Hanabi Taikai (花火大会) or fireworks festival is held in Summer and showcase a fabulous fireworks show that lasts for about one to two hours. I really love this festival because I can dress up in yukata, have one or two cans of beer haha but of course, the best thing is to be able to share those things with my friends. And as what usually accompany a festival in Japan is street snack and game stalls lining the streets. 

The sketches below are from the reference photos that my friend took during Hanabi festival in Yokohama, July 2008.

Now that I'm not living in Japan anymore, I miss this festival the most. Well, I guess the next visit to Japan will be in Summer then :D

From a reference photo I took during Summer 2008 in Japan. Mom and Dad visited us in Tokyo and so we planned a trip to Osaka, Kyoto and Hakone. Hoping to do more sketches of Hakone. Ahh finding the right pic will be tough tho, took tons of photos from the trip :p

I've been to Disney Sea Japan quite a number of times before and below are the sketches from the reference photos I took from various visits.

~ A lighthouse ~

Ah it's this time of the year again. On August, many events are held in Japan, celebrating the summer. It's called Natsu matsuri, a summer festival.

I love going to these events, always filled with people, a huge selection of street snacks and of course, beer. Nothing compared to drinking a chilled beer in a hot, summer season.

This sketch below is from a photo I took on August, 2008, at Ueno park.

Mum and Dad came to visit me and my brother in Summer 2008 and we went to Enoshima, an island connected to the main island of Japan by bridge. A beautiful island with a lovely beach that become crowded in Summer.

The main attraction of this island is of course its many shrines known simply as Enoshima Shrine. Other than shrine, you can visit aquarium in Enoshima, I like the jelly fish section :D

~ August 13, 2008 ~

Many cute florists in Japan, didn't matter whether I was in a hurry or not, I always stopped by and just looked at all those fresh, lovely flowers.

~ 8 August 2008 ~

~ 19 October 2008 ~

:: Aoyama Flower Market ::

In Golden Week 2008, we went to Nikkou for the first time. Nikkou is famous for its onsen and mountain view. Should go there in Autumn.

:: June 2008 ::

I remember I ordered a cup of hot tea, a burger and fries at Mc Donald, Enoshima, just near by the station, and started to sketch. 

~ 31 August 2008 ~

.: Original post can be read here :.

Two paintings below are from photos, taken at Disney Sea, the second time I went there. The first time was with my fullcast friends in Summer 2007, it was a hell lot of fun. The second time was when my mom visited Japan in January 2008. We went there with my brother, just the three of us. Inside, I was so... thrilled to see a HUGE garden full of various kinds of tulips. So amazed *yeah my first time to see so many tulips, my fave flower* that I asked my brother - not really a fan of nature beauty - to take a lot of pics of me with the tulip garden until he grew impatient sheesh... If I went alone, I would love to just stare at those fabulous tulips and... just be there!

:: Oil on Canvas ::
80 x 60 cm
~February 2009~
.: Tulip Garden at Disney Sea :.

:: Watercolor ::
24 x 32 cm 
~May 22, 2009~ 
.: Disney Sea :.

What is Torii? Well, as you can see here, it’s a Japanese gate that usually serves as an entrance to the sacred place. So you pretty much can find it in a shrine. I remember the trip to Nikko and how I was soo fascinated by this torii, placed just beside the lake.

Lucky I took quite a lot of pictures of the must-visit Nikko so I can use them as future references to make sketches :D

~ May 23, 2009 ~

I love Sakura and going to hanami (cherry blossoms/sakura viewing) was exciting and fun. The paintings really don't do justice here. You should feel the atmosphere at hanami. So alive.

These paintings were drawn from reference photos that I took when I went to hanami with my friends in the year 2008.

.: An old post from my other blog :.

Aahh takoyaki I bought from that small store above was the yummiest takoyaki ever so far. I went to Osaka and Kyoto with my family and oh we only spent half a day in Kyoto... HALF A DAY!!! What were we thinking?? hm well, I just have to make sure the next time I go there, I'll absorb every detail of the beauty of the old city.

~ February 27, 2009 ~

I forgot when it was when Benny gave us an omiyage, mochi. The mochi was put in a box with picture on the lid. I happened to be the last one who got the mochi so Inge *or was it Ellen??* gave me the mochi and the box. I love the picture on the lid, very simple, so I decided to keep the box *didn't have the heart to throw it*. I guess you might find one in omiyage stores ^^ 

~ February 27, 2009 ~

It is another sakura sketch, in case you don't know what the heck is that pink, tree-like curvy lines. Nothing more to say. I love sakura.

~ February 06, 2009 ~

.: This entry is actually an old post from my other blog. I rewrite and edit the post :.

It was one day in Autumn '08 when me and my friends set off to Kita Kamakura for Momiji hunting slash tracking. The sun shone bright enough to warm the cool autumn day. Well, exactly the perfect day for our outing. We, the girls, met up with the boys on the station's platform.

The photo itself is courtesy of one of my friend, our photographer for the day. And one thing that I do remember well about that day; I wore the wrong outfit. On my defense, I didn't know we were going to do tracking. I thought we were just gonna find someplace under the tree to chill out, take a lot of photos, finding the most perfect spot etc. but…ぶっぶーっ no, we went tracking too!! and I wore boots, high heel ones!! geez… luckily the scenery was amazing, worked like a charm to ease the discomfort :p 

 Dip a banana in melted chocolate and there you have it, banana choco. This snack is pretty popular in Japan, can almost be found in every matsuri (festival).

Just a few blocks away from Machida train station, there's this homey, lovely, small Italian restaurant with warm atmosphere. I went there for dinner once in a cold season, ordered pizza and spaghetti and just adored the interior. Vintage all the way to the toilet! Its the cutest toilet to-date :) Hm funny, I remember the toilet but not the taste of the food I ordered :p

These are from pictures taken during my first visit to Tokyo Disney Sea in summer.

This shrine is like an oasis in the middle of the hustle and bustle of the busy city Shinjuku.

I always enjoyed walking from Shinjuku JR station to my previous company, several blocks away. It's always crowded like crazy in Shinjuku especially in the morning where people rushing to be in their office on time. And you can easily get carried away and forget the beauty around you. Like a cute flower shop near the station entrance, a paved street outlined with trees, cafes… Sometimes, it's better to slow down once in a while and observe the surrounding.