Iwakuni

My home on the other side of the world, where the local girls told me that I looked like Harry Potter. When I said I was 30 years-old, they look surprised and said 25. That made me feel better about the Harry Potter comment.

Iwakuni has about 100,000 people and like most places in Japan, the town seems surrounded by mountains. It's most famous for the Kintai-kyo bridge, which has a lot of character, but I'd also add Iwakuni's castle as a memorable sight. I'd rank it among the best of all the castles I saw. It sits on top of one of the mountains overlooking the entire town.

After visiting the crowded craziness of other cities, it was always nice to come home to Iwakuni.

Octopus balls and other food

I ate pieces of octopus in balls of dough with a toothpick. I single-handedly gave more business to a candymaker called Pure than they probably had all year; those chewy sour candies were a daily treat. I grilled thinly sliced beef at my table and upon eating, I felt like Meg Ryan in "When Harry Met Sally." It was that good. I ate okonomiyaki at least five times and it was not enough. One of my most favorite experiences in one city was going to a place called Ramen Stadium. Down the street from our apartment, I adored a coffee shop run by an old man and woman; a place with 70's style decor, elderly patrons, Dr. Dre blasting from the sound system, and excellent kohi."

As I've said before, I'll give the "best breakfast" award to America, but the prizes for lunch and dinner go elsewhere hands down...and Japan is most definitely in the running.

Christmas in Hiroshima

Nothing says Christmas Day like a visit to the Atomic Bomb Museum. As good a day as any, my first visit to Hiroshima was very moving. The museum was terrific and seeing the ruins of the Atomic dome lit up at night was surreal. I took pictures from all angles.

Walking around the city, it's hard to imagine the horror that occurred on that day. It's a beautiful place and on Christmas, the streets were glowing with the most impressive light displays I'd ever seen. Some Japanese teenagers treated us like rock stars and asked for pictures.

We capped it all off with a five course Christmas dinner at an excellent Italian restaurant by the water. Yes, they serve Italian food in Japan. Yes, the Japanese were the ones cooking the food. And yes, it tasted just like the real thing.

Miyajima

Miyajima is an island famous for the Itsukushima Shrine, the 360-degree views from Mt. Misen, roaming deer & monkeys, and lots of freshly made Momiji manju (maple-leaf shaped pastries filled with custard, chocolate and sweet bean).

Also, it just so happens to be the home of the world's largest spoon.

Hanging with the Deer in Nara

Americans like to kill and eat their deer. The Japanese like to let them roam freely, while tempting them with special deer biscuits.

Apparently, in ancient pre-Buddhist Japan, deer were considered messengers of the gods, and so today, they are still treated as sacred creatures. In other words, you won't see venison on the menu and you won't see antlers mounted in someone's home.

Bambi would be happy here. I certainly was and couldn't get enough of all the deer just hanging around. Fyi...the costume character you see is the mascot of Nara, the original capital of Japan. It's half deer, half Buddha and totally strange.

New Name

How could I continue my blog "B-Rug in the Little Red Dot" when I no longer live in Singapore? Easy. Spend lots of time in Japan and change little red dot into BIG red dot.

Hope you enjoy this as much as I'm enjoying Japan!

Sayonara Singapore

I only have 5 days left in Singapore. It's surreal. I keep having goodbye drinks, goodbye coffee chats, goodbye lunches...and I'm not 100% ready to say goodbye.

Before coming here, I couldn't even point this country out on a map (often because a red dot covers it on every map). Once I got here, everyone told me - get out and travel. And I did, at least once a month.

When I went to one place, I discovered 5 more that I wanted to explore. There's so much to see, and it's hard to believe that only year ago, Southeast Asia was just some vague landmass to me. Not any more...and I am better off for it.

But as many places as there are to see, being in Singapore made me realize that I just need to hop on a plane to get there. Sounds basic, but I never thought that way. Now, if a flight is under 10 hours, it's a cakewalk. I guess you could say that over the past 13 months, the world became accessible. My "to do" list is now pretty big.

Luckily, while I will be moving back to NYC, I will be living in Japan for a few months each year as well. So, although I'm saying sayonara now, don't take it personally Asia - because I'll be back and already, I can't wait.

And for all the traveling I did, there were great times and discoveries right under my nose in Singapore. It's a strange mix of the absurd and the truly wonderful. It's in that spirit that I leave you with the TOP 10 REASONS I WILL MISS SINGAPORE.

#10 Clean, air-conditioned subways that run on time and have cell reception & working escalators

#9 Seeing Indian men hold hands/put their arms around each other while walking down the street. It's what Indian friends do.

#8 Reserving tables by throwing down a pack of wet naps. After you do that, you can walk away to find your food and no matter how long you take, nobody will dare take your naps or table. (I think I'll start this in NYC and see what happens).

#7 Changi Airport. It's beautiful, efficient and calming - it puts everything in the US to shame.

#6 Freshly cut mango that tastes like the nectar of the gods. The little Chinese ladies at the fruit stand anticipate my order every time: "Two mango, is it?" to which I respond "Yes, lah"

#5 Practicing my Singlish with the experts, lah. No can in NYC! http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Singlish

#4 THE FOOD. Although, I crave to have real pizza, pancakes and grilled chicken from back home, I largely prefer the food here. Best of all - good, fresh food is affordable and accessible. Chicken Satay, Roti Prata, Chicken Rice, Lahksa, Carrot Cake (the Chinese kind), Char Siew, Briyani, Chendel, Snow Ice, Sugar Cane juice, Dumpling Noodles and the list goes on!

#3 Being able to say things like, "Cambodia for the weekend."

#2 Drinking coffee from a bag! Or, as they call it in Singapore, kopi.

#1 Having the merlion as my national symbol. The merlion (see picture) is part fish, part lion and a whole lot of laughs