Things That Make You Go Oooooo (April 2016)

It's been almost 3 weeks since I arrived in Thailand and despite it being ridiculously hot here I am just having the best time, good food, good company and oh so many cute and kawaii things everywhere! I'm trying to be as active as I can online and hopefully I'll be uploading more on my YouTube as I'm really enjoying making videos at the moment, anyway here's some inspirational reading for you...

♥ 150 Blog Post Ideas for When You've Hit Writers Block

♥ 10 Ways to Spread Optimism

♥ How to Be Happier Without Really Trying

♥ 26 Things Every Person Should Do for Themselves Once a Year

♥ It's A Blog Eat Blog World Out There: Best Practices For Blogging Success

♥ Rise and Shine: How to Become a Morning Person

♥ 10 Health Mistakes You Make In Your Twenties

♥ Taking Off The Mask: Why It Is Not Ok To Say "It´s Ok"

♥ How To Get Your Inspiration Back!

♥ It's Business Baby - How To Boost Cash Flow

♥ 5 Things You Should Get Done Today

♥ How To Solo A Convention

♥ When Superhero Fashion Makes You Feel Super

♥ How To Love Yourself in Blogging 

♥ 15 Daily Struggles of Being an Obsessively Tidy Person

♥ How to Prevent Panic Attacks in Public

♥ 7 Ways To Feel Empowered At Every Size & Inspire Those Around You

♥ 10 Things Lord of the Rings Taught Me About Life

♥ 40 Self Care Techniques To Rejuvenate And Restore Yourself

♥ 20 Blog Post Ideas For Spring

Love & Coconut Water

Cate

xoxo

Thailand Comic Con 2016: Cosplay, Concerts & Collectables

I recently attended Thailand Comic Con held at the Siam Paragon and IT WAS AMAZING! I've been attending cons all over the U.K and even San Diego for the past decade now but Thailand Comic Con felt like a whole new experience to me the cosplay was out of this world and I loved the concerts, there was such a happy upbeat vibe and not once did I feel tired despite spending nearly 10 hours there!

I had planned to wear my Kamen Rider Gaim outfit months before the con and then a few days before I was set to leave the UK I heard that Boys and Men were attending and that I'd get the chance to meet Yutaka Kobayashi one of the main stars of Kamen Rider Gaim I knew it was meant to be, not alot of people have heard about Kamen Rider in the UK but it has been a big thing in Thailand for many years and although I'm only a recent fan of the show it has been something I've been aware of since I was a kid and it was kinda exciting to be surrounded by many other fans.

I honestly can't wait until next year to do it all over again and I'm already planning on making an epic cosplay to enter into the contest, it was just the perfect day and a great introduction to what cons in Asian are like.

What international conventions would you love to go to?

Love & HENSHIN!

Cate

xoxo

FYeahJapan: Bunnies, Pandas, Moomins & Kapibarasan!

 

There are just so many adorable theme cafés in Japan it would be hard to visit them all but we at least made a good attempt to! It seemed like every week there was a new theme café to visit so there's no shortage of them to keep you busy, whether you're into robots or rabbits there is a café out there for everyone, so here are a few more of the cute places we visited in Tokyo.

Kapibarasan 10th Anniversary Café

If it wasn't for instagram and its awesome hashtags I would have never found out about this place and we got there just in time as it was the last day of business and also Christmas Day. This place was the cutest there was cute Kapibarasan decorations everywhere including the toilet and the food all looked delicious and with it being Christmas I thought I would go for the Christmas pancakes which were yummy although the cream Christmas tree turned my mouth and my insides completely green, I also loved that they had printed Kapibarasan's face on the potatoes it was so cute, it's such a shame it wasn't permanent as I would have loved to go again and try some of the other yummy looking food they had on the menu.

Ra.a.g.f - Harajuku

There's a new trend starting and it's the rabbit café, Ra.a.g.f or rabbit and grow fat is just a short walk from Kiddyland in Harajuku and definitely worth a visit! I love bunnies so much and it kinda amused me that the sign even had them pooping on it which was kinda the theme of our visited as once we'd picked our bunny to play with and he was let out of his cage he preceded to poop all over the place in excitement, luckily after growing up with bunnies and sharing my bedroom with one for 5 years bunny poop is something I'm used to. It was 700 yen to play with the bunnies for 30 minutes and that also included a drink you could also buy food for the bunnies for 100 yen which I did as there's no better way to a bunny's heart than with food. Oh and one final thing they have a giant bunny there which I kid you not is bigger than my dog, definitely a sight to see!

Moomin Café  & Bubble Tea Stand

There is Moomin stuff all over Japan and after passing the Bubble Tea stand in Sunshine City a few times we decided to try it out and I kid you not the soy caramel was the best bubble tea I've ever had in fact we enjoyed it so much we went back there for breakfast the next morning before flying out to Seoul. Upon our return to Tokyo and after our failed first attempt at visiting the Cinnamoroll Café we visited the SkyTree and found an actual Moomin restaurant after being seated we were joined by a giant Moomin Papa plush which I thought was so damn cute but unfortunately as with most restaurants in Japan there wasn't many savoury options for vegetarians so I decided to go for one of their Christmas desserts which came with a free plate and it was quite possibly one of the best desserts I've ever eaten, Moomin-sama definitely knows how to cook!

Ojipan Café

Directly opposite the Pom Pom Purin Café in Harajuku this place doesn't get quite enough attention which is kinda sad because Uncle Panda is just as cute if not cuter in my opinion. The café is probably better know for its omurice but I was craving something sweet so went with this adorable parfait or "Ojipan of small healing parfait" oh engrish how I love it!

What theme cafes would you love to visit?

Love & Pancakes

Cate

xoxo

Japan Candy Box Unboxing & GIVEAWAY!!

One of the things I miss most about Japan is the awesome cute snacks they have so when Japan Candy Box contacted me asking if I would like to review one of their boxes I quickly said yes! The candy box is similar to the Kawaii Box which I reviewed previously but instead of cute stationery in your mailbox every month you get a box full of cute foods and if there's one thing I love more than cute stationery it's cute food!

I was very happy with all the candy and treats I got in the box and my nephew and I quickly devoured the lot after I had finished filming the video, the pizza snacks of course were the first to go! So if you want to get your own Japan Candy Box, which I highly recommend, you can subscribe to them via their website for as little as $18.20 a month which includes free shipping worldwide or you can try out one of their boxes for free by checking out the awesome giveaway below.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

What are your favourite Asian snacks?

Love & Pizza

Cate

xoxo

FYeahJapan: A Day in Kamakura & Yokohama

I you hadn't already guessed by now I like visiting temples and one of the places on my must see in Japan list was Daibutsu in Kamakura. Quite a few of the temples we visited were covered in scaffolding for repairs so when I found out that we had just days before the big Buddha would have the same fate we made our pilgrimage to see it.

It look a lot longer than I thought to get to Kamakura as it was so busy being the final weekend before the Buddha closed for restoration and the Enoden train was so packed full of people I was kinda jammed in someone's armpit for the duration of the ride but we made it and it was a beautiful.

The temple itself is quite small but the huge Buddha makes up for that, you can even go inside it for a small fee. I also was happy to see that some of the trees in the gardens were planted by the Crown Prince of Thailand, it's always fun to see something Thai related in other countries and I ended up sending a bunch of photos of trees for my family to see.

After our visit to the Buddha we made our way back to Yokohama to do some shopping but with time running out we decided to make the most visit and head over to Cosmo World for some junk food and selfies with the infamous Yokohama ferris wheel, whenever I see photos of Yokohama it's always of this view and I have to admit it is a pretty view especially at night.

What is the best view you have ever seen?

Love & Cookies

Cate

xoxo

Inspirational Quotes #73

“I enjoy being me; I always have done. I’ve seen people where it rules their lives, you know, who want to be thinner or have bigger boobs, and it wears them down. And I don’t want that in my life.
- Adele

FYeahJapan: Snow Monkey Magic

I have wanted to see the Snow Monkey's in Japan ever since I watched a documentary about them many years ago. I love monkeys although the ones I've met in Thailand haven't been too friendly so although I was excited to go see them I was a little apprehensive to, thankfully though Japan's macaques are better behaved than Thailand's and they didn't really pay us much attention so I came out of my encounter happy, without any bruises and with all my belongings.

The walk up to the Monkey Park was a lot easier than I thought after reading many warnings of how long and tiring it can be it maybe took me 10 - 15 minutes to walk and it was mostly on a wide flat path, I would however recommend wearing boots though as it can get quite muddy if there's bad weather but it wasn't anything more difficult than the woodland walks I take my dog on everyday. It's a very pretty walk through the woods though and it was made even more pretty by the recent snowfall, there are also some interesting and amusing signs about the monkeys on the walk up there.

And then we got to the monkeys and they were everything I hoped they would be and more, I absolutely adored them and wanted to cuddle up with them to. Seeing just how zen the monkeys were sitting in the onsen melted my heart and they weren't bothered at all by all the visitors to the park, I was kinda amazed at just how close you could get to them.

I had almost forgotten that 2016 was the year of the monkey so this was just the perfect start to the year, I probably could have stayed there all day just watching the monkeys chilling in the onsen they were truly adorable and I'd love to see them one day again when there is more snow.

Nagano is such a beautiful place and I wished we had stayed there a bit longer, I always feel more at home when I'm near the mountains and nature. There was lot's of vegetarian food there to and everything apple related you can imagine, apples are the region's speciality fruit and I can definitely vouch for their deliciousness!

Are there any animals you would love to see in the wild?

Love & Monkey Hugs

Cate

xoxo

FYeahJapan: Toyko Tower

Tokyo Tower is one of those iconic landmarks you just have to see, I remember watching Sailor Moon when I was little and thinking one day I'm going to visit there (and become a magical girl) so upon our return to Tokyo after our mini Seoul/Kansai break we paid it a visit.

Right next to Tokyo Tower is Zojoji Temple which not only a beautiful place to visit but gives you a great view of the tower, I always love how colourful and vibrant the Buddhist shrines are. 

Almost every place in Japan has its own mascot and Tokyo Tower has two the Noppon Brothers. Most mascots seem to have a kinda resemblance to what they're representing but with these guys I have no idea what they are and I'll keep this post PG friendly so I won't say what I think they are but he kinda creeped me out....

It was Christmas Day when we visited Tokyo Tower although there weren't any special celebrations happening there it's was still a nice way to commemorate the day. We didn't go to the top of the tower but we did explore the shopping area and restaurants inside, almost every attraction in Tokyo seems to have a mall attached to it with souvenirs of all kinds, I especially love the food souvenirs and the Hello Kitty ones, I can never get enough Hello Kitty!

What are the strangest mascot characters you've ever seen?

Love & Flowers

Cate

xoxo