The Little Blind Bats

Long, long time ago, there was only Daddy Lim who complained that his glasses were too loose/ scratched/ tight/ heavy/ whatever and that he needed new glasses. Bcos he is so blind and plus his atas taste, his glasses are rarely cheap. Zzzzzz.

Lil Shauna and Zaky joined the ranks in the last 2 years. The house is now full of blind bats. Particularly Lil Shauna, her eyesight deteriorated rapidly. She started wearing glasses in June 2017 and it was like 75 and 100 degrees. In less than a year, she had her lenses changed bcos she complained that she cant see even with her glasses. In February 2018, it was 125 and 200. Zzzzzzzzzzzz. Zaky joined them in April 2018. Haiz. Why like that?

The kids complained that the glasses were too tight. Too tight? Their heads grow so fast meh? I have no idea how it works. Anyway, they had been bugging for new glasses. I lost and the kids had their new glasses. Haiz.

We were back in Owndays. The kids chose their frame and got their eyes tested.

Verdict:
Lil Shauna is now 150 and 275! Arrrggghhhh..
Zaky is 125 each side. Zzzzzzzz.

Lil Shauna really need to start wearing her glasses to control the aggravation. By the way, she chose a very "in" set of frame. So cute! So Harry Potter.

Mummy Lim

Kansai Day 10: Nara Park and Home Sweet Home

It was finally the day that we could sleep late bcos we didnt have any fixed itinerary. Ok, not that late bcos we had to check out at 10am. While the hostel doesnt provide free bfast, they provided buns and pastry for Y100 each from the local bakery. The pastry was nothing to shout about and the kids were happier with instant noodles for bfast.

We lazed in the room until it was time to check out and then headed to Nara Park to greet the deers. Ok, this cute one too.

Along the way, we saw big and juicy strawberries but found it too troublesome to find a place to wash them. Sorry, pass.

Bcos it was early, the deers were roaming alot more than our last visit. We even saw deers crossing the roads. Some of them observed the traffic lights while others just heck care.

The deers were proabably hungrier and therefore more aggreesive. Some were chewing Daddy Lim's jacket/ bag strap in attempt to ask for more biscuits. Errr.. not working lor. One head butted me and it was forceful that I got a shock. No joke!

Daddy Lim just kept trying to take selfie with the deers. The last I checked, he had hundreds of them, so that he could pick out the best. Lol.

Again, the kids would have stayed on to feed the deers forever but we dragged them off.

Nara is also famous for its shrines and temples. I had wanted to visit the Todaji. When we walked to where it was located, we found even more deers. The deers there were alot more aggressive. They had warning signs put up.

We even dare feed the deers, we saw quite some deers chasing tourists for biscuits.

Todaji - so magnificient.

I had wanted to visit a shrine/ temple proper but the kids didnt share my enthusiasm and we had to pay an entrance fees; I gave up the idea.

We ended up roaming and exploring and then in search of lunch. By then, I was rather sick of Japanese food. Haha. We did stop for this delicious deep fried snacks. Anything deep fried is yummy. They were so good (and us so hungry) that we had round 2.

Eventually, we settled for this little cosy eatery.

Just when we were trying to decide what to do next, the kids were lured by the owl cafe. It wasnt really a cafe and was really small. The owls were perched on their branch and the "non-pettable" ones had warning signs - "do not touch".

We were supposed to stroke the head and back of the owls with the back of our hands. Among all, this was the most tame one. Haha.

This one constantly had that surprise look. Too funny!

There were small rodents too but in cages. The "drinks" came from a vending machine and it was self service. Each patron was entitled to 1 free drink on trust basis. There were some benches for resting.

Though small, the kids self entertained for a good while. They are usually happy when they could touch the animals. Before leaving, we were watching this owl trying to cough out the pellets; it looked like it was yawning.

We went back to Nara Park for more deers feeding. This time, Zaky got upset bcos he was head butted. Lol. The deers even chased the kids up the tree and mummy had to rescue Lil Shauna. Haha.

We headed back to the hostel for a little rest and some snacks before making our way to the bus stop for the airport bus.

The bus arrived right on time at 6.05pm and the journey took about 1.5 hr. I was the sole survivor.

I had thought that we had plenty of time since our flight was at 11.30pm but apparently not. We had to get our Icoca cards refunded and there was a long check-in Q. Then it was to find dinner and a little time left for the kids to play at the mini playground that was meant for little kids. Still, they had fun.

Soon, it was time to board the plane and we had the same seating configuration. I assumed the kids would sleep better if they could lean on the window. We each watched 1 movie and I had to chase Zaky to bed. The boy asked me to wake him for bfast. I tried but couldnt. Haha.

Bcos of the time difference, we touched down in Sgp at about 5am before staggered sleepily across the immigration. I am always so thankful for Sgp efficient immigration services.

We all knocked out on the taxi ride home. I was dead tired after unpacking and took a 4 hrs nap. The kids were bouncing with energy despite the little eye shut and went about the day's activities, refusing naps. They are strong. 

How did we like Japan? We all loved the skiing experience. Daddy Lim liked the Mount Kongo hike next best while we think that USJ was better. While there were pleny of hipcups, we survived our 1st Japan trip alright. Would we like to retuen to Japan soon again? Maybe to Hokkaido or somewhere with snow for another skiing experience. But in actual fact, we somewhat found Korea better than Japan. Somehow, Korea transport system is alot simpler and the attractions are nearer to each other; we spent too much time travelling in Japan, packing 1 or max 2 attractions in a day. Japan is also well known for their politness and services and that work against it; it irks me when their services were below expectations, like what we experienced at Ibis Kyoto.

Mummy Lim

Kansai Day 9 Part 2: Nara

It was last min shopping at Kyoto station before hitting the train for Nara - our last stop for our Japan trip.

There were so many varieties of sourvenirs and the wrappings were all so pretty. The only problem is that we cannot remember what we had bought bcos everything was nicely wrapped up. Then I had a brilliant idea - take picture of the sample and wrapping. I is cleber.

There were not many trains to Nara and the app told us to take this express limited train. We boarded the train with our Icoca cards like usual. As the train was empty, we happily chose our seats and settled down. Then, we kept hearing this announcement about the train being express and would only stopped at limited stops plus all the seats in the train were allocated and free seating was not allowed. We figured out that it would cost more to take the train and special tickets were needed.

We felt like guilty school kids who didnt do their homework and hoping that we wouldnt be found out. The train took off without a hitch. The train was even equipped with toilets, just nice bcos the untimely boy needed one soon after the train took off. Heng ah.

The conductor did come by and we caught him to pay our due fares. Now we can sit comfortably without worries.

Bcos it was expressed service, it only took us about 30 mins to reach Nara.

The moment we arrived at the station, I felt that I like Nara. Osaka is very much hustle and bustle, Kobe just feels like an old town, Kyoto is plain crowded but without Osaka's liveliness. Nara feels very peaceful yet with a tint of liveliness. I just like Nara.

We would be staying in a hostel for the final night and hostel sounded dangerous to Daddy Lim after our last hostel experience in HKG Lantau island. Hahaha. But I checked and double checked that it was a family room that can fit all of us comfortably and that it comes with a private bathroom.

There was a big lobby at the reception.

Our room was ready and it was really good! Big and spacious with 4 beds!

Even though it was a hostel, there was bathtub.

The handwash, shower foam and stuff look as luxurious as the other hotels.

Free coffee was also provided at the lobby.

We had to pull the kids out to explore Nara and to purchase the bus tickets to the airport the next day.

After some aimless walking, we decided to go to Nara Park for the deers. We didnt quite know where exactly the deers were, especially when Nara Park isnt small. The sun was about the set too. Then, somewhere under the trees, we saw them.

The deers didnt want to have anything to do with us until we got hold of the deer biscuits. It was Y150 for 1 stack.

I had thought that the deers would be full by now but they still came after our biscuits.

The deers were so cute! Most of them bow to ask for biscuits. Daddy Lim was very busy, trying to selfie with the deers.

The kids could feed the deers forever and spent whatever money we had left to buy deer biscuits. It was getting chilly and we rushed the kids back to the hostel. Along the way, we saw the pagoda basking in the setting sun.

Christmas carols were everywhere. We shopped at Daiso after dinner and bought cakes to celebrate our Christmas eve.

That marked our last night in Japan.

Mummy Lim