Anything & Everything

An inevitable part of a trip in Japan for my family was the hunt for flavoured Kit Kats, one of many things that Japan is famous for. Within a few discussions we were already planning strategies on searching for, buying, and splitting the sweet treats in such a way where we could maximise the number of flavours we tried while bringing home only the best to hoard and last us to the next trip to Japan. It seemed simple enough - the internet had already given an insight of the sheer number of flavours available in the country, and we were prepared to miss a few flavours from seasonal and regional restrictions,  but the search for the elusive exotic-flavoured Kit Kats did not exactly go as planned. The first thing we quickly learned is that the chocolate bars are not readily stocked in every food store on the street. Convenience stores only held the typical flavours - original, occasionally dark, and only one of two green tea flavours. Granted, a few convenience stores held a couple ...

I love words. I like books, stories, and reading (so long as it doesn't involve a textbook or anything to do with studying), and as a child I was constantly working through several novels at a time. And yet, despite a childhood of non-stop reading there came a point sometime at the mid-teen age where it became more of an arduous task than a form of enjoyment. This I boiled down to laziness: I considered it to be a side-effect of spending so long on computers and other devices to the point where anything involving more than a few minutes' attention was no longer worth my time. I'm also quite picky when it comes to genre - I refuse most things fantasy or sci-fi because of some of the ways that the magic involved seemed unrealistic or forced. I also avoided most of the typical romance novels, finding them predictive, and though I always enjoy a good whodunnit mystery it was difficult to find one that was well-written and genuinely gripping, especially anything written for so...

What I've learned over the years from manga and Japanese classes is that, as land and housing in Japan is often very expensive, most income one earns is usually spent on material items and catching up with the latest trends and fashion. This goes for both men and women, demonstrated when the fashion styles of most everyday people in Japan were almost indistinguishable, such as the women's winter look of a large coat, stockings, and boots. However, as the Japanese are often so willing to spend higher amounts for the latest looks it doesn't come as a surprise when most of the shopping available are high-end brands like Gucci, or very cute boutiques that offers variations of the general trending clothing. I, for one, am not a person who follows fashion trends, much less spend $150 on a jacket that could be offered at half the price, which made me wary of shopping in Japan. Department stores did not help the case. What I initially thought would be a multi-storey wonderland of...

CONTAINS SPOILERS. To read my review, follow this link . Knowing very little about history, I am not the best candidate to be speaking on such a dire topic, especially when my background knowledge extends mostly from Tumblr, whose resources and evidence few, and beliefs contradictory between two adjacent posts. However, it can hardly be overlooked that Dreamworks' new movie Home  has serious ties to European colonialism through the invasion of the planet earth by the alien species called the Boov, and despite it being very cute, highly entertaining, and hilarious animated film (for children! might I add), my young cynicism brought about by following various blogs on Tumblr has given rise to a new awareness of topics involving equality, creating a sort of filter as I watched the movie. Certainly I still enjoyed it. With such an all-star cast and the typical forms of amusement brought by a children's film it would be a total lie to say that even a Tumblr-induced cynicism-filt...

Walking into breakfast yesterday, Sister#2 announced news of her discovery fact that Dreamworks, only earlier this year, reduced their workforce by 500 people by shutting down an entire studio in California, just as we had planned on watching the recently-released animated film Home . This was devastating to her: a future animator, and with Dreamworks one of the leading companies in animation, we had always enjoyed the movies and continued to anticipate the release of each one, and going so far to challenge typical Disney-goers in claiming that she enjoys Dreamworks more than Disney (in some respects) when it comes to animated films. To an extent I agree with her; while Disney movies include a mix of vivid fantasies, light-hearted entertainment and the bawl-inducing family moments it's difficult to ignore how some of the better Dreamworks films have captured magic Disney can overlook. Clearly some Dreamworks films could have used a little work - take  Peabody and Sherman . It ...

Day Nine BREAKFAST We dared to venture further today, and found in the same general area between the hotel and the station a Japanese restaurant that features soba and udon. At around  ¥400-600 a bowl, it was hearty and filling, making it an excellent morning meal. Udon with fried  chikuwa  (fish cake) and egg Kitsune udon - Udon with fried tofu Following breakfast was the first (and last) free day on the itinerary, so the parents let loose their three kids and we went off on our own. COPIC MARKERS: THE SEARCH Most artists are familiar with the term Copics . It's a brand that makes heads turn and hands grab. The comparison of Copic markers to other brands is difficult to describe - even in terms of electronics, Apple has some features bettered by other companies, but Copic markers have no competition. There are Copics, and there is everything else. But with such a revered and high-quality product comes that of a high price, resulting in an on-going...