so delicious I get hungry looking at it!

it’s probably the easiest nail design EVER. because you don’t exactly need to have extra stable hands or any konad tools or brushes. just dot it!

steps :

1. dot green and blue dots in random.
2. fill 50% of the holes with yellow topping it.
3. add pink for better contrast!

all you need?

baby colours. I forgot where I got the pink but the milky green, yellow and blue are all from Etude House, that Korean brand BRANDED IN PINK. =D.

Etude House Christmas decoration in Korea. which reminds me, I haven’t blogged about Myeong Dong yet!

see what I mean by it BRANDED IN PINK? the whole place is practically bursting in pink.

PS : fuh I love my HTC camera. it’s pretty awesom when there’s light. my camera is in the service centre. =(.

Gyeongbokgung is the LARGEST palace in South Korea, and also the most popular. reach before 4pm if you would like to visit it in winter season. or 5pm if not in winter.

unfortunately, I reached at about 430 and missed the entry. because I took my own sweet time over at Changdeokgung and slowly walked over to Gyeongbokgung. hahaha. yes, it’s walking distance. but it’s not exactly near. it’s funny that we actually followed the road signs for cars to get to Gyeongbokgung heheheh.

what’s behind me is the Gwanghwamun gate directly facing the main road. that’s just the first gate of the palace. fuh. and from this gate to the next? probably another 100m walk.

TIP : see that thing bulging out from my jeans? battries die 50% faster in cold weather. so it’s best to keep it around your body so it can last longer =D.

and the NEXT gate of Gyeongbokgung. even more grand. but this is the gate where you need your pass to get in. eventhough according to wikipedia, there are THREE GATES.

awesome place to take pictures though. =D.

the second gate, the Heungnyemun gate in close up =3. look at those details!

I peeked through the second gate and that’s the third gate! I guess the second gate is still the prettiest!

Geunjeongmun, the third gate.

translator lady in hanbok! korean traditional clothing.

outside Gwanghwamun and met this group of very cute kids! T_________T. MUST TAKE PICTURE WITH ALL OF THEM!

hello all. as usual, I decided to visit the not as famous but still famous destination. compared to Gyeongbokgung, Changdeokgung is considerably small but is said to be more beautiful =D.

the second reason was also because it’s located right next to Changgyeonggung. but I seemed to had clearly underestimated the gungs/palaces. it’s my first time actually visiting a PALACE since previously I’ve always only visited temples in China. haven’t been to the Forbidden City yet, sadly. =(. I was thinking a mere 1 hour strool would be enough but it’s far from being adequate. I think it took me around 2 hours to just finish HALF of the palace. it started getting gloomy and it was 4 before we knew. the palaces closes at 5 in winter. so the last entry is at 4. haha.

poser mom. hahaha. AND NOTICE THAT PRETTY AUTUMN TREE BEHIND?

a GINKO tree! =D.

wait, are those fruits? D=. GINKO SEEDS?!

it was coooooooooold. I wore 3 layers of clothing inside and was still freezing.

a tree growing on my head. hahahaha. anyways, admission fee is 3,000won. that’s about RM9. if you would like to visit Changgyeonggung as well which is just next door, you’ll have to be prepared to fork out another 3,000won!

since I had no tour guide, I don’t exactly know the history of the place. but here are some pictures and.. I’ll tell you whatever I know.

I especially like this picture eventhough it’s not too proportional. that auntie in red does good in brightening the gloomy picture up a little haha. it was a gloomy day U_U. only reason bad for visiting in winter, the sun sets too quickly. good thing is that it doesn’t really rain. hehehe.

love how the palace is right in the middle of the city, surrounded by the modern buildings. showed its contrast and preservation very well.

already stretching hahahahha.

like I said, the palace is huge. I can’t imagine Gyeongbokgung. I’ll probably take a day if I want to go through the whole Gyeongbokgung haha.

I was wondering if the wheelchair is provided by the people who runs the palace. in case the elderly are unaware of the size of the palace and it can help them get back to the entrance eventhough tired. hahaha. I think too much ey.

these gargyoles(?) are made to protect the palace!! at least I know SOMETHING!

because I love the flare, I set this picture as my phone’s wallpaper!

 

asian architecture, especially Korean ones are very photogenic because they pick attractive colours which directly compliments each other!

FACT : in the colour wheel, the main 3 colours are red, blue and yellow yes? so green, is made from blue and yellow and hence that colour is DIRECTLY complimenting red. it’s more attractive that way =D.

the entrance to Changgyeonggung! yes, it’s linked!

since I was too tired and was unable to finish the whole palace, I thought it would be great to show you how pathways around the palace look like. ain’t it attracting you to take a strool? but make sure you visit in autumn. =D.

if those autumn leaves didn’t attract you that much, I bet these will. since it was late November when I went, most trees went bald already but THANK GOODNESS FOR CHANGDEOKGUNG! =D.

can’t stop admiring the gargoyles on the rooftop!

I have a thing for cascading architecture.

and this part of the palace is pretty unusual compared to the rest of the palace. rather than being colourful and.. woody, it is made out of bricks mostly and is painted in almost black — dark brown and white.

the palace as a whole is not exactly too much of an interesting place for us youngsters especially without a proper tour guide telling us about the history but I would highly recommend it for photography =D.

it’s also a UNESCO world heritage site by the way!

lets see, it seems like I only have 10 more minutes to blog about 2011 in 2011.

supposed to have a great partay tonight with Chris Tock but to my disappointment,

I GOT FOOD POISONING FOR NYE. =(.

doctor said I got food poisoning because I have very low anti-body BECAUSEEE I lack of exercise. ahhahaha. okay =P.

anyways,

sometimes it’s good to look back and see what you’ve done for the past year and try to enjoy it. but what if it’s bad? well, then take it as a lesson or something! so far this year has been one of the most unproductive years for me but it’s not too bad because I conqoured my dream on visiting Japan. people from Malaysia should know that visiting Japan on a tour costs a bomb and applying it yourself takes a whole lot of effort because the visa is troublesome like that. but really, no regrets and it fulfilled my dream as a kid. every kid from my generation WANTS TO VISIT JAPAN as we all grew up with animes. eventhough I am not a big fan of Jpop or Jdrama, anime’s are the best creation. it’s like the MARVEL of my dad’s generation!

it’s even more saddening to have to know that most people won’t be home reading blogs especially mine on such a rare day like today. probably spending it with your loved ones or kissing your other half on 11:59 so you can kiss her until next year wth. hahahaha.

3 more minutes left. fireworks are displaying right outside my window. didn’t bother to see. HAHAHA.

so what’s not so glorious about this year is that I decided to change my major. I used to major in Graphic Design where I did pretty well in. I love it but I guess I just don’t want to live with it. I guess I’d probably die of stress and have even lesser time to EXERCISE since it’s such a hectic occupation.

but what’s waiting for me in the future is far more interesting I suppose. and probably more difficult.

and guess what? it’s 12:00 already!

SO HAPPY NEW YEAR EVERYONE!

I really appreciate every single reader so.. please read on =D!

guess it’s time for bed my medicine is wearing off and I guess my chills will be back soon!

just a few hours ago, Maybank; a bank we Malaysians all know and is proud of it’s convenience especially in the online banking, launched their new App on Facebook!

I find the Maybank Thank You WEEK an inspirational event as it reminds us that we should be grateful to every family, friend, colleague or relative. and hence, we should express what we really feel inside with a “thank you” because just a simple word can lighten up or even warm the hearts of that particular person.

you should watch this video below. a thank you message from Dato’ Sri Abdul Wahid Omar, the CEO and President of the Maybank Group.

it’s the end of the year, and you might probably have flash backs on what happened and you know it was a pretty great year and you know who was there for you. so why not take this chance alongside with Maybank’s convenient App to express your gratitude to whom you think matters? just try it. all you need is FACEBOOK to access to this App. I am sure EVERYONE OF YOU HAVE A FACEBOOK ACCOUNT!

just hop on over to Maybank’s Facebook page and look for the “Thank You Week!” link on the left side under Maybank’s Profile Picture.

and it will deliver you to this page! if you’ve already watched the video I posted, you may click “Start thanking now” =D.

and you’ll find all steps such as uploading a picture with the Thank You Salute with your message and then finally, proceed to selecting friends you want to thank =).

I uploaded a more cheeky looking picture of me saluting as it resembles the true me, where I am always giggly and silly but at the same time, I mean it.

and after uploading your picture and message, just wait for it to be filtered and soon enough, YOU’LL SEE YOUR PICTURE HERE! well I am still waiting for mine…

but this is all you need to do to thank somebody whom you care about! so simple, and it puts a smile on their face. =).

this place can be easily seen through google. just one click and millions of photographs of the beautiful fully bloom sakura view will be viewable. but it was pretty sad that when I was there, there wasn’t any. =(. I am not sure about this but I felt that sakura’s bloom at a different time sometimes. like the ones at DisneySea, they were fully bloom! even at such a cold weather. and even some in Kamakura. so I guess it really depends on the location? but as for Ueno, it comes early April. to be safe, travel a little before mid April since the sakura flowers will 0nly last for 2 weeks.

another picture which requires your brain to visualise how light pink flowers are filled on every tree behind me. hehehe. and during winter it looks so gloomy. gosh winter is such a gloomy season!

so if you think you’re not the type that likes to take strolls in a park, you may skip this place. but one thing I know for sure, is that there are beautiful temples here.

I saw this and immediately pulled my mom over. not the cute dogs. btw that’s a very old grandma walking 3 dogs with a baby. Japanese (old) people, forever so healthy!

anyway! I was talking about what could be found in Kyoto, those red thrunks behind. eventhough the ones in Kyoto is clearly more attractive, but this one’s not bad!

indian movie scene phail.

I don’t know what to call these.. pillars? but as far as I know the huge ones are called gates haha. so erm mini gates??

okay googled and I am right! #likeaboss. they ARE called gates! and mom said they are called Torii.

if I ever get to get married, I want to have my wedding photos photographed at the Kyoto one. PFFT.

you know you saw it. that’s a fox over there. (with a napkin? HUH?) and it’s absolutely not a rumour that people worship foxes in asia.

this is the fox temple. which I stupidly thought it was a dog temple pfft mainly because I think dogs are the most awesome animal.

I am not sure about Japan, but in Taiwan and China, they worship foxes for love luck. like maybe praying for their other half to be faithful to them or perhaps just getting the other half.

I don’t know what are these but I bet people put them up for luck. =D. whatever it is. it’s beautiful. wondering if it would mean like tails for the fox hmm.

they even have pretty drawings on it! gosh these Japanese people! and it was there where I realised how pretty Japanese words are. the neat handwriting of the Japanese people written on the wooden plates.

holy water! it is seriously drinkable. I drank once at a.. well, a place that has much more people drinking it so I tried. it tasted like mountain water. very pure. best thing was, IT WAS COLD! =3.

I bet no one actually noticed the foot of the basin. looks like it’s folding his arms angrily but I still couldn’t guess what it is. the protector perhaps?

I have never enjoyed visiting temples as much as visiting temples in Japan. seriously, it makes you feel as if you’ve entered a calm place to relax.

the surroundings of the fox temple. and this is a different one! they have so many sometimes I wish I understand Japanese to explain more. =S.

can you see those cherry blossoms behind me?!

clearer view.

the place for people to hang what they got from their prayers!

 

I like how dogs are so obedient while their owner is doing something serious pfft. is it me or do I think that this dog is more lovable and adorable than the puss in boots cat. =D.

another place to drink holy water! =D. actually I guess it’s more for washing our face and hands. the ratio of people who actually drinks it is probably 1:20 *coughs* usually men.

and after exiting Ueno Park. me and my mom just kept walking. we didn’t know where we were heading to but we are pretty sure we’ll eventually find our way back. until we saw ANOTHER beautiful temple!

this one has its own beauty because it is in the middle of a lake.

that stall behind me is what I expect Japan to have when I first stepped on Japanese soil. and THERE IT WAS! it’s pretty rare in Tokyo but don’t it remind you of NARUTO?! or perhaps other Animes? =3.

I’m not sure if it’s a good thing but the lake is more attractive than the temple. HAHAHA.

because there are plenty of ducks on it. =3.

the ducks are damn pretty alright?! except all the ducks there seriously have scary eyes pfft. did you even notice that different types of ducks don’t only vary in size and colours, but EYES TOO? maybe these are the angmoh ducks or something with different colour iris. wth.

 

Winter view. I am positive I’d love Japan even more in Autumn.

did you know, most birds in Japan are fat? I guess they are not exactly REALLY FAT. but it’s maybe because they have thicker feathers. =P.

and because this was the last day of my trip, my mom was very exhausted for sleeping for merely 6 hours a day. so she went back to the hotel to rest and I went to Ikebukuro(again) for more shopping! I couldn’t get enough of Cold Stone too. BANANA CARAMEL! and if you visit Shinjuku please try Mr Donut. eventhough there’s a shop here in 1Utama, IT IS NOT THE SAME. I’m pretty disappointed with the one here =S.

I am sad to tell you but it’s already the end of my Japan posts. *SNIFFF*. until the next time I visit Japan again! but come to think of it, it isn’t so bad because I still have a few things to talk about for Korea. =3. really hope you find the series of post on Japan interesting!