I got very lazy recently, with the weather becoming colder and colder.. anyway, looking/searching for a used car (in Japan) from the internet can be a hassle if someone couldn't read/speak Japanese. Luckily, only very recently I came to know about Goo-net website (thank u Zuru-chan) that provides information in English. The company claim that they have the largest database of used cars distributed in Japan. In my opinion, the website is well organized and even browsing through it (without any intention) can be fun

Arashiyama, Kyoto

It must be the darling of Kyoto. During autumn, the plants on the slopes of the mountain change color to red and yellow (some remain green), making this place stunning than ever. It's also the time tourists flock this area like nothing I could imagine. I may not have the opportunity to visit this place during autumn, once is good enough just to tell others 'Yeah.. I've been there'

Flea market ('not to be confused with free market cause the pronunciation seems to be similar in Japanese slang') are currently common in this area. For a guy like me who happen to be from a country with tropical climate, whatever I need for the cold winter season in Kyoto, I rather get it here cause it's cheap and I can't use this stuff in my country. Another thing is that, before coming to this country I had the idea that Japanese people only like to use new stuff ('new clothes.. they change their cars etc.), however, this type of flea market seems to be getting a very good response from the local crowd. Maybe, Old is Gold!

Velotaxi

This is the first time I'm seeing a 'Velotaxi' in Kyoto area. It's a perfect modern 'rebranding' of the classic rickshaw. If I'm not mistaken, they've installed a GPS receiver inside it. The design looks pretty cool and the fair seems reasonable. The operators are also able to generate side income through the advertisements they put on this vehicle. For more info on 'Velotaxi' visit here

The prestigious Nobel Prize winners for this year was announced recently and the names that caught our attention are mostly Japanese (not necessarily citizens). For me, it is not a surprise and it explains why many foreign researches are in this country.. the research in this country is very powerful compared to our home country. Congratulations to Japan and Japanese people! not to forget, thank you for sharing the knowledge with us

Kyoto University of Art and Design

I heard from a foreigner that Kyoto University of Art and Design is the best kept secret of Kyoto. Therefore, last weekend I set up a course to boldly go to this institution. For some reason, this place had a lot of stairs. In my opinion, the true beauty of this institution was in their ability to blend the beauty of nature and modern design. One of my sweet memories was a visit to Ultra Factory, which is a design workshop utilizing metal, wood and resin. More pics can be viewed here

Menkyo

The procedure of switching my foreign licence into a Japanese driving license was surely a difficult one for me. With me being 'Lost in translation' and with the strict regulations being imposed.. I definitely went through some mixed emotions. My only wish is that what now looks like some mixed emotions, will become an important lesson for me in the future

Pelamis wave energy converter maybe the perfect alternative for countries to generate electricity from renewable energy sources. Even though developed by a Scottish company, recently a lot attention was directed towards the Portuguese worlds first wave farm that utilizes this device. According to France 24 (2008), this device alone meets the energy demand of 500 Portuguese homes a year. Wow! I hope the developing nations will wake up..