Get drunk at Crying Tiger for Crying Out Loud

It’s my first day of following the daily themes I’ve set for myself. So, even if I’m quite drunk and that it’s quite late (it’s already Saturday early morning, to be exact), I am forcing myself to write this post so that I don’t feel like such a loser on my first day.

Crying Tiger. It’s a hit or miss. But I really, really, love their Thai omelet. It reminds me of my mom’s scrambled eggs (yes, she doesn’t really mix it up the way scrambled eggs are supposed to be). They’re extra salty, but they never fail to remind me of home.

20170512_221220 — My favorite food on the menu.

And then beer. 55 pesos (a little over a dollar US) for a bottle of Red Horse is not expensive, considering the “prime” Poblacion location.

Crying Tiger prides itself as the “Southeast Asian” place to be in Poblacion, Makati. They serve Thai, Malaysian, maybe some Indonesian, and other cuisines from the region. The ambiance stays true to its character – come on, look at this.

20170513_010332 — Tiger, are you crying? 🙁 Why?

The restroom too, I’m glad I have wide angle lens on my phone to be able to take this photo.

I hated this sign on the CR though – I thought it was a little bit too “trying hard”. My drunk self tried to remove the sign and throw it in the trash – but alas, this thing was stuck on the wall like it was clinging for its life.

20170513_010226 — Kill the WiFi for all I care.

My brother and I ended up finishing 3 bottles of beer each (because he has work the next day). I take this place for granted because it’s right in our “hood”, but some people actually go out of their way to visit and try this place out! The place is usually packed in the evenings. If you happen to find yourself in Poblacion, Makati – I recommend giving this place a try! I can’t say you won’t regret it, but hey, at least you tried!

Come on Fridays and eat/drink your heart out at Crying Tiger! 🙂

I Suck at Daily Blogging

I know, I know. Even at studying for my upcoming exam this July. Just this week, I’ve blocked my calendar for these two main activities that I need to accomplish on a daily basis.

I wasn’t able to follow this schedule the past two days, though! I’m still hopeful – slow progress is better than zero progress, although I really need to get my act together.

I’ve been thinking of having daily themes – so that I don’t run out of topics to blog about.

#MusicMonday – I’ll post about a song, album or artist that I like – from any genre, any period! I feel it’s a good way of kicking off the work week. It also gives me a chance to listen to some of the old songs I grew up listening to.
#TechTuesday – Tuesdays will be for anything related to technology, gadgets, whatever I find on the internet that’s worth sharing.
#WhateverWednesday – The hashtag says it all – I’ll be posting whatever it is that pops in my head. Be it a random thought, a rant, a vivid dream, my attempt at growing a plant, whatever!
#ThrowbackThursday – I have a ton of photos sitting in my archives. I’ll pick one and talk about what I remember about that frozen moment in time.
#FridayFinds – Fridays are usually for lunch or dinner outs, coffee and desserts, or other activities that signal the start of the weekend. I’ll be post about places to see, things to do, and maybe some good deals within the metro (both Manila and Cebu).
#SlowdownSunday – This day will be dedicated to summarizing the week that was, since talking about what I do on a daily basis can be boring.

Saturday will be a rest day for blogging. Of course, I’ll also be posting other entries for moments that are significant enough to deserve its own post at any day of the week. Apart from that, I’ll also be posting some Japanese lessons as I learn them along the way, including some basic ones for a page I started on Facebook. I really hope that I can stick to daily blogging this time around.

Wow, I am keeping myself busy. Wish me luck!

Al Fresco Japanese at Yumi

I’m not really trying to be a food blogger, but whenever I do find restaurants that I think are worth my money, I would probably write about them here so that at least my friends (and you followers) will get to try it.

Today, I had late lunch with my brother at Century City Mall. For those of you who are familiar, there aren’t really any “cheap” restaurants here. However, we found one that has a good deal on Mondays.

Their ramen is at around 350 pesos, so with this deal, you can technically get it for 175, as long as there’s two of you (I had my brother with me). Come at the right time and you can also enjoy their happy hour – almost 50% off on cocktails, and 120 for 2 on local beers!

It’s already summer in the Philippines, so despite the heat, we felt like we would enjoy eating al fresco this time. There weren’t that many people in the afternoon (we were there at around 4:30 PM), so the vibe was relaxing, as if we were on the beach.

We ordered buy one-take one of the Buta Miso Ramen, which was comparable with other ramen in the 300-price range. Serving was generous, and for the taste, I’d probably give it a 7 out of a 10 (because I hate shiitake mushroom and I could smell it). Since I got it at 50% off (175 pesos) – this was truly worth it! Note that you can only order the same flavor for the buy one-take one promo.

We also ordered a Smoked Salmon Roll, which was packed with umami once you bite into it. It was a little bit spicy, but it doesn’t burn your tongue or anything, just enough to give it a kick! These are nicely placed in a spoon each, which is convenient, but I felt was a bit over the top. Since this restaurant could fall under the “fancy” category, they had to do something extra. My memory is so bad, but this was at around 280-290.

I don’t know if it pairs well, but my brother ordered two glasses of sangria – and at 85 pesos each, that’s a steal right there. Fits the vibe of al fresco dining perfectly, too!

In case you are curious, here’s the rest of their cocktails for happy hour – from 2 to 8pm! Looks like someone will be frequenting this place soon.

Now, why al fresco? Because, for me (and mostly for my brother), the vibe is important. You can compare it to fashion over comfort – the experience of dining is not just in the food, but also in the ambiance – the way the hot air from the fan blows in your face at 4 in the afternoon, seeing the sun slowly set upon the metro – these things you don’t really pay for, but you take into consideration when looking for a good dining experience!

If words are not enough to convince you that dining inside is boring – well, just look at this view.

Skyline outside (I had to filter it because it was a bit gloomy today)

You had to walk to the ledge to see the skyline though, but that’s easier to do when you’re eating outside! A caveat – since al fresco dining is becoming an equivalent of “smoking area”, consider the possibility that there might be smokers in the other table that can ruin your experience. We were the only guests at this hour so that was not a problem.

So there you go! If you’re really skimping out, you can just skip the sangria and the salmon roll, and just have ramen for 175 pesos, excluding 10% service charge. That’s worth it! Visit Yumi at the top floor of Century City Mall, right across Hole in the Wall! Maybe I’ll see you there during happy hour!

Black Saturday in Makati

Holy Week is one of the longest consecutive holidays in the Philippines. A lot of us take advantage of the free time by going home to the province, staycation at a beach resort, or even travel abroad. Most of the times, I go home to Cebu. This year, I just stayed put in Makati.

My sister was visiting from Cebu so I spent a day with her and her friends on Good Friday. On Black Saturday, I was all by myself at home. Pokemon Go has an Easter Event so I decided to go out and play. I’m glad I did – I got to see a side of Makati you only get to see this time of the year.

I walked around for a good two hours maybe. Afterwards, I got a haircut, drove around a bit to hatch more Pokemon eggs, before finally heading back to Poblacion. Poblacion had a lot of tourists and was quite lively, opposite of how peaceful the CBD was. I had dinner at Izakaya Hideyoshi, I ordered the Gyuudon, one of their new food items on the menu. It was good, I would order that again next time!

I didn’t have any grand vacation on the weekend, but I enjoyed this moment to myself. My Black Saturday in Makati was peaceful and calm. The city was there for me and that was good enough.

JPOP on Spotify

Back in high school (e.g., almost 20 years ago), it was very difficult to get access to Japanese music in the Philippines. I learned how to download music through mIRC and waited an entire night to download just 1 to 2 songs. But I was patient. In a year, I got to know JPOP artists I admire and listen to until today. Some of my favorite artists from then are Chemistry, Mr. Children, Utada Hikaru (of course), Southern All Stars, Dragon Ash, L’arc~en~Ciel, and others.

As time went by, content was more easily accessible through the internet – there was P2P sharing like Limewire, and then Torrents. To be honest, these aren’t what you would consider legal means of getting music, but you didn’t really have much of a choice if you lived outside of Japan. I even used to scour anime conventions for used JPOP CDs. Things are different now with online music stores like iTunes and Google Music, and the game-changing music software called Spotify! I can now legally stream Japanese music on my phone and take it with me anywhere.

Spotify playlist – click on the photo to open!

Right now, there isn’t really that many JPOP playlists on Spotify yet, so I decided to create one. It’s got over 5,000 songs in it, from artists old and new. Unfortunately, not all of the artists I like are available, but I am still praying that eventually they’ll also make their music available for international fans through this medium.

If you are a fan of JPOP, or if you want to try listening to Japanese music – please try listening to my playlist – JPOPが好き (I like JPOP)! Put it on shuffle so that there’s a surprise factor in terms of which artist, what genre will play next. I will keep adding songs to this playlist as they come. If you have any artists I didn’t get to include, let me know as well! Happy listening!

Tokyo in 4 Days – Day 4 – Land of Gadgets and Anime

You can’t be in Japan and not visit the mecca of anime and gadgets – Akihabara. This was the only item on our itinerary for today. Our check out time was at 10 AM – we already did our packing the night before. After having a simple breakfast of bread, milk, bacon and coffee, we bid our Airbnb goodbye.

The plan was to trace back our steps – we were going to deposit our things in a coin locker in Nihonbashi station, where we plan to take the train to Narita, and then head to Akihabara from there.

It is my second time in Akihabara but I’ve never really completely explored the place. We were on the main road (Chuo-dori) and we were surprised that they actually block that stretch for traffic so that people could walk freely!

Don’t be fooled by the sun! It’s coooold!

The weather at this time was quite cold, and we were already hungry. We were looking for a store that serves omurice (because we were tricked by that restaurant we ate in last night). But we gave up because we could no longer handle the cold! We went in at a random restaurant, which turned out to be a ramen restaurant. I ordered a simple shoyo ramen to warm my insides.

After lunch, we spent most of our time in BIC Camera, which is heaven for a gadget freak like me. Hannah bought a bluetooth speaker for her sister and a portable NES player that you can connect to a TV and play old school Nintendo games on! I bought my brother a Gunpla (still no sign of Wing Zero) and Pokemon Go Plus (at only 1,500 PHP each)!

We still had enough time so in our tradition of visiting one coffee place a day, we went to a coffee shop called Honey Toast to rest our tired legs. After an hour or so, it was time to head back to Nihonbashi, and then ride the train to the airport.

The train ride was long, and I was reflecting again on how I really want to live in Japan, even if its just in one of the peaceful provinces outside (but near) Tokyo. While Hannah and Mhealler slept, I was gazing out of the train and bidding Japan a silent goodbye.

We had time for dinner at the airport and guess what I got? Omurice! Hannah just gave up and had a burger – because she missed normal food, even after all that searching in Akihabara!

We went home happy and satisfied. I can’t wait for our next Japan adventure in October!

In case you haven’t checked the rest of the trip – click here!

Tokyo in 4 Days – Day 3 – Shrines and Shopping

On our third day, I woke up already feeling anxious about leaving Japan the next day. There were a lot of things in my mind that I wanted to do, places I wanted to visit – but there’s just never enough time each time. I got pressured thinking we only have 2 and a half days left.

But before that – a “blogger” pose from a cool wall in one of the subway stations towards our first stop.

Our first stop for today is Meiji Jingu. I have been here before but as it was Hannah’s first time, we had to take her there so she could make her wish. Stepping into Meiji Jingu is like traveling back in time, or to a place that is opposite of one’s idea of Tokyo as a modern city. I guess this is what I love about Tokyo, you can be at different kinds of places within a train ride.

Cleansing ones hands and mouth before entering the shrine

Once inside, we checked our fortunes by drawing sticks (Omikuji). Last time I was here, I picked up something about being a wayside pebble to becoming a polished gem. This time, it’s something about being left behind when one makes no move at all.

After getting our omikujis, we bought some charms and then went in the shrine to make our wishes and prayers.

Writing down her wish on the votive tablet

We took a few more photos within the area before heading to our next destination.

We were already hungry at this point – our initial plan was to go to Tsukiji Market and have lunch there. But – the subway train going there is 700 meters away, which is around 20-30 minutes walk. We were almost thinking of just eating within the area but as this is our last chance to go to Tsukiji (we won’t have time tomorrow), I’m happy I pushed them to walk!

When we got to Tsukiji, the first thing we did was look for a place to eat! We didn’t have enough energy to go through several places and pick one so we just went in the first restaurant we saw. I can say though, thank goodness we forced ourselves to come!

The KING of sushi – fatty tuna belly (o-toro)!

I still dream of that o-toro up to today. After eating and regaining our strength, we went around Tsukiji a bit for sight-seeing. For those who are worried about coming to Tsukiji late in the day, don’t worry – there are still a lot of stores and restaurants that serve fresh seafood. You don’t need to be up at 3AM and witness the fish auction – if all you want is to eat the best sushi and sashimi in the city, just come to Tsukiji anytime!

Our next stop was Sensoji temple. To get to Asakusa from Tsukiji, we had to walk a bit to the train station. We passed by a Kabuki Theater which looked very grand! There were a lot of people outside the building so it was good to see that Kabuki is still popular!

Senso-ji is one of the most touristy places in Tokyo. There’s just a lot of people visiting the shrine, and a lot of shopping going on in the surrounding shopping streets.

We tried some street food, as well as shopped around some more for souvenirs. We spent over an hour walking around aimlessly again!

One of the many shopping streets surrounding Senso-ji

We rested whenever we found chairs or seating areas. When there was none to be found, we went in a coffee shop, mainly to sit down – but damn, that coffee was good, too!

Rest #1, a random empty chair on the street

Rest #2, a coffee shop called Ginza Ranzu

When we went out of the shopping street, it was already dark! We still had a lot more shopping to do since today was our last evening in Tokyo. The next day, we would be checking out of our Airbnb already so we won’t have time to properly pack anything that we’ll buy on our last day.

We went back to Shibuya to continue our shopping. Hannah had to get some cosmetics and gifts (shoes, earphones) for her family. I didn’t really have anything particular that I wanted to buy so I just went along and looked around. There was a Don Quijote store 1 block away from our Airbnb that was open 24-hours so I was going to buy my omiyage there.

We went back to our Airbnb after the shops in Shibuya closed. We had dinner at a restaurant nearby where we saw the other day that they served omurice. To our surprise, they didn’t serve omurice – they had an omurice looking one but with noodles inside.

After dinner, we went to Donki to buy even more snacks and souvenirs before calling it a night. This day passed by so quickly – I felt so sad because we’d be flying back to Manila the next day already.

Check the rest of our 4-day trip here.

Tokyo in 4 Days – Day 2 – Spring is coming

To be honest, we (almost) had nothing on our itinerary. This was just going to be a “do-whatever-we-want-to-do” trip, except for one or two which Hannah wanted to visit. One of these is a store with 7 floors of anything you can put your hands on (to do creative work, I mean) – Tokyu Hands in Shibuya.

Before that, we stopped for breakfast at one of my favorite “fast food” restaurants in Japan (if you can call it that). Sukiya is a competitor to Yoshinoya in terms of affordable and delicious Japanese food (you can already get a nice set meal for 600 JPY).

Hannah’s Sukiyaki-don and a big bowl of miso soup!

We walked down the street to Tokyu Hands and took our sweet time looking at colored pencils, art materials, different kinds of pens and paper, and other cool things. I had to stop by the Gunpla section to look for a model my brother wants (RG Wing Zero).

Right most Gundam at the back – Wing Zero is out of stock! 🙁

We realized we hadn’t taken any photo until we reached the top floor!

Tokyu Hands is really a must-visit for creative people. There’s a lot of things you can buy that’s not really available outside Japan (or if they are, for a hefty price). I wanted to get some colored pencils but I know I’ll only be slacking so I decided not to. Next time, when I do get the passion to draw and make art again – I will definitely buy some good stuff!

We spent over an hour inside Tokyu Hands, so we were tired when we got out. I spotted a Doutor coffee shop nearby so we stopped over for some coffee and a mille crepe cake.

This is a mille crepe cake, if you didn’t know what it looked like. Just layers of crepe and cream!

Our itinerary as mentioned was sort of blank, so while I was browsing through Instagram – I saw a post from a friend living in Japan of pictures of plum blossoms, almost in full bloom! We couldn’t hope for cherry blossoms at the time of our visit, so this was like an unexpected surprise. We had to go! This was at Shinjuku Gyoen. On the way to the train station, we stopped by a few stores to look for bargain deals – and snagged a few at Bershka.

It was a very windy walk to Shinjuku Gyoen from the nearest train station. But the moment we got there, we were just taking photos non-stop! Hannah and I got our old “photographer” hats on and just shot away!

Of course, we had to take some “model” shots – which was a lot of fun to do! If only I could show you blooper pics, which is around 90% of the shots.

Mhealler’s throw-that-jacket-behind-your-back pose

Hannah’s look-fierce-while-fixing-your-hair pose

Photo shoots are tiring! We realized after this that we can’t be models! After laughing so much, we got so tired that we spent a good 30 minutes lying under a tree in the park.

Obviously, Mhealler is not done posing for the camera

As the sun was about to set, it was also time for us to go to our next destination. We had a really good time in Shinjuku Gyoen – it’s a very nice place to relax, maybe read a book on the weekend – I was thinking scenarios in my head for when I will live in Tokyo (wishful thinking). Anyhow, after all the day dreaming, we wiped the grass of our behinds and headed off to Harajuku!

It was already dark when we got to Takeshita street in Harajuku. The place was packed. We just walked around the area until I stumbled upon my favorite ramen shop in Tokyo! Yokohama style Ramen!

At the other end of Takeshita street (the one without the JR Station), sits my favorite ramen place in all of Tokyo. On my first time in Tokyo, our Airbnb host brought us to a ramen place in Ikebukuro where I had my first “authentic” ramen moment. It was the best broth my tongue tasted and I have been craving for that taste ever since. We didn’t go to Ikebukuro this time, but we stumbled upon a branch of the same ramen place in Harajuku! What luck!

For me, still the best ramen in the world. So far.

I couldn’t read the kanji, so I took a photo of the front of the store and asked my Japanese friend to read the name to me. This is for me to search for it next time, wherever in Japan I may be.

After eating, we didn’t go back to Takeshita street, but explored the alleys near this ramen place, and we ended up in Omotesando!

This was our route in Harajuku/Omotesando.

After Omotesando, we found our way back to the other end of Takeshita street and had a crepe. We were already so tired at this point.

While walking back to the train station, we passed by Daiso and did a shopping spree of gifts to bring back home (omiyage) as everything was for 100 yen! Our feet were at the point of giving up already and the nearest train station was a JR station, which is not covered by our Tokyo Metro All Day pass. We didn’t want to walk any further so we took the JR train back to Shibuya!

When we got home, we slept for an hour. At around 10 PM, we decided to go out because it’s such a waste to be sleeping in Tokyo! After walking around our neighborhood, we stumbled upon another chicken place that served drinks!

My favorite part of traveling, walking wherever our feet will take us!

I also had a big high ball, Hannah got a small one!

We had a few more drinks after these photos. In short, we went home buzzed enough to get a good night’s sleep! It was indeed a long day, by the time I was about to sleep, I had already forgotten what we did in the morning!

Check out the rest of our trip here!

Tokyo in 4 Days – Day 1 PM – Favorite Site/Sight

Unfortunately, the train from Shibuya to where we were staying was not a subway line. So, we had to use the normal PASMO/SUICA card for this part of our commute. For future accommodations, I will keep in mind to make sure there is a subway line running nearby.

Nevertheless, we loved our Airbnb for this trip. The building is located in an area surrounded by restaurants, stores, and even a 24-hour Don Quijote! I wouldn’t mind staying there again, to be honest. Here’s the link in case you want to check it out. If it’s your first time to use Airbnb, use my code so that you can get a discount (shameless plug).

Fits 4 comfortably, can squeeze in up to 5!

To give you an idea of how lively the neighborhood is, a 2 minute walk can take you to this street (or alley) – lined up with restaurants! This is one single continuous street in Sangenjaya (starts under the train station at the top, going through until the bottom part); and perhaps just one of many!

After resting up, we walked around the neighborhood, specifically the street above, and enjoyed the sights, scent, and the energy of it all. This really is Japan!

There’s a lot of takeout stores like this one.

The entire street/alley is lined up with stores and restaurants

Yakitori restaurant beside a Karaoke place

We spent a good hour walking around, trying out some of the take out food (chicken), and taking photos. What makes this place stand out is that it isn’t a “tourist” district. This is more of a place where locals go to hangout in the evening or during weekends, which I really prefer over densely populated places.

Almost time for dinner, looking for a place to eat!

For dinner, we ended up at a yakitori place called Torikizoku, where everything on the menu was at 280 yen (if my memory serves me right). And my god, I loved the liver skewers, it’s levels above what we have here in the Philippines!

I am craving for this liver skewer right now.

After dinner, our next destination was my favorite sight/site in the entire world – the magnificent, bright orange illumination that lights up the Tokyo night sky – Tokyo Tower. We took the train to Shiba Park where you were supposed to get a good view of Tokyo Tower.

Since Tokyo Tower looked quite close to where we are, we decided to walk towards it.

Quite frankly, these photos don’t do Tokyo Tower justice. You have to see it in person to be fully amazed!

We didn’t go up to the observatory anymore, because you couldn’t really see Tokyo Tower from inside it. However, we went inside the building under it, and was surprised that there was a One Piece store, restaurant, and coffee shop in it!

Too bad they were already closed when we got there!

I’ve just started watching One Piece recently…so I’m a newbie fan

It was time to go home, but before that, we had to touch the base of the Tokyo Tower, as if to harness some of its bright energy. We also took a few more photos outside, where there was a big snow globe with Chopper inside, and some illumination outside.

We were a bit hungry when we got home, so we ended the night with authentic cup ramen.

And that wraps up Day 1. Check the rest of our trip here!

Tokyo in 4 Days – Day 1 AM – Tada Ima!

We arrived at Narita Airport at around 7 AM, with intermittent 5 hours of sleep on the plane. Prior to exiting the plane, the flight attendant said “It’s very freezing outside, please keep warm.” She was right! We walked from Terminal 3 (JetStar) to Terminal 2, where the train station is located. We rented a mobile wifi device and bought our Tokyo Subway Tickets before leaving the airport.

Our Airbnb accommodation is two stations away from Shibuya Station, at Sangenjaya. We bought a one-time use ticket from Narita Terminal 2 to Nihonbashi station (Narita Skyaccess), and used our Tokyo Subway Ticket from there to Shibuya.

We were starving when we arrived, but we didn’t want to eat at the airport, so we headed out upon arriving at Nihonbashi station to look for a nearby Japanese restaurant. A lot of the restaurants we passed by were closed, so we ended up picking the first open restaurant we saw.

After eating, we headed back to Nihonbashi station to continue our commute towards Shibuya. We had a couple of hours to kill since our check in time is at 3PM. So, we decided to start exploring Shibuya central area while waiting. We left our bags at the coin locker near the station so that we could enjoy walking around.

We went into Tsutaya to have coffee from the 2nd floor Starbucks and watch the Shibuya crossing action from there, but there were no window seats available. So, we ended up listening to some of the latest music from Japan’s top artists instead.

Perfume’s Tokyo Girl was playing EVERYWHERE

After checking out the entire Tsutaya building (record stores, books, and a posh cafe on the top floor), we crossed the street to L’Occitane cafe, which also had a good view of the intersection. Although this cafe was quite pricey, we got a taste of the best ice cream ever.

The ice cream on these creme brulee – best ever!

We spent a good hour people watching as we were seated right by the window. We also took a time lapse of the whole Shibuya crossing action.

At around 1:30 PM, our Airbnb host texted us that we could already check-in in advance as the unit was already ready. We finished our coffee and went back to the station, excited to wash up and rest a bit!

This already feels like a long post, so Part 2 of Day 1 will be in the next entry!