Sparkle of Summer

The spring semester ended rather quietly, as I only have to sit for 1 paper before proceeding with my summer holiday.

Unlike past few years, this time I'm not going back to Malaysia during the break. I've things to settle here and boy I'm glad that I've chosen so. Particularly, the preparation for grad school's application requires a lot of reading and thinking, as such that I need the time and space to concentrate solely on this. At times I get distracted easily especially by the computer, so I'd just took the books, bought some snacks and consume everything at a nearby local community center, which at the same time I get to enjoy the cool breeze from the free air-cond.

I try to pamper myself with the optimum condition, hopefully I can came out with some brilliant ideas for the research theme for the grad school. It's like inspiration that struck at anytime, so you have to be prepared for it.

So far I've rough idea on what I'm planning to do, just need a little more polish up and refining the presentation of the theme. It's not an easy task as I'm planning to get into a totally different field. I definitely have to self-study a lot of materials in order to catch up.

Speaking of summer holiday, it isn't that boring after all.

I've got a friend visiting from KL few days ago, and since I decided to take some break from the daily routine, I brought them around downtown Tokyo.

But my style is more towards exploration on foot, so it's not the ideal way to bring ladies around, especially during summer. Good thing it wasn't the type of scorching summer we suffered few weeks earlier, the weather were rather mild and still survivable.

First stop was Ginza, the high-end shopping district of Tokyo.
For normal people it's not somewhere that you can shop frequently, but with certain know-how one can enjoy Ginza without spending a single yen.

Some of the notable shops to visit in Ginza would be:

• Sony Building (electronics) - free screening of 4K or 3D videos at the top floor, check out pre-release gadgets
• Uniqlo & GU (apparel) - full collection and reasonable pricing
• Yamaha (music instruments) - if lucky one can enjoy free piano recital at the top floor music hall
• Abercrombie & Fitch (apparel) - check out the shop's atmosphere and the salesperson

Of course there are definitely a lot more interesting shops around available for all to enter for free, but sometimes from the exterior it seems to be a place pretty stiff to step foot in, so yeah....

And since Tsukiji, Tokyo's fish market is not that far from Ginza, it's worth to walk 15 mins down the main street to reach the fishy territory.

Tsukiji Sushiko is the choice for gourmet sushi experience. Usually I'd prefer to visit the main branch as it's longer operation hours and pretty comfortable interior to let guests enjoy the sushi slowly. The price may not be the cheapest, but given for a probably once in a lifetime experience, I think it's pretty worth it. Set which cost 2,000~3,000 yen is satisfying as it comes in quality as well as quantity.

And of course, one of the highlights of the night would be the night view of Tokyo station.


The night before the Ginza trip, we actually went to the Sumidagawa Fireworks Festival (隅田川花火大会), but due to bad weather the show was called off halfway.

Unfortunately my camera was soaked by the rain, and was rendered useless with the lens error and weird noise. Sent it to Canon's service center and was told that water damage is excluded from the warranty, so I've to pay for the repair cost. Just hope that it won't cost that much though....

Ironically, I managed to took some decent shots of the fireworks before the rain falls....





During the last time I brought them around the west side of central Tokyo, namely Ebisu, Shibuya, Harajuku & Shinjuku.

Visiting the beer museum which named after a deity, Ebisu.

For dinner we wondered around the infamous RLD of Tokyo, Shinjuku's Kabukicho.

The guest wanted to tried out unagi (freshwater eel). At first I was a little reluctant as it's quite costly but thinking that they should try out the real deal, I gave in and we entered the shop. It was one of the best decision ever!

While I'm trying to explain to them the menu, the chef came over and spoke to us. Out of the blues, he told us that he's a Penangite! Now that we've a common language, he explained the unagi-related menu to us, which definitely helps a lot.

And, the unagi served in this restaurant (新宿うな鉄) is probably the best I've ever had so far.... Portion-wise it's may not be satisfying for some, but the grilled eel is sinfully delicious!

Many people love unagi, but the truth is, even for normal Japanese it's not something one can eat often. I think I can count the number of times I had unagi for the past few years single-handed.

And that, folks, concludes the brief blog update for this summer season.
Bless that the remaining August would be slightly cooler than previous years eh....

'til then.