On, Exchange

Fukuoka, Kyushu ////////////// 09.13-08.14 こんにちは：）シンガポールから大学生です。交換プログラムするので、福岡市にすんでいます。このブログは、日本の生活を記録した。よろしくお願い〜 Snippets of Japan on a study abroad year in Kyushu University, Fukuoka. Click on the pictures to enlarge >> Instagram: bexyliu

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Beams

The light streaming in today is beautiful and it makes me so happy. This despite being caught in the only rain, wait, thunderstorm of the day this morning - during the very 15 minutes I choose to cycle to school. It's not the first time I've turned up in class looking like a car just gone through the washing cycle and about to be towel dried except, I don't even have that privilege. But nothing's going to dent a day of productivity and getting my hands on a copy of my new favourite magazine, Fudge. Now to round off the rather exhausting afternoon with a nice grilled chicken salad and iced green lemon tea.

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Been thinking about what I've accomplished these past 9.5 months in Japan and I'm not sure I'll come to a conclusion any time soon. It's likely that the aftershocks won't be felt till a long time later, and perhaps that's a good thing after all. The upcoming exams have shown just how Unprepared I am for the incoming academic year back home but that said, the longing to fly back to the +65 (on SQ too!) just seems to overwhelm any irrational fears of not being capable enough. Thankful as ever for the army of people who never fail to reinforce the positive. Now I just have to convince myself to believe that it's truth.

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Grilled vegetable and king prawn sandwich from a tiny hole-in-the-wall soup and sandwich joint just off Garosu-gil. Portions were slightly tiny for their price, though almost everything in Garosu-gil is...still, the sauce was really good and the ciabatta quite fantastic - nicely chewy so as to soak up the tangy mustard coating now infused with the taste of its stuffing. Hahahah I wanted to say inhabitants but that might have come across as slightly strange and creepy. I wish I could share the name of the place but said information escapes me! We traipsed in, drawn by the crowd and the possibility of al fresco dining on a balmy afternoon. Another experience which goes to show that it's not always a bad thing to 人云亦云。

Edit: I found the deetz! It also has free wifi if I remember correctly, which is never a bad thing when you're in tourist mode.

Bucella Sandwich Sinsa-dong 534-22 It's near Deli Heinzburg, which is really famous for its sandwiches. Pity I missed that out! But I suppose this is a good alternative to the permanent long queues.

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View from my balcony! Sometimes the buildings and sky knit together in a lovely harmonised tapestry. Today was one of them, thanks to being a sideline spectator to Neoguri's spinning dance.

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Skyping the sporting sweetheart who secretly wants to be Spiderman.

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Isabelle, ft. the wonderful pancakes we had at Yeon Cafe (or is it the other way round?). Better described as crepes, we had 4! in total - two each of banana and apple cinnamon. Encased in a crispy crepe skin is the creamiest caramelised banana, and apple slivers baked with cinnamon to a wonderful crunchy, but not overly firm texture. I also quite enjoyed my yuja cha - the one here is on the sour side.

Best of all - housed in a hanok within the Bukchon Hanok Village, this place has such a lovely charm what with the low ceilings and cushion spam and beautiful ceilings. We got the table right above the kitchen, and it was much fun being able to peer through the low windows to place an order for yet another pancake. Took me 3 tries to get here, really pleased. They do have an extended drink menu, which really beats the waffle and bingsu spam along the rest of Samcheongdong-ro (no offence, I love the two, but it's so difficult to choose when every shop is selling a version of the same thing). Highly recommended if you're in Seoul.

Cafe Yeon Nearest station: Anguk. Walk along Samcheongdong and keep your heads up and eyes peeled!

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神威岬 Kamui Misaki, and the drive back. Decided to make the extended drive there after googling for pictures (haha cheaters) to see if it was worth the extra 90 minutes on the road. I wish the stretch of coastal road was longer but tunnels are inevitable when you live in a country practically consisting of mountains joined in arms. It was beautiful in the evening, though very windy and my hat blew off once! I'm really pleased we both got over our fear of heights and suspicious metal bridges to make it out to the farthest point :)

A really lovely side trip from Otaru, which is a) very touristy, b) can be done in an hour and c) looks much nicer in winter. If you can spare the time, drop by Cape Shakotan on the way there too. A and I agreed that the cape would look even more breathtaking in winter, but thinking about the wind chill alone is making me a little more than hesitant to want to return. Still, on the balance of things, visuals such as those are more than worth the trip.

神威岬 Kamui Misaki (Cape Kamui) Mapcode for drivers: 932 583 071

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Sushi at Yamanaka Honten for A's birthday. We got a kaiseki and sushi set, and I much preferred the sushi set though the cod and miso eggplant in the kaiseki dinner were sublime. Oh and the uni / ikura rice bowl comes with the kaiseki course too! Okay, I can't decide which I like more. But if you're in a sushi mood, go for the sushi course, and you'll be rewarded with ootoro, abalone, tai, anago and many other lovely bites. The architecture of the restaurant is beautiful and the staff is supremely friendly, though they do get very worried that you don't know what you're eating if you're a foreigner. Full of Japanese businessmen getting high on sake and serious talk.

Sushi Yamanaka Honten 鮨と日本料理　やま中　本店　 2-8-8 Watanabe-dori, Chuo-ku, (81-92) 731-7771

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Macarons and earl grey cake from Pied in Hannam-dong. Couldn't care much for the cake - I like my layers dense and buttery but this was very very spongy. The macarons on the other hand, were presented beautifully with fantastic flavour. Enjoyed the mojito special! Earl grey and milk were recommended as the signature flavours so we got those, but milk was a little too sweet for my liking. Perfect if you enjoy Hokkaido milk candy though. Nevertheless the space is really enjoyable and we stayed longer than planned, en route to the Leeum Samsung Art Museum.

Note: Oh! Just realised that the place is designed by the Nordic Bros. Design Community - explains the Scandinavian aesthetic of the place. Also famous for its cotton candy affogatos?? And macarons, being a collaboration between a famous patissier and musician. Interesting!

Pied Yongsangu Hannamdong 683-47

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Soaking, a couple of weeks back, in the private onsen conveniently sitting in the garden of our ryokan. Then stuffing our faces with Italian food perched atop a hill with a scenic view of rainy Yufuin...traveling with you is always such a dream :)

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Here's where I had one of my favouritest coffees yet. And that says a lot, given the number of cups I've had - A&ND in Hannam-dong, Seoul. A&ND is largely a design store with a lovely aesthetic, while the coffee is cold brewed by Alex The Coffee. The resulting latte is deeply aromatic, with a lovely sweetness and richly abundant in the specific taste I so love in coffee. Wish I had tried the brownies! But we were just so full.

Alex the Coffee Lab at AND 1F, 684-53 Hannam-dong, Yongsan-gu, Seoul http://www.alexthecoffee.com

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Yet another long period of neglect. Oops! Here's featuring chicken tenders and ricotta waffles with fruity granola from MUIMUI in Apgujeong, Seoul. I have so much love for that city.

MuiMui 653-4 Gangnam-gu Sinsa-dong (강남구 653-4 신사동)

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Picked up some flowers from Benihana to show my stuffy room some love. Why didn't I do this earlier?? Staring at it also helps me forget the folly of doing the same batch of laundry twice. Life..

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10.6

Suddenly acting as though I have tons of time on my hands - baking like a fiend and making laksa "bechamel" sauce (!!) in preparation for some laksa gratin. Like I don't have a super intense Japanese semester and homework to catch up on instead :( Well I'll just have to learn to manage! In this present state, I'll be diced into pieces and blended by the whirlwind of assignments and readings and whatnot come August. Welcome home party, NUS style. Nevertheless eagerly awaiting Thursday! Aside from a vocabulary quiz, an Airbus plane is delivering someone lovely to me :-)

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Pain Stock's earl grey bun - this, and *nearly* everything else in the shop - is heavenly. Going to miss my favourite bakery so so so bad.

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Missing Singers very much! Amidst all this Roy Ngerng nonsense I've come to the conclusion that its a wonderful country I belong to and I'm real proud to be Singaporean :)

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Just basking in the noon Seoul sun B)