JAPAN Summer Trip Day 2 Pt. 2 | Dotonbori & Sheraton Miyako Hotel Osaka

Okay, I'm on a roll here, so I'm gonna finish up the part 2 of this post.

Here's what I got so far on the travelogue:

• DAY 1 | Shinsaibashi & Sinsekai

• DAY 2 Pt.1 | Universal Studios Japan Osaka

As I said on my previous posts, we had to leave USJ early because we had a dinner reservation.

AT A FREAKING CHINESE RESTAURANT!!! WTFBBQ.

WHO GOES TO JAPAN AND EAT CHINESE FOOD PLEASE? Especially if you're from Indonesia where we pretty much have Chinese food almost every.single.day.

😑😑😑😑😑

Though, I can't really blame the tour agent here, because there are some members of the tour who don't like Japanese food, so I'm guessing the tour agent kindly tried to accommodate that. To their credit, the Chinese food here were actually really tasty. And I couldn't really be all the pissed, because (other than the fact that it was my dream vacation-Japan ftw)...

It was also my Mom's birthday!!! I don't even know where they got the birthday cake lol. No way the brought it all the way from Indonesia, right? *By "they", I meant my parents' friends, not the tour agent*

Err, I guess this watermelon was particularly sweet and juicy? That's gotta be it, cos I bothered to take an individual picture of it.

Family pic with the Birthday Girl

And full group pic *sorry for the boring caption, what else could caption it with?*

It was only around 7.30 PM when we finished dinner and we were supposed to head to the hotel already, but I REFUSED to 'cos...well, it's only 7.30 PM 😑 So I asked to be dropped off at the Namba area we went to on the first day. My parents and one other family (they're my parents' best friends. Let's call 'em Mr. & Mrs. H and their daughter Irene and son Hans) joined me.

A video posted by Lily Zhen (@lilyzhen168ii) on Jun 23, 2016 at 1:58am PDT

Stopped by Family mart 'cos Japan's convenience store is damn awesome.

I highly recommend you to try the Glico caramel pudding (the first thing picked up by the cashier in the video). It's soooo freaking yummy. My lil' brother and I ate a lot of it while we were there, and also carted a whole lot back to Indonesia. The pudding is so smooth and milky and you can already taste the caramel flavor in the pudding, but then you got the luscious caramel sauce too to go with it. SO. SO. GOOD. GO TRY. PLEASE. 💜💜💜

Also bought this really yummy takoyaki from a store at the street behind the famous Glico running man sign street. Not sure what's the name of the store is, but it has this big octopus statue on top of it. BUT! I think it's different to the super famous one with gigantic octopus statue alongside Glico running man sign. Ah, sorry lah super confusing. There's the address and name on the side of the box if you can read Japanese.

Walked further into the Dotonbori street to find okonomiyaki for supper (also was still looking for motsunabe), but unfortunately most of the shops had either closed or past last order 😞 We did find one place that serves motsunabe and still open:

I think it was around closing time too, so the place was pretty deserted. 

Settled in, but then the owner said the motsunabe was sold out (they also have kushikatsu, but I already satisfied my craving for that on the first day), so we skedaddled. Felt kinda guilty tho, 'cos we already pulled the chairs and everything 😖

Walked back to near the takoyaki place (I sorta forget already, but I'm pretty sure it was near the takoyaki place we had earlier) and settled on this random place that serves gyudon.

Beer to accompany the meat 😋

Ordered a plate of Gyoza to share. Looks pretty standard, but..

💜💛💚💙 THIS WAS (and still is) THE BEST GYOZA I'VE EVER HAD 💙💚💛💜

I've mentioned a couple times in this blog of my distaste for gyoza/kuotie/wotie type of food. Mainly because I can't stomach the skin. The skin just tastes weird to me and most of the time makes me wanna throw up. Even the super famous wotie in Jakarta still tastes yucky to me. At the time I went on this trip, the only gyoza in Jakarta/Tangerang that I can enjoy was the one from Chin-Ma-Ya, and even there I can only eat max. 2 gyoza before I feel nauseated. Now I've found a better one (better than Chin Ma Ya, not the Osaka gyoza) at Aeon BSD-forgot the name of the place-.

Okay, back to the dabombdiggity-so-good-imma-cry gyoza!

The skin DOESN'T TASTE AT ALL like the gyoza skin I've tried before. This one doesn't taste "flour-ish" and the thickness is just right. And the filling...oh the filling..it's SO SO JUICY and savoury and just all around delish.

This was the only gyoza I had during this trip, so I don't know whether this place has like exceptionally good gyoza or it's just that all the gyozas in Japan are really yummy. I suspect the latter, 'cos I didn't have a single bad meal here. Even the tour-standard eating places are at least decent.

The above photo shows my stupidity 😅

Here's the story:

Mrs. H ordered the gyudon set with tamago (egg) which comes with soup as well. The first thing to arrive at the table were the soup and a bowl of raw egg. She asked me how to eat the raw egg, so I, being a smart-ass, told her that maybe you pour the egg into the soup and the warmth of the soup will sorta cook the egg 😅😅😅 Soooo stupid I feel embarassed just by typing this lol.

So she did as I said.

Moments went by and the egg was not even cooked at the very least. I said "uhm, just wait, maybe it takes some times."

Then, one of the chef came out to serve the gyudon. He saw the bowl of soup with the raw egg in it and freeze for seconds in confusion. And suddenly he laughed out loud. Like really really laughed out loud. After he's done laughing, he told us in gesture that we're not supposed to mix the egg with the soup.

He then proceeded to take the bowl of ruined soup back to the open kitchen (while still chuckling) and brought back a NEW bowl of soup AND another bowl of egg.

FREE OF CHARGE.

Yup. He gave us another egg even though it was totally our (my) fault that our first batch was ruined. So nice 😭.

It's a simple bowl of egg, but it's not something I see often here where I live and I was just touched, ok? Can't explain it, but i thought it was really nice of him.

He also showed us that the egg was supposed to go on top of the gyudon. I was so stupid 😅, especially because I've seen countless photos of gyudon with egg yolk on top, I even ordered the gyudon with egg yolk in Yoshinoya SG a couple months prior to this trip. *face palm*

Anyway, moral of the story, the chef was really kind. And I was a ding dong.

One more pic of the awesome gyoza.

We went to the hotel after this 'cos it was almost midnight already.

Our hotel for the night.

The room is actually really spacious for a hotel in Japan (It's as big as a standard hotel room in Indonesia).

Standard coffee/tea. I tapao the tea. *typical chinese*

For luggages etc

The bathroom is rather big too for a hotel in Japan.

Standard tub

Awesomesauce toilet!!! Oh how I miss Japanese toilet 😭

Not sure what rinse is. Conditioner, maybe?

They provide facewash too! I love the amenities provided in Japanese hotel, they always give you huge sizes and also more variety!

Okay, abrupt end of this post, I'm gonna go edit the Day 3 photos now 😆

Toodles,

xoxo

10 THINGS YOU SHOULD KNOW ABOUT THE ALL NEW SIENTA | Noob Review

I call this noob review because, well, I'm a noob when it comes to automotive 😅

How NOOB? Let's just say in my dictionary, there's only 3 kind of cars.

Hatchback. 

Sedan. 

MPV. 

That's it! I cannot really differentiate between between one hatchback to another. I can't even differentiate between Innova and Avanza 😂

Now that we've established how noobshit I am when it comes to car, I'm gonna share with you what I DO know about the All New Sienta from Toyota that just launched in Indonesia recently.

I'm not gonna talk about all the technical spec of the car, because if I do so, I'll probably just copy-paste the spec from google -you could just as easily google the spec yourself-, and also because that means I would have no clue what I'd be writing about. Horsepower, what horsepower? Power steering, what's power steering? You get the idea.

Instead, I'm gonna talk about 10 features that I think you might LOVE in the All New Sienta!

Here goes:

1) DIVE-IN SEAT

This is probably one the main feature that makes Sienta stand out, because it's the FIRST car in its class to have this feature add in.

If you're not familiar with Dive-In seat, it's basically a feature that lets you fold your 3rd row seats under you 2nd row seats. So when folding in the 3rd row seats, you get MORE baggage space than you normally would in a car with no Dive-In seat, and yet you can still fit 5 people in the car too!

This is how big the baggage space is with just the 3rd row seat folded in

For me personally, I go on a city-to-city trip (mostly Jogja-Jember-Surabaya) a lot, especially when I was a kid. And coming from a family of 5, you can imagine HOW MUCH LUGGAGE SPACE we need, and yet we can't fold in the 2nd row seat because we need enough seats for 5 people. With this feature, where the 3rd row seats are folded under the 2nd row seat, we can easily fit 1 or 2 more luggage at the back. I hope this explains the genius that is Dive-In seat 😆

Not to mention the HEIGHT of the baggage space. My brother's huge Alaskan Malamute could probably fit in there comfortably. MORE on this feature HERE.

2) FROMAGE INTERIOR

Okay, I know that this is not exactly a "feature", more like an option.

But I just love the fact that it has a fromage trim option 💕

Because black trimming is boring af in my opinion 😅 Fromage just seems more elegant, beautiful, cleaner, and classier imho.

3) POWER SLIDING DOOR

Just like I mentioned in previous post, it has power sliding door.

Not a feature that a car in its class usually comes with I think. While it looks a bit gimmicky for my needs, I can actually think a couple of reasons for it to be functional for me:

Tight Parking Space

A lot of places in Jakarta and Tangerang has tiny parking space -*ahem* I'm looking at you Summarecon Mall Serpong & Mangdu *ahem*-, so power sliding door makes it easier to come out of your car. You can just jump to the 2nd row too if you really can't open the front door due to limited space. *let's take a moment of silent and thank whoever designs the AEON and IKEA parking space, because God bless him/her!*

Groceries

This probably when this feature comes in really handy for me. When I'm carrying a lot of shopping bags alone, it helps that I don't need to put down the bags to hold the door before placing them in. Also for carrying the shopping bags out of the car too! I can't tell you how many times I got slammed by my car's door when I'm trying to get my shopping bags because it keeps closing when i don't hold it.

For the higher Sienta Type, you can also control the power sliding door remotely!

4) ANTI-PINCH TECHNOLOGY

Speaking of the power sliding door...

YOU CAN NEVER GET YOUR HAND STUCK IN IT!

Because it has anti-pinch technology where the door won't close if there's an obstacle in front of it. I don't think this is something that I personally would find useful, because I hope I'm not that clumsy to get my hand stuck in power sliding door. Then again, I'm not the most "un-clumsy" person out there either, so better safe than sorry. PLUS, it means that this power sliding door is totally safe for little kids who seem to have their hands stuck in a lot of things 😑

5) UNDER SEAT TRAY

THIS!!! This is one of my most favorite feature!!!😍

To understand why, you HAVE to see the leg room in my car. It's an effing MESS down there. I got all kind of trash and wrappings and all this itty bitty litters scattered 😅

So, yeah, you can use this under seat tray as a temporary trash can!

OR!

Use it to store a spare flipflop/clothes for emergency. I got a couple of shoes on my leg room that add to the mess, so this under seat tray could be really helpful for that. The only thing is, I probably can't store heeled shoes in it 'cos it won't fit.

6) COOLER BOX

Pretty self-explanatory...

You can store your cold drinks in it and it'll keep them cold better than if you'd put it in any other compartment. This compartment actually has an opening (?), I don't know the correct term for it, but it has this opening that distributes the cold air from the AC, thus it can keep your drinks cooler in here.

7) CARD SLIP

This is so simple it seems gimmicky 😂

But yet, actually perfectly functional. No more rummaging through a stack of cards to find my e-toll with this. *Please imagine it's an e-toll there in the picture instead of a membership card 😅*

8) KEYLESS

You can start your engine with a simple push of a button.

This is a quite common feature already, so I'm sure most of you guys are familiar with it. With this feature, you don't need to put your key in the car to start the engine, so your key can basically stay in your bag all throughout your drive, from walking out of your house to walking inside your house.

That's also because you don't even need to press/key-in your car key to open the door! As long as you bring your key with you near the car, the door will automatically unlock. And it will automatically locked itself after you leave your car for a while (though I highly recommend you to immediately lock the car yourself once you get out of the car).

So YAY to no more rummaging a messy bag looking for a car key with hands full of things!

9) DUAL LCD SCREEN

Yup, it has TWO LCD Screen!

The first LCD is this one on the driver's dashboard. It tells you your speed, gas, etc etc. I wrote etc etc 'cos I honestly don't know the term for the other things 😂

Oh, and it says "Hello" to you when you start your car. I heard it says "Happy Birthday" too! Extremely gimmicky, but cute nevertheless 😅

The second LCD is this one, the MAIN entertainment console. It's full on touch screen LCD, so there's no more buttons on it. Not that button is a bad thing, but full touch screen LCD like this looks cool 😆

It's SUPER responsive and fast too! I have a touch screen LCD too in my car, but I have to push quite hard on the screen to get it to respond, and it's pretty slow too in doing certain tasks. In its defend though, it's not a spanking new LCD.

Btw, you can connect this console to wi-fi too and browse through internet.

USB, HDMI, 3.5mm Jack Connectivity

This console have 3 connectivity you can choose! You can even connect you Android with it and the console will mirror your Android screen. Pretty neat, huh?

DIGITAL AC Control Dial

Okay, this is not an LCD Screen, but I have to include this too. I admit this is more of a vanity thing rather than functionality, but it looks damn cool when you can precisely set your AC temperature lol *clearly, I have my own definition of cool, but I digress*

10) STEERING WHEEL CONTROL

Last but not least, and certainly one of my favorite, it has control buttons on the steering wheel!

This one on the left to control the volume and tracks on the main entertainment console. I CAN BOGART THE RADIO ALL I WANT 😆😆😆 SKIPPING SONG TRACKS ALL I WANT TOO!! I HAVE THE CONTROL HOHOHO 😈

Also, on a more serious note, it's safer. The control button on the steering wheel helps me focus more while driving because I don't need to fiddle with the main screen to change song tracks/volumes (I tend to fiddle quite a bit with my songs when I'm driving).

The second control buttons on the right are for changing the information on the driver's LCD panel.


So that wraps up my noob review on the Toyota's All New Sienta!

I think some of the features I mentioned here are only available for certain types of Sienta (There are Type E, G, V, Q). To know more specifically about the types and more features available, please refer to their official website 😁 And check out their product video for the Sienta, it's pretty cool!

Hope this noob review can be of a help somehow! See you guys on my next post, it'll be the continuation of my Japan travelogue 😊

till then, take care,

xoxo

FTC Disclaimer: This is a sponsored post through Sociolla Blogger Network. I was compensated for this blog post. However, all opinions, experience, and such are honest and genuine as always 😆

Weekend FASHION BAZAAR

Hi guys, today I'm back with the continuance of the #PopUpPlayground!

You can click HERE to read my first post on it, it was Yoga & Zumba that weekend.

THIS WEEK IT WAS

WEEKEND FASHION BAZAAR

It was being held at Flavor Bliss Alam Sutera this time around, and boy was I glad. Because that means I'm only 15-20 mins away. Usually events take place in Jakarta area and it'd take me an hour of crazy Jakarta traffic to get there 😨

But I digress.

Let's talk about this week's theme.

FASHION.

Not a topic I usually talk about because, well, I suck at it, to say the least. BUT, I still love shopping for clothes, and there were a LOT of clothing booths at the Bazaar!

Most, if not all, the clothing booths are of emerging local brands too! You can check out quality goods made and produced by our own country's young talented designer. #supportlocalbrand

I love how fast growing are local brands now. A lot more people are trying to show off how awesome local goods can actually be. Easy access too, with all the social media.

Okay, this is not fashion. BUT HOW ADORABLE IS THIS OWL THROW PILLOW!

One of my favorite booth there:

Stave Wood Case

I spent the longest time here because of all the eye-catching and classy-looking phone case. They also have charging dock made of wood! And those wireless charging thingy, also made of wood. I can imagine just how pretty they would look perched on my night stand, if I had one lol 😅 My bedroom is a complete mess now it's impossible to put a night stand in it.

Since they're all made of wood (as far as I know), there's no one case that's identical. They're all unique depending on the wood...texture? I don't know the word for it. You know, those pattern that wood has, whatever it's called.

One of my favorite case design. I think you can also custom your case with your name etc, but i'm not 100% sure. You can contact them HERE to ask.

There was a nail art booth as well! And you can see a bit of the cute earrings they sell.

Quirky shoes by Kava. Well, quirky to me anyway. Like I said guys, I'm not fluent in fashion 😅 Check out their website if you're looking for a unique shoes.

NOW! This is the part where it comes full circle. What's Sienta gotta do with these fashion brands?

Well, as a fashion designer, or stylist, you'd probably need a lot of baggage space for your..style needs...?...I guess? Bear with me here guys, I really know jackshit about fashion 😂 I'm just spitballing here, but at the top of my head, you can fit your bodyform (that mannequin thingy without the limbs), rolls of fabrics, drawers of shoes, clothes, and even sewing machine at the back!

*Fun fact: I actually planned to take fashion merchandising major in NAFA back then. Oh, silly naive lil' ol' me. I ended up taking computer science major because I realize my talent in fashion, or the non-existence of it to be exact*

And if you're a make-up artist/enthusiast, you can fit multiple make-up trunks AND those portable vanity mirror table thingy nicely.

Even I can still fit in it 😆 And that's just by folding in the 3rd row seats, you can still fit 5 people in the car. IMAGINE the baggage space with the 2nd row seats folded in too!!

All thanks to the DIVE-IN seat feature. I've talked a bit about it on my previous post, but I'll elaborate more on future post 😉

One of the agenda that evening was FASHION SHOW!! There were 2 shows if I'm not wrong, but I was only able to catch the first one, which was by the local brand

LUSTIG

first of all, BADASS ENTRANCE, if I do say so myself 😏

She is my favorite among the models 💛

Now, since I'm pretty much a fashion noob, I'm just gonna talk out of my ass here.

.

This collection by Lustig seemed to focus on the minimalistic trend with simple cutting and essential pieces in mind. Earth tones and jewel tones are prevalent in this collection. *nodding head a la style connoisseur*

ok ok enough of my bullshit 😅 I'll let you relish in this collection at your own accord. Here's a short video I put together of the fashion show

A video posted by Lily Zhen (@lilyzhen168ii) on Dec 9, 2016 at 8:38pm PST

You can check out more of the collection HERE.

By the way, Sienta is also available in white 😍 and we had been waiting to camwhore with it 'cos so many people wanted to take pic with it too.

But we finally got our turn 😎

And we used it to the max. I have like almost 20 of similar-but-not-the-same photos lol (which is why I made it into a GIF). Photos credit to Sophie.

 Camwhore with the exterior too 'cos it's beautiful. Thankyou again Sophie for taking this pic 😘

 Met fellow IBV Gita there!

 Okay, in all honesty, I only know 2 persons in this photo, but vain me couldn't pass up a photo op 🙈😅

Abrupt end with this photo of the full LCD screen inside Sienta. Another feature I like! MORE on next blog post 😉

Toodles for now,

xoxo Lily

FTC Disclaimer: This is a sponsored post through Sociolla Blogger Network. I was compensated for this blog post. However, all opinions, experience, and such are honest and genuine as always 😆