Japan - Ashikaga Flower Park

Japan : Ashikaga - May 2015

On route back to Tokyo, we did a little detour to Ashikaga Flower Park hoping to catch wisteria (mid apr to mid may) at its season tail.

Expensive lunch on shinkansen

My favourite cactus

They are so cute that I almost bought it but not sure how do I bring back home...

Personally I super love looking at flower field. Perhaps it gives me a calm and satisfying feeling that can help me destress.

SAD. We have past the bloom period and most of them have withered onto the ground.

Luckily, the flower park has other flowers too.. consolation prize.

roses at their peak now

Ashikaga Flower Park

JR station: Tomita Station

(source: http://www.ashikaga.co.jp/english/) 

Tokyo Metropolitan Government Building 東京都庁

Tokyo Metropolitan Government Building provides free observation decks which provide good panoramic views of Tokyo and even mount fuji on clear days.

Tokyo Metropolitan Government Building

Nearest subway: Tocho-mae Station

North Observatory: 9:30 to 23:00 

South Observatory: 9:30 to 17:30

Japan - Osaka

Japan : Kyoto - May 2015

Continue from Nara

This was our last stop of the day - Osaka and we were here to see the Glico running man sign and eat their takoyaki.

The two famous food and shopping street - Dotonbori and Shinsaibashi Shopping Arcade respectively. We alighted at JR station - Namba station and crossed a few streets before we reached Dotonbori.

We thought we were still early to see the crowd until we crossed one more street to reach the bustling spot of the Dotonbori.

We started to see crowd and lots of restaurants with big seafood signs.

Gyoza restaurant

Puffer fish restaurant!! Wanted to try but too scared to try lol

What is this shop selling for?

We saw a couple takoyaki shop on the way and this shop was one of the longest queue so as a kiasu Singaporean, of course we followed the crowd. They have two big takoyaki molds and all the customers can see their making process - pour in the sauce, put octopus, put spring onion and turn into a ball.

The queue was actually clearing quite fast. We were too anxious to have the first bite but it was still too hot in the inside and we split it out lol! Although I rarely eat takoyaki in Singapore, I love their local texture that it melts in your mouth. Bf sarcastically commented "Moon is always rounder when you are oversea".

Grilled scallops!

We found mini glico running man sign! Where is the big one?

We had a hard time finding the big glico running man sign that we used our last resort - googlemap. 

Yays! We managed to locate it using googlemap. It is actually just behind all the tall buildings along the Dotonbori street by the river.

It is just opposite this rectangle ferris wheel.

What a nicely hairdye done~

Pablo cheesecake!

They have 2 kind - super melty and normal. They only sell whole cake. In the end, we bought 1 normal cheesecake back as our next day breakfast before we head off back to Tokyo. Little did we know, there is a branch at Shibuya haha~

Minami (Namba)

JR station: OSAKA-NAMBA

Thanks all for your blessings~

I am recently back from Hokkaido for already 2 weeks already but I am and still missing their snowing weather, seafood and their soft serve ice cream!

I love this below picture as it depicts two of us as one facing our unforeseen future together so I decided to make this as canvas wraps from Vision Bedding to hang on our upcoming house! I also ordered a bag with fireworks picture that I took during our SG50 national day.

I love it when we could use our own pictures which are more meaningful to us. I am very looking forward to the products!!

From now on, it will be peace and ice cream against the world.

Jewish Culture, etc Festivals in Europe, 2016

As usual, I am trying to put together a list of as many as possible of the numerous Jewish festivals -- culture, film, dance, etc -- that take place each year around Europe. Please help me by sending me information!

The big culture festivals and other smaller events make good destinations around which to center a trip. Some, like the annual Festival of Jewish Culture in Krakow, are huge events lasting a week or more, which draw thousands of people and offer scores or sometimes hundreds of performances, lectures, concerts, exhibits and the like. Other festivals are much less ambitious. Some are primarily workshops but also feature concerts. Many of the same artists perform at more than one festival. 

The list will be growing and growing -- and again, I ask my readers to please send me information and links to upcoming events. Thanks!



ALL OVER EUROPE 

September 4 -- many countries -- European Day of Jewish Culture (theme this year: Jewish languages)


CZECH REPUBLIC


July 7-10 -- Boskovice -- 24th Festival for the Jewish Quarter

August 1-6 -- Trebic -- Samajim Festival


DENMARK

May 31-June 6 -- Copenhagen -- Jewish Culture Festival


GERMANY


February 25-28 -- Fürth -- Jewish Film Days

March 4-13 -- Fürth -- International Klezmer Festival

July 9-August 12 -- Weimar -- Yiddish Summer Weimar



GREAT BRITAIN


August 15-19 -- London -- Klezfest




ITALY

March 14-18 -- Trani (various venues)-- Lech Lecha festival



POLAND


June 16-19 -- Oswiecim -- Oswiecim Life Festival




SLOVAKIA


June 29-July 2 -- Kosice -- Mazal Tov festival


SPAIN

March 5-6 -- Besalu -- Ciudad Judia

June 8-June 13 -- Cordoba -- International Festival of Sephardic Music