Today I visited Kyoto to check out the cherry blossoms. Kyoto is my second favorite city in Japan just because it has so much culture to offer! I’ve been there once before, but in the middle of the summer. And I didn’t get disappointed this time either! Check out my video from my visit there today. One of the most beautiful places I’ve ever been to. 

I’m really liking Osaka. The city is just so pretty, with the water going through. We’ve visited two temple areas I really liked; Sumiyoshi Taisha and Shitennō-ji (a must if you ever come here). So cozy! Other than that the city has some great food, parks and shopping! Come come come!

They’re very generous when it comes to giving samples. The things you see to the left are samples I’ve received in different cosmetic stores while buying the things you see to the right. Actually a couple of samples are missing, I’ve already used two packs of cotton pads (I guess some things do come in handy) and today when buying chips at 7 Eleven I got a pack of sausages (!).

I’ve mentioned previously that I absolutely love what Seoul has to offer fashion- and clothes wise. I’ve fallen in love with one specific brand called Culture Call. From what I can understand (there is very little info out there in english about them), the brand is very new and they’ve collaborated with Agyness Deyn, who currently is the face of the brand. I had visited one of their stores twice, without buying anything, and really wanted to go back. But I kinda felt embarrassed.. their stores aren’t that big and I knew the employee would recognize me if I came back for the third day in a row. So, for a few days I googled around trying to find where else they had stores. I found out the korean name of the brand in Hangul (컬처콜 … I think?) and with the help of some bad google translations and pictures I finally figured out where else to find them. And I could finally buy the jacket I had been wanting ^^ (the one on the pic above). L-O-V-E their clothes. Did I say that already? And Agyness Deyn looks awesome in their campaign. Here’s some pics and a video of their line. And their website (doesn’t work in Safari =/ ). 

Today I also went to an area called Samcheong here in Seoul. Definitely different from what I’ve seen so far. Really liked it! It’s located near the royal palace Gyeongbokgung. The neighborhood is packed with small cafés, restaurants, art galleries and unique shops. Many of the buildings are traditional korean houses. And then you have the shops that are modern (yet unique). The combination just makes it really cozy and charming. Big plus in my book!

Just back from my “birthday dinner”. (My bday today ^^) Had some non-asian food at Outback Steakhouse. I went for grilled fish with the most awesome garlic glazed shrimps I’ve ever had, awesome vegetables and awesome potatoes! MMMMMM! Best meal I’ve had in… months.  

Hi there! Still in Seoul! So.. what have I done while being here? I’ve checked out some temples, walked (a lot) around the city, I’ve visited numerous “grandma markets” (big markets that sell, what looks like, chinese imported clothes, bags etc. that mainly old people visit), I’ve tried out their subway system and food. And I’m not loving the city. It’s definitely an experience being here though. I’m a sucker for big cities, the neon lights, all of the people. I just love it. Seoul IS a big city, it has things to offer, but after have been in Tokyo for so long, I think I’ve become picky. And when it comes down to it, what makes a city is really the people. And here I don’t feel welcome. It’s not just because I don’t know their language.. the first times I visited Japan I didn’t know a single word japanese but it never felt like this. I guess you just can’t feel at home everywhere. I know this city isn’t for me. I had never known that if I hadn’t gone, so I’m really glad I went. I still have a couple of days to go before I leave Korea, so I’m gonna keep experiencing the city!

As you probably know I’m currently in Seoul, South Korea. It was an unplanned trip due to what’s currently going on in Japan. While being here I’m more and more realizing how much I miss Tokyo. There is no city in the entire world can compare itself to Tokyo. Yet I keep comparing. I truly love Japan and Tokyo. I can’t put it any other way. I can’t explain it. I want the disaster to end. I don’t want them to suffer anymore. Please. Just stop.

Aww look at my cute little Sakura tree. I think it’s made for planting outside but it was so cute and cheap. Hope it will last a few days ^^

Oh, and I hate Microsoft and Xbox. Quick rewind; I play COD on the xbox. They released some new maps. I wanted to buy them. I try. It didn’t work because I don’t have a japanese visa (?!). I go and buy a point card in a store. Write in the code on my xbox. There are two map packs to choose from.  Which one do I choose? The one called ENG-JP or JA. I choose ENG-JP because I have the japanese imported version, i.e. the one that isn’t dubbed to japanese. Buy the maps. Download starts. Download done. Error; “Wrong region” (?!). Call the support center the next day. They have no one that talks english (?!).

I had been looking forward to those maps for 2 months and now they’ve just stolen my money. Now what? I drag my ass back to the store and buy a point card again? They expect ppl to do this mistake so that they can earn more money. It’s disgusting. Most retarded company ever.

Okay… seriously japan?! 5 minutes ago my door bell rang, it’s now past 9 pm. I open the door and there is a man saying he’s from the post office. I’m thinking to myself “what did I now do?”…. I went there after school to send a small package home to my family in Sweden. I filled in a little form, with instructions in english, with what was inside of the package. I wrote “makeup”, thinking that would be good enough. It was chap sticks. The postoffice dude didn’t understand what “makeup” meant, so I tried to explain it using gestures. To my surprise the word wasn’t the same in japanese katakana. Anyway, he proceeded handling my package, I payed and left. *fast forward 4h* So now this dude is standing in my doorway. He explains he’s sorry that he didn’t understand what I had written on the form and that he didn’t know english. “Dame desu” means that something is not allowed or that something is bad. When saying that something is “dame desu” the japanese love use their arms and form a big X in front of them. Anyway, that was a side note. But there are a lot of “dame desu”s when it comes to sending packages abroad from Japan. So the post office man came to my house after having looked up where I lived (I wrote my address on the back of the package), after his working hours just to tell me that the package might not arrive to the recipient (he thought the products might contain alcohol or was hair spray). Wow. I’m in shock. Customer service?! INSANE! I applaud that guy. Wish my japanese was better so I could have said something more to him. He didn’t blame me at all, he said it was his fault for not asking more about what was inside. 

Another weird thing happened to me in Nagano last week. I had bought my ticket for tokyo and there was about 1h to kill before the train left. Later when we go to board the train, about 5 minutes before departure, the guy I bought the ticket from was standing there. He explained that he had calculated wrong when giving me my change back. I had payed too little. He had made some calculations on a piece of paper, showing me what he had done wrong, saying “i’m sorry” in a million ways a million times. I wonder how long he had been standing there in the freezing cold waiting for me. This second example I understand why he did what he did since he otherwise probably would have ended up in a lot of trouble for calculating wrong. But the post office man…. that’s just amazing.