My Last-minute Japan Trip

As a reward for finishing graduate school, my aunt granted my wish to spend winter in Japan (where she's residing with her family). It's my 3rd 3-month trip to Japan but it's my first time during winter 'cause I usually go during spring. It was a last minute trip because there have been some delays in our (me and my grandmother) visa application. Our visa was released late in the afternoon of November 26, so we were able to pick it up from the agency on the morning of the 27th. That day we confirmed and paid for our ticket, which has been pre-booked on the 28th. We only had the afternoon and night of the 27th to pack our stuff because our flight was at 5am the next day. Each roundtrip ticket (Manila-Narita-Manila) cost Php 24,000 (taxes included) via Delta Airlines. The trip was too sudden that I didn't have the time to say bye to my friends.

luggage :)

super early flight

with the granny

Anyway, I was satisfied with Delta. The ground crew and the cabin crew were very nice and efficient. Thanks to the pilot, we had a smooth flight (especially the landing and the take off). We travelled for 4 hours. However, there was a long queue at the immigration gates so it took us an hour before getting out of Narita Airport. My uncle came to get us. It's a 4 to 5-hr drive from Narita to Suwa, Nagano (my aunt's apartment) so we had lunch brunch first at the nearest service area. Since the weather's too cold (less than 10 degrees Celsius), I got a ramen.

the view before landing at Narita

udon

spicy ramen

My grandmother only stayed 'til December 14. She usually travels with me to Japan and stays for 3 months but this time, she just stayed for 2 weeks since she preferred spending Christmas in the Philippines, plus she'll be coming back here with my cousin on March (spring) for 3 months again. But during the two weeks she's here, we've been going to different places, dining and shopping. We often go to onsen (hot spring) too to relax.

aunt's bedroom

cousin's bedroom

i love buying veggies for the healthy meals I make

it's a dream come true! haha always wanted to try this :))

One place we're visiting often is Matsumoto City (Nagano). We love shopping at Don Quijote, a place with literally everything under the sun. It has lots of cute stuff too, plus some branded items such as bags and jewelries. Hard Off, a recycle shop there is a must visit too. Some of the second hand items there actually look new. And of course, we've visited a lot of Daiso (100 yen) shops too.

Edion Mall (electronics)

kaiten sushi (conveyor belt sushi)

Starbucks tumbler Nagano

ear muffs :)

no Green tea flavor :(

road trip :)

ramen and gyoza love

shoe lockers at the resto

Japanese food overload...and it didn't cost nor taste cheap.

vendo!

one of the best ramen places

used stuffed toys that actually looked new

lovin' these neon kitchenware from Daiso

So I spent Christmas with my aunt, uncle, cousin, and my aunt's bestfriend. (I call my aunt Tita Mama because she's like my second mom). Christmas is just like a usual day in Japan ('cause they're not Christians); however, they acknowledge the Christmas-New Year holidays  that's why they have Christmas-New Year Sale too. On Christmas Even, we exchanged gifts, had Noche Buena, and Skyped with our families in the Philippines. It wasn't a white Christmas because it didn't snow that night/day, but I'm glad to have experienced winter Christmas.

the winter halo before Christmas

our mini Christmas tree and Coach presents :)

Christmas cake

fruits

Noche Buena plus Skype w/ the fam in the Phils

with my cousin in our Santa Claus costumes

Christmas hoodie! haha

More of my Japan trip in my upcoming posts.

xoxo,

city girl :)

Sponsor A Noche Buena Has Been a Success! Thanks to Everyone who Helped Out.

The fundraising project for typhoon Haiyan victims that we have initiated has been successful. You may refer to these posts for the background of the project:

http://www.citygirldiaries.com/2013/11/sponsor-noche-buena-for-typhoon-haiyan.html

http://www.citygirldiaries.com/2013/11/updated-sponsor-noche-buena-for-typhoon.html

We were able to send out 1,550 holiday baskets to the victims. Thanks so much to everyone who helped. We received a lot of help from New York, Dubai, New Zealand, and of course, the Philippines. We even got featured on GMA News TV and WheninManila.com.

http://www.gmanetwork.com/news/video/186034/stateofthenation/isang-grupo-nangangalap-ng-pang-noche-buena-para-sa-mga-nasalanta-ng-bagyo

http://www.wheninmanila.com/sponsor-a-noche-buena-rebuilding-leyte-through-baskets-of-hope/

Again, thanks to everyone who helped. Let's continue praying for the victims of typhoon Haiyan for their quick recovery.

xoxo,

city girl

My First DigiPerm Experience

Last October, I came across a discount voucher of Tony & Jackey (Korean salon) on Metrodeal. It offered Rebonding or DigiPerm service for Php 2,999 only instead of Php 9,000 (original price). Since I've been wanting to try having curls, I immediately both the voucher. Then I called their branch at SM North The Block for an appointment. The next day, I came to the salon and presented my voucher together with my ID.

My hair was shampooed then it was assessed by the Korean stylist named Wendy. According to her, since my hair is coloured and a bit dry, they would have to apply heavy hair treatment so it won't be damaged by the chemicals that would be used in the digiperm process. The treatment costs a total of Php 4,000 (one was Php 2,500 and another was Php 1,500); however, I wasn't informed over the phone about it so I wasn't able to bring enough cash. They are not accepting credit cards at any of their branches so be sure that you bring enough cash. After telling them that I didn't have enough cash, they offered me the treatment that's worth Php 1,000. However, the stylist was worried that my hair would be damaged because I didn't avail of the better (yet more pricey) treatment.

Anyway, so we still proceeded. I showed them a photo of the type of curls I want to achieve so Wendy cut my hair according to that style before proceeding with the curling process. The assistant of the stylist applied treatment to my hair, covered, and heated it for 15 minutes. While waiting, they played a movie for me, which I watched through the mirror screen. Yeah, it's so high-tech!:)) Then they washed my hair, put the chemical for curling and covered it with plastic. After a couple of minutes, Wendy put my hair in the digital perming machine. After 30 minutes, the assistant washed my hair and it's done! They combed my hair while it's wet then twisted it using their fingers and they continued doing that as they were drying my hair with a blower. When it dried, Wendy put some cream that would hold the curls naturally (not like gel that would harden my hair).

I was happy with the result. A lot of my friends were impressed with the curls that I got. The service had 2 weeks warranty. After 2 days I came back because I felt that my curls were a bit gone. Then my hair was assessed by my stylist. They shampooed and dried my hair. Apparently, since it was my first time to have a digiperm, I wasn't used to setting my hair yet. They taught me how to do it so I wouldn't lose the curls. So this was Wendy's instructions:

1. After showering, wipe hair with a towel.

2. Comb hair with wide-toothed comb.

3. Split hair in half.

4. On one side, split hair again into two.

5. Twist each group.

6. Dry it with a blower, or just let it dry on its own.

7. Apply cream that would hold the curls. (They sell a bottle for Php 2,000 but I didn't buy because I also have a hair cream from Japan at home. However, they also have a cream which can be applied to wet hair and it's priced at Php 2,500.)

Anyway, so I just continued practicing what I've learnt from my stylist and so far, I've been happy with my curly hair. Whenever I wake up, it felt like I came from the salon because of the natural look of my curls.

xoxo,

city girl

UPDATED: Sponsor A Noche Buena for Typhoon Haiyan Victims

UPDATE:

We moved our fundraising site from Fundrazr.com to YouCaring.com due to additional charges by Fundrazr. As much as possible, we want to minimize on that so we could maximize the donations we can give to the victims.

You may now send your donations to: http://www.youcaring.com/help-a-neighbor/holiday-baskets-of-hope-for-typhoon-haiyan-victims/108814

We also revamped our Facebook page so please like and share: www.facebook.com/SponsorANocheBuena. On this page, you can see how you can help. We are open to partnering with companies that are interested to sponsor or offer discounted items for the Noche Buena and holiday baskets. You may also send us clothes and toys as donations. 

For Philippines-based individuals, you can sponsor a Noche Buena and a Basket of Hope for one family affected by typhoon Haiyan (Yolanda) with only Php 500. Please see the photo below for more info.

I hope you can support this endeavor. Thank you in advance. Let's keep praying and helping our brothers and sisters who have been affected by the super typhoon. May God continue to bless us all.

Charity Garage Sale for Typhoon Haiyan Victims

Last Sunday, November 17, my friends and I had a garage sale for the benefit of the victims of super typhoon Haiyan (Yolanda). We rummaged our own closets to sell our stuff, including the branded ones. A lot of our friends came to bring stuff and to help out in assisting shoppers. Here's the cool poster made by our friend Chris Roxas, a graphic artist and owner of XS Designs.

The garage sale was held at Farah Ramos' residence in Parang, Marikina at 12nn to 6p.m. A lot of shoppers from the neighborhood came to support our cause. We had so much fun during the garage sale. Our friends from OOTDfied (follow them on IG, @OOTDfied) online clothing store also sold brand new clothes at affordable prices. Another friend also sold really yummy chicharon from Bulacan.

OOTDfied

playing with the costume haha

At the end of the day, we earned a total of Php 6,700 -- not bad for half a day of selling. Since a lot more stuff were left, we'll be holding another garage sale at the same venue next week. Besides that, we'll also have a one-day online flash sale of our pre-loved branded items via www.heywhereyou.com. The date of the sale shall be announced soon. And we're doing all of these for our fellow Filipinos who were struck by typhoon Haiyan (Yolanda).

Let's keep praying for the victims of the typhoon. They need us now so let's not get tired of helping them in any way we can.

xoxo,

city girl

Sponsor A Noche Buena for Typhoon Haiyan Victims

Please support our project for the victims of typhoon Haiyan. We are raising money so we can hold a Christmas party for the typhoon victims in one of the affected communities in Northern Iloilo in Panay Island, Philippines. We plan to have a simple yet meaningful Christmas feast for the victims to give them hope and make them happy, most especially because it will be hard for them to feel the spirit of Christmas with what happened to them. Besides having an early "Noche Buena", we'll be also giving away holiday baskets to the families and toys for the kids. We really hope you could support this cause.

For your donations, visit https://fundrazr.com/campaigns/2des6. Please also like and share our Facebook page: www.facebook.com/SponsorANocheBuena.

Sponsor A Noche Buena initiative, a disaster relief project in partnership with Sigma Alpha Nu, a Sorority of University of the Philippines, aims to help provide holiday gift baskets to 1,000 families who are victims of Typhoon Haiyan in the Philippines. 

Typhoon Haiyan is said to beone of the biggest and most destructive natural calamity that hit the Philippines in the recent years. This disaster is feared to have taken at least 2,000 lives (as of this writing), left thousands injured and missing, hundreds of thousands homeless and at least 2 million people in need of food, water, and medicine. These numbers are expected to soar as search and rescue continue.

This cause was started by a facebook group "Sponsor A Noche Buena" launched by Kei Obusan, who wondered how Christmas will be spent by these people in this very upsetting condition. In the Philippines, Noche Buena is a special Filipino tradition where families get together on Christmas eve to share food and gifts. Imagine being homeless at a time when the rest of the world are celebrating in fancy clothes giving grand gifts to each other. Imagine those children who are out in the cold desperately finding comfort in their temporary shelter. This project is for those people who deserve to be given a spark of hope. A little gift from us who are very fortunate to have Internet running and clean water to drink anytime we want. 

Each "basket of hope" will be filled with some typical noche buena items, some toys for the kids, a letter of kindness from the volunteers and donors, and other stuff that we can give to (hopefully) lighten the burden that the victims are going through. At $10, you can already sponsor a basket that can bring joy to these families.

This campaign will serve as a launchpad to invite partnerships, companies or individuals with the heart of gold who are willing to sacrifice their $10 for the affected families of this calamity. 

Your help is needed. Share your blessings! Thank you.