Wednesday, November 23, 2011

Japan Trip Day 2: Makuhari Messe

Continuing to our second day at Japan.

We woke up with sunlight streaming through our windows. I was having my PMS and didn't expect to wake up too early. Hehe. But my roommie got frustrated for not being able to do her subuh prayers. The time difference here was only late one hour from Malaysia but sun rose earlier than 4:30 am.

We woke up around 7:30 am. =p

The day was bright and magnificent. Just outside of our hotel, trees were prime in their autumn gloom. People say that autumn is the best season among the four seasons. And I have to agree on that when I spotted the view outside.

Weird, no cars to cause jems around here.
We were welcomed by the sight of empty roadways. Where did all the cars gone to?

The view was just breathtakingly beautiful. Sigh!
We had to walk our way to the nearest subway station and that took us about 10 minutes. It wasn't that near as expected. A map of the area was asked from the Foreigner counter down at the lobby. With that map, we made our way to Shinjuku Subway station using the underground route.

Almost at every corner we found machines like below to buy drinks on the go.

1200 yen per bottle.

This is among the few types of food machines around Tokyo. 
I preloaded a map of the Tokyo's subway onto my iPad. But that too deemed difficult for us to understand as the subway systems here were a bit confusing.

We actually didn't know which train station to go as there were like soooooooooo many subway lines. I initially planned to go on the Chuo Line from Shinjuku to Tokyo station and from there use Keiyo Line to Makuhari Messe. But we couldn't find the Chuo Line at all!!! 

It was after much asking around did we realize that the map on my ipad was actually for JR Lines only. And the Chuo Line and Keiyo Line were under JR Lines. Confusing right? 

I could summarize that there are THREE main subway lines in Tokyo
  • Tokyo Metro Line
  • Toie Line (Tokyo Metropolitan Government)
  • JR Lines
Knowing the colors for each line would be most helpful for newbies to Tokyo, Japan. =(

There are two types of trains to our destination. Rapid (left) or Local (right).

If you could get onto the rapid Trains.. you'll be able to reach your destination with only 2-3 stops. And faster with that! And try to avoid rush hours as things could get squishy.


This is not squishy enough. 
Using the JR Lines enabled us to ride to Makuhari Messe with only one ticket and with two trains whie transiting at Tokyo station.

Changing trains at Tokyo Station, had to find the Keiyo line first.
I never expected that in order to reach Keiyo Line from our drop off from Chuo Line, we had to go down three flights of stairs and three (me think) walking escalators. It took us about 15 minutes to go through all of that!!!

Just follow the ORANGE lines! 
When at last we reached Makuhari Messe, my friend was out of breath and our feet were aching! LoL. We hoped that the journey here has taken some kilograms off our weight.

Finally here at last!!!
The building was white and there were various banners outside it to showcase the many broadcast equipments being exhibited here.

Can't wait to get inside! It was freezing outside!
We had to rush to the International Conference Hall as the conference was being held there.

Just follow the signboards. 
When we finally registered at the counter, we were each given a name card to hang around our necks. There was a bar scan on the cards for them to scan for prove of attendance. Wow! Advance gittewww! As we were quite late (bikin malu sehh! haha), in the hall itself we were led to sit at the VERY FRONT of the conference room. Waahhh... reserved seats for both of us. Malu masuk lambat wei! Oh well. Pasrah jelah.

One of the content special session that I personally enjoyed that day was entitled "Unlimited Potential of Movie Production and its Future" because the renown Hollywood film-maker Mr Gareth Edwards was one of the panelists!

Mr Gareth Edwards at the far right!
Gareth Edwards was famous for making the movie MONSTERS with a little crew of only 4 to 5 members!!! It was budget saving and his movie was a blockbuster hit in cinemas worldwide. The movie Monsters were edited using the newly enhanced Adobe movie editing suite. They talked mostly on how visual effects would soon be widely used to cut costs and bring in more revenue.

He's sooo cute!!!!!!!!!!! *awwwwwwwwwww!!
The other panelists spoke in the Japanese Language but fortunately for non-speakers like me, I was given a device to hear the direct translation of each Japanese speaking panelist.

Nice!!
Meanwhile, outside the conference hall there were a total of 6 Halls that exhibit all kinds of broadcasting equipment and technologies.

This Hall  (Hall 8) was specifically for Visual Production equipment.
We had a breakdown communication problem as almost 90% of the exhibitors didn't speak English. LoL. Except for the young lad below.

He spoke with a British accent y'all!
Overall, we had an eventful day. I get to meet the director of NHK (Japan's TV station) and also the excutive director of Singapore's TV station. He was sitting on my right during the conference. A very friendly man who always smile, nice. Hee..

Oh before I end my entry for the second day.... lemme share my favorite picture of Makuhari Messe surroundings. (Not really the building.. just the buildings surrounding it. LoL)

Beautiful day right?
OK.. wrapping up my second day at Japan.

Thank you for reading. =)

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Tuesday, November 22, 2011

Japan Trip Day 1: Touchdown at Japan

This whole golden opportunity to fly to Tokyo, Japan and stay there for 5 nights was my boss's idea. The director of the government body that I work with has kindly recommended me along with two other co-workers to attend an international conference held at Makuhari Messe, Japan.

And boy was I excited!

Being the youngest among the three, I was assigned to do all the paperwork, hotel reservations and route planning in order for our journey to Japan to go smoothly. I had some setbacks especially when it comes to applying the budget and visa applications, but God was kind to me and everything become alright.

I got scared when precondition for Japan visa was to have RM10,000 in your savings account. By golly!
Applying the budget was another thing. Thankfully it was fully sponsored by my workplace but I had to plan within the approved budget. How much? That's a secret! *wink2x!

In order to cut costs, we had to fly via AirAsia instead of our official carrier which is MAS. Sorry MAS... AirAsia was just so cheap compared to your fares for the same destination. So Haneda Airport here we come!!!

Walking to the airplane has never felt so good! Kah kah kah!
I don't know any word of Japanese and had to download some Japanese Language for beginners onto my iPad just to pass my time on the 7 hours flight from Kuala Lumpur to Tokyo, Japan. 7 hours!!!! Mygosh!!! But alas... I slept mostly on the way. LoL!!!

And finally...

TOUCHDOWN at Haneda Airport, Japan!

See my flight number from Kuala Lumpur?
We met some friendly Malaysians who were on the same flight as we were waiting for our luggage. For them it was like the 10th time they've been here, as for me.. it was my first. Haha. Jakun aku wei!

And while we figured out on how to get to our hotel, we took pictures with the nice Japanese lady who assisted us. We learnt how and where to buy the airport limousine tickets and which port to go to. The Japanese people working at the information counter were very helpful and cheerful even though the time was about 11 pm.

"Arigato gonzaimasu!"
I wouldn't say that the ticket price was cheap, considering it only took about 40 minutes to the hotel via bus. 1200 yen y'all!! That's equivalent to RM55.00!

They have the same ticketing procedure with Seoul, Korea.
After we bought the tickets, we were stopped by Japanese police men who insists on questioning us. That was one welcoming I felt uncomfortable with. =(

Maybe because we wore hijabs?
It was a relieve when we finally were let go to resume our trip to our hotel.

A TV screen to show the routes the bus would  go through.
Fair enough, the signages around Haneda Airport was helpful. And we didn't get lost in finding our way to the bus stop. 

When we finally reached the Shinjuku Washington Hotel, we got confused because when we stepped into the building, there was no lobby on the first floor. A guy passed by and suggested we went upstairs. We had to bring our heavy luggage up the escalator to search for the lobby. We couldn't find any lift. It was only on the 3rd floor that we finally found the lobby's signboard. Ishhh... menyusahkan. Would've been nice if there was a signboard downstairs to ease foreigners. 

Our room was on the 19th floor with its window facing the streets of Shinjuku. Everything was in a minuscule scale.  The room, the bed... even the bathroom was mini despite having a bath tub which was also tiny. Can't lay down fully in that one!

Bathrobes were placed on the foot of each bed.
We went organizing our stuff. Just below hooks meant for the hangers of our clothes, we piled up our food stocks for the week. LoL!

Maggi anyone?
There wasn't enough leg room for praying and we had to move a sitting chair away, just to make room! It was funny to remember that my roommate has changed her kiblat three times before settling for one. I advised her to throw her useless compass away since it kept showing different directions! LoL!

Minuscule bathroom with an electronic toilet seat!
And behold!! Our OPEN closet!

Just hook em up!
All in all, paying a hefty RM500++ per night in a small hotel room like this in Japan makes us feel thankful for the equally priced but overly spacious hotel rooms back in Kuala Lumpur.

Sempit tahu tak?
On a positive note, we received FREE internet LAN access. Just have to bring a laptop that can access to LAN as there's no Wi-Fi. Plus there's a hairdryer and electric kettle. 

And with all that I've written, I'll call it quits for the day.

Until another post... tata!

Thankyou for reading. =)

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Friday, November 18, 2011

Kakiku kerjanya berjalan je di Jepun...

... Sampai luka berdarah. Huhu. Naik tren pergi-balik mengambil masa hampir dua jam dengan sesatnya lagi dan tak faham tulisan jepun lagi. Hahaha...


Tapi walaupun kaki terasa sakit... I am still the happiest person in the world sebab sekarang berada di Jepun. =p


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Wednesday, November 16, 2011

Rush Hour di Jepun pada 7:30 - 9:30 pagi



Alhamdulillah aku sampai Jepun dengan selamatnya pada pukul 10:15 malam semalam. Ketiadaan Wi-Fi di lapangan terbang Haneda membantutkan impian aku untuk check-in Foursquare. Dang! Haha.

Pada hari ini aku berkira-kira untuk bertolak ke tempat forum selepas Rush Hour Jepun sebab tak nak menjadi mangsa korban himpitan semasa naik tren nanti. Aku dengar keadaan agak 'mampat' pada masa itu. Lebih teruk daripada keadaan lrt di Kuala Lumpur semasa Rush Hour. Heeeee..

Ok.. adios.. kena bersiap... kalau kat Malaysia pukul 5:41 pagi masih gelap lagi... tapi kat Jepun pulak dah terang bederang pada 6:41 pagi. ;p

tata~
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Monday, November 14, 2011

Pink Mocktail Night @ Hard Rock Cafe, KL

Akhir bulan Oktober yang lepas, aku diajak untuk menyertai satu acara anjuran Pantai Hospital Klang di Hard Rock Cafe, Kuala Lumpur. Turut menghadiri program itu ialah Cik Lily Putih, farra eng, Kak ina KL dan zuriey.

Kami berjaya duduk berhampiran dengan pentas dan melihat sendiri nyanyian secara LIVE artis jemputan pada malam itu. Aku baru tahu yang bulan Oktober dijadikan Bulan Merah Jambu (Pink October) di mana Hari Kanser Payudara turut disambut pada setiap tahun. Pelbagai acara diadakan termasuk lah 'Pink Charity Run' iaitu larian amal untuk mengutip dana bagi cancer survivor ini.

Antara mereka yang memeriahkan majlis pada malam itu ialah...

Mr Stanley selaku CEO bagi Pantai Hospital Klang
Dan Pengacara pada malam itu ialah...

Dato'Yasmin Yusuff iaitu Event Ambassador bagi Pink October ini
Jemputan khas yang lain ialah bekas pesakit kanser payudara yang bakal memberikan persembahan kejap lagi.

Mereka nampak sangat bersemangat!
Sempena malam Pink Mocktail itu, sesiapa yang membeli minuman pink di Hard Rock Cafe itu turut menyumbang sedikit dari hasil belian itu kepada tabung penghidap kanser panyudara.

Bukan alkohol ye. =)
Suasana dalam Hard Rock Cafe dihiasi dengan belon-belon serba merah jambu di setiap meja para jemputan. Comel kan? Rasa macam slumber party pon ade! hehehe.

Bertemakan merah jambu. 
Artis jemputan pada malam itu turut mengenakan pakaian merah jambu. Mari ku perkenalkan cik Amanda Imani, seorang penyanyi baru yang mempunyai suara yang mantap!

Amanda Imani yang cantik menawan.
Klip di bawah adalah sedikit suntingan yang dibuat terhadap persembahan nyanyian cik Amanda. Hehe


Kami turut dihiburkan daripada band jemputan Hard Rock Cafe itu sendiri.

Persembahan yang Mantap!
Dalam acara itu, kami sempat berkenalan dengan ibu Amanda Imani yang nampak muda.

Apa rahsia Puan nampak mudah ek? hehe
Sementara itu, jualan barangan kemas buatan sendiri diadakan dalam cafe itu.

Cantik! Setiap hasil jualan disumbangkan ke tabung pesakit kanser. 
Oh.. jangan dilupa... persembahan istimewa yang diberikan oleh para bekas pesakit kanser payudara.

Bersemangat!
Memandangkan ini kali pertama aku datang ke Hard Rock Cafe, Kuala Lumpur, kami para bloggers tidak melepaskan peluang untuk mencuba makanan di sana.

Terima kasih kepada cik Lily Putih kerana belanja kami makan dan juga menjemput kami menyertai event yang meriah ini.
Sodapp!

Korang boleh mengadakan ujian Monogram (ujian kehadiran kanser) di Hospital Pantai Klang di alamat berikut:

Pantai Hospital Klang
Lot 5921, Persiaran Raja Muda Musa
41200 Klang, Selangor
Tel: 03 3258 5500
Fax: 03 3374 2010
Email: infoklang@www.pantai.com.my
website: www.pantai.com.my

Moga kita semua melakukan langkah berjaga-jaga untuk mengelak kanser dan dijauhkannya. Amin.

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Thursday, November 10, 2011

My Budget - Perbelanjaan ke Jepun

Dari Haneda Airport ke Shinjuku - RM45.00 - 1,200 Yen
Dari Shinjuku ke Haneda Airport - RM45.00 - 1, 200 Yen
Train passes from hotel to Makuhari Messe - RM50 pergi balik ( equivalent) x 3 hari = RM 150.00

Makanan - bawa maggi + milo paket + biskut kering + bun dari Malaysia. Hak hak hak!

So... aku bawa dalam RM500 je, boleh tak?

Kalau aku tak mampu nak beli fridge magnet minta maaf ye. Heee.. aku cakap awal-awal bagi mengelakkan sebarang kekecewaan.

huhuhu..

PS: hasrat ku menyimpan duit demi Macbook masih tinggi maka haruslah  berbelanja secara berwaspada. ye dak?
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Tuesday, November 8, 2011

Tinggal 7 hari lagi sebelum ke Jepun

Preparations.. preparations.. preparations...

When you think you have planned everything and thinks everything is gonna be OK... then suddenly some important thing is forgotten. So let's go through the checklist, shall we?

Checklist:

  1. Flight tickets - check!
  2. Hotel reservations - check!
  3. Visa - check!
  4. Pack Autumn Clothing - not yet. Huhu.
  5. Daily allowance budgeting during Japan stay - no estimation yet. Huuu...
  6. Learn a bit of Japanese language - have to buy some books I guess... err...
  7. Timetable for muslim prayers - not yet. ehh.. where to obtain ahh??
  8. List down places to go - also no idea la. Haha. 
OK... so i better get busy.

Haipp!
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Monday, November 7, 2011

Masakan Orang Bujang di Cuti Raya

Makan Malam pada 6 November 2011 (Malam Hari Raya Haji):

Aku potong ayam dan masak nasi.
Hen (adik aku) masak lauk dan sayur. He he he.

Ada rupa rendang ayam kahhhh?

Sayur campur
Sarapan Pagi pada 7 November 2011

Makan ala barat pulakk..

Malam ini kitorang nak try buat Steak masak black pepper. Ntah jadi ke tak. He he he.

Best masak-masak di kala rumah tengah takda orang. Cuma adik aku dan aku je yang ada.

Tapi malam ini para housemate aku akan pulang......... huuuuu... T_T

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Sunday, November 6, 2011

Hasil Membeli-belah di PC Expo 2011 @ Midvalley

Sementara beribu-ribu orang dalam perjalanan untuk ke kampung halaman bagi menyambut perayaan Hari Raya Haji, aku bersama adik perempuan pula ke PC Expo 2011 di Midvalley. Seawal pukul 9:30 pagi kitorang bertolak ke sana bagi mengelak kesesakan lalulintas dan kesukaran mencari parkir kereta.

Tapi Alhamdulillah.. jalan tak jem... lot kosong parkir pula masih banyak di Midvalley...

So untuk menanti pembukaan PC Expo 2011 pada jam 11:00 pagi nanti, kami ke Carrefour untuk mencari barang keperluan. Boleh tahan gak adik aku beli barang... mentang-mentanglah aku yang bayar. T_T

Promosi PC Expo:

  • 30 orang pertama boleh beli pendrive 4GB dengan harga RM10.00.
  • 30 orang pertama boleh beli 500GB hard disk dengan harga RM139.00
  • Dengan setiap pembelian RM100.00 (boleh gabung resit) melayakkan anda untuk 1 borang lucky draw dan satu kali penembusan hadiah misteri di kaunter.
Tapi aku tak rajin untuk beratur panjang demi menjadi 30 orang pertama untuk membeli barangan promosi di atas. Aku cuma pergi usha laptop dan henfon murah je kat sana.

Dan berikut adalah hasil pengempisan dompet gua pada hari ini....


Bubuh dalam kereta siot! RM10 sahaja!

Original HTC car charger - RM25

Purchase with puchase - RM99 (sebab aku beli HTC Cha-cha. Ehem)

Purchase with purchase gak - RM99 (sebab beli barangan HTC)

Sila bandingkan harga asal dengan harga ku beli. Gilosssssss... ku beli dengan harga RM25 sahaja!!! 
Apabila keluar dari PC Expo 2011 kali ini, aku pulang dengan dua beg kertas khas HTC yang dipenuhi dengan barangan di bawah.

HTC Cha Cha + Free 8GB + screen protector + casing + RM1000 Spa Baucer
Aku ditahan sebelum keluar untuk mengikuti satu Pusingan Roda Bertuah (suka-suki letak nama. HAHA) untuk menentukan hadiah misteri pakej pelancongan. Tup-tup... aku menang pakej pelancongan ke Beijing selama 3 hari 2 malam. Ya rabbiiii.... best siottttttt!!!!

All in all... aku sangat seronok dengan hasil pembelian dari PC Expo 2011 dan menantikan expo yang seterusnya. Harus kumpul duit lagi lah untuk shopping pada tahun depan. Ihiks...

Nasihatku kepada mereka yang ingin shopping barangan elektronik... sila beli semasa PC Fair atau PC Expo sebab banyak benda korang boleh dapat secara percuma bersama barangan pembelian dengan harga promosi itu.

=)

Selamat bershopping! Dan selamat berhari raya aidil adha. Hikkzzzzzzz..

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