Tokyo Marathon 2017: Day 2 Part 2 - Race Kit Collection and Expo

Day 2 in Tokyo will be broken up into two posts because I believe the race expo deserves a post of its own as do my adventures in Shinjuku and Odaiba. This post covers the Tokyo Marathon 2017 Race Kit collection and Expo which was held at its annual venue at Tokyo Big Sight on Odaiba.

After my morning adventures in Shinjuku, I took the JR Yamanote line which connects to the JR Saikyo line to Odaiba. Upon reaching the Kokusai Tenjijo station, it wasn't hard to figure out which the way to Tokyo Big Sight with so many runners heading in the same direction. On top of that, there were tons of volunteers and signs stationed around to show the way.

Pawse for a Cause is back!

Ready to further the fight against animal cruelty and increase awareness around the welfare of the same, Pawse for a Cause is making a comeback, and will grace our shores with a second annual charity carnival this year. Set for 29 July 2017 at Desa ParkCity, the effort seeks to spotlight the plight of strays nationwide, raise funds for pet non-profits, and educate the public on the Animal Welfare Act soon taking effect.  

In collaboration with United International Pictures, this celebratory sequel launched in grand fashion today during the premiere of A Dog’s Purpose at MBO Cinema, CITTA Mall. The event was attended by members of the media, event partners, and local celebrities who share a passion for destitute animals.

Tokyo Marathon 2017: Day 2 Part 1 - Things to do in Shinjuku and Odaiba

I had two primary parts of Tokyo to hit on my second day in the capital of Japan for the Tokyo Marathon: 1) Shinjuku to recce the startline and 2) Odaiba to collect my race kit and to see the Gundam statue.

While the temptation to squeeze as much as I could into sightseeing was real, experience have told me that it would be suicide for my legs (and purse) so I planned and prioritised. Luckily my first stop was the Tokyo Metropolitan Government Building in Shinjuku, an observatory tower that stood at 243 meters and was free of charge to enter.

Time to Share Some Ayam Goreng McD with its new Share Box

1987 was quite a significant year. For starters, I was born and secondly it was the year that McDonald's introduced its eventual classic fan favourite - the Ayam Goreng McD. That would explain my neverending love for their succulent fried chicken.

And now great news for McD fried chicken lovers! You can share your fried chicken with your friends with its new Share boxes!

Spartan Race Announces Inaugural Asia Pacific Championship Series

Talk about taking it to a whole new level of competition.

Since breaking in the Asian market, Spartan Race has seen a lot of love and support from the local fitness and OCR community and this perhaps prompted them to launch their first ever Asia Pacific Championship Series.

The first event of the series will kick off on the 22nd of April in Hong Kong and end with the fifth event in Australia where the first ever APAC Champions will be crowned. Racers will be competing for over USD $50,000 (RM221,900) in cash and prizes across the entire series. The Asia Pacific Championship series will have 4 qualifying events starting with:

• Hong Kong Sprint (5km + & 20+ obstacles) on April 22nd,
• Taiwan Super (13km+ & 22+ obstacles) on May 20th,
• Korea Super on June 10th,
• Malaysia Super on July 9th,
• and culminating with the Australia Beast at the end of November. 

Tokyo Marathon 2017: Day 1 Part 2 - Checked into Shiba Inu AirBnb

I had forgotten about the hustle and bustle of Shibuya station or the hordes of people parked around the famous Hachiko statue or just waiting to cross the world's biggest intersection. There I was with my red hardcase luggage staring in awe at the lights and sounds of Shibuya before something at the Hachiko statue caught my eye.

Cat! OMG, you fluffy furball that instantly made me miss my cats at home. It just sat on the pedestal of the statue, nested between the dog's legs as flocks of people stopped to take pictures of it and with it.

Farewell to RX-78-2 Gundam, Hello to a Bigger Mecha

5th March was a sad day for many Gundam fans in Odaiba, Tokyo as it was the last day for them to see the iconic RX-78-2 Gundam before it was dismantled after 5 years of dutifully watching over Diver City.

I myself had made it a point to visit the Gundam Statue on my recent trip to Tokyo and knowing the limited time it had left, spent the evening and night photographing the statue. Even though I never watched the original anime that featured RX-78-2 Gundam, I did watch the Gundam Seed, Gundam Seed Destiny and Gundam 00 in college and did waste a lot of study time, playing Gundam Seed Destiny on my Playstation 2.

Confession: Gundam Strike Freedom and Strike Noir were my favourite to use in combat.

Tokyo Marathon 2017: Day 1 - Flying with ANA

4am is an ungodly hour. Nothing can be a good enough reason to wake up at 4am. Unless...it was to catch flight to Japan! That's right, I was headed off to Japan again. This time for the Tokyo Marathon and I was travelling solo because I felt YOLO.

Anyway flight was at 8am and me being me, opted to catch the first KLIA Express train out at 5am so that I can arrive bright and muddafarking early at the airport to ditch my luggage and get some last minute stuff ie Panadol.

Only to find out that...the shop hasn't open. (╯°□°）╯︵ ┻━┻)
(Walau...why you do this to me la...)

Spartan Trifecta Hawaii Weekend: Flying with AirAsia X

Aloha, peeps!

If a Spartan trifecta or even a double trifecta is on your to-do list for 2017, then consider this for the race calendar... One weekend, two days of pure unadulterated obstacle course racing on the beautiful island of Hawaii.

That's right, I am talking about Spartan Trifecta Hawaii Weekend, set to take place on 5-6 August, 2017 at Kualoa Ranch on Oahu Island. Just imagine running all three Spartan Race - Sprint, Super and Beast across the beautiful scenic terrain.

[Fitness Review] Jonlivia Hotpants

I am currently entering the tapering stage of my marathon training, I should be toning down on the running and exercises to prevent injuries and overexerting myself. But the fitness junkie in me will not allow that for fear of pilling on the fat. I JUST WANT TO WORK OUT K!

So when I was offered a chance to try out Jonlivia Hotpants - which helps you burn the fat by making you sweat more in a shorter time span, well, turning this down was like saying no to ang pau...or chocolate. (you can see why dieting is a no-go for me)

My pair of Jonlivia Hotpants S+ arrived in a ziplock bag along with the ultra cute hot pink hoodie sports bra, both courtesy of the brand. Tenkiu!