Japan Itinerary and Budget

I've been wanting to go to Japan for years now, but was always held back by the budget most of my friends are quoting. But with a number of articles shared over Facebook, and a short notice promo by Cebu Pacific, I just decided to give it a try, finally see what the buzz is all about and put a more realistic budget from my personal actual experience in Japan.

Below is our planned Japan Itinerary:

DAY 1
Arrival in Narita Airport
Travel to Hotel (Kabukicho Area, Shinjuku)
Check-in at Hotel
Travel to Asakusa (See Senso-ji Temple, See Geisha in Kannoura Treet [at the back of the temple], Nakamise Shopping Street, Sumida Park or Kototoi Bridge to take pictures of Tokyo Skytree)
Travel to Akihabara (Tokyo Anime Center, Electric Town)

DAY 2
Travel to Chuo
Watch Sumo Wrestlers' practice at Arashio Beya Stable
Tour around Tsukiji Fish Market
Hamarikyu Gardens
Shopping in Ginza (Uniqlo, Matsumoto Kiyoshi, Dover Street Market, Tokyu Hands, Mitsukoshi, Shiseido)
Travel to Chiyoda
Hibiya Park
Imperial Palace
Travel to Minato
Tokyo Tower

DAY 3
Travel to Shibuya
Meiji Shrine
Yoyogi Park
Takeshita Street
Owl Cafe & Bar
Hachiko Memorial Status
Shibuya Crosswalk

DAY 4
Train to Keio Plaza
Viator Tour
Mt. Fuji Fifth Station
Lake Ashi
Hakone Ropeway
Shinkansen Train

DAY 5
Samurai Museum
Ninja Trick House
Piss Alley
Shinuku Gyoen National Garden
Tokyo Metropolitan Government Building (to view Mt. Fuji come at dusk to catch the sunset and the city burst into neon-lit action)

DAY 6
Shop for gifts and souvenirs
Travel back to Airport


Below is a summary of our expenses, which is actually a bit high:
CEB Roundtrip Airfare 6,816
VISA Application Fee      950
Travel Tax                      1,620
Accommodation           12,638.72
Load                               1,497.50
Entrance Fees, Tours      9,064.45
Transportation                3,872.46
Food                               9,757.78   

Total of 46,216.91

TIPS:
Below are some tips to make the most out of your trip in Japan, money-wise, time-wise, and energy-wise.

• Plan your trip - I know that some people do not like having itineraries, but you will save a lot by planning your trip and spending consecutive days in places within reach by the Tokyo Metro and Toei Subway. Buy the 72-hour Tokyo Metro and Toei Subway pass, which only costs 1,500 Yen / Php 715 / US$14. This, however, is not available in Tokyo Stations, and can only be bought in the Narita Airport.
• The train stations are huge. Though some stations are connected, some will still take a lot of walking to get to the exit or to transfer lines. If available, use the elevators available in each station. Note however, than in some stations, you may need to ride more than one elevator because you need to tap out before transferring.
• Learn about the different types of train passes. Tickets are sold through machines. You can choose English as a language first so you can understand what you are about to press :p Then, understand that there are different train lanes and different passes. The 3 day pass mentioned is not available in these machines so it's already out of the picture. The Tokyo Metro line is comprised of Ginza Line, Marunouchi Line, Hibiya Line, Tozai Line, Chiyoda Line, Yurakucho Line, Hanzomon Line, Namboku Line, and Fukutoshin Line. The Toei Subway has the Asakusa Line, Mita Line, Shinjuku Line, and Oedo Line. Living in the area of Shinjuku and going to different districts each day, we were able to ride on all lines except those in red fonts. So we were really able to maximize it! The 1 day pass for both lines cost 900 Yen. Take note that it's a one day pass (based on the date) and not a 24-hour pass (which starts counting the moment you use the ticket and valid for 24 hours) like the one available for Tokyo Metro Line only.
• If you are not delicate about sleeping terms and sharing comfort rooms and shower rooms with others, you can save a lot by choosing capsule as your accommodation, or even hotel rooms with common CR.
• Spend on your lunch, have dinner at convenience stores. Convenience stores offer a wide choice of satisfying but inexpensive food. Having more during lunch works in two ways ~ (1) some restaurants become more expensive at night (based on my net search lunch and dinner prices shown for the same restaurant are different, not sure though if it's only for some places that charge a seating fee) and  (2) you'll be needing much of the energy as you tour around anyway.
• Japan has potable water. You can drink straight from the faucet, which is a no-no in the Philippines. Instead of buying bottled water, which is quite expensive for me (500ml costs around 100 Yen), you can opt to bring your own jug and just fill it up before going out
• Internet seems necessary. You cannot download Japan's map. And map seems necessary when travelling in Japan. The public WIFI internet is a bit slow. We opt to get Globe's roaming data services which is at Php 599 per day, which is one of the reasons our expenses is a bit high. You can actually buy a sim or rent an internet stick. There are different choices in the airport, and they are all way cheaper than what Globe or even Smart if offering.
• If possible, buy your gifts and souvenirs in a single purchase. A number of stores offer Tax Free items, but with a minimum of 5,000 Yen.
• Some stores inside the airport offer tax free items, without any minimum purchase
• Below are some of the items I believe you should buy in Japan as they are cheaper: Shiseido, Casio, Seiko, Uniqlo, Royce

It's That Complicated

It's not that complicated (Bakit hindi pa sasakupin ng mga alien ang daigdig sa 2012)- Eros S. Atalia

BUOD:
Ito ang ikatlong aklat sa trilohiya ng may akda na si Eros S. Atalia na tumatalakay sa pang-araw-araw na buhay ni Karl Valadimir Lennon J. Villalobos a.k.a. Intoy. Huling libro, ika nga eh para mabigyan lang ng katapusan ang kwento, kahit na ang katapusan ay hindi talagang nagwawakas, bagkus simula ng panibagong kwento. Isang kwentong hindi alam kung saan ang simula, gitna, at wakas, ang It's not that complicated (Bakit hindi pa sasakupin ng mga alien ang daigdig sa 2012) ay istorya ng paghahanap ni Intoy sa iniibig ngunit ayaw magpahanap na si Jen. At sa panahong naghahanap siya ay nakilala rin niya nang mas maigi ang ka-opisinang si Tina, matalino, maganda, mayaman. Nagpasama ito sa kanya sa kanyang pananaliksik, at bilang pagpapasalamat ay sinama naman siya nito sa isang bakasyon sa Boracay. Ito na sana ang pagkakataon ni Intoy para makamove-on. Pero sabi nga nila pag hinahanap mo ang isang tao/bagay/pangyayari sa buhay, lalo itong mailap at hindi mahanap, ngunit sa puntong tigilan mo ang iyong paghahanap, kusa itong lilitaw.


PAGNINILAY:

Tulad sa normal na buhay, na sineseryoso ko ang mga 'di siniseryoso ng iba at pinagninilay-nilayan ang mga hindi pinagtutuunan ng pansin ng karamihan, wala akong pakialam kung ako lang ang nag-iisang sumeryoso sa manunulat na ayaw magpaseryoso.

Paano ko ba naman kasi maiiwasan?
Sa paraan ng paglalahad ni pareng Eros, na para bang nakikipagtagayan ka lang sa kanto, ay napakadaling makarelate sa mga karakter nina Intoy, Tina, at Jen. Mula sa pagtataray at pang-aakit, pilosopong pag-iisip at kakaibang mag-isip, ligaya at sakit, obssession at heartbreak, bawat paglalarawan, kilos at damdamin ay tiyak na tiyak na kung hindi man sarili ang makikilala ay ang mga taong nakapalibot sa atin sa araw-araw.

Bukod sa paglalahad ng kwento ni Intoy na akala mo'y sa MMK mo lang mapapanood ngunit totoong nangyayari sa buhay paminsan-minsan, nailahad din ni pareng Eros ang masakit na katotohanan sa nakatatawang paraan. Oo nga't hatid nya'y ngiti sa istilo ng kanyang pagkukwento, pero nasa likod ng tamis ng halakhak ang asim at pait ng kalagayan ng sangkatauhan.

Ang mga tsismosang kapitbahay ay mahilig pa rin magkalat ng kwentong kathang isip lamang. Kaliwa't kanan pa rin ang panloloko ng mga kapwa tao - sa mga di makatarungang patakaran ng mga kumpanya, mga ka-opisinang tuta ng mga bossing, sa panloloko ng mga advertisements, at ng mga pulitikong walang kaluluwa.

Tulad na lamang ng nga solusyong naisip ng pangunahing tauhan sa problema nito sa matilaok na manok, nag-isip rin ang tao ng samu't saring solusyon sa mga problemang hinaharap. Nariyan ang mga paggawa ng nga haka-haka, sariling mga signos ba na pinaniniwalaan, pagpapahula at kung anu-anong easy solution na makikita sa Quiapo, mga kulungang susugpo sana sa mga krimen. Kaya lang ang problema sa mga solusyong ito tulad ng mga solusyong naisip ni Intoy para tumahimik ang manok, ay maaaring panandalian lamang o kaya'y magdadala lamang ng panibagong problema tulad ng hindi maayos na estado ng kulungan sa Pilipinas.

Pera - tunay nga namang isa iyan sa pinakamagandang solusyong naimbento ng tao. Kapag may pera, madali ang buhay, madaling makalimot, madaling magmove-on. Pera ang kailangan ng tao para sya maka-angat mula sa pagpuno ng pangunahing pangangailangan papunta sa mga pangangailangan ng kanyang emosyon, kaluluwa at pagkatao. Pero dahil nga hindi pantay ang pagkakalaan ng kayamanan, may mga mahihirap pa ring di man mapunan ang tiyan samantalang may mayayamang naglulustay nito sa kanilang libangan upang makalimot sa problema.

Relihiyon ang isa pang bagay na dapat sana ay tugon sa mga problema ng katauhan. Ito dapat sana ang sasalba sa ating mga kaluluwa, pero hanggang ngayon ay labu-labo pa rin ito sa mga paniniwala. Binubuhay ng mga taong naniniwala sa kanila, pinupuno ng mga nananalig dahil sa pangangailangan nila, iba-iba ang ritwal pero ang bawat isa raw ay ang tunay na relihiyon, kaya nga kahit ang relihiyon ng mga di naniniwala sa diyos ay parehong problema rin ang dinaranas ng mga tunay raw na relihiyon. Dagdagan mo pa ito ng isyu sa pamemera at pamumulitika, aba may nanalo na!

Nakalulungkot isipin pero sang-ayon ako sa may akda na tao nga ang hayop na kulang pa sa ebolusyon. Marami na nga tayong nadiskubre, naimbento at naranasan, pero hindi nga ba't daig pa rin natin ang mga hayop sa kahayupan ng pag-uugali?

Quotes:
"Siguro, hindi pa sasakupin ng mga alien sa 2012 ang daigdig, o kung kelan pa man, ay dahil alam ng mga alien na ang mga tao sa mundo, hindi pa lubusang nakikilala ang daigdig."

"Nakaraan na ang lahat ng ito. Mahirap mamuhay sa lumipas. Ayoko naman na pangarapin nang husto ang darating na bukas. Tama siuguro ang sabi ng ilang matatanda na ang nabubuhay sa kahapon ay nabubuhay sa buntong hininga at ang nabubuhay sa kinabukasan ay nag-aaksaya ng hininga. Ngayon ako humihinga. Ngayon ako dapat mabuhay."

"Siguro, sa lansangan ng pag-ibig, sapat na yung minsan ay nakasabay o nakasalubong mo ang isang tao sa daan, pasalamat na lang at kahit minsan, nagtapat o nagpantay din ang inyong mga hakbang."

"Hindi ba't gusto ng tao bumalik ang mundo sa dati nityong malinis na anyo? Yubg mala-parasiso? Ngunit bago dumating dito, kailangang munang linisin ng mundo ang kanyang sarili. At para makinis nya ito, dapat nya munang alisin ang mga pasaway. Tao ang pasaway. Tao ang dapat mawalis para ang mundo'y muling luminis."

"Sila ang patunay na hindi pa handa ang mga alien na sakupin ang mundo. Baka mabigo lang sila sa madadatnan dito sa ating planeta. Inaasahan kasi nilang ganap nang tao ang mga tao."

"Sa tingin ko, mas madaling mahalin ang isang tao na maabutan mo siya sa kalagayang wala siya ng gusto mo, kesa meron sya ng ayaw mo."

"Siguro dahil hindi mo nanakawin ang isang bagay na sa akala mo ay nandyan lang palagi."

"Bugbog ang katawan sa byahe at polusyon ng Maynila, gulpe-sarado ang isip sa pagbubuo ng ideya kung paano lolokohin ang sambayanan, hahamunin ang pasensya sa kupal na bossing at kanyang mga tsuwariwariwap sampu ng mga katrabahong kinokombulsyon kapag hindi nagiging bida."

"Bakit hindi raw ako palasalita? Bakit daw ako walang kibo? Sa loob-loob ko lang, salita nga ako nang salita, 'yun nga lang, ako lang ang nakakarinig sa sarili ko."

"Sila ang patunay na hindi pa handa ang mga alien na sakupin ang mundo. Baka mabigo lang sila sa madadatnan dito sa ating planeta. Inaasahan kasi nilang ganap nang tao ang mga tao."

"History is educated gossip."

"Hindi naman kailangang laging lumaban para gapiin ang kalaban, ang pinakamagandang paraan ng pagkakagapi sa kalaban ay hindi magsimula ng labanan."

"Parang istorya sa panaginip na magulo, walang lohika, hindi mo alam kung saan nagsimula, paano tumakbo at paano nawakasan."

"Walang fate. Life is the choices we made."

"Pwede ka sa pelikula, ang galing mong magpaikot ng buhay ng ibang tao. Ikaw na sumulat, kaw pa nagdirect, ikaw na rin producer. Sana, ikaw lang ang manood."

"Maaari kasing mahalin ang isang bagay kahit hindi mo gusto, pero parang mahirap gustuhin ang isang bagay na hindi mo mahal."

"Kaya siguro naimbento ang nakaraan para lingunin at kalimutan, ang hinaharap ay para tanawin at pangarapin. Parehas hindi totoo."

"Kung tutuusin parang wala ring ngayon. Dahil hindi naman tumitigil ang ngayon. Pagtuntong sa ngayon, kisapmata, nakaraan na yun.  Parang patikim lang ang ngayon."

"Dahil ilusyon lang ang nakaraan at ang hinaharap; ang ngayon, kung totoo man, ay future ng past at past ng future."

"Nakakalibang kasi na alam mong binobola ka. Pero mas nakakalibang na kapwa nyo alam na nagbobolahan lang kayo pero kunwari'y hindi nyo alam na alam nyong nagbobolahan lang kayo."

"Pero ba't kinakailangang maging malungkot ako, para lang sumaya kayo?"

"Hindi nauubos ang gusto. Ang bawat isang gusto na nakakamit, isang trap sa paghahanap pa ng mas gugustuhin."

"Hindi ko alam kung politika ang nakasira sa relihiyon o relihiyon ang nakasira sa politika."

"Sino ba ako para hintayin ng kinabukasan? With or without me, tutuloy ang ikot ng mundo."

"Wala pa akong nakitang aso na nagpapakitang aso. Pero maraming taong nagkukunwaring tao."

"Kung nakamonitor ang aliens ngayon, pihadong umiiling lang sila. Kala nila, hindi pa rin nag-e-evolve ang tao."

"Siguro, kaya hindi pa sasakupin ng mga alien sa 2012 ang daigdig, o kung kelan pa man, ay dahil alam ng mga alien na ang mga tao sa mundo, hindi pa lubusang nakikilala ang daigdig."

Kita Kita

Sa direksyon ni Sigrid Andrea Bernardo, ang Kita Kita ay isa na namang pelikula tungkol sa pag-ibig. At tulad nang lahat ng kwentong pag-ibig, may saya at lungkot, may tawanan at iyakan, may kilig at pait.

Set in Sapporo ang kwento. So expect na makasulyap sa iba't ibang tanawin sa Hokkaido, Japan. Pinagbibidahan nina Alessandra De Rossi bilang Lea at Empoy Marquez bilang Tonyo, ang pelikula ay mayroon lamang dalawang pangunahing tauhan. Wala masyadong may ekstrang role ng nanay, tatay, bespren, o barkada na pampahaba lang minsan ng airtime.

Gusto ko ang pamamaraan ng pagtalakay ng kwento. Gamit ang bilang isa hanggang sampu, naibahagi nito ang naramdaman ng tauhan, pisikal man o emosyonal. Minsan ay hugot, madalas ay pagmumulan ng halakhak.

Love is blind, ika nga. Pero alam na natin yan. Gasgas na nga yan. Kung iniisip mong komedya ito ng katagang iyan dahil bulag si Lea na nagkagusto kay Tonyo, tama ka. Pero mali ka rin.

Ayoko ng spoiler kaya't di ko sasabihin ang mga rebelasyon (na ang iba ay medyo may give away naman sa una kung mahusay na manonood pero ang ilan ay wala) pero let me just quote Tonyo,

"Ang labo mo. Nung nakakakita ka pa, hindi mo ako nakikita. Nung nabulag ka, tsaka mo ako nakita."

IMHO, this movie is so much better than the hyped Tadhana movie of Angelica Panganiban and JM De Guzman.

Where to Eat in California

So it was my first time in America last November 2016. One of my concerns then was where to eat. Of course, not only am I concerned with not having rice for two weeks, but also about my budget! Just thought I'd share the list of some places in LA where you can grab a bite without hurting your wallet. 

Flame Broiler

When you want rice, meat, and veggies in one go at just the right amount.

China Cafe at Grand Central Market

Wanton Soup

I've read in some reviews that this place is always full, so I decided to go there a little early, around 11 I think, and the line is already long. The place seems to be managed by "Latinos" Mexicans", they were talking spanish, so I was a bit unsure if it would really taste good as I was expecting the servers to be chinese. They memorize your name. No numbers. You just give your name, and they remember to whom to serve. It's tasty, it's filling, and it will surely make your day.

Chipotle

Hard Tacos

It's a create your own taco kind of place. You can add more cheese, more greens, it's really up to you, but you should definitely have some of that steak. 

Shake Shack

Burger, Fries, and Chocolate Milkshake

This comes with a happy story ~ the kind that makes you think destiny or "it's meant to be". So we were asked by my friend's relatives where do we want to eat and we just mentioned this. I've read it in some blogs, watched it in some movies, but it seems they themselves who were living in LA were not familiar with it. It turns out that the stores in LA just recently opened. So they did not know how to get there since they do  not know of Shake Shack.... then we were stuck in traffic for sometime and was just passing along Santa Monica Blvd in West Hollywood.... and boom! It's there right in front of us, Shake Shack in LA!

I'm not a big fan of burgers but if this is the kind of burger I'll have, I am surely converted!

The bread is soft, the burger grilled just right, the fries are crispy but not too much that it tastes like junk. Also a big plus is the guy manning the counter who was very helpful as we were new and we did not know what to order. 

Luigi's Pizza

Good food in Universal Studios though the pizza was a little bit salty

Panda Express

Go to this place and your chinese food cravings will surely be satisfied!

Cocina Cucamonga Mexican Grill

That big serving of awesome Mexican flavors! What more can you ask for?

In & Out Burger

Another one of the must try burgers in the U.S.! The serving is bigger, though Shake Shack is really tastier.

The Cheesecake Factory

Fresh Strawberry Cheesecake

Grilled Rib Eye Steak

That mouthwatering cheesecake! It's a bit pricey though, and the line in this place is always looooong.

Hola, El Nido

Almost 10 years ago, I had my first plane ride. My first destination was Puerto Princessa. The place really amazed me. But I heard El Nido is also a must-see. So I told myself I have to go back.

Before a decade goes by, I'm fulfilling that dream to visit El Nido!

For a little more than Php 7,000, you can surely enjoy one of the finest islands the Philippines has to offer.

We booked our tours with Northern Hope Tours, which is the travel agency mentioned in most blogs. We got a package inclusive of PPS to El Nido van transfer and back, accommodation with free breakfast, Tour A and Tour C, all for only Php 5,450 per person. It fits our budget, and we had no problems whatsoever, but there were a lot of things that could be improved. For one,the shuttle that picked us up from the airport was on time, however, it is a public utility vehicle. So after we were picked up, we went to the terminal and had to wait for other walk-in passengers. It took around an hour before the van became full. So that's an hour less on your itinerary.

Fortunately, the road to El Nido is paved. Unfortunately, though, it's more than 50% zigzag roads, such that two of the kids we were riding the van with, puked before reaching our destination. Anyway, the ride was around 5-6 hours, so there was a quick stopover at Elfredo's Manukan and Seafood located in Roxas City. You just need to order fast and eat fast because the stopover is only for 15-20 minutes.

El Fredo's

Inasal na manok, Rice, free soup, and Coke
(more or less Php100)

After a few more zigzag roads, we finally reached our home for the next three nights ~ Overcomer Lodge, located in Corong-Corong. It's hard to miss since it's right after the Welcome sign to El Nido. Right the moment we landed in PPS, we were warned by our pickup service not to drink water from faucets in El Nido as the water is not clean. True enough, the moment we opened the faucet, I wasn't sure it's even good enough for brushing my teeth! This is a local problem though, but the lodge could have been cleaner in terms of other areas - there were traces of dirt on the floor of our room and remnants of poop in the bathroom bowl, there were no toiletries other than towels; and the wifi is not working. The signal for both globe and sun are also very poor in this area. We were given a room right beside the stairs (Room 9) which is quite near the rooftop where people would normally eat and hangout so it was a little noisy as you would not expect the rooms to be sound proof.

For our first day, we just had to rest in our room after the long land travel. For our dinner, we walked a little on the road and ate at Greenviews Resort and Restaurant. We had Red Snapper, rice, soup, veggies, coke, and mango shake while watching that beautiful sunset.

The second day (first day of our island hopping tour) arrives! The van arrived at 8;00AM on the lodge. It was our first day so we were up early, excited as can be. But other joiners, who were on the same lodge, started coming out a little before 8:30. We were brought to Northern Hope Tours, where we made the complete payment, and waited for other joiners of the same tour. We were completed around 9:00AM. We were brought to the boat area, but had to wait another 30 minutes for our boatmen to prepare the boat, our food, and snorkeling gears. Our island hopping (Tour C) finally began around 9:30AM.

First stop at Helicopter Island

It was named so because of how the island looked like (but it looks more like a whale to me =p)

Hidden Beach

As the name suggests, the place seemed to be hidden. You need to swim for some distance before reaching this place. This is where we saw Nemo in the wild.

Talisay Beach

This is our stopover for lunch, with the boatmen setting up a table full of food - Grilled squid, Shrimp, Fish, Ensaladang Talong, Fruits in season (pineapple, banana, orange watermelon)

Secret beach

Quite a challenge if you're not a good swimmer as we had to go through a hole to get to this place. Note: This is not the beach. The hole in the middle of the picture is where you need to go through to see the Secret Beach.

We also stopped for awhile at a snorkeling site where there were lots of corals and small fishes, and also in Matinloc Shrine,

but there was an additional Php100 fee to go to the overlooking area.

On our second night, since we were actually more tired than the previous night, after the whole day tour, we did not go far and just had dinner at the pizza house Dos Quadros, just right in front of the lodge

 Dos Quadros Pizza and Pasta

Our second island hopping (Tour A) consists mostly of lagoon. We started off earlier today, mainly because there was no van to pick us up, so we rode a trike, and it was easy to fill up. We got to go ahead.

At Ipil Island

We were supposed to stop at 7 Commandos Beach but since the place is already full, our boatmen decided to bring us to Ipil Island instead, which is only a few meter away. We had the place to ourselves, though there wasn't much to see.

Big Lagoon

The place is picturesque but we did not go down. Our boat just went for a tour and we took pictures of the beautiful scenery.

Lunch at Shimizu Island

Our stopover for lunch today. We also got to snorkel in this place for awhile. There were lots of fishes to see too!

Secret Lagoon

Everytime they say "secret" or "hidden", prepare to swim and be challenged! (well, atleast for non-swimmers like me)

Small Lagoon where we get to kayak 

VIDEO

To get around the small lagoon, you need to rent a kayak. There are kayaks for 1-2 persons and for 4-5 persons.

I got so sick on our last night that I was not able to eat dinner. We just had a few snacks from the sari-sari store beside the lodge.

For our last day, we were picked up by a service around 8AM, stop over is still at El Fredo's. We asked to be dropped off at MCA Market Center where we bought our pasalubong for relatives and friends. Before proceeding to the airport, we opted to try out a place referred to us by a friend ~ Kinabuchs, unfortunately, it was closed during our free time so we ended up at Ugong rock instead, which was located just a couple of blocks away from the airport.

Food Trippin' in Taipei, Kainan sa Taiwan

If there's anything you shouldn't dare miss in Taiwan, it would be the tasty food that is served everywhere! From posh restaurants to foodcourts, from small eateries to food stalls, from day markets to night markets, steaming hot and delicious food can be found anywhere and everywhere! 

Plus, these are very affordable! Real value for money!

Just a note though, most of the restaurants are in Chinese characters, which I can't read so I can't share the specific names. Instead I am mentioning the locations of where these yummy food can be had.

Noodle Soup in Taipei Zoo

 

Complete set in Taipei 101 Foodcourt

Dumplings in Guang Hua Shopping Mall

Candied Strawberries and Tomatoes at Tamsui Old Street

Fried Octopus at Tamsui Old Street

Dumplings in Ximending Night Market

Spicy Fishballs in Jiufen Old Street

Candies at Jiufen Old Street

Mushrooms, mushrooms, mushrooooms!!!

Chinese Sausage at Jiufen

Juices and Snacks at Juifen

The famous Taoyuan Noodle Soup

Tea Time @ Ah Mei Tea House

8way Dumplings and Potstickers in Shi Lin Market

Egg Pancakes in Ximending Night Market

Fried Quail Eggs

Various Eats on Sticks (Mushrooms, Pork, Squid, etc.)

That Bacon Wrapped Mushrooms!

Shaved Ice near Ximending

Fried Rice at the Airport

Siomai at the Airport

Fly away to LA LA Land

I rarely watch musical movies because I find it hard to follow the lyrics, while enjoying the melody and at the same time appreciate the story, cinematography and of course the acting. But this is the first musical movie I really loved and would have wanted to repeat watching.

The song "City of Stars" has been my LSS for almost two weeks. Give me the tune and the LSS will surely start again.

I haven't watched the movies of the other nominees but for me, both Ryan Gosling and Emma Stone do deserve to win the best actor/best actress awards with what they have shown. The sadness in their eyes says it all. They did not even need to shed tears, exchange deep quotable quotes, or show devastation in their acting. It was simple, it was true, it was heartfelt.

A number of the places featured in the film were the places I visited just a few months ago during my first visit in the US. So somehow, this may have added to how I felt for the movie. I couldn't help myself from shouting the names of the places as we were watching in the movie house! It was a subtle way to feature wonderful spots in LA.

The movie is light, with a touch of heaviness in some parts. Much like the real life of dreamers and lovers.