Published by TPJCG March 24th, 2007
in Cuisine.
Hidden up in old Ann Siang Road (near the Maxwell Food Centre) is Wacha, a tea salon and Japanese crockery store.
As you enter, you are greeted with shelves of delicate Japanese plates and elegant cups. Towards the centre of the store is a bar for four, and a romantic room at the back where you can dine privately in candlelight. There is also a second room below for another more private setting.
Wacha’s selection is rather small but features a special dinner menu, which is a delight on its own if not rather expensive. Everything is served with gorgeous lacquerware and unique Japanese crockery.
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Published by TPJCG March 17th, 2007
in Arts and Entertainment.
It took a while for the realisation to sink in – Karei Naru Ichizoku, or The Grand Tribe in English, was one of the most-watched dramas for the Winter 2007 season. And it took one night of boredom and a couple of episodes to understand why.
The one star fronting the drama is the member of boyband SMAP often called the king of J-dramas – Takuya Kimura. He plays Manpyo Teppei, director of a steel-making firm and member of the Manpyo family, one of the most famous in Japanese financial circles.
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Published by TPJCG March 10th, 2007
in Anime/Manga.
A cute show which supposedly appeals to both children and adults – that was what this reviewer thought Arashi no Yoru Ni, or On A Stormy Night, was. The first of a series of novels by author Yuuichi Kimura, this is an animation about the relationship between a sheep and a wolf.
Two animals find shelter in a barn on a stormy night. Ironically, the two animals are a sheep, Mei, and a wolf, Gabu – two different species on different levels of the food chain. As they couldn’t see each other in the storm and only had their voices to rely on, the two animals somehow developed a fast friendship.
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Published by TPJCG March 3rd, 2007
in General.
Hina Matsuri (Doll Festival or Girls’ Festival) takes place on March 3 of the Lunar Calendar, when the Japanese pray for happiness for their daughters.
To celebrate this day, families display dolls within the house, and offer rice crackers, peach blossoms, rice cake cubes, hishi mochi (diamond-shaped rice cakes) and some items to the dolls. The customary drink is the amazake, a sweet, non-alcoholic version of sake, and for food it is coloured arare, soy sauce flavoured crackers.
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Published by TPJCG February 24th, 2007
in Cuisine.
Mention buffet, and discussions would range from cheap steamboat at Marina South to top-notch expensive at The Line, Shangri-La. Right smack in the middle and considered a good place for important celebrations is Kuishin Bo, a Japanese buffet restaurant.
Japanese food galore at Kuishin Bo – from teriyaki to teppanyaki, lobsters to sushi, Kuishin Bo has enough to leave you spoilt for choices.
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Published by TPJCG February 17th, 2007
in Arts and Entertainment.
Memories abound in Nodame Cantabile – a music-based romantic comedy about a clean and organised musical genius, and a messy and quirky piano talent.
The drama’s namesake and female protagonist is Noda Megumi, affectionately called Nodame by her friends. She is a talent at the piano, being able to play a composition by ear after listening to the song merely once. She also happens to be strange, lazy and utterly nonchalant about her cleanliness.
On the other end is Chiaki Shinichi, a whiz at both the piano and violin. He aspires to be a conductor and learn under the world-class maestro Viera, but is stranded in Japan due to psychological trauma from a plane accident. He is also an obsessive-compulsive clean freak.
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Published by TPJCG February 10th, 2007
in Anime/Manga.
Brave Story, released in July 2006, is literally a story about the valor of 10-year-old average boy Wataru.
In an allegedly haunted building, Wataru encounters another boy who seems to be the rumour and mystery behind the building’s haunted stories.
Soon he learns that the pretty boy, Ashikawa, is a transfer student of his class, and from him, that the building has a door that leads to another world where one can fulfill one wish. Shortly after, Wataru faces the risk of a broken family and, to save what is left of his family, he decides to go through the door to where tests await him.
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Hidden up in old Ann Siang Road (near the Maxwell Food Centre) is Wacha, a tea salon and Japanese crockery store.
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