Reasons to Ditch the Diet Soda

If you love to drink diet soda, you should read this.

Source: www.fitsugar.com


The waitress swings by your table and you casually order a Diet Coke. This zero-calorie beverage seems like a great way to have your soda and lose weight too, but aside from sabotaging your weight loss goals, innocently sipping a diet soda can put you at risk for a whole slew of health issues. Keep reading to find out why you may want to skip the diet soda, or at least cut down on your habit.

• Studies show that drinking diet soda may increase your risk of heart attack and stroke by 44 percent.
• The artificial sweeteners, though calorie-free, make our body crave sugary calories, so drinking diet soda can actually lead to weight gain.
• Although diet plays a major role, a diet soda habit may also be linked to an increased risk of developing type 2 diabetes.
• Caffeine consumption can make you jittery, worsen IBS symptoms, increase blood pressure, cause sleep issues, and lead to osteoporosis.
• Artificial sweeteners are just that — artificial. Although the FDA deems them safe in moderate consumption, artificial sweeteners like aspartame can cause headaches and migraines, and long-term use of acesulfame K can cause nausea and possibly cancer.
• Aside from diet soda offering no nutritional value whatsoever, the caffeine can also lead to dehydration. You're better off choosing zero-calorie tea, seltzer, or water to stay hydrated.

Will Miss #4 - Greenbelt Jogging Trail

Photo source: Pinterest

There is no place like Greenbelt.  I love running and this is my favorite running place in Rokko Island. I hope I can find a good jogging place in Singapore, though may not be as good as this.

More Reasons to Eat Fruits

More reasons why we should eat fruits. Got this from Pinterest Health and Fitness.

Photo source: Pinterest

Tokyo Trip Day 2 - Tokyo DisneySea

Tokyo DisneySea is a fantasy theme park in Tokyo Disney Resort that is unique to Japan. Inspired by the myths and legends of the sea, Tokyo DisneySea is made up of seven themed ports: Mediterranean Harbor, Mystery Island, Mermaid Lagoon, Arabian Coast, Lost River Delta, Port Discovery, and American Waterfront. While suitable for all ages, Tokyo DisneySea was designed to specifically  appeal to a more grown up audience. The park addresses the Japanese visitors' strong interest in good food by providing a wider selection of table service restaurants than Tokyo Disneyland and by serving alcoholic beverages, which are unavailable at the neighboring park. (source: www.japan-guide.com).

We were not very lucky on our 2nd day in Tokyo at DisneySea. It rained the whole day, but we did not let the rain ruin our day.  We enjoyed DisneySea as much as we enjoyed Disneyland. We were well rested the night before, and so we were able to stay until evening to watch the evening show. Too bad I was not able to take a video of the show. There were too many people, despite the rains.

With Mount Prometheus as background. Mount Prometheus is the icon of Tokyo DisneySea.

Tokyo Trip Day 1: Tokyo Disneyland

Tokyo Disneyland is a 115-acre theme park at the Tokyo Disney Resort located in Urayasu, Chiba, Japan.  It was the first Disney park to be built outside of the United States and opened on April 15, 1983. The park was constructed by Walt Disney Imagineering in the same style as Disneyland in California and Magic Kingdom in Florida. It is owned by the Oriental Land Company, which licenses the theme from the Walt Disney Company. Tokyo Disneyland and its companion park, Tokyo DisneySea, are the only Disney parks not owned by the Walt Disney Company. (Source: Wikipanion)

After 5 years of living in Japan, we finally got the chance to visit Tokyo Disneyland.  We expected that Tokyo would be very crowded during the golden week (first week of May) so we planned to go there just before the golden week. The girls were on break from school and the Spring weather was just perfect for this trip. We took the overnight bus from Sannomiya Kobe to Tokyo (on April 25) as this is much cheaper compared to Shinkansen (bullet train) or plane. The bus left at 10pm and arrived in Tokyo Disneyland at 8am.  We were all very tired from the overnight trip and sleepless too (I wasn't able to sleep well in the bus), but it was all worth it.  We had fun the whole day in Tokyo Disneyland.

Our 2-day pass.

The Cinderella Castle is the icon of Tokyo Disneyland and that's me posing in front of the Cinderella Castle.

"It's a Small World" at Fantasyland.  This is is for small kids, but we enjoyed it just the same. Love love it!

Tokyo Disneyland Easter Parade video that was taken by my daughter Abby.

We missed the evening show as we were all very tired and sleepy in the late afternoon.  So, we decided to go and take a rest at the hotel at around 6PM.

Next time we go to Tokyo, I will make sure that we ride the Shinkansen going to Tokyo so it will not be too tiring and then ride the overnight bus in going back to Kobe.

Will Miss #3 - Japanese Ramen

I will surely miss my favorite ramen, the Japanese miso ramen that goes with special kimchi.  Ramen is a Japanese noodle dish, served in a meat-based broth and uses toppings such as sliced pork, dried seaweeds, and green onions. Every locality in Japan has its own variation of ramen.

Miso ramen

Tomato ramen

Kimchi 

My ramen will not be complete without the appetizing gyoza (this is ordered separately).

This is our favorite Ramen house in Sannomiya. 

And this is me enjoying Japanese ramen one winter evening :).

Will Miss #2 - 100 Yen Shops

100 yen shops (hyaku en shoppu in Japanese) are everywhere in Japan. 100 yen shops sell a wide range of products for 100 yen plus 5% consumption tax (~1.20 USD per item).  For Japan, 100 yen is cheap because everything else is expensive here.  100 yen shops sell almost all kinds of items from household goods, food and drinks, clothing, tools, tableware, kitchenware, garden ware, stationery, batteries, and personal goods.

We have three 100 yen shops here in Rokko Island. This is the one beside Kobe Bay Sheraton hotel and this is my favorite shop here in RI.

  

Benefits of Coconut Water

Wow, coconut water also has a lot of benefits. We have a lot of this in the Philippines, but we don't have it here in Japan.

Will Miss #1 - The Four Seasons

As I have written in my previous blog post, I will start writing short posts about the things that I will miss about Japan. The first in my list is the changing season - Winter, Spring, Summer, then Fall/Autumn.

We only have 1 season in the Philippines, same in Singapore.  I will not miss summer but I will miss the cold seasons especially my favorite seasons - Spring and Autumn.

Random Memories - Living in Japan

Japan has been by second home for more than 5 years now. I moved here in May 2007 with my family.  I am really blessed to be given this once in a lifetime opportunity to work in an international assignment. I am so thankful to God for this major major blessing that He has given me.  My 2 girls also got the chance to study in an International School (Canadian Academy in Rokko Island Kobe) sponsored by the company.  There were some obstacles before I got this job, but there is where God wanted me to be.

Our second day in Rokko Island Japan (May 2, 2007). We all look so young!

The girls look so young :).

Posing

I love everything about Japan. For me, Japan is the best place to live in the world. I love the culture and the people. Japan is a very safe place to place. Japanese  are the most disciplined people and the most appreciative people I have ever seen.  You will always hear them say "arigato gozaimasu" (thank you very much). They are also very apologetic always saying "sumimasen" or "gomenasai" (sorry). The only thing difficult living in Japan is the language barrier. Most of them can not speak English, so we have to learn their language to be able to communicate with them.

I will surely miss this beautiful country when I move to Singapore next year. If I have a choice I would prefer to stay here in Japan much longer, but my job requires me to move. I still have a year to enjoy Japan so I will make the most of my remaining stay here. I will also start writing short posts about the things that I will miss about Japan. Japan will always have a special place in my heart. Thinking about this makes me feel sad :(.  I have so many things in mind right now, but I will write one at a time.