BLOG -- Recap of December

December was surprisingly really busy. I was hoping to finish my Japan blogs this month but it'll have to be done in the new year.

Outings / Events in December:

- My Disney+ subscription ended. I was able to watch everything on my priority watch list, but it was pretty challenging.

- Hung out with a few friends at different times. Each of those hangouts were fun.

- Had a board game session with my sister, her husband, and my boyfriend. It was really fun.

- Attended a house party/potluck with my boyfriend. We ate food and did some karaoking. It was a great time.

- Had a low-key gingerbread house building session with my boyfriend. We forgot to buy candy to decorate the house so we made do with what we already had. It was a nice time.

- Had a dinner with old colleagues. It was really great seeing them again XD

Exposures:

- Nothing this time.

Finished...

Watching:

- (Movie): Frozen II -- It was slightly dull in the beginning but got better in the end.

- (Movie): Pocahontas -- The animation style looked nice but everything else was meh.

- (Movie): Hanna -- This was pretty good, although I had hoped for a kinder resolution.

- (Movie): Maleficent: Mistress of Evil -- I enjoyed it.

- (Movie): Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales -- It was okay.

- (Movie): Ava -- It's not bad but not amazing either.

- (Movie): Bambi -- It was okay.

- (Movie): The Croods: A New Age -- This was pretty good.

- (Movie): Dune (2021) -- Wayy too slow-paced and the ending felt unsatisfactory. I know it's just the first part to a series but the movie itself was so long -- I didn't feel much of a pay off for the time spent watching it.

- (Movie): Avatar: The Way of Water -- I think this would have been interesting as a video game. The world-building was neat.

- (Movie): Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny -- The main female character was annoying.

- (Movie): Prey -- I had no idea this was related to the Predator movies. It was great.

- (Movie): Soul -- There were some nice parts.

- (Movie): Elemental -- The animation was great.

- (Movie): 101 Dalmations -- It was okay.

- (Movie): Cruella -- It had some good moments.

- (Movie): Onward -- There were some interesting ideas, but overall it was just okay.

- (Movie): Luca -- It was okay.

- (Movie): Chip 'N Dale: Rescue Rangers -- I enjoyed this a lot.

- (Movie): High School Musical -- There was some decent singing but the plot was a little too cheesy for me at times.

- (Movie): The Emperor's New Groove -- It was okay.

- (Movie): Dinosaur -- It may have been good for its time but it didn't age well.

- (Movie): The Lady and the Tramp -- Meh.

- (Movie): The Jungle Book -- The animation style was fun and the music was enjoyable.

- (Movie): Thor: Love and Thunder -- There were some funny moments.

- (Movie): God Only Forgives -- A very brutal watch.

- (Movie): The Snowman -- It was okay.

- (Movie): Mama -- I watched this mainly for Jessica Chastain. There were some creepy moments.

- (Movie): The Pianist -- Really well done.

- (Movie): Old -- The premise was interesting but some of the acting and cinematography was questionable.

- (Musical - Filmed): Hamilton -- The singing was great and the story was interesting. I'd love to watch it performed live one day.

- (TV Show): Yu Yu Hakusho (Live-action) -- Being a fan of the anime, the action scenes were great for the most part. The first couple episodes were good and fair on what was cut down. The rest of the episodes felt very rushed and the major plot points had less impact than in the anime. I'd recommend watching the anime instead.

- (Anime): Pluto -- I loved the concepts.

Playing:

- Nothing this month.

Reading:

- Nothing this month.

Currently... 

Playing (not all at once):

- (PS4): Dark Cloud 2

- (PS4): Skyrim
- (PS4): Final Fantasy: Crystal Chronicles Remastered
- (PS4): Moon: Remix RPG Adventure
- (PS4): Yakuza 6: Song of Life

- (PS4): Baldur's Gate I: Enhanced Edition

- (PS3): Borderlands 2

- (PSP): Gurumin: A Monstrous Adventure

- (3DS): Phoenix Wright: Dual Destinies
- (GBA): The Legend of Zelda: Four Swords Anniversary Edition   
- (Wii): Fortune Street 
- (PC): UnEpic  
- (PC): Higurashi no Naku Koro ni (When They Cry)

- (Mobile): Bloons TD 6

Watching:

- (TV Show): Criminal Minds: Evolution (Season 2)

- (TV Show): The Goldbergs (Season 5)
- (TV Show): Huff (Season 1 - Episode 10)
- (TV Show): Stranger Things (Season 5)

- (TV Show): The Boys (Season 4)

- (TV Show): Love Death + Robots (Season 1 - Episode 6)

- (TV Show): Bob's Burgers (Season 5 - Episode 6)

- (Anime): Log Horizon (Season 4)

- (Anime): Attack on Titan (Season 4)
- (Anime): Pyscho-Pass (Season 4?)
- (Anime): Kakegurui (Season 3?)
- (Anime): Basilisk: The Ouka Ninja Scrolls (Episode 2)

- (Anime): Gintama (Episode 13)

- (Anime): Tokyo Revengers (Season 2 - Episode 25)

- (Anime): Gurren Lagann (Episode 6)

- (Anime): Chihayafuru (Season 4?)

- (Anime): One Punch Man (Season 2)

- (Anime): Fate/Apocrypha (Season 2)

- (Anime): Junji Ito's Japanese Tales of the Macabre (Episode 5)

- (Anime): Demon Slayers (Season 4)

- (Anime): Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood (Season 1 - Episode 6)

- (YouTube): StephenVlogs (Day 1061)

Reading:

- (Manga): One Piece by Eiichiro Oda (Volume ?? -- Chapter 1096)
- (Manga): Berserk by Kentaro Miura (Volume 2)

That's it for December. Here are some pics I took this month plus a YouTube video.

Something I ate during one of my hang outs. This was delicious.

Something else I ate during another one of my hang outs. This was also delicious.

A pile of desserts I ate during another one of my hang outs. I loved the green tea cake.

A seasonal thing I ate for another hang out. This was pretty good.

The low-key gingerbread house. I had fun!

How I've been spending my time on the phone these days. I'm enjoying Blue Archive a lot, and Overmortal almost feels like a guilty pleasure for me.

"10 Best Frugal Habits of Millionaires" by Tae Kim - Financial Tortoise.

I'm not a millionaire but I do a few of those things already.

Thanks for reading!

As usual, if you have any questions / comments about anything, feel free. 

Next week will be the long year-end blog I always do and after that I'll be resuming the Japan blogs. I'm very sorry for the delay. orz

Have fun, take care, and until next time! And Happpppy New Year!!! :)

BLOG -- My Trip to Japan V.4 -- ADVENTURE PART 5 (Nipponbashi / Den Den Town, Namba, Dotonbori)

Here is Part 5 of my Japan blogs. These were all new places I experienced while in Osaka, all walkable from our hotel. I had wanted to visit Nara and see all the deer but we skipped it 'cuz I was feverish. :(

NIPPONBASHI / DEN DEN TOWN

DAYS SPENT: 0.5

OVERALL THOUGHTS: This is Osaka's version of Akihabara. Unfortunately, we got there pretty early so most shops were closed. We were also there on a Monday, so some of the shops might have just been closed that day. We still got to check out some shops.

PLACES VISITED:

Volks Osaka Showroom

This is similar to the Volks shop in Akihabara but with varying merchandise. I actually found SINoALICE merchandise, but only one. The area selling second-hand figures and goods was much larger and many of the prices were so much lower! The process of buying the second-hand goods also felt more streamlined. At least, I noticed a sign with English instructions on how to buy. If there was a similar sign at the Akihabara location, I missed it. I highly recommend checking this out, especially for the second-hand goods area.

The entrances. The left entrance leads to the second-hand goods. The right entrance is for new goods.

So many second-hand goods!

Instructions on how to buy from the second-hand goods area. Pretty much, you take a sheet of paper and fill out the required info. If there are multiple items in a case with the same number and price, fill out the number and price once. When you hand the paper to the employee, the employee and you will go to the case and you can point to what you want.

So many One Piece figures!

OTHER PHOTOS:

A shot of Den Den Town.

This just looks cool.

These look really neat.

If I'm reading this right (I can only read "Mac Card" and the "12"), the grand prize is a McCard for... 12 burgers? Or 12 months? I'm guessing the latter since the Switch Lite is the 2nd prize.

I don't understand the appeal of train simulation games, but I am curious.

Super Potato Retro-kan! There were tons of retro games in there.

NAMBA

DAYS SPENT: Several mornings and afternoons

OVERALL THOUGHTS: When figuring which hotel we'd stay at for Osaka, I wanted to be pretty close to Dotonbori. Dotonbori is in Namba so our hotel would be in Namba. Overall, it was a great location, with lots of shops and food places within walking distance. 

For those wanting to maximize the JR lines, you may want to stay at a hotel closer to the Osaka Loop Line or closer to JR Namba, if you don't mind changing lines. It was about a 10-13 minute walk to JR Namba from our hotel. 

PLACES VISITED:

Various Shopping Streets (Shotengai)

Whenever I came upon these shopping areas during previous trips, I thought they were rarities. It took running into many of them in Namba for me to realize it was more common  than I thought. The term for this is a shotengai. A shotengai consists of lines of shops and vendors. Often there would be a canopy between the shops and car traffic is usually not allowed. Nakamise Shopping Street in Asakusa is a shotengai. The Sun Mall connecting to Nakano Broadway (I had a photo of this in one of my older Japan trips) is also a shotengai. All this time I had been walking through something cultural and I had no idea!

One shot of a shotengai.

Another shot.

There's a hotel in this one!

This shot is to remind myself how to get to a certain stall in one of the shotengai.

OTHER PHOTOS:

This stall sold some really good steamed pork buns. It's closed on Thursdays.

A potato treat that my boyfriend got and really enjoyed.

I love the lights!

A shot of Namba.

A vending machine selling coffee. There are so many options!

DOTONBORI

DAYS SPENT: 2 + many evenings

OVERALL THOUGHTS: This area was THE reason we went to Osaka. One of the main locations in some of the Yakuza games is based off Dotonbori. I had to see this place for myself. What. A. Wonder! It could take maybe 15 minutes to walk from one end to the other, but with all the sights and shops to see and food places to dine at, you could end up spending hours. As I walked through the heavily crowded streets (there were tons of tourists), I felt like I was in the Yakuza games. I recognized several places and was in complete awe.

If you enjoy food and shopping, Dotonbori is highly recommended. If you want to see beautiful lights shimmering on beautiful waters, Dotonbori is highly recommended. If you want to see lots of people, Dotonbori is highly recommended. I would definitely come back again :)

Crab! I recognize this from the Yakuza games.

I recognize this, too!

This as well! It's a ramen shop. I wanted to eat some, but the line was too long.

I don't remember what this place was called in the Yakuza games but I believe it served a lot of deep-fried dishes.

This was also in the Yakuza games. 

A gift shop for the above figure.

This takoyaki stand was also in the Yakuza games!

We were trying to get this cicada from a crane game but it landed on a pin just above the hole. I had to ask for assistance to get it.

This shot really invites me back to the Yakuza games. I've run down those stairs and streets countless times...

Dotonbori at night. So beautiful!

Here's a video of the Dotonbori waters at night..

That's it for Part 5. The Adventure portions are now done!!! If you've been reading all these entries, you are awesome!!! XD Three more entries and these Japan blogs will be done! Will I finish them all before the year ends? x3

Thank you for reading! If you have any questions or comments about any of these places I visited, feel free to say something in the comments box or fill out a contact form!

Take care, stay safe, and until next time! :)

BLOG -- Recap of November

November had some ups and downs, and a couple sleepless nights. I'm still making the most of my Disney+ subscription. There were so many Disney classic movies I never watched when I was young.

Outings / Events in November:

- Had a hang out with my sister and our friend. There were a couple mishaps but overall it was really fun :)

- Celebrated my boyfriend's birthday by ordering him a 14" durian cake. He loved it. It was... an experience for me, hahaha.

- My boyfriend and I went to a Japanese bazaar. I bought a lot of snacks.

- SINoALICE Global ended. Below is my journey through it.

https://ironixgirl.blogspot.com/2023/11/blog-my-journey-through-sinoalice.html

Exposures:

- Nothing this time.

Finished...

Watching:

- (Movie): Ant-Man & Wasp: Quantumania -- It was more of the same.

- (Movie): The Beauty and the Beast -- This was my first time watching the animated Beauty and the Beast. It was really enjoyable.

- (Movie): The Good Dinosaur -- This was amusing and funny.

- (Movie): Free Guy -- It was decent.

- (Movie): Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides -- Not memorable.

- (Movie): Guardians of the Galaxy: Vol. 3 -- This is still a pretty good movie series.

- (Movie): The Martian -- This was good. It's always a delight to see Jessica Chastain in a movie.

- (Movie): Freddy Got Fingered -- One of the worst movies I've watched (could be worse than Movie 43). I understand that there could be some underlying commentary / satire but it just wasn't enjoyable for me.

- (Movie): Sleeping Beauty -- This is the first time I ever watched it. There were some good scenes but overall just okay.

- (Movie): Black Panther: Wakanda Forever -- This was okay.

- (Movie): X-Men: Apocalypse -- The series had such potential. Then this movie happened.

- (Movie): X-Men: Dark Phoenix -- This wasn't good.

- (Movie): Turning Red -- I was surprised that this took place in Toronto. The main character could be annoying at times but it was a good movie.

- (Movie): Eternals -- This was okay. I did not buy the romance between two characters.

- (Movie): Cinderella -- It could have been shorter.

- (Movie): The Little Mermaid -- One of Disney's more lively and better fairy tale movies.

- (Movie): Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark -- Not bad for a horror movie. I had only read a couple stories before but now I'm curious to read more of them.

- (Movie): Snow White and the Seven Drawfs -- This is quite a strange fairy tale.

- (Movie): Peter Pan -- Probably my least favourite of the Disney animated movies so far.

- (Movie): Maleficent -- I enjoyed this very much.

- (Movie): Pinocchio -- This was pretty good, but I enjoyed GDT's version much more.

- (Movie): Dumbo -- It was okay until the trippy part.

- (Movie): The Edge -- This was okay.

- (Show): Code Black -- I really enjoyed this series.

- (Show): Loki -- This was really good.

- (Show): Criminal Minds: Suspect Behavior -- I watched it just because it was connected to Criminal Minds, but it wasn't good.

Playing:

- (PS4): One Piece: Pirate Warriors 4 -- I enjoy playing Dynasty Warriors-type games so this was fun. I especially enjoyed playing as Whitebeard, Law, and Marco.

Reading:

- Nothing this month.

Currently... 

Playing (not all at once):

- (PS4): Dark Cloud 2

- (PS4): Skyrim
- (PS4): Final Fantasy: Crystal Chronicles Remastered
- (PS4): Moon: Remix RPG Adventure
- (PS4): Yakuza 6: Song of Life

- (PS4): Baldur's Gate I: Enhanced Edition

- (PS3): Borderlands 2

- (PSP): Gurumin: A Monstrous Adventure

- (3DS): Phoenix Wright: Dual Destinies
- (GBA): The Legend of Zelda: Four Swords Anniversary Edition   
- (Wii): Fortune Street 
- (PC): UnEpic  
- (PC): Higurashi no Naku Koro ni (When They Cry)

- (Mobile): Bloons TD 6

Watching:

- (TV Show): Criminal Minds: Evolution (Season 2)
- (TV Show): The Goldbergs (Season 5)
- (TV Show): Huff (Season 1 - Episode 10)
- (TV Show): Stranger Things (Season 5)

- (TV Show): The Boys (Season 4)

- (TV Show): Love Death + Robots (Season 1 - Episode 6)

- (TV Show): Bob's Burgers (Season 3 - Episode 17)

- (Anime): Log Horizon (Season 4)

- (Anime): Attack on Titan (Season 4)
- (Anime): Pyscho-Pass (Season 4?)
- (Anime): Kakegurui (Season 3?)
- (Anime): Basilisk: The Ouka Ninja Scrolls (Episode 2)

- (Anime): Gintama (Episode 13)

- (Anime): Tokyo Revengers (Season 2 - Episode 23)

- (Anime): Gurren Lagann (Episode 6)

- (Anime): Chihayafuru (Season 4?)

- (Anime): One Punch Man (Season 2)

- (Anime): Fate/Apocrypha (Season 2)

- (Anime): Junji Ito's Japanese Tales of the Macabre (Episode 5)

- (Anime): Demon Slayers (Season 4)

- (Anime): Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood (Season 1 - Episode 6)

- (YouTube): StephenVlogs (Day 1061)

Reading:

- (Manga): One Piece by Eiichiro Oda (Volume ?? -- Chapter 1096)
- (Manga): Berserk by Kentaro Miura (Volume 2)

That's it for November. Here are some pics I took this month plus a YouTube video.

The snacks I got from the Japanese bazaar.

This is just proof that my boyfriend and I beat Pandemic at the hardest difficulty and we wiped the board of all diseases! :)

I used my Magic Stones for the first time and did one 5-roll on the Hatsune Miku Collab banner. Look who I got!!

I did another 5-roll and got the other one! Back to saving my stones.

I'm gonna try this game out for a bit. Let's see how long I can stay free-to-play.

"when your opponent in a card game is very confident" by ProZD.

This is quite relatable, haha.

Thanks for reading!

As usual, if you have any questions / comments about anything, feel free. If anybody still has New Year's Resolutions to finish up, good luck!

Have fun, take care, and until next time! :)