Post #40 (17.05.14) >> The last evening and the flight home

For dinner, I took the last chance to wrap up my love affair with Soemon-cho & Dotonburi by having a walk around, taking in the sights and sounds.

Red Bull promotion

We discovered there was a Cat Cafe at the quiet end of Dotonburi ! oh well

Old school building in the middle of bustling Dotonburi

We were supposed to have a crab kaiseki meal at the famous Kani Doraku crab restaurant to complete our dining experience in Japan.
There was a 20 minute wait for a table and we were kinda short of time.

Instead, we went on the cheap and ate at Sukiya.
Bang for buck ... cheap good & satisfying.

Happy Birthday Trevor ! this is for you. <3.

Back at the airport ... the vending machine in the picture below was the last i saw & used :|

Time to get back on the plane for the epic 20 hour journey.

The first 8 hour leg from Osaka to Kuala Lumpur was great, we pretty much slept for 6 out of the 8 hours.
We didn't notice when then plane took off & woke up just in time for meals and landing.
The trip was made better by our magical flight attendant.
What a great way to end my Japanese experience.

MMM Octopus snacks !

Back in Kuala Lumpur, the fact that we weren't in Osaka anymore.... really hit HARD !

What a contrast of feelings >_<

Oh well, at least we were heading home.

We had another shower at the Sama Sama express hotel and hung out at the lounge until it was time to board.

At the boarding gate, everyone was put through an interrogation process.

Some people were grilled intensively and extensively, being asked personal questions and asked for identification.

I presented my passport with the photo page open, my face was scanned by the police officer up and down some reason focusing on my sideburns.

Soon after it clicked in my head, we had been subjected to increased security screening due to flight MH370 !

Goodbye Kuala Lumpur ... F*CK YEA !!!!

We got on the plane and took our seats.
The flight was looking quiet, there were empty seats here and there, two infront of us and three empty seats behind us.
We hoped luck would be on our side and we could sprawl out.
With our fingers and toes crossed, the plane finished re-fuelling.
Positive thinking got the best of us as two parents (with pommy accent) with a crying baby came onto the plane, walking down the aisle looking in our direction.

Not any normal parents mind you, the mother was one of those women who talked out aloud at their baby, this would be ok if the baby could comprehend.

Like every other flight so far, the flight was slightly delayed.
The captain said his usual apologies and soon after we were in the clouds.

The baby boy was going off his head, He was going CrAZYyyYyYYyYy.
Shut The F*ck Up you little c*nt !
The parents began to bicker about the non control of their child.

Paul and I got squirted on by a sippee cup.
My headrest was hung off and my ears were slapped by little ^angelic^  Charlie.

I considered popping all six of these tablets to knock myself out.
Instead i popped my earphones in and cranked my phone to 15/15 volume.
No success.

Charlie, the 1 and 1/2 year old baby boy, just wouldn't quit.
The mother responded to his shreeks, cries and screams with baby talk ... thinking that would calm him down, it didn't work.

He went on and on and on, just like the Duracell bunny.

"Charlieee why did you do that ? I was just trying to feed you, you dont have to hit me'"
"OwWww Charlie that hurt !" ... Good work Charlie, you did something good !
*Screech* *Shreek* *Cry* *Sook*

"Good boy Charlie, i'm so proud of youuu"
Shut the F*ck Up !!!!!!! both of you .. for f*cks sake !!!

8 hours felt like eternity...  another 5 hours ... GAH ! another 4 hours ... GAH ! another 3, 2, 1 ...



I filled out the incoming passenger card, ready to declare the Sashimi knife in my luggage.

Hello Sydney ! Although the holiday was over, it was nice to know I was only moments away from seeing the wife again.

I wasn't so happy about going back to the real world.

For me, going on holidays has it's ups and downs.

The feeling of leaving work on the last day, knowing you are going away is awesome.

Arriving at the Airport departures. checking in & going through customs puts a spring in my step.

Landing at the destination and feeling so far away from reality is such a nice feeling.

Retail therapy is so soothing.

The mood changes when the trip reaches the half way mark, this is when i realise; OH NO there's only so many days left.

It starts to get depressing when there are only 1 or 2 days left.

The weight of the world falls back on my shoulders on the flight home, *sigh*

Our action packed whirlwind tour of Japan is going to be a trip that will never be forgotten.

There is no doubt when my memories fade, I can revert back to this blog to re-live it all over again ^_^

Thanks for reading.

Post #03 (10.05.14) >> The flight to JP via MY

As a kid, the Airport was the best place ever & I loved flying, it was the best !.

Now as an adult, I hate it ! 

It was a different experience back up in the sky above the clouds this time. 

Usually my flights are overnight home bound, not destination bound.

Maybe the first 8 hours wouldn't feel so long after all, perhaps I could sleep all the way.

Regardless, I had my phone for mp3s and tv show episodes to keep me occupied, oh ... and my trusty Vicks inhaler.

When the battery died, i relied on my portable charger, yeaa !

Dinner time came around and we received the meals we pre-ordered when booking the tickets.

Pak Nasser's Nasi Lemak maximised (added drink and dessert) costing A$5.00 + A$3.00.

The flight was long and neither of us managed to really get any sleep.

I finally gave up after about 5 hours and popped two Fiorinal tablets... resulting in drowsy sleepy success !

At the time of booking our flights, we were scheduled for a 4 hour stop over at LCCT Airport in Kuala Lumpur.

Everyone says LCCT is a terribly old airport, luckily for us it has just recently closed.

Operations have now changed and we landed at KLIA2, Malaysia's brand new Airport for international, domestic, budget and full service carriers.

Not figuratively brand new, really brand new ! First flight taking off 9 days ago on May 2nd.

We made use of the shower facilities (fee of 40 Ringgit/A$14.50) at the Sama-Sama Express hotel, an airside transit hotel at Satellite Building Level 3.

The hotel entry was located adjacent the "premium food court" which had McDonalds and soon to be Popeyes chicken.

The price was a bit steep but at least the towels were thick and plush adding a touch of luxury.

Feeling refreshed, we explored more of the new airport and waited to board our next flight leg to Osaka.

The most notable thing about new airport facility was the construction finish ... very rough.
Alot of attention to detail was lacking, maybe it was just an Asian thing, one thing unsuprising was the filthy external glass.

Our flight was delayed about 30 minutes for the next leg to Osaka.

Not sleeping much during the first leg, this time we all conked out and were woken up by the air hostesses who were dressed in their form fitting red uniforms.

For breakfast I had the Big breakfast costing A$7.00

I managed to sleep for probably the first 3 hours of the 8 hour flight.
After that there were two babies ... you get the idea.

Post #01 (10.05.14) >> Fly time !

Hello again Sydney International Airport !

Many years ago, Cat and I had planned to go to Tokyo.
The trip didn't eventuate and we travelled elsewhere instead.
The Japanese travel guides have stayed on the bookshelf ever since ... until now.

The story behind this trip is to celebrate one of my best mate's birthday.

Each and every year, the idea of going overseas on a boys trip POPS up and then just as quickly FIZzles out.
This year... it's actually happening !.

We could have went to Phuket, Bangkok, Hong Kong, Macau, Singapore or Kuala Lumpur but I'm sure we've all agreed on the right destination >>>
Osaka Japan !.@$#*

There will be five of us travelling together, three of whom who were last in Osaka in 2010.

The plan is to have a 1 week budget getaway to eat, shop, sight-see, take photos of everything and in between, then hopefully blog about it the morning after.

This is my first international flight on a budget airline.

I've flown Tiger & Jetstar domestically before but this is a 20 hour flight (t w e n t y !!!) including a 4 hour stop over in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.

This time around going through customs I was subjected to the the full body scan, of course passing without any dramas.

Paul was stopped and singled out for a drug swab because of something he was wearing.

All ready to fly now...

Goodbye Work, Wife & Animals ~!

Kon'nichiwa Japan ~!