Most of the planning were done by myself with a little help from Juan. I don't really have the knowledge about Japan except for Shibuya Crossing and Hachiko statue cause that was my aim for this trip since we had to cancel our Tokyo Disneyland trip.

After arriving at the apartment that we booked via AirBnb here, we rested about an hour, learned how to use the toilet seats (they have sooo many buttons), learned how to operate the heater, the shower and stove and washing machine. Most AirBnb apartments will provide a file that contains basic information on how to use the things around the house. If not provided, consult Mr.Google.

During our arrival in KIX airport, we purchased the 1 day Osaka Amazing pass that costed us 4,600 yen at the tourist information counter in the airport, the next morning. There are many subways you can access with this pass:

Osaka city subway, Nanko port town line, bus,

Hankyu (Umeda-Kanzakigawa, Mikuni, Aikawa, Shimoshinjo-Tenjinbashisuji 6 chome),

Kintetsu (Osaka Namba-Imazato, Osaka Abenobashi-Yata),

Keihan (Yodoyabashi-Senbayashi, Nakanoshima-Temmabashi),

Hanshin (Umeda-Amagasaki, Osaka Namba-Amagasaki),

Nankai (Namba-Sakai, Namba-Nakamozu, Shiomibashi-Kishinosatotamade)

Make sure you know where you want to visit in Osaka before purchasing any pass. You might end up NOT using them at all. We took a few days to get familiar with their subway system. It was be very confusing but Google can provide you accurate information on which train you should take, which platform and which station. We rented our pocket wifi from 4gpocketwifimalaysia. Very good service and super fast connection. Internet connection is very important in Japan.

Our first stop was the Osaka castle. The 1 day pass that we purchased entitle us a free entry to the castle. If not the cost of entry is 600 yen. Osaka Castle is a Japanese castle in Chūō-ku, Osaka, Japan. The castle is one of Japan's most famous landmarks and it played a major role in the unification of Japan during the sixteenth century of the Azuchi-Momoyama period.

You can climb up the stairs to the main castle tower. There are 8 floors in total. Each floor has a unique display of weapons, fabrics and story lines of each era. It's a one way up and one way down entry.

There are food stalls at the exit of the castle but the prices are extremely expensive. We bought ice cream (yeap!) and jagung bakar. It costed us 850 yen. But the jagung bakar was soooo sedap and hot. It took us about 3 hours to finish exploring the whole castle and its surroundings. There are parks too where you can have picnics with your family. Everything is well preserved so be careful with touching some of the display in the castle and please do not litter. 

 Our next destination was Tsutenkaku where the famous Osaka tower and the iconic puffer fish lantern are situated. We didn't climb up the tower because I was too afraid of height, so we end up walking around the area. Food are quite expensive over here but for the sake of trying their famous soft crepe, we bought a strawberry and whipped cream crepe that cost 450 yen. It was soooooo good. 

The shops here closes very early between 6pm to 8pm because it was the end of winter and operate late morning around 11am. They don't open till late night. So I suggest that you start exploring the city around 10am. 

Japan has never been in my travel list. I mean,it'll be the last country I'll visit after the rest. I've seen documentaries on TV but never had I had the interest to go there. Until I met Juan. See, Juan is a BIGGGGG fan of Manga comics, Gundam thingy which I will never understand what makes these characters sooooo interesting. I just find it boring.

We bought our flight tickets last year, 9 months before our departure. But our 'real' preparation took place only 3 months before our fly date. Yeap, you heard me, 3 months before. We thought, since we're visiting Japan, might as well we cross 3 prefectures in one go. Therefore, my blog post will be divided into a few series. Places of interest, transportation system and accomodation. The first one will be our first stop, Osaka.

Mind you that our trip is a backpacking trip that exclude shopping budget and it depends on the currency exchange too.

Our flight started from PNG-KL-KIX-KL-PNG. The flight from KL-KIX took about 6 hours 15 minutes. I was bored to death on board. I couldn't really sleep so I was just doing people watching :-)

PNG-KL-PNG RM267.60 for two

KL-KIX-KL RM1,630 for two

JR rail tickets RM1,070 x 2= RM2,140

*If you plan to travel from Osaka/Kyoto to Tokyo, then I'll suggest that you purchase the JR Rail Pass as Tokyo will use a lot of this pass. It saves you a lot and convenient. You can also opt for the Shinkansen bullet train or the local train to get to Tokyo. You may get it here

We arrived KIX airport late night and the last train to the city was about 11.40pm. So we had to sleep in the airport and catch the first train the next morning. We took the local train (brief stops a few small stations) from KIX - Tennoji - Temmabashi where our apartment was located. The ride took about an hour. You can also opt to take the express train (this train will not stop at any small stations) which will go directly to Osaka station before you changed train to your destination. Ask the station master or information counter if you're unsure.

Tips: Google the place you want to go, if the local does not speak English, show them the place you want to go and they'll show you the way.

Train ticket from KIX - Temmabashi 240 yen x 2. It can bought from the ticket machine in front of the airport as you step outside at 2nd floor (Arrival floor)

Visiting Japan means a lot of walking is involved. I advise you to have a good workout prior to your trip. Because different companies run the metro, subway and train system, you have to walk for a distance when it comes to changing trains. It doesn't work like the Singapore MRT system.

You do not need to apply for visa to Japan. It's a arrival on visa system where they will issue you a stamped visa upon your arrival at the immigration counter. From 1st July 2013, the Government of Japan has decided to abolish the requirement of short-term visa for Malaysian Nationals who hold ordinary biometric passports with embedded microchip that is compliant with ICAO standards (issued since February 2010) who wish to enter Japan for short-term stay. Each arrival on visa can be used up to 3 months of stay.

Do you know that you don't have to travel Taiwan for shopping. Instead Taiwan will come to you. Dahsyat kan? 

11street has announced its latest collaboration with UITOX, the first ever largest online marketplace in Taiwan to introduce 200 élite brands from Taiwan along with around 150,000 products from Taiwanese sellers. 

This partnership signifies the launch of TW Street, UITOX’s official store on 11street, bringing popular fashion brands like OB Design, Pazzo, Toki Choi, and beauty brands such as 1028, Dr Wu, Forbelovedone, Dr Doruxi, and renowned Taiwanese food such as pineapple cake, Gong sugar, red bean water and more. 

 UITOX was founded in Taiwan in October 2012 and has expanded to China, Singapore, Japan, Hong Kong, Indonesia, Malaysia, Thailand, Vietnam, Philippines, USA, Canada and Netherlands.

So say YEAY to shopping #husbandpoketkoyak

Ever thought of how to help in building homes for those in need? Do not know how to do it and which organization to channel your donations. Well, there's a solution for you. 

The Kongsi Home Project is a collaboration between Maxis, Epic Homes, and Malaysia’s biggest online retailers. We want to transform Malaysian e-commerce, into e-charity.

This New Year, you can help a needy family by shopping for yours. How? 

By purchasing parts of a house online for RM8, which goes to building homes for the needy. So do your bit today. After all, as fellow Malaysians, your family’s larger than you think.

So, less than a month, we'll be stepping on the land of the rising sun. If you ask me whether I'm excited or not, try to picture this. One of the AirBnb host that I booked an apartment with cannot communicate in English. She gave us a suggestion to look up on YouTube on how to get to her apartment -__-'. 2 seconds after watching the video, I only understood half cause the video was a fast forwarded one *there's an app for that in Iphone*. Hopefully we don't end up in Hiroshima instead of  Osaka.

I've never had sensitive skins but developed allergy towards lamb over the years. How I knew? I scratched like there's no tomorrow right after I consume lamb. But sometimes, sebab teringin, I'll just hantam first, worry later.

But for the past few months, I noticed that I develop rashes due to the hot weather a couple months back. I scratched until some of them bleed. They were tiny little rashes behind my back and thigh. I didn't realize that using the normal body wash will further worsen it until Juan told me. So at first I bought this really expensive brand for sensitive skin in Watson but it cost me almost RM30 for a small bottle. When I saw Dove came out with this brilliant idea of soapless body wash for sensitive skin, I was quite happy because it cost me around RM20.50 if it's on offer. Normal price will be around RM23.00. Half than what I paid for Brand X in Watson. 

Although the price was reasonable for 1000ml I had doubts on whether Dove will really work but I gave it a go anyway. Even if it doesn't suit me, I have Juan to finish it up for me kan. First application, awesome. I called my dad and told him about this. My sister has eczema too. So instead of spending RM70.00 for a bottle of less than 1000ml soap for sensitive skin, I told my dad to give Dove a try.

Dermatologist-recommended Dove Sensitive Skin Body Wash is designed to give you a rich lather with the gentlest cleansers. The hypoallergenic formula with NutriumMoisture is perfect for sensitive skin and provides skin natural nourishment. In another word, Dove for sensitive skin will not leave your skin dry.

I give 2 thumbs up for this body wash :-). You can get Dove for Sensitive skin a.t any supermarket