Hokkaido Spring Day 2: Hakodate Morning Market + Onuma Park

Rise and shine at 6:30! I wasn't planning on waking till 7am but it was so bright I found it hard to continue sleeping. After taking a shower, I packed up and checked out of my hostel. I found myself at Goryokaku Koen again by 8:18 am because I just couldn't get enough of these Somei Yoshino!



I wandered aimlessly like the hopeless dreamer I am, soaking in every bit of the Sakura rays. Let my photographs show you the beauty I saw.

Wonder Woman the Movie : It was WONDERFUL!

I caught the movie last Friday and boy was it good! I'm sorry if I'm blowing the entire mystery of this entry to bits by disclaiming so early in that this movie is amazing!

I've watched many blockbusters recently and one just disappoints me more than the other. Even the stuffs from Marvel weren't able to pump me up as much as Wonder Woman had - and no, it has absolutely nothing to do with the fact that the heroine is a female.

How to survive the Mongolian Gobi Desert!

Before I realize, it's nearly two years since I embarked on my Trans-Siberian journey and toured the Gobi Desert. Yes, I have a problem staying on top of this blog thing.  I know the Trans-Siberian journey is one of legends and myths and is on the Bucket list of practically every wanderlusts. And many young wander "lusters" like me, rely solely on the internet for our travel research because we're too cheap for Guide Books. So I'm paying it forward here with a short entry xD

- Click here to read about my 6 days in the Gobi Desert.

Other than being known for having the longest and oldest train routes on earth, the legendary Trans-Siberian journey is also famous for the diverse landscape and cultural experience it provides.  A trip into the exotic and charismatic Gobi desert is a must-do if you ever decide to take on the Russia –> Mongolia –> China route.

Without further blabbing, here is my short entry on preparing for the Gobi Desert while you are on your Trans-Siberian adventure because ... let me be honest with you, it's harder than you think.

Hokkaido Spring Day 1: Hakodate, Goryokaku Park & Mt. Hakodate

I took a red eye flight with a layover in Kuala Lumpur on my first ever trip to Hokkaido. I had bought the tickets only 3 weeks before the trip so AirAsia’s tickets were the only ones I could get that didn’t break my bank. My return tickets cost me SGD$628.50




My flight was scheduled to fly at 8:45 pm and it was a whirlwind of a busy day! Thank God I managed to get everything together in time! After finishing all my morning and afternoon appointments, I rushed home and took the MRT to the airport because what do you think? because I’m cheap! I checked myself in with AirAsia's check-in booth to avoid having my bag weighed. I hadn’t bought any baggage space for the trip over (Cheap alert!) but I think I might have accidentally crossed the 7kg limit by one of two kilos, oops=X. I had grand visions of leisurely whizzing through the departure gates with just the booth printed boarding pass but verification of travel documents was required for entry into Japan so I was sent back to the counters to have my passport checked.





Had a brief layover at KLIA. Maybe it's the fact that I'm flying a Budget airline this time but man, the boarding gate between my flights were so far away! I also had to go through the x-ray machines twice even though it was a transfer. The last time I flew with Malaysia Airline to Osaka, I didn't have to do any of that. Was it just a difference in airline or are they stepping up security after that fiasco?

Kose Babyish High Moisturising mask (50 sheets)

Name: Kose Babyish High Moisturising mask
Retail price: SGD$19.90 (50 pc )
Quantity: 50 pieces
Rating: 2.5/5

I bought Kose's Babyish High Moisturizing mask (50 sheets) at my local department store recently because I thought they were selling it at $15.50. Turns out the promotion price was only applicable if you purchase another $15 worth of stuffs. Anyway, here's my short review of the product.

Packaging

It's a 50 piece mask pack. It's basically a big aluminium Ziplock bag with 50 sheets of mask all stacked together in the watery essence. Pretty standard pack mask design though some might worry about the air-tightness of the Ziplock and worry about leakage or premature drying.

I say, just be sure you've fully pressed the Ziplock down. Unless very intense pressure was applied on the bag, it's unlikely to leak though I've been careless enough to allow that to happen haha.

50 sheets of mask piled together while soaking in the Essence. This is how they roll.

The bulk mode of the packaging might put some people off as questions about hygiene and product (mask Essence) distribution can be raised. I'm personally not too bothered by that since I always wash my hands before applying face masks. While Essence distribution is indeed a worry factor for bulk facemasks - remember you also pay much lesser per piece so imho, it all evens out. But each to its own. I personally enjoy bulk facial masks as they forces/ encourages me to keep using them Everyday.

Texture & effect

The facemask seems to be made out of some thin paper fabric. Quality and moisture retention ability of the face mask is average. The quality of the masks are definitely below say, Leaders Insolution masks. The masks tends to be on the slightly dry side and my forehead is a little too high to be fully covered. The mask feels cheap (sorry) and doesn't fit the face as well as I hope.

But the fit isn't too much of a problem as I always wear my face masks with DAISO's silicon face mask on top of it to keep everything in place. If you haven't tried the DAISO Silicon mask yet, and you're a big facemask junkie - you need to check it out. It is such a game changer!

The essence from the facemask is watery and tends to drip a lot when worn.

Unlike many of my other face masks, I often remove the mask after an hour or so to a "just-as dull" face. Because the mask was not able to retain as much Essence, the skin starts to feel a little dry after an hour. The skin is slightly plumped after the treatment but nothing to rave about.

Conclusion

Overall, there's nothing to boast about here. Kose's babyish high moisturising face mask borders on the disapproval zone.

With a label that claims (and a few others) to be topping the popularity chart; I'd say I was more than a little disappointed. While I understand it's only meant to be a daily maintenance face masks and is cost at only 39 cents each - it is still the most under performing facemask I've ever used.

Unless your skin is super dehydrated and unable to retain its own moisture which forces you to face mask every day (like me) , or your skin is super good and you just need some basic hydration, otherwise I say just give this product a miss. Spend your time on something better.

Since I'm stuck with this product now, Ive devised a way to make it work twice as hard. I apply a layer of sleeping gel mask to my face before slapping the mask and the result is a brighter and more hydrated face when I remove the mask.

Hope this review was helpful. Please leave me a comment and let me know what you think or what you want me to review next time !

Review: Heme Baby Q Silicon Sponge

Nme: Heme Silicon Sponge
Retail price: SGD$9.90  
Rating: 4.5/5

I’ve been wondering for a long time if there could ever be something that can replace a makeup sponge in application while being super convenient to maintain. And apparently, I’m not the only one lamenting the inconvenience of our old fashion sponges because someone came up with the idea of using silicon to apply foundation! I’ve tried this sponge for a few days now and here’s my quick review!

 

Cheap, Easy & Fun Bachelorette Games That Are Not Raunchy

It's time to celebrate your BFF’s closure to her exciting single life and you've been assigned to conjure up activities for her bachelorette party. But not every bride is into wild and raunchy parties (strip tease? Boring!) And not every guest is age appropriate so you're not quite sure what to do.

Here are some bachelorette party activities you can consider that are fun, wholesome and won't break the bank. The highlight in this line up is maximum impact for minimal effort because, let's be realistic, who has time to slave over games preparations?

Photo from: Wikipedia

Some beauty shoppings & randomness!

This is a little random update of my life, just for the heck of it. Went beauty necessity shopping today after church and here's what I found.

Okay , nothing really exciting and what's with those mini Tiger Balms?!

Review : Innisfree Super Volcanic pore clay mask (first impression)

Name: Innisfree Super Volcanic pore clay mask
Retail price: SGD$22.60 (full size)
Volume: 100ml
Rating: 3/5

I've been breaking out non-stop after my first trial with the Cledbel face lifting mask and serum. It might not be the product that's against my skin but rather my skin itself being sensitive for no good reasons. But my skin has been feeling dehydrated, dry and congested recently. I've even taken to applying a hydrating face mask almost every night to combat the acne and skin discomfort.

Decided to give this mud mask a try since I was so impressed by Belif's mud mask the last time I tried it. Maybe this would become my holy grail, who knows? I've only ever used this product once because it's a sample and I can only have one try with it xD.

Review: Cledbel Face Lift Solution, Super Miracle Lifting Mask

Name: Cledbel Face Lifting Mask
Price: $32.90 (Buy on Qoo10)
Volume: 70ml
Rating: 1/5

I've been conscious about my smile lines for the longest time so when I saw Cledbel's face lift solution promoting on Qoo10 last early november, the beauty product enthusiast in me perked up.