Kwento Ni Toto: Experience

Showing posts with label Experience. Show all posts

Sunday, May 14, 2023

Unlock the Wonders of Japan: Explore, Experience, and Pay with GCash!

Toto 8:47:00 AM

Japan, located approximately 4 hours by plane from Manila, is a compact yet abundant island that offers a multitude of captivating experiences. Those fortunate enough to have visited assert that a mere 3 days and 2 nights in its capital, Tokyo, fall short of capturing its true essence. To truly appreciate and embrace the wonders of this country, allocating a week might prove sufficient, although the extent of your desire to immerse yourself in the rich tapestry of Japanese culture will ultimately determine the ideal duration of your stay.

One thing’s for sure, it’s easy to get carried away with spending Yen when you’re there. Besides the classic YOLO mentality, there’s simply a lot to eat, shops to visit, and places you won’t find anywhere else. Good thing GCash is now present in prominent shops and destinations all over the island—you can take a hold of your budget by spending less on foreign exchange fees, stay safe with cashless transactions, and enjoy exclusive promos while having fun.

Shop!

Bic Camera

Welcome to Bic Camera, the one-stop shop for popular Japanese products! Bic Camera is a famous shopping mall in Japan. Apart from electronics, it deals in a wide variety of products such as watches, medicine, cosmetics, snacks, contact lens, toys, and liquor. Headquartered in Japan, it operates more than 200 stores across the country in Tokyo, Osaka, Kyoto, Nagoya, Hokkaido, Fukuoka, and Okinawa for example.

Don Quijote

Don Quijote is the biggest discount store and one of the most popular shopping malls in Japan where it has more than 500 chain stores. It can serve as a one-stop shop to meet all your purchasing needs and it is packed with many novel and interesting items for you to explore. Here in Donki, Chinese-speaking sales staff, Alipay, and other mobile payments are in place to bring you a wonderful shopping experience.

Isetan Mitsukoshi Group

Isetan Mitsukoshi of Japan is an international department store group. Isetan Mitsukoshi has around 50 stores in countries all over the world. In Japan, there are 20 stores and in central Tokyo, there are stores in Shinjuku, Ginza, and Nihonbashi. At Isetan Mitsukoshi, you can discover the spirit of Japanese culture and the creation of the Japanese way of life.

Daimaru Matsuzakaya Department Stores

From its humble beginnings as a kimono store during the Edo era, Daimaru and Matsuzakaya has grown to become one of the most recognizable department store brands in Japan with its wide selection of products ranging from everyday items and food to high-end luxury products. In Tokyo just outside the Tokyo Station's Yaesu North Exit, there’s a sprawling 13-level Daimaru store. At the basement floor, there is a food section called “Depa chika” with an overwhelming selection of boxed lunches, while the ground floor has a confectionary section called “Depa Ichi”, famous for the many sweets, ideal for souvenirs.

Kintetsu Department Store

In Osaka, Kintetsu Department Store is a destination of its own where you can have a shopping spree. Find your style in its wide range of retail items such as clothes, cosmetics and accessories. There are also dining spots that offer a menu of various Japanese dishes.

Tokyo Solamachi (shopping centre at the base of TOKYO SKYTREE)

TOKYO Solamachi, which spreads out at the base of the TOKYO SKYTREE, is one of the largest shopping centres in Tokyo. With easy access to Narita and Haneda airports, and more than 300 shops, you can spend all day here browsing through gourmet food, fashion, home appliances, souvenirs and cute sundries. Enjoy the view from the TOKYO SKYTREE and shop at TOKYO Solamachi.

Eat!

Kura Sushi

Eat in the restaurant that started the revolving sushi concept. Kura Sushi has the freshness, quality, and taste that you expect from Japanese food, but is served in an entertaining, memorable experience! Anything you get from this revolving sushi bar is guaranteed delicious, with crowd favorites mixed in with something new and exciting to try.

With the concept of "safe, delicious, affordable, and fun", the leading conveyor-belt sushi chain in Japan created the current conveyor-belt sushi restaurant's standard. A global restaurant brand that combines safety and experience-oriented entertainment, focusing on healthy sushi that is free of the four major additives" - chemical seasonings, artificial sweeteners, artificial colorings, and artificial preservatives - in all of its more than 200 ingredients, as well as a wide variety of side dishes.

Matsuya Foods

Matsuya is a well-known beef and rice bowl fast food chain with about a thousand stores across Japan, and most open for 24 hours. Opened since 1966, Matsuya is known for gyūmeshi: a savory, sweet dish made of tender beef and onion cooked in dashi and served over rice. It’s very filling and very comforting, while also being low-priced with quick service.

Airport

Narita International Airport

Before your flight home, you might want to wander around Narita International Airport. With its extensive restaurants offering Japanese, Chinese and Western cuisine to choose from to appease your cravings. There are also cafes and light meals for some quick bites. You can also check out their Duty Free and boutiques for last minute retail shopping.

Aside from these shopping havens and dining destinations, you can also pay with GCash in nearby convenience stores around Japan such as Lawson and FamilyMart. Ran out of travel essentials? Easily buy it there and replenish. You can also stop by for some snacks and drinks while en route to your next destination. For those looking for medicines, makeup and daily necessities, you can drop by at Sundrug or Tsuruha Drug.

Pay with GCash

Pay your way through these places with GCash which is now available in over 2.5 million Alipay+ merchants across Asia and in key countries including Singapore, Japan, South Korea, Malaysia, Qatar, the UK, France, Italy & Germany. GCash is the way to control your budget when you’re outside the Philippines—enjoy real-time forex, zero service fees and get access to exclusive deals all inside the app!

Simply look for the Alipay+ sign and you can pay with GCash! After logging into the GCash app, select the QR or PayQR button at the bottom of the screen. Scan the merchant’s QR code, or tap “Pay Abroad

with Alipay+” to have the merchant scan your generated QR. Then check the amount, and click Pay to see the receipt. No more traveling with large sums of money—you get to travel light and get deals and discounts from different places, but with the same payment. Just find the Plus, and Pay with GCash!

To learn more about paying with GCash in Japan, tap the “A+ Rewards” page in the app and select Japan as your destination.

Thursday, March 19, 2020

updates

Reliving An Old Age Trekking Experience

Toto 1:40:00 AM

When was the last time you had an outdoor activity that is pack with a thrilling and exciting adventure? Well, the last one that is memorable for me was my college days, where we (my organization) did a mountain trekking in a nearby province. It was a real adventure where we stayed up the mountain area for five straight days. We set up a campsite where no one has ever visited. We eat, sleep, and enjoy the trees for five days. We look for water and other food necessities. Our only time was the sun and the moon.

It was like experiencing a tactical training where you need to survive for some time and where you are required to survive only with your tactical gears. Though in our case, we had a few gears with us that is basic enough to go through that five days in the mountain.

It was an unusual experience, but of course, there were few downsides. At that time, we don't have gears like Salomon Outdoors Footwear to protect our feet. There are quite few Tactical Distributors back then. If ever that I'll do it again, I would prefer to use a Salomon Tactical Boots, it is much safer when doing a trek in the mountain. You can avoid hurting yourself with sharp and pointed stones. You can enjoy the view with less worry.

I hope I can do it again and enjoy the adventure, but probably this time, I would love my kids to join me in this kind of journey. I'm planning to be more equipped, with the right gear to protect ourselves at the same time enjoy the views and Plantshed sceneries of the place. I'm sure they will look forward to this kind of activity.

Monday, September 28, 2015

Travel

Haunted Places To Visit in Baguio City After Summer

Toto 8:00:00 AM

Summer is totally over and rains had already poured out into the city of pines. Rain may come but the excitement of being in Baguio City doesn’t stop especially now that Halloween is just a few months away, as there are known haunted places in Baguio City that scares us but thrills us to be there. We Filipinos are curious people that we tend to personally see and know things whenever we find intriguing matters.

Wednesday, February 26, 2014

Saturday Adventure

Kwento Ni Toto Experienced Night Sky Cinema Nuvali

Toto 8:27:00 PM

Valentine's day for Kwento Ni Toto doesn't stop on that day as Nuvali sent an invitation to let us experience a Post Valentine's Date on the fields of Nuvali with their Night Sky Cinema . This is not their first event to happen because when the emcee asked who was there before a lot of hands were raised in the air. But for Kwento Ni Toto this is one of the first. Yes this is our first time to experience watching under the night sky here in Nuvali. What's great is that we get to experience it together with the special someone.

Thursday, February 28, 2013

Personal Matters

A Cycle of Missed Moments

Toto 8:29:00 AM

It’s Monday, another start of the week. Though my body urges me to go back to bed my mind is telling me to wake up or I’ll be late for work. That’s what I feel every Monday whenever I get up and prepare for work. My morning starts around quarter or few minutes before 5 am, preparing myself and getting ready to go to work. I leave the house at around quarter to six.

Before moving out of the house I make sure to have a last peek of the kids. It is a little keepsake for the whole week that I’ll not be around with them. I would be missing them for some time and it breaks my heart leaving the kids and my wife. They are Daddyless for the week but I have to because it’s for them.

Sunday, September 30, 2012

SM City San Lazaro

More Shopping Experience in SM City San Lazaro

Toto 11:37:00 PM

Ever since I started my mall hopping activities, SM City San Lazaro became one of the malls that I always try to visit. Not just that this place brings childhood memories but gives me a sense of getting acquainted over and over again with this part of Manila. My father and I used to roam around this side of the city so it's like coming back to lost memories.

Tuesday, November 29, 2011

Running Event

Experiencing the Race for Life

Toto 9:00:00 PM

My 2nd run after the unanticipated first official run in Quezon Province. I think I'll be starting my running enthusiasm again. Though this event is annually celebrated, this is my very first time to join the Race for Life event. Thanks to Chris Sports for having us join this running event.

For some reason or perhaps due to the physical fitness program of the office where I'm working with some of my officemates were there also at the event. At first I didn't know that the running event they are joining was the Race for Life. Most of my co-workers are surprised that I was there and they've thought that I joined the run through my own means. For the record since it was the fitness program of the company most of the employees who will join are covered by the office. Well, good for those who truly and did run. For me, I was delighted because Chris Sports were gracious enough to include me in the running event through the great effort of Jeman and Ms. Arlene. Thanks to those wonderful people!

Waking up and traveling early dawn was something that I have missed. It's been rare that I do travel at a very early dawn. So for this specific day it was really an effort. Aside from the venue is totally far away from my place, I'm not sure and familiar also with the transportation schedule, especially at early dawn.

I got to the place, relaxed and was able to met some familiar face whom I have not met for quite some time. Also I took time to chat with some of the bloggers and my officemates as well. Few minutes before the run I prepared myself with the notion of breaking my first 35 minute run.

Bang! The signal for the 10k run echoed, afterwards 5k runners were called to the starting line. I was still waiting for Ms. Arlene for the shirt when suddenly another bang boomed and people from the starting line commenced with the run. Since I'm on the moved to break my record I hurriedly join the runners and run.

The path was flat, no uphill and downhill, and good that I was running on shoes this time. So basically I got the advantage of break my 35 minute run. I did get to the half mark and got the loop tag as proof that I did get to the first half of the race track. Though I was running as much as I can there were times that my stomach weren't cooperating, causing some gastric reactions that hinders me from running more and slowing me down. I feel bad about it. A few more minutes and I'm near the finish line. Looking at the clock... I got disappointed with the time. It's 42 minutes! Way too slow compared to my previous run.

Though disappointed I still get a relief that I was able to finish the run. Lesson learned don't do anything foolish a day or night before the run it will really cause you problem. Perhaps next time I need to prepare more. I just hope to get a time to join more running events.

Saturday, November 26, 2011

Tokyo Cafe

Experience A Taste of Tokyo Café

Toto 3:14:00 PM

Hearing the name Tokyo Café gives me the idea that it is somewhat associated with one of the known Japanese Restaurant , unfortunately it is not. After attending one of their blogger’s event I get to know and realized that Tokyo Café is another Japanese Restaurant that will provide good food and great eating experience.

Info about the restaurant …

Tokyo Café is currently rising as one of the sought after Japanese coffee shops in the country. The restaurant provides a cozy ambiance, delicious food, and unique Japanese beverages. With the guidance of a Japanese consultant, the café exudes a unique Japanese image effortlessly.

Coming from a reputable Japanese coffee shop, a native of Tokyo, Mr. Atsushi Yoshizawa found potential in the Philippine market. With his background with restaurant operations he adapted the same method and ventured into the food business here in our country. At the same time Ifoods Exchange Incorporated with its growing brands was able to partner with Mr. Yoshizawa that provided him a team that was able to develop and conceptualize the dishes, the restaurant look, and the entire brand.

Differentiating itself from a regular coffee shop and a Japanese restaurant, it offers first-class fusion of Japanese and Western cuisine. This is backed with a wide array of beverages and desserts. An unlike the rest, the restaurant is family friendly. Groups made up of office people, friends, and families frequent the café. The place does not brood with stiff old men or young rowdy yuppies but provides a laid back environment for any age to those who desires to have a delightful dining experience and a relaxing time.

Tokyo Café started with its first branch in SM Mall of Asia, it consistently has reported as one of the highest selling restaurants in the whole mall. After a year of successful operations, the second branch opened at SM The Block, gaining more popularity with its target market. The third restaurant is found in posh and hip McKinley Piazza wherein thriving call centers and businesses are starting to appear. While the fourth and fifth restaurant are located at Go Hotel and SM Megamall. Aside from local branch they also extend their branch in China.

Tokyo Café has proven to be the goose that lays the golden eggs for Ifoods Exchange Incorporated. The restaurant is eyed to increase in number in the years to come.

Check out some of their menus, their value meals and their promos. It can be for a single person with a huge appetite or it can be for the whole family.

To experience a taste of exquisite Japanese foods just visit Tokyo Café!