A Big Announcement, Eh?!

Oh my goodness you guys. 

It's time. 

Finally after months and months of waiting I can finally share my Big News! 

And what is my Big News I have been so anxiously keeping in? Weeelllll...

Cafés in Spring

 

 

Spring has arrived, and with a bang! 

 

Before I could even blink March and April have whizzed on by!

Girl's Day! Hina Matsuri ♡

Good evening everyone! 

It's March! Can you believe it? I love love LOVE March in Japan! The weather is getting warmer, the school year is coming to an end and the cherry blossoms start to bloom! The best part of cherry blossom season is everything becomes pink! So many goods and special edition food and drink come out. It is just so cute!♡❀ 

image from google

Sailor Moon Cafe in Osaka

Hello everyone!

I hope you all had a cute, chocolate-filled Valentine's Day! I had a simple, low key day with the Boyfriend but I def ate my share of chocolate! :x hehe

Today's blog post is an extra joy for me to write because it involves two of my favourite things - Sailor Moon and cafes! From January 13th, 2016 until February 14, 2016 there was a Sailor Moon themed cafe in Osaka!

My Winter Favourites!

No Wintertime Blues Here! 

 

I don't know if it is because I had a rough summer, but this year I am absolutely loving winter! 

Setsubun!

It's February! 

image from google

I actually love February...

Apologies, Explanations, Updates

I'm Back! 

I know, I know. I have been gone FOREVER. I just up and left, no explanation. Well let me start with this. I didn't plan on just ghosting like that. I honestly didn't. I always meant to keep up with this blog, but before I knew it months and months had gone by! Was I busy with work? Of course. Was I busy with my relationship? Well, yes. But are these the reasons I put off writing? No. So why did I just disappear? 

Missing: My Creativity!

I haven't been active on here lately, and trust me it hasn't been by choice. Of course, the end of the first semester is always a busy time but also I have been suffering from that horrible, well known condition...writer's block!~

image found on tumblr

What I Didn't Expect from Being In an Intercultural Relationship

Being in love is great. There is nothing like being in love! The butterflies, the kisses, the cuddles, going on adventures and making memories. It's amazing. If it wasn't, why would there be countless books and movies and songs devoted to it? There is not much better than the bringing together of two people.

Beating the Summer Heat

          

          I am from Canada. Contrary to popular belief this doesn't mean I automatically can cope in the cold. I hate the cold! I am the one who wears two layers of heat tech, a shirt and a sweater but I am still shivering away in the staff room! But I also have trouble handling the heat! In the summer, Toronto gets pretty hot. I'm talking mid 30's, plus some humidity. But the humidity levels are no where near Osaka's! I remember my first full summer in Japan...it was one of the hottest summers Osaka had seen in years! The humidity nearly killed me! Now I am a little more used to the heat but by the end of the day I just want to soak in an ice cold bath! Japan is famous for it’s long, humid summers and lack of central air conditioning. So what can one do to keep cool? Well never fear my friend, for here are some tips and tricks you’ll need to avoid melting like a Gari Gari Kun popsicle! 

Book Review: Confessions of a Texan in Tokyo

Confessions of a Texan in Tokyo   

     For those of you who are familiar with the "gaijin in Japan" blogging world, you may have already heard of Grace Buchele Mineta, the "Texan in Tokyo" and her adorable (and accurate) comics that cover the day to day life of a foreigner in Japan, intercultural relationships, culture shock, the adventures of being young and married, and everything in between. Along with her blog where Grace uploads her comics and posts about her life in Japan she also has a Youtube channel where she posts videos with her Japanese husband, Ryosuke, and has published three books! 

Why You Won't Hear the Term "AMWF" From Me Again...

So thanks to some awesome girls I was chatting with today, I came to a realization...

Using AMWF isn't right for me and it can actually be problematic. 

 

Now please bear with me as this embarrassing misstep and subsequent epiphany was all very sudden. It actually occurred within a span of four days! Let me walk you through it.

My Intercultural Relationship

Well I've been thinking...

Now that I've been posting for a few months it's time to get to know each other a little more, wouldn't you say? Well you guys already know I'm a Lush fan and Sailor Moon collector. If you've checked out the blurb under my photo you'll also know I'm really into plants, I watch anime, play UFO machines and am addicted to matcha tea. But what you might not know about me is I can't function without coffee (it's gone far past an addiction at this point...it's more like a physical necessity). I have read Harry Potter so many times it's impossible to count. I hate running but love swimming. Because of my mother and grandmother, I can speak some Estonian. Autumn is my favourite time of year...

SOS - Save Our Skin!

Lush Face Scrub, Toner and Mask Review

 

Hello everyone!

I can't believe it's already June! It feels like it was March and I was at hanami (cherry blossom viewing) with my friends just yesterday. Life is going by so quickly! But it really is June, and that means it's rainy season! I think I am the only person in Japan who actually really likes rainy season. I like the cloudy, cool weather and listening to the sound of the rain hitting the window pane. Maybe it sounds a little strange but I feel more comfortable when it is rainy and I feel more myself. I find it so calming and so relaxing. But what I don't love about rainy season is what it does to my skin!

Host Survivial 101

Hello!!

Guys! I am alive! I promise! 

I am so sorry for going MIA after proudly declaring my schedule was back on track, but I was quite busy! My friend from Canada came to Japan and stayed with me here in Osaka! She was here from May 4th to May 20th - a long and satisfying visit. It was totally fun but I forgot that being a host is a lot of work too! So I decided to compile a little list of Host Survival tips for fellow expats here in Japan (and elsewhere!) who may have friends or family coming to stay with them in the future! 

Over the Rainbow

みんなさん! ごめん!

Sorry about the late blog post! The school year has just started up as I mentioned, and this year I am without a JTE! Eep! So I've got a lot more planning and prep this year! But I've gotten back into the groove and that goes for my blog posts as well! 

This past Saturday I finally did something that I've wanted to do for a while...

Color (colour**) Me Rad!~~~

Sailor Moon Collection!!~☽

Hello everyone!~ ヾ（ ❀◕ヮ◕ฺฺ ）ノ

Sorry this post took a little longer than I would've liked, but it's the start of a new school year here in Japan so I've been quite busy! In Japan, the school year ends around mid-March and begins again in April! It's totally different from Canada, where we end in June and begin in September! Japanese kids still get a summer vacation, but it is shorter than what I had in Canada! 

Anyways I've decided it was time to introduce to you all something that makes me very happy! (ღ˘⌣˘ღ) My Sailor Moon collection! (ﾉ^ヮ^)ﾉ*:・ﾟ✧! Today will just be an introduction on what I've currently collected, but I want to do specific reviews on some goods in the future! Just a heads up - this post will be pic heavy!

Kansai versus Kanto

     Ever since I was a little girl my dream was to one day pack my bags and move to Tokyo. I would look up photos of the bright lights, the huge crowds, the unique street fashions and become more and more obsessed. No other city, not even in Japan, was deemed worthy. I would get there no matter what and once I did, my life would be fabulous. But the universe had different plans for me. Instead I found myself accepted to study abroad at a university in the Kansai region. I was okay with this. I had friends at this university and viewed it as a stepping stone to the mecca that is Tokyo. What I didn't expect was that I would soon find myself completely and utterly in love with the area, and all its unique quirks and traits.

Kansai? Kanto? 

     Kansai, also known as the Kinki region, is the southern central part of the main island of Japan. It includes the prefectures of Mie, Nara, Wakayama, Kyoto, Osaka, Hyogo and Shiga. The cities of Kobe, Osaka and Kyoto make up the second largest population after Tokyo. Kanto is made up mostly of Tokyo and its outlining cities. I won't bore you with too much of the details. That's what Wikipedia is for!

image from google

     Many people I have spoken to tell me of their dream of visiting and/or moving to Tokyo. I think thats great! Tokyo is a beautiful, vibrant city. However sometimes I feel other parts of Japan become lost in it's shadow. There are so many other gorgeous and exciting places in this country! One of these places is Kansai! Kansai is definitely different from the rest of Japan, especially Tokyo and the Kanto region. So why should you consider Kansai as your travel destination or potential Japanese home? Oh I am so glad you asked...

New Beginnings

"What a strange thing!
to be alive
beneath cherry blossoms." 
-Kobayashi Issa

     
     It is my second spring here in Osaka. The cherry blossoms are blooming, the new school year is about to start and there is a sudden energy pulsing throughout the city. Not that Osaka is every really short of energy but spring time and hanami (cherry blossom viewing) season is different. Everyone seems a lot more awake. Maybe it is the excitement of picnics under pink flowers or the promise of a new school year, or financial year (which begins in April here in Japan) but there is just this undeniable feeling of lightness every where you go. 

     As I mentioned, the new school year begins in April. So for me, this is also a time of reflection. How did this last year go? How can I improve? Not just on a professional level but a personal one as well. This last year and a half I've spent in Japan has been a roller coaster ride. I hate using such a cheesy and overused expression but there really isn't another way to put it. There have been exhilarating highs and soul crushing lows with every imaginable twist and turn in between. I gained confidence, have fallen, questioned the very core of who I am, picked myself up and am still slowly and tenderly putting myself back together. But despite it all I can say that I am in better place now. I am still learning and still growing but that is what this entire adventure is for. An adventure that I am blessed to be experiencing!  So I thought it was about time I shared it with you all! I have re-amped this old dusty blog of mine and hope to share a little bit of how life is here in, what my friends and I affectionately refer to as, "the Dirty South" along with tips about the JET Programme, reviews on goods and makeup,  and the general day to day derpings of a young adult stumbling her way through her first years as a "real adult". So, as we say in Japan...よろしくお願いします!!! yoroshiku onegaishimasu!!! ヾ(＠⌒ー⌒＠)ノ