Words and any number of photos, artworks and dedicated poetry would not be enough to express how thankful I am to everyone and everything involved in making Japan 2015 possible. That is:
My family. Hello.
Specifically my mother, who deserves all the gratitude and love in the world, and all of the well wishes and happy birthdays and prosperity. Consistently, happily and with very little remorse, my mother goes over and beyond what could be expected of any parent. Not only does she provide for our basic needs, she gives us most of everything we could reasonably want: an excellent wardrobe (thank you!), tasteful food, and the privileged opportunity to travel. (She also gives hilarious life anecdotes coupled with essential life advice, so when it comes to mothers, I’ve probably got the best one.)
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My brother, for taking maybe 50% of all the pictures I’ll be featuring here (and 95% of all the photos featuring my face). I am incredibly thankful for the fact that you decided to take up photography as your mid20s hobby (alongside travelling, fitness routines, possibly partying…). Thanks for being a super awesome older brother, I really look up to you (I mean, literally. You’re still much taller than me.)
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My sister, who must be awarded with best sister in the world (still a #stagesister in many ways haha). Super thank you for putting up with me during the trip, as we were unofficial travel buddies, hotel roommates and whatever. Thank you for being even more interested than me when it comes to reading about the stuff we visit, all the cultural stuff, and for generally being responsible for me when I’m not paying attention. Which is often.
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Tita Bea, thank you so much for making our Tokyo experience perfect! I can’t really imagine what our trip would have been like if you weren’t there to show us around all the cool places, bring us to the best food shops, and give us tips and information and the like. Your happiness in Tokyo upped the lovability of the city by maybe a hundred percent.
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For everyone who held down the fort, from Ate Risa here in Paranaque, to the lights of my life: my academic groupmates Viv, Cams and Stef —thank you so much for putting up with my very frequent absence. You guys are the best, and will probably always be the best. I can’t believe we were handling Pseudomonas in the lab. You make everything possible.
And lastly. Love to the people I love, and to the people I hope to love in the future. Cheers.
xxx
I. Credits and Love
II. Japanese Quirks, Signs and Life
III. Tokyo: Part 1
IV. Tokyo: DisneySea
V. Tokyo: Part 2
VI. Hikone Interlude
VII. Kyoto
VIII. Osaka
IX. Osaka: Universal Studios Japan
xxx
xxx
jari m 