are biased just like that.

Something mildly amusing happened to me this afternoon while I was opening a checking account at one of the banks. This lovely bank officer girl was serving me and of course like all sales staff do, she tried to sell me something else. She was explaining that they have a savings plan which has a good interest rate and all I have to do is deposit a part of my monthly salary into the account. So I replied that I already do have some savings plan with other banks (was thinking of our investments and stuff). She then assumed that I was talking about a regular savings account so she said that theirs is a little different. She wanted to launch into this full explanation of what her savings plan offers, but I just told her it wouldn’t be necessary anyway since I don’t have a fixed income. To cut the long story short, she found out that I’m a housewife. That’s when things got a little interesting.

There was a slight change in her behaviour. She switched back to filling in the form of the account I wanted to open and said she’ll explain about the other plan later. Next thing I know, she passed me on to her colleague after filling in the form and turned her attention to another customer. Her colleague thereby helped me open the account (e.g. set the pin for online banking, deposit the money, etc.) After the account was set up, I walked out without even being told of the “special” savings plan.

Haha. She thinks I’m stupid. I perfectly know why she passed me on to her colleague just like that. She thinks I’m just a housewife with no income (aka no money to invest in them), therefore I’m not worth her time. She could talk about all her wonderful products, but if I haven’t got the means to get them then there’s no point talking further anyway. Well, that’s not quite right, but she’s right about her wasting her time telling me stuff because I’m not someone to be persuaded easily. I would do my own homework first before deciding on what product to get.

What amuses me is her little assumption that I’m too poor to invest anything with them. *shrugs* Ah well, there’s no loss on my part anyway. I didn’t have to explain or reveal anything more. I didn’t have to waste more time listening to her explanation of something I wouldn’t even get. A teeny weeny part of me was also rejoicing over the fact that I didn’t have to listen to her slightly broken English any more. It was just chop chop open the account and then goodbye.

But it isn’t the same I suppose — one who has a fixed income and a housewife. Haha.

thank you, sir

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Yesterday, Singaporeans woke up to the grim news that our founding father had passed on. I knew that it was just a matter of time, but I still felt a little tinge of sadness in my heart.

We may disagree with some words that he said, even to the point of resentment, but we cannot deny that without Lee Kuan Yew, Singapore might be different today. He transformed Singapore from nothing to something.

Thank you, Sir.

You have done everything you can for Singapore. Take a good rest now and be reunited with your wife in heaven. Let God take care of you.

PS: To the people who post nasty messages during this time: If you have nothing better to say, then don’t open your mouth. Put aside your hate for a moment and have a little compassion.

spring time at starbucks

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Every time March comes around, I get pretty excited because it’s time to check out the spring time merchandise at Starbucks! Specifically, the Sakura series. It started out in Japan, but slowly other Asian countries (including Singapore) caught on.

So what’s this year’s picks?

Starbucks Japan

Bolder colours like hot pink and yellow seem to be adopted for this year’s range in Japan. Nothing really caught my eye except for that pop bottle in the middle of the picture. Cute shape but not much use for me.

I was more excited over the drinks and desserts…

Look at the pinkness! I am so going to try these when I’m in Japan in April! <3

 

Starbucks Korea

There’s a different range of merchandise in Korea. There’s the usual baby pink and white toned merchandise, as well as some purple toned merchandise. Kinda like that baby pink tumbler in the picture, but again, have no use for more hot water tumblers.

The drinks look interesting. I like the pink chocolate flakes on the top as they remind me of sakura petals. A bit meh about the white chocolate drink though. So far, all the white chocolate drinks I’ve drunk at Starbucks are too sweet for my liking. Perhaps the Cherry Blossom Latte might be a better choice…though I’m awfully picky when it comes to sakura drinks. They must have a strong sakura taste and not just faint hints of it.

The dessert selection didn’t look interesting to me though. Unlike Japan’s Sakura Chiffon Cake, the Cherry Mascapone Fresh Cream Cake looks really rich and the kind you’ll get sick off halfway.

 

Starbucks Singapore

The range in Singapore is quite similar to Korea’s. Nothing really caught my eye. Was hoping that they’ll have a large straw tumbler so I can replace my cracked one from last year’s Sakura series, but they don’t have one this year. It’s just the regular small straw tumbler. Meh.

There are no special sakura drinks or desserts in Singapore. Another meh.

 

Starbucks Taiwan

There is a small collection of sakura-themed merchandise in Taiwan, but it’s not strongly advertised. Instead, they advertised their sheep-themed merchandise for Chinese New Year.

The red is really striking and some of the mugs and tumblers are pretty cute.

 

My verdict? This year’s Starbucks Sakura merchandise is not as interesting as last year’s. Nothing really stood out much and made me really want to get it. Guess I’ll look forward to next year’s range. Hope there’s something good then.