Taiwan Food Edition~!

85 Degrees Bakery

85 Degrees is a bakery of Korean origin with a few branches close to my hometown in California. When I saw the many branches sprinkled throughout Taiwan, I lost my shit. This morning I got a sea-salt caramel latte and a chocolate mousse cake in a flower pot cup! It was delicious and light. Perfect for the slightly overcast and rainy morning we had mid February.

Black Coffee, Whole Milk, Sugar Crystals

A friend of mine and I ventured for breakfast at a very posh diner which was decorated with plants throughout the restaurant and painted a sky blue & black theme. The waiters were all very posh, and the food very good! My friend ordered the above croissant sandwich. I devoured the light waffles below, along with the caramel sauce, vanilla bean ice cream, and homemade whipped cream. A diabetic dairy disaster. It. Was. Amazing. Not to mention the very neat presentation made devouring that much more fun! This place is called: Coffee Alley and is located outside the MRT stop for Taiwan City Hall. Here's the address if you're in the area: ATT 4 FUN, 3 FL, No. 12, Song Shou Rd. It's on the third floor, so you'll have to climb some stairs, it's not in an obvious place but you'll see a sign with a bunch of establishments on it, and Coffee Alley is definitely one of them. Good luck~!

Sea-Salted Caramel Waffles

Spicy Peanut Noodles

One of Asia's best food features is the use of nuts. From Thailand to Taiwan, South East Asia indulges in peanuts especially. A serving saving grace is that most dishes are meant to be shared between two or more people. Like the Dim Sum pictured below. Although the best Dim Sum I've ever had was definitely in Hong Kong, this was a close second. Taipei 101's Din Tai Fung is definitely a treat well worth the visit!

Veggie Shrimp Dumplings!

Soup Dumplings

Spicy Egg and Fish Omelet

Fried Shrimp with Cucumbers

Lime ice cream, crushed peanuts, and celantro. All wrapped up in a very very thin crepe. Sensational? Yes.

Ice Cream Sandwich

HUGE Block of Tofu

Tea Eggs

Dan Bing is a common breakfast food in Taiwan that could be easily seen as a Taiwanese breakfast burrito. The below is filled with egg, cheese, and spices. The outside is a thin Taiwanese "pancake". It is a very easy breakfast to eat on the go and is available any time of day with a variety of fillings. The above pictured are women making dan bing at a night market in Shilin.

Dan Bing

Dim Sum

It is common to see carts in the street like this one selling a plethora of shu mai, dumplings, and bao. Many of these colorful delights contain spiced meat or fish. I got a box filled with one of each for 6 USD. That is the life I want to live every day <3.

Looking back at my food festivities in Taiwan, I must saw it was an amazing amount of delicious food! Don't restrict yourself when you're traveling because you won't remember how much you weighed at the time, but you will remember how the food made you feel!

My experiences there cannot be replicated and I am so grateful I had the chance to trek Taipei extensively!

If you find yourself going to Taipei any time soon a great food blog that will help you a bunch is: Hungry Girls Guide to Taipei ~! She's absolutely amazing, read at your own discretion! <3

Singapore Food Edition~!

SAM, Singapore

Ya Kun Kaya Toast
  18 China St | China Town, Singapore, Singapore 
 

Kaya Toast, Singaporean Coffee, & Runny Eggs
Traditional Singaporean Breakfast!!!

Glutton's Bay

Curry and Mutton Murtabak

Singaporean Coffee and Rice Cake with Sweet Sauce

Singaporean Rainbow Jelly

Fresh Fruit!

Yum Cha
20 Trengganu St, Singapore 058479
 

Dim Sum!

Arab Chinese Food Fusion~

Malay Arab Food Fusion~!

Annalakshmi
104 Amoy Street

The amazing thing about this Indian Buffet 
is you pay as much you want!

Indian Curry & Roti

Indian Dessert

Dosai

Singapore is an amazing place to get down and eat amazing food! There is an incredible mix of culture between Arab, Chinese, Indian, and Malay. Singapore is the only place I've ever seen a fusion between Arab and Chinese food. It was absolutely delicious!
The coffee in Singapore is so unique because it is so thick and very very strong! They also have variations that have condensed sweet milk. In South East Asia they are big fans of Milo and Nescafe. What Americans might know as coffee is completely different to what they're serving here!
留学生ノート： If you decide to travel outside of Japan, Singapore is without a doubt the most expensive country you'll visit in South East Asia. The current exchange rate is one Singaporean dollar for every .80 US cents. I spent the least amount of time in Singapore during my travels because of the cost. However for what you pay, it is one of the safer countries in the region and truly is incredibly clean.
Things I would recommend buying while in Singapore:
1. Electronics. They are without a doubt the cheapest in Singapore and the quality isn't as questionable as in other countries.
2. Charles and Keith. It's a very popular Singaporean brand that sells shoes, bags, shades, and accessories. It is dirt cheap in Singapore--for obvious reasons--and is really stylish! And if you want to really save a few bucks, wait until you're in the airport to buy because then there's no taxes!

桜井の月見~

天理大学の留学生

Washing Station

Wishes~

たこ焼き

The Priests of the Temple

おにぎり～！

A group of Tenri University's international students were invited to participate in a Moon Viewing Festival in Sakurai. Sakurai is a city a few stops away from Tenri within Nara prefecture. We were welcomed to a Temple where we listened to traditional Japanese music such as the Koto, and watched a traditional Japanese dance.
This festival was in honor of the Autumn Equinox which fell on September 23rd of 2013. 
The point of the festival is to think of a wish you hope for your future and to write it on the outside of the candles. Then later on hopefully your wish will come true in the new lunar cycle. 

Universal Studios 日本～！

Spiderman the Ride

Biohazard

The Hard Rock in Osaka~!

Universal Studios Japan is in Konohara Ward, Osaka and can be reached by train from Tenri's international dorms. The train ride is about an hour + 1/2 and I highly recommend you take as many express trains as possible!
Here's a few tips when entering the park:
They don't check bags as long as you don't have an obnoxiously huge one, so feel free to bring in some inconspicuous snacks. I would take a few things to munch on because the lines for food stands tend to be long, 45-one hour... It's pretty ridiculous.
If you want to  enjoy the day without amazingly large crowds, go during the week! Most people are in school or at work, and they actually adhere to their obligations. So if you go on a Tuesday in late September it could very well end up being mostly foreigners in attendance.
We went on a tremendously busy weekend so we purchased express tickets for about ￥5700. They have different packages that range from 3600-6700. The tickets we bought gave us the chance to go through the express lines on pretty much every ride in the park, and we never waited longer than 10 minutes as opposed to the four hour wait for some rides.
 Ignore the city walk until after the park!! You can have a nice meal and then wander the shops full and happy. <3

Now the fun stuff:

If you're a Southern CA native like I am, you've most likely visited US Hollywood. Well I must say that USJ takes themes to a level that isn't observed at the California park. Also, there's a few discrepancies in the rides available. The park in Japan still has Back to the Future the Ride available whereas it was replaced by the Simpsons in America.  Spider man the ride doesn't exist in America either.
The ride that is absolutely the most fun in the entire park is Backdrop. It's amazing. It's maybe even less than a minute and the regular line is a wait of four hours, but with express tickets you get a half hour window to just go straight up to the front.
If you go at all, you absolutely have to ride Backdrop. There's two options to ride it going forwards or backwards... I obviously recommend the latter. And when on the ride you have the opportunity to select one of five songs to listen to as you fly through the sky.

USJ is absolutely amazing during Halloween time! During the day, all is normal. But at night, suddenly a mass amount of zombies enter the park. OKAY, here I am going to depart wisdom so you do not make the same mistake I made. During the haunting festivities you'll notice some people are wearing obnoxiously glowing necklaces--no they aren't out of place ravers--they are smart assholes. Those necklaces are bought from an office in USJ stating that you consent to having the zombies touch you. If you buy one, you will have the chance to be circled and "eaten" by a hoard of zombies--most likely multiple times throughout the night.
**Only 100 are sold throughout each day. They sell out in the first hour of the park opening. Find out if you can pre-order, if you can't, get. there. early. お願いします～！

I want to speak Engrish ~!

In Japan there are so many job opportunities for native English speakers. It's actually quite remarkable how easy it is to get a teaching position even if you don't have any kind of degree. In most cases if you are here to improve your Japanese I wouldn't recommend teaching English more than twice a week. 
*Doing language exchanges with fellow students is a great way to make friends and improve your Japanese while helping someone with English. For this, there is an English Speaking Society (ESS) on Tenri University's campus. 

As of late Halloween has become very popular in Japan. Once it is around mid-late September most stores will begin to sell Halloween items in anticipation of the holiday. The week of Halloween it isn't uncommon to see students doing everyday things while dressed up in costumes, especially in big cities. 

 








This year one of the schools I've been teaching at had a Halloween party which doubled as a spelling bee contest. The teachers and children dressed up and we did mock trick-or-treating. Needless to say it was a lot of fun!  

The girls I teach every week!

 
I also had the chance to volunteer with a local middle school! We went to 法隆寺 temple in Nara and the students had prepared before hand how they would explain the meaning of the temple and the statues in the surrounding areas. It was so much fun! At the end my group and I took a photo. I put two peace signs up and they said that was the "Tokyo pose". They asked me what an "American pose" would be and I tried to lean back and look cool--how'd I do?! In the photo I was only too happy  that they all humored me and did the pose by my side that I couldn't help but smile~~

American pose at 法隆寺 Temple!

**留学生ノート: If you want to work in Japan and are native in English, Tenri University's international office will have information about available positions. In most cases the workers there will tell you before you even have to ask because there are so many jobs available. Just make sure to be confident, speak clearly, and teach with purpose! Japanese students are usually very good and reading/writing but their listening/speaking tends to be lacking. 

Ten things you should 忘れないで下さい～！

Okay　留学生 it's time to take notes! 

Here are the things you should definitely have in your suitcase upon travel to Japan: 

1. Bug spray: Without it you will get bitten to oblivion. No matter how strong you claim to be. It will happen. The mosquitoes here are various and tactful. Not to mention the courageous and large spiders that spin mad webs outside our front doors. ***Keep in mind places like Daiso they sell bug catchers as a child's game AKA Japan is the land of mad 虫. 

2. Safety pins: They're one of those useful items you take for granted that simply exist in your household unnoticed... then suddenly you need one and they are all so ない ない ない～！！！ 

3. Omiyage  out the ass~!: Perhaps the most important item in your suitcase other than your underwear... Gift giving is engrained into Japanese culture and is something done out of respect. If you are omiyage-less, well you're going to either look very rude or very ignorant to Japanese customs. Also with the amount that everyone is going to go out of their way to help you upon your arrival, you'll feel almost obligated to give them something--or at least I hope so~

4. Wrapping items: Everything in Japan is about presentation. If you give an awesome omiyage but it's wrapped not so nicely it's going to immediately take from the gift. Remember in most instances no normal 日本人 is going to open the gift in front of you. So the impression the gift has on the outside is just as important as what you put on the inside. Wrapping items are insanely light to pack and if you already have them at home I recommend you bring them. Although they are available at places like Daiso, it adds up after a while and is an easily avoidable expense on your part.  

5. Scissors: Another item used daily not missed until forgotten. They're good for the office, for the kitchen... For 毎日~!!! 

6. Extra passport photos: I was asked by the university for an extra photo upon arrival. Luckily I brought a few just in case, but for those that didn't have any they had to get photos taken on the spot which cost them around 6$ each. Also if you plan to work in Japan a lot of the time when you submit a resume they want a passport size photo to go along with your application. 
***Also printed resumes wouldn't hurt either...!

7. Towels: The towels in Japan never go on sale. They range from 10$ up and the quality is questionable. Also they never seem to be as big as the towels we had in America... I got thin towels from Daiso which shed, yes shed, all over my clothes when I wash them and rub off on my skin when I attempt to dry myself with them.  

8. Family Photos: Having photos of those important to you and supportive of your decisions is absolutely necessary. It's a reminder that someone out there loves you and is thinking of you. Because no matter how much fun you have in Japan, it's that much more fun if you can look up and remember you have people dear to you worldwide. 

9. Any specialty foods you know you'll immediately miss: While figuring out what everything says in a Japanese market it's reassuring to know you have some familiar foods in your fridge as a back up. Just in case you pick up something strange by accident! For the first few weeks while you adjust it's a good way to ease yourself into Japanese life. 

10. Some kind of Japanese textbook you are comfortable and familiar with: Having the ability to look up words online has made having a printed 辞書 almost irrelevant. But having the ability to review grammar patterns before class or even after class has started in a text you've already studied from helps a lot. You can navigate the book with ease and refresh your mind with useful information you'll be using in daily conversation.

***Things I am absolutely grateful I brought: French Press, Ipod Dock, and Camera~!

I've got a 自転車～ You can ride it if you like...!

The shop I rented from!

There are some things that the staff members at Tenri University are going to attempt to convince you they are absolutely vital to your daily life in Japan. Although I refuse to buy a cellphone, a bike will without a doubt make your life easier. At this time (Fall 2013) Tenri has two bike shops right next to each other that are opened regularly and are fairly close to the train station. If you are one of the first students to arrive in the summer before 秋学期　begins you might have the good luck of purchasing a used bike for around 5,000-7,000￥. But once the first round of 留学生 make there way over to the bike shop, the owner will get wise to the trend and hike up the prices. Because you're a 留学生だから一年間ぐらいだけ自転車が欲しいです... the shop owner will recommend you to rent your bike for a year for about ~7,000￥ which is the equivalent to about 70$.

The shop next door!

Their selection is pretty good, and if it's not at the time you go just ask when their next shipment is coming in. They have a pretty high turnover of bikes around the time that school is starting. Although I didn't want to rent my bike at first, I came to terms with the idea the renting was more convenient than buying a new used bike for around 9,000￥. This way I wouldn't have to find someone to unload my bike onto before leaving Tenri and I was able to rent a new bike. Instead of buying a used one. The wear and tear really matters when you're going to be relying heavily on it for your main mode of transportation.

Property Sticker

This sticker is from the International Office at Tenri University and is very important. Without it your bike will get towed from Amenity. Yes, bikes get towed in Japan frequently when parked in places they shouldn't be. I've heard it's about 7,000￥to get your bike out of the tow yard. 気をつけて下さい！！ At the International Office they'll take down your name and give you a corresponding number.

Shop Owner & Worker out front

行き方：This is directly behind the Tenri train station. If you're coming from the student apartments go towards the Tenrihondai and turn left once you reach it. Cross the street and pass ミスタードーナツ. Go to the end of the block and turn right. You're going to see a dead end, but on the left side is the bike shop and the right side is the train station. You can even cut through the train station if you're more familiar with the area.

Ride safely! And remember move to the left in passing~!!!