Paddington House of Pancakes (Macau)

Dinner #1 failed to satisfy our hungry stomach so we walked around to discover other dining options...  and we stumbled across Paddington House of Pancakes!  In fact, I passed by this place recently when I went for coffee at Terra Coffee House.  (By the way, this is a very good local coffee house!)

Loja Sopa De Fita Cheung Kei (祥記麵家)

If you love to try traditional Guangdong style noodles, this is the place to go, or used to go.  It reached hallmark status among the tourists when popular food critics have nothing but praises for this place.  At the same time, it's the beginning of yet another nightmare for us locals...

Picture from the Internet.
No copyright infringement intended.

Amada

Today I want to share with you one of my favorite restaurants in Philadelphia, PA - Amada.  I don't think I need to repeat myself but I love Spanish tapas!

The cocktail is delicious too.

Sen-ryo (千兩)

I first tried this restaurant after relocating back to Asia in January 2012.  See my post here.  It has soon become a favorite when I want quality sushi at affordable prices.  Similar to Henri's Galley, I felt I have been subconsciously leaving out this restaurant from my blog... If it's one of my favorite restaurants, it deserves an individual post on my blog at a minimum, right?

Saboten (勝博殿)

A friend of mine recommended this place to me a long time ago and I finally had a chance to give it a try.  Saboten has been around since 1966 and focus on serving the best tonkatsu.  It is now one of the largest Tonkatsu chains with over 500 shops in Japan, Korea, Taiwan, Thailand, Singapore, Hong Kong, Canada, China and the Philippines.

Weekend Getaway: Ocean Park, Hong Kong (June 2013)

It's been a ridiculously long time since I last visited the Ocean Park.  I have been wanting to visit during the Halloween fest. but most of my friends are too timid to be scared!!!  I finally seized the opportunity and tempted my friends to go to Ocean Park with me.

Weekend Getaway: Hong Kong (June 2013)

For my birthday this year, my friends celebrated with me in Hong Kong for the weekend.  We had a lot of fun~  Thank you ladies for spending the weekend with me :)

my birthday cake this year
a surprise from my friends!

Henri's Galley Restaurant (美心亨利)

This is the restaurant I take all my out-of-town visitors to.  There are a few other good Portuguese restaurants in town but Henry is by far my favorite.  I know I mentioned this place before in my other post but it is curious I never did an individual post for this place.  I guess subconsciously I must be trying to save this place from the rest of the world...

Inside Henri's on a weekday

Yung Kee Restaurant (鏞記酒家)

Yung Kee has been around for over half a century and is renowned for its roast goose.  It's listed in my friend's the Lonely Planet guide.  Although I heard the quality is not what it used to be, my friends and I decided to give it a try.

Weekend Getaway: Ngong Ping 360, Hong Kong (May 2013)

I finally found a willing travel partner to visit Lantau with me using the Ngong Ping 360.  (Most of my friends are not the outdoor adventure type.)  We had a great time and I highly recommend it to anyone planning a trip to the Lantau island.

For those of you who are worrying about the safety factor of the cable car, the most recent accident (that I am aware of) happened in January 2012.  Click here.  I also found this article pretty useful.  I believe the company takes the safety of the passengers very seriously and that incident didn't hinder me to ride the cable car.  However, if you are the risk adverse type, you should carefully consider all your options.

Classified

Laziness is costly.  On a fine Sunday morning, instead of making my own bagel and cream cheese at home, I went to Classified.

Weekend Getaway: Hong Kong (May 2013)

A friend came to visit in May and we spent a weekend in Hong Kong together.  We had a great time and I was able to do some touristy things too :)  Here's a quick run down on our itinerary for Saturday.

We went to Harbor City at Tsim Sha Tsui and saw the duck.  My friend almost didn't believe me when I said there will be a crowd.  (The crowd is always unbelievable when there is an exhibition :/)

Hitachi Hada Crie CM-N820

If you have been a fan of the Clarisonic, I would like to introduce you another product that reached "Holy Grail" status on my skin care routine - the Hitachi Hada Crie!  (There's been a hype over this product and the Nu Skin machines in the market lately.  I decided to go with the Hada Crie since it's more economical and satisfies my skin care needs.)

Pablo vs Rikuro's

If you are a foodie and have been to Osaka before, the names of Rikuro's and Pablo are probably no news to you.  If you haven't heard of them, they are two of the more popular desserts shops in the city!

Chasing Sakura - Japan (22) - Akame Shijuhachi Taki (赤目四十八淹)

Finally, this is the last post of this series and this was only a 9-day trip!  I have about 8 hours before I have to leave for the Kansai airport and decided to maximize the value of my Kintetsu pass and went to Akame Shijuhachi Taki (赤目四十八淹, "Akame Waterfalls").  The train tickets cost JPY1,960 if bought separate and the Kintetsu Pass is only JPY3,800!  Not to mention the train ride from Nagoya to Osaka alone was already JPY4,150!  This waterfalls is not as popular as some other other tourist attractions in the area but for some reason I just want to go there.

Shizuka (志津香)

Shizuka (志津香) is just off the main street between the Nara station and Todai-ji.  It's very easy to find.  As mentioned in my previous posts, a lot of Taiwanese bloggers recommended this place so I have to come and try it myself so I know what the rave is all about.

Don't be fooled, it gets crowded as soon as it opens.
(This is taken before 11:00 am, when I was on my way to Kasuga Shrine)

Chasing Sakura - Japan (21) - Nara: Todai-ji Temple (東大寺)

"Todai-ji (東大寺, "Great Eastern Temple") is one of Japan's most famous and historically significant temples and a landmark of Nara. The temple was constructed in 752 as the head temple of all provincial Buddhist temples of Japan and grew so powerful that the capital was moved from Nara to Nagaoka in 784 in order to lower the temple's influence on government affairs."  --- Japan Guide

Chasing Sakura - Japan (20) - Nara: Kasuga Taisha Shrine (春日大社)

"Kasuga Taisha is Nara's most celebrated shrine. It was established at the same time as the capital and is dedicated to the deity responsible for the protection of the city. Kasuga Taisha was also the tutelary shrine of the Fujiwara, Japan's most powerful family clan during most of the Nara and Heian Periods." --- Japan Guide

Chasing Sakura - Japan (19) - Nara, Kyoto, and Osaka

Busy is such a lame excuse so I am just going to say I have been slacking lately... (honestly I have been quite busy lately... and it looks like it's only gonna get busier from here on...)

Kururu (樞)

One of the reason why I wanted to visit Nagoya is to meet up with my friend I haven't seen in many years!  I was so glad she was able to make it!  In fact, I got to meet her husband and son as well.  We had a wonderful time while tasting one of Nagoya's best - the Nagoya Kōchin (Nagoya Chicken).

Chasing Sakura - Japan (18) - Nagoya Castle (名古屋城)

If you like Japanese history, Nagoya Castle is a place you should not miss!  I didn't expect much but ended up quite liking it.  (If it weren't for Tokugawa Ieyasu, I probably would have skipped it just like I skipped the Osaka Castle... Sorry Toyotomi Hideyoshi... -.-|||)  The castle itself has been remodeled into a museum.  Each level has a different theme and all are interesting to me.