Kyoto is without a doubt, one of the best known and most popular travel destinations in Japan, while Nara, once the capital of Japan some 1300 years ago, is full of historical charm too.

Today I am going to share with you 15 iconic places to see and things to do that you can easily access with your JR-WEST Kansai Area Pass!

Read my previous blog post on how to purchase and redeem JR-WEST Rail Passes online effortlessly!

Let’s start!

To all my readers who love Japan and have travelled to Japan before, I’m sure by now you already know you can make good use of your status as a foreign tourist to purchase rail passes that will allow you to travel conveniently while saving a great deal.

But indeed, there are many types of rail passes and it could take some time to take in all the info. I have written 3 blog posts on traveling to Kansai with JR-WEST Rail Passes, covering two passes which are the Sanyo-San’in Area Pass and Kansai WIDE Area Pass. You can read my blog posts below. ^^

Hello guys! My journey in Japan continues and today I will be talking about shopping!

Shopping is one of the biggest activities we look forward to doing in Japan, especially for Malaysians and Singaporeans. And you guys have already seen my luggage filled with groceries on the last day of my every trip to Japan – that’s how important it is to me.

Today I am introducing Ito-Yokado, one of Japan’s largest tax-free supermarket chains offering good quality products at reasonable prices, and why it would be your one-stop shopping destination especially before flying back home for all your last minute shopping.

Ok so I have been too busy to write a proper blog post, but I think many might appreciate a simple post like this!

Yesterday was my flight back home and as usual, #AuntyCheesie was at work. Dashed to the nearest supermarket and drugstore and brought back my usual grocery stock. Instead of throwing them into stories on IG, I think it’s time for a blog post!

So here it is.

It’s Japan time again!

This time around I wanna bring you guys to Toyama, Nagano and Gifu area, on a self-drive trip.

We will be exploring these 3 prefectures by first flying into Toyama airport, rent a car and drive through the destinations. It will be a 5D4N trip of wonderful nature and rich culture in central Japan.

Read my Day 1 blog post here about abalone feast at Shima Peninsula.

Read my Day 2 blog post here about divine Ise and Matsusaka beef.

Read my Day 3 blog post here about Iga ninja and Iga beef sukiyaki

Today we are onto the last day of my #visitmie trip. I spend 4 good full days in one single prefecture and yet there are still lots of places I have not covered. #Ineedmorelifetimes.

Today we will be venturing into the very exciting Kuwana city to explore a beautiful botanical park, and some of the world’s top thrill rides that will guarantee to give your heart some good kicks.

Read my Day 1 blog post here about abalone feast at Shima Peninsula.

Read my Day 2 blog post here about divine Ise and Matsusaka beef.

It wasn’t until day 3 that I have come to realized that Mie is really blessed with everything. How long can you stay in Mie until you get bored? The answer is… until you get sick of eating good food.

Read my Day 1 blog post here about abalone feast at Shima Peninsula.

Mie Prefecture is blessed with the abundance of both treasures from the ocean and land. In my previous post we have had (actually just me, but it could soon be your experience if you allow yourself to! Hehe.) glorious abalone and other assorted seafood in the Shima region, today I’m bringing you to explore the crème de la crème of beef – Matsusaka from its namesake city.

But first, let’s pick up where we left in the previous post and start with a great lookout point in Shima region.

I’m sure you already knew about my #47PrefectureMission and that I have completed this life mission early June this year.

I visited Mie in 2016 for two things:

1.Ise Jingu Shrine
2. Matsuzaka Beef

The two things that Mie is probably most famous for. And these two things alone warrant a visit to Mie. This time around, I’m on a new mission – to go deep. Real deep. For all 47 prefectures. All over again.

I am a proud #VisitMieSupporter of 2019.

We Malaysians and Singaporeans love food. So in this series of blog posts, I’m bringing you on a journey with me to Mie, the paradise of world class gourmet all condensed in one single prefecture.

Dear Blog,

Today you turn 15 years old. Happy 15th birthday.

Ladies (and gentlemen too!), there’s no more excuse not to take care of ourselves.

True, sometimes we don’t even have that 5 minutes to properly remove make up (or even put on make up in the first place) and apply that one moisturizer. Not to mention a good face massage. I know that all too well. I once often accidentally brushed my teeth with face wash when everything was a blur juggling two kids under two.

But Japanese technology is here to help. Having one of the busiest lifestyles in the world, the latest beauty trend in Japan is a simplified, convenient beauty regime.

Have you ever imagined that now you have the ability to take care of dry skin of your ENTIRE BODY in just 5 seconds?

Okay, honestly? This post is going to be  a little overwhelmingly lengthy, because I will be introducing 3 different passes from three different railway companies for those of you who intend to travel to the Kansai area of Japan.

But stay with me here and I hope it will be a worthwhile read for you to make the best out of your next Japan trip!

In this blog post, we are focusing on the Kansai area of West Japan. While I believe all of you are familiar with the classic route to conquer Osaka, Kyoto and Nara, there’s so much more to explore within the Kansai region with just a couple of train rides.

Today I am devising a 5-day itinerary that brings you to the mandatory cities of Osaka, Kyoto and Nara, then further venture into the Ise Shima area of Mie prefecture as well as Kobe city of Hyogo prefecture.