Tadaima (means I’m home, in Japanese)!

Although I’ve been back in Tokyo for a week, things at BB headquarters have been crazy busy behind the scenes and blogging was quite difficult but I’m back now.

Today, I’ll be doing a non-beauty post where I’ll be thinking about my Vietnam holiday which was also my honeymoon with Mr BB. Many people were puzzled that we would choose this as our lovey-dovey trip together. Honestly, we chose Vietnam out of practical reasons, i.e. it was close to Singapore; we had to use up our the return leg of our air ticket from Singapore to Tokyo; and I’d never been there. Mr BB had been to Ho Chi Minh briefly 20 years ago so we thought, “Why the heck not?”

Some friends didn’t think it was a very romantic destination and I think yes and no. It’s a developing country so creature comforts are hard to come by, but it was exotic and unknown to us so it made it a highly interesting choice. Thinking back on our past trips, we always had a great adventure together no matter where we were so the location was secondary.

Here’s my love list…

♥ Lots of great scenery, from rice padi fields, ancient ruins, to panoramic sea views, especially in Halong Bay.

♥ Delicious food. We didn’t just chow down on great Vietnamese dishes but also international ones, particularly in Hanoi which was quite the culinary hub. Faves include The Green Mango, Wild Rice, and KOTO.

♥ Not really caring about beauty stuff — this is almost like an anti-beauty point! Don’t get me wrong, I did wear makeup sometimes but I didn’t spend much time putting it on and I kept wearing the same look over and over again (e.g. I used Naked, Buck, and Sin eyeshadows from the Naked Palette almost every time). I also went without makeup for days on end.

♥ When I did return to slapping on makeup after a whole week without, Mr BB said, “You look better without makeup! The real you is not covered up.” Big aww.

♥ Spotted baguettes everywhere (and French menus!). Vietnamese food is mainly built on rice and noodles but colonial French influences are still alive in modern Vietnam.

♥ Tailored two winter jackets in Hoi An, the capital of custom tailoring in clothes manufacturing Vietnam. I loved the fact that I could make them exactly how I wanted (pockets, unobstrusive collars, no belt, knee length, well-lined) at a steal (USD100 – 160). I would recommend A Dong Silk but be really careful of fakes as there are shops all over Hoi An that copy famous reputable tailors.

♥ Just did nothing but read, eat, sleep at Jungle Beach, a bungalow resort 60km north of Nha Trang.

♥ Spent New Year’s Eve on the beach in front of a fire, sipping wine, and cuddling up with Mr BB.

♥ Met many wonderful people from all over the world as we made our way around Vietnam. We chatted with folks from different walks of life and they made our time there even more fun and interesting.

♥ Went on long hikes so I didn’t feel that guilty for stuffing my face.

♥ Lay in bed for a day at the Sheraton in Nha Trang just munching on chocolate and watching cable TV to recover from non-stop travelling.

♥ Just hanging out with my favouritest person in the world. ♥♥♥

Have you been to Vietnam? How did you like it? I’ll be back to blogging about beauty really soon!

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Gosh, it’s been ages since I did a “Things I Love…” post, so here’s blowing off the cobwebs and giving you my list of loves…

♥ Strawberries being in season again! They are actually a summer fruit but they are grown in hot houses in Japan during winter so these red juicy babies are locally available and affordable again. We get them off-season from the US which are always pricey and they look pale as well.

♥ Improving my beauty vocabulary in Japanese. My fave thing to do after a day’s work is to sit in a hot bath and read Japanese beauty magazines Voce or Biteki very slowly.

♥ Hanging out with my family when they came Tokyo in October. That was definitely a big highlight…It was their first time visiting my home and I was their tour guide for a couple of days. It was so nice to show them my adopted country and why it’s so amazing.

♥ Receiving exchange hauls from blog friends like Kat from Mat-Kai Oshaberi, Justine from Sakura Lovely, and Brianna from The Sun Girl Says. It was so fun! I got to try brands I can’t get in Japan and nab beauty goodies at lower prices.

♥ Going to more Singapore-related events in Tokyo. I used to think they were boring but somehow being a longer term expat makes me want to interact and relate to other Singaporean expats here. And there’s always excellent Singaporean fooooood when I go to these things haha…

♥ Looking forward to my year-end holiday, okay I’m not going to hide this….our honeymoon in Vietnam. And that means stopping over in Singapore – yay!

♥ Discovering a slew of non-silicone shampoos made in Japan.

♥ The excitement of moving to a bigger place…Lotsa things going on here at BB Headquarters…very exciting and busy before 2011 ends.

What are you loving these days?

Photo credit: here

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I had such an awesome time in Taipei so I’ve put together my fave bits. I start off with my Narita Airport duty-free haul and then I talk about the things I loved in Taipei. Hope you enjoy watching this video!

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I went back home to Singapore for a week-long visit and I wanna share some of my favourite things in a vlog. I can’t always do all the things I like each visit so this is just a snapshot of one trip. There is never enough time to enjoy Singapore — even if I stay for two weeks, I would think, “I wish I could stay longer…”

There’s a bit on beauty and shopping, but most of it is on fooood. I know some people think it’s sad that Singaporeans think/talk/eat food 24/7 so only foodies will be fans.

You can check out what I hauled in Singapore in this video that goes into detail on the skincare and cosmetics items I got in mid-June.

Thanks for watching!

If you are interested in reading the other posts in my “Things I Love…” series, here are some of my faves:

Things I Love In Tokyo – Daikanyama, veggie ramen, yoga with a twist, eggs florentine with a gal pal etc., includes a video.

Things I Love In Moscow – my first-ever trip to Russia, my first-ever U2 concert (a birthday surprise), and rollercoaster rides at Gorky Park.

Things I Love In Australia – I consider Down Under my second home because the fiance is Aussie. I’ve been there almost 15 times in the eight years we’ve been together.

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I usually write my Things I Love In Tokyo column which is a simple celebration of all the things I love in this city. It’s also an exercise which I try to express gratitude for what I have around me. Gratitude begets happiness and not always easy even in the best of times.

But for today, I thought a video could be something refreshing and Tokyo is really a visual feast — and I had loads of fun making it!

What’s on my love list in today’s edition of Things I Love In Tokyo?

♥ Quirky things that caught my eye in Daikanyama, an über-chic neighbourhood in central Tokyo: graffiti in a posh residential area; strange shop names like Calcium and Human Woman; funky murals on the ground; old-fashioned boutiques that looked like they jumped out of a time machine from 19th century London; waxed food on the sidewalk.

♥ Secret corners galore: underground boutiques; quaint lanes to I-Don’t-Know-Where; signs to lead you to vintage finds; homes hiding behind lush foliage; tucked away cute cafes.

♥ Cosme Kitchen, an organic natural beauty store. I love the aroma of beautifying herbs and potions.

♥ Ultra-feminine togs that are such a signature of Japanese fashion: Cath Kidston, nonchalant, Tsumori Chisato, Tabio tights…and many more.

♥ Pure veggie ramen and gyoza at Kagetsu Ramen: leeks, shimegi mushrooms, lotus, okra, and other yummy green things. This special ramen was called 美麺, which means beauty noodles. I don’t know if I looked more beautiful afterwards but my stomach was a happy camper!

♥ Working out with friends at a Yoga Terminator class in FAB Academy. It’s my Saturday thing: I get up, make a smoothie, and get my ass down to yoga and bootcamp exercises. There’s a disco ball involved, too.

♥ Leisurely girl talk over eggs florentine at Suji’s.

♥ A taste of home at a Singaporean restaurant in Ebisu, Hainan Chifan, and chilled pinot grigio as a night cap.

♥ Late-night Skype chats with my man who is almost always overseas. Keeps things romantic, though.

PS: Six more days till our Summer Giveaway ends — come join quick!

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It’s been a while since I did a “Things I Love…” and I think it’s fitting because I have renewed love for Japan ever since the Mar 11 earthquake. I realized that Tokyo has become very much my home, although it seemed like a coincidence (or even an accident) that I came to this city, but it now feels like a choice I made to live here…

+ Sipping on Masumi Sake, aka “the best sake in the world”. My friend poured a thimble-sized portion for me at a house party and declared, “This is the best sake in Japan, so it’s actually the best sake in the world.” I think there’s a sake award or list published annually, so I was a lucky lucky gal that night. This Nagano-made sake was smooth, dry, and refined. Yum.

+ Being a tour guide again because my fiance’s mum has come to town for a short visit. We only make a concerted effort to go to nice restaurants and appreciate Tokyo from an out-of-towner’s perspective when we have visitors. I’m reminded this is a strange, crazy city — in a good way! Always interesting, never boring…

+ Spring giving way to summer. Knowing I can zip out of the house with a light top and open-toed heels but I have a cardi tucked away in my bag in case the temperature dips to cool. I feel so unencumbered. Delicious warm air without the humidity yet. Oh and it’s time to sit in alfresco cafes!

+ A leisurely sushi lunch with said guest in my second point. My fiance and I tittered that we don’t actually eat a lot of Japanese food when we go out – LOL! We are truly at home in Tokyo since we “take it for granted” Japanese is always there and there’s no rush to have it.

+ Packages from overseas arriving on my doorstep. I have an arsenal of acne-fighting products bought from the US. Will share soon what they are and if they are worth buying.

+ Watching my garden bloom with flowers. Picture here.

+ Getting lots of positive feedback on my “Tokyo Is Okay” video.

+ My Jill Stuart Mixed Blush Compact in 09 Little Bouquet. It makes me go from sallow to healthy in two seconds — amazing stuff and worth every penny.

+ Weekend getaways with friends into the Japanese countryside. Mischief to be had in just 10 days…

+ Plotting a new e-book – yes, oh yes! It’s brewing away…

+ Exercising hard in my self-imposed “wedding bootcamp” regime but I hope that it’ll be a habit that sticks with me post-wedding. I’ll probably do a post on this soon.

Have a great weekend, everyone!! Muah! xoxox

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+ Taking photographs of the Twelve Apostles along Victoria’s magnificent Great Ocean Road. Mine looked totally unprofessional compared to the one above but at least I have my memories of this fun-filled holiday.

+ Staying at a beach house in Lorne (90 minutes away from Melbourne by car) with several friends — cooking, drinking wine, playing UNO and Monopoly, caving into large bowls of pasta and ice-cream, sleeping in a super-soft luxurious bed, breathing crisp autumnish air.

+ Witnessing two good friends getting married to each other and feeling the love in the air. Weddings are only amazing if you know the people getting hitched well. I was even allowed to partake in the Chinese tradition of fetching the bride in the morning before their civil ceremony. What did that involve? Games which were “obstacles” that the groom and his party have to go through before he is rewarded with his beautiful bride — tweezing chest hair and pole-dancing were some of the highlights…ROFL.

+ Bright-blue Aussie skies and white beaches.

+ Discovering paw paw balm with papaya extract, shea and macadamia (yumyumyum…) and bagging two Jurlique moisturizers as part of my never-ending beauty hunt. Reviews will come soon, I promise!

+ Shopping in the CBD and stumbling upon Malaysian street food at Old Town Kopitiam. It’s very similar to Singaporean nosh so we had to pay a visit.

+ Taking a hot bath with Japanese onsen bath salts (I brought some with me) after a tiring day of activities.

+ Being able to take off for 10 days because…I work for myself!

What’s on your love list today?

Photo credit: here

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As you’re reading this, I’m probably tucking into a family lunch this Christmas Eve in sunny weather by the Sydney harbour. This year I’ve gotten into the Christmas spirit more than ever…I wonder if it’s got to do with working really hard these past four months in Tokyo, so Christmas was my “light” at the end of the tunnel.

Nevertheless, it’s always been a special occasion one way or another ever since I got together with my fiancé. My family in Singapore was rather neutral about Christmas — my sisters and I gave presents to our parents (who didn’t give us any in return; they weren’t being mean at all because they just didn’t celebrate it) out of child-like tendency more than anything.

Anyway, let get into my love list for this festive season:

+ Sumptuous Christmas lights at the swanky Mid-Town in Roppongi (pictured above). I always walk through this park when I make my way home from that neighbourhood. My apartment is just a 30-minute walk away from these dazzling lights.

+ Seasonal Japanese cosmetics sets like Coffret D’Or, Esprique Precious, Shu Uemura, Lunasol, Jill Stuart.

+ Buying gifts for loved ones online. I don’t really like trawling shops with the crowds on the weekend so lucky me that I could find most of what I wanted on the Internet. Many Japanese brands have their wares available online with free delivery even if they have a physical store. Fabulous!

+ Uniqlo’s Heat Tech tops. It’s getting very cold in Tokyo (though the fiancé might argue it’s warm compared to his recent trip to Moscow which was minus 27 degrees C – yikes!), so layering with these insulating, but thin, tops keeps the chills away.

+ Walking around Tokyo Christmas lights plugged into Kanye West’s latest album, the very epic hip hop opera he calls My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy. The over-the-top funky beats give my steps more oomph somehow — feels kinda groovy…

+ Attending a Christmas party last weekend held by a friend whom I met in yoga class. There were shenanigans to be had in reindeer ears, funny folks, delish fajitas, and Christmas tschunes….

+ The anticipation of lying on a beach in Sydney on Boxing Day. My faves are Manly, Maroubra, and Bondi.

+ A 12-hour stopover in Singapore before jetting off to Sydney. I get to see my family and give my doggies a cuddle!

+ Christmas Day is Japan’s true Valentine’s Day — it’s all about romantic dates, holding hands, and slow strolls. Sadly, it’s not a public holiday so it’s a bit of a downer for some gaijins who miss the whole Christmas shebang.

Photo credit: here & here

PS: It’s the last day of our Xmas Sale!! Spend USD200 and get 10% off your total bill.

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Oh my gosh, it’s December already and the last Things I Love In Tokyo was in October. I think I should do these love lists more often because there are days that I need to remind myself that life is pretty damn good in Japan.

I write my expat experience in my personal blog, Lioness In Japan, so if you are interested to read my trials and tribulations, you should click on “Expat Musings” and “Tokyo Nuggets”.

Let’s make this a BIG ONE!

+ The JLPT N2 exam is friggin’ OVEEEEEER. I felt like such a prisoner, especially in the last month leading up to the dreaded test. For those of you who don’t know what JLPT is, it is the Japanese Language Proficiency Test for foreigners who want to get an official qualification. If you attain N1 or N2, you can get a professional job here. That’s not really my goal because I have Beauty Box But I still want to have a proper qualification.

+ My sweet friend, Sylvia, is having a big-ass Final Clearance Sale at her little corner of the Interwebs, Moka Trésors, where super-cute togs are going for as low as $3.90 to $12.90 and if you are a reader of my blog, you can use this code YUMING30 to get a further 30% discount. Isn’t that awesome?! Now why is this a “final” sale, well sadly, this babe is heading to France very soon. Please check out her wares!

+ Having the fiance around; morning cuddles; chuckles over lunch; spooning during episodes of Mad Men (love it!!!!); compliments like “Babe, this was an awesome dinner!” and “You’re looking very pretty today…”; coupledom in general. Yum.

+ Smoooooothies. I’m making delish concoctions like raspberry-cacao-banana-hemp-almond milk and pineapple-hemp seeds-banana-romaine. I have 2-3 smoothies a day.

+ Korres Japanese Rose Body Lotion and Yuskin S-series Body Cream combo. My skin has not flaked yet in this dry, chilly weather.

+ Brunches in all-day brunch places in Tokyo. Yes, they exist! I love Roti, Union Square, and Suji’s.

+ Thinking about Christmas presents — I’ve got to shop for all the presents before I get on that plane to Sydney to visit the fiance’s fam. I think it’s very common for the woman to take responsibility for the choosing-and-buying of gifts. This article makes you think more deeply about this seemingly simple, but oft complicated process.

+ Making bentos.

+ Hooping it up at FAB Academy with like-minded folks.

+ Receiving kind responses and compliments about my e-book, Beauty Elixirs: 20 Juice & Smoothie Recipes To Beautify Your Skin. Download it here. It’s free and a gift to you from me.

What’s rocking your week so far?

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When I saw this photo (here), I was touched by a tinge of nostalgia and I couldn’t resist putting it up for this edition of Things I Love In Tokyo. The photo was taken in Tokyo University where I had my first two JLPT (Japanese Language Proficiency Test) exams. Outside the buildings, the lanes were covered in yellow leaves by December so this was what the university must’ve looked like in autumn.

I love red leaves but yellow ones are breathtaking too.

Here is my love list…

+ Canmake’s Nudy Glow lipgloss. Cheap and chic, indeed.

+ Dipping my fingers into baby lotion by Burt’s Bees. I couldn’t find my usual Milk & Honey Body Lotion so I opted for the Baby Bee Buttermilk Lotion instead. Smells similar, too!

+ Looking forward to harvesting some homegrown aloe vera to make beauty drinks. My skin hasn’t been in the best condition (darn those hormones!) so I need some help from within.

+ Fuyu persimmons. Holy yum! Been eating them straight or blending them up (video demo here).

+ Having my boo at home. This weekend, we’re going to stay at an onsen hotel in a Japanese-style tatami room before running a half marathon in Ogano, Saitama, just north of Tokyo. I love cuddling up in super-fluffy futons in hotels! Oh, he brought home tons of Larabars and superfood powder supplements.

+ Straighter hair. Summer humidity is O-V-E-R, so the frizziness has been banished for a while.

+ Catching cute Japanese women who snack furtively at train stations. I eat Larabars on the go all the time and worry about people who would look at me. Weird, I know but that’s Japan! There’s a place and time for “private activities”, like putting on cosmetics on the train, which is frowned upon by older folks.

+ Wearing cardigans and boots, again.

+ My H&M black and white faux lace print dress top. It looks like lace but it’s print — got compliments today all day! I couldn’t find an image on the official site but I also nabbed a floaty layered one with peach and nude tones. Check out their dresses this season. There are more I want to get….

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