Hellaween

I am hooked on One Piece right now, so I had to cosplay my fave character Tony Tony Chopper <3

Here's the progress of making Chopper's hat from a plain old top hat!

And the finish:

I decided to celebrate my Halloween at the West Hollywood Costume Parade.

There was a ridiculous amount of people, but I still had so much fun.

It was so hyped especially with the DJ and live music. 

Everyone was dressed up amazingly ~I could not think of a better place to see dope costumes~

The Best Eats in Nagoya

Before leaving Nagoya, I had a few stops that I had to make to satisfy my trip.

First off, I had to go to Baskin Robbins to get my favorite "Popping Shower" flavor. 

This flavor rocks because its white chocolate ice cream with creme de menthe flavor swirled in with popping rocks candy. 

Only available in Japan!!! 

I was sad that they didn't have my other favorite being the Milk Tea ice cream with apple pie crumbs. 

 My last dinner in Nagoya had to be at my favorite ramen place called "Fuji Ichiban" 藤一番 
also called Kame-chan.  Ramen shop link

I am not a big fan of ramen, but this place has the BEST ramen ever.

I ordered the Maramen(マーラー麺) 四川麻辣麺（汁なし） 

It is a little different from the traditional ramen, but thats why it is so special.
Sichuanzanshou (Chinese pepper) and the original rayu (Chinese spicy oil) made it tastefully hot. And more, Chimazyan which has strong sesame flavor and black vineger’s rich taste mixed with noodles!

You can't get flavor like this anywhere else in the world!

To top it off, there is no doubt that I had to get some wings at the 

World Famous Yama-chan!

These chicken wings are to die for.

They are actually Nagoya's meibutsu. 

I literally wait every trip to Nagoya to eat these suckers.

I actually didn't eat them there but took them on the air plane back to LA with me!!! 

Yes because I love them THAT much <3

Arakogawa Park

I love staying with my grandma in Nagoya because she lives right next to a beautiful park called the Arakogawa-Koen. 

The park is very big, and the best part is that it has the best little cafe that sells the most delicious lavender ice cream you will ever eat in your life. 

They use the lavender that grows in the park's garden to make the ice cream. 

The taste is so fresh, delicate, and creamy. 

I also volunteered to assist the Zenshin Hoikuen (Kindergarden and Daycare Center).

They were rehearsing in this park for the upcoming Aki Matsuri (Autumn Festival).

Mejibray Live

While staying in Osaka, I took a trip down to Kyoto to see one of my favorite Japanese Visual-kei rock bands, Mejibray, at the Mojo Live house .

It was a really good concert. 

They are very talented and technical musicians who also have amazing stage presence. 

They put on a fab performance.

I'm so happy I finally got to see them play live. 

Too bad I couldn't take any pics inside. 

Shinsaibashi Date

I went to hung out with my friend from Osaka at Shinsaibashi. 

We took Purikura and ate really bomb okonomiyaki and yakisoba at this restaurant on Doutonbori.

This bakery called Pablo is extremely popular because it has the best cheese tarts. 

The line is usually very long, but on this day, the line was super short. I lucked out!!!

I finished off my day with this delicious mango parfait <3

 yum

Official web site : http://www.kiharayue.com/

Check out my awesome friend, Yue, and her artwork ^^^^^^^^^^^^

A Day at the Q's Mall in Osaka

Today I went to check out another popular area in Osaka.

The Abeno Market Park Q's Mall is a brand new facility that attracts many young consumers because it is the largest shopping center in the Osaka Prefecture. 

It is located in Abeno-ku, Osaka, right next to the Tennoji station. 

The mall has a ton of stores, restaurants, a grocery store, and evens calls itself the mini " Shibuya 109." 

This is the view from the top floor of a newly reconstructed skyscraper in Osaka called the Abenobashi Terminal Building.

 

My favorite doughnut place in the whole world is Mister donut.

I died over how cute the Halloween edition Hello Kitty donuts are. 

"pon de ring" is my favorite.

 I've never tasted a doughnut that yummy.

We had lunch at the best shabu-shabu restaurant. 

Behold the tower of meat. 

The only arcades that I enjoy are here in Japan.

My cute little munchkin <3

Osaka Gal

Some of my family lives in Osaka, so I stayed with them for a week and got to check out a lot fun places there. 

Today I went to Doutonbori which is one of the most popular areas for tourism in Japan. 

It is a long street that lies alongside the Doutonbori river. 

This street is famous for having a ton of Takoyaki stands, neon signs, Glico Man sign, and its many interesting shops. 

The Kani Doraku Crab is one of Doutonbori's landmarks.

 I still haven't tried this restaurant yet; the line was too long. 

Next time!

Takoyaki (octopus balls) is Osaka's "meibutsu" which is a term used to describe a city's most famous products. 

Thus there was no question for me to have a round of this delicious street food myself.

Honestly, takoyaki tasting this good is only cooked here in Osaka. 

This here is the entrance to another long street called Shinsaibashi. 

It is different from Doutonbori because this district is known for being the city's main shopping area. 

Clothing stores, brand named stores and such run the entire way. 

I also checked out this very popular shopping area known as Ame-Mura (American Village) because it is located west of Shinsaibashi. 

This area accounts more of the pop, vintage, and nightlife that attracts a lot of Osaka's young consumers  who's interests include fashion, music, and art. 

At my fave store Village Vanguard. They have the most interesting things here from vintage items to Miyazaki merchandised knick knacks.