Best Bed

It is always good to sleep in your own bed again after a trip. Don't get me wrong, I love travelling and have no problem sleeping in strange beds. But somehow my own bed seems to be the best haha. 

Tokyo Conference Trip 2018: Day 7/ Home

Going home today.
After checking out at 11am, went to Takashimaya to get a quick bite before boarding the limo bus at 1250pm.

Arrived early at Narita but that gave me time to browse the shops at Narita. There are LOTS of shops! Should have kept some money for shopping lol. 
Plane departed slightly later but I should be home just after midnight on 26 August.

My ANA plane arriving at the gate, it was a little late

My Seafood meal

Tokyo Conference Trip 2018: Day 6

Woke up super early trying to catch a glimpse of the sun rise but no such luck. It was cloudy and there was a warning of twin typhoons. :(

Dropped into Harajuku after the conference and happened to see a BlackPink pop-up store. Ventured in to buy stuff for Juliane who is a BlackPink fan. 

Had an early dinner at Coto-Coto before returning to the hotel to pack my luggage as I am going home tomorrow. 

Green tea stewed pork set dinner at Coto-Coto

with dessert

Extra dessert

A cat programme which kept me company while I packed!

Tokyo Conference Trip 2018: Day 5

It's the day of my presentation at ICEL 2018, Waseda University. It's the first concurrent session after the keynote address. I happened to be the session chair as well besides being a presenter. 
We started promptly on time as there were 6 presenters in the 1.5 hours session. Each of us could only have 15 minutes. I did my best to facilitate and to keep time. I did well because all the presenters thanked me after the session! :)

Done with my presentation and session!

Lunch bento provided

Waseda University Library and conference venue

After the conference, I dropped by Sensoji Temple (which was along the train line) to give thanks for a good session and presentation before heading back to Shinjuku MyLord shopping mall to celebrate at Coto-Coto 茶寮.

Matcha Parfait and Matcha latte at Coto-Coto

Did a bit of souvenir shopping again before heading back to rest.     

Souvenirs from Waseda University shop

Goodies in my ICEL conference bag

My certificates - attendance, presentation, session chair

More crackers

My chicken yakitori dinner

Tokyo Conference Trip 2018: Day 4

Spent time in the morning practising my presentation as I only have 15 minutes for presentation. Ventured to MyLord shopping mall for my late lunch at Mensho San Francisco. Due to the hot weather, I ordered a seasonal chilled corn ramen. It was really good. 
Bought dinner and dessert back to enjoy in my hotel room while watching the sun set.

Seasonal Chilled Corn Ramen from Mensho San Francisco

Odakyu having a Fantastic Beasts/ Harry Potter pop-up store

Tokyo Conference Trip 2018: Day 3

I thought I would visit the Imperial Palace or the gardens in the late morning since I missed it in 2016. However, when I stepped out into the open at Tokyo Station, I immediately ducked back underground as the temperature was scorching hot! Instead, I spent the early afternoon at the underground shopping street within Tokyo Station for souvenirs for colleagues and family. Headed back to the hotel with my shinkansen bento bought at Tokyo Station so that I could watch the sun set while I eat and to practice my slides again. 

Tokyo Station

Frozen Lemon Cheese Tart

Shop selling shinkansen bento from different stations/cities

My clam-themed dinner - clam soup and clam bento

Sunset

Rice crackers for family and friends/colleagues

Tokyo Conference Trip 2018: Day 2

Spent the morning looking through my slides before meeting with Yoshi-san for lunch at 12pm. I knew Yoshi-san through a friend. He is a retiree in his 70s and he has earned my greatest respect with his love of learning. Yoshi-san has been travelling around the world learning English and the culture in each place he studied at such as Australia, UK, USA. I only hope that I have the same energy and love of learning when I am at that age! 
Yoshi-san took me to a traditional Japanese restaurant in an office building (near where he used to work) and it's close to my hotel. This is the first time I tried Kaiseki meal in Japan! Each dish was artistically presented and the taste was really delicious. We proceeded to have tea and coffee in another office building nearby. We had a great chat and we parted ways just after 4pm. 

I went to Harujuku to visit my favourite shop, b-side label. Bought a couple of stickers - summer limited and local limited editions. :) Had a quick look at Kiddy Land too and bought cutesy stuff. Since I am already in Harajuku, I had the famous crepe before buying dinner back to my hotel room.

Harajuku crepe!

Simple dinner from the convenience store