Got up around 4:40am this morning and took the above shots. The house temperature as shown on the clock was 20C which was comfortable (outside temp about 17C).
The place is very quiet and peaceful. It is a good getaway from the hustle and bustle of Singapore.

A small garden at my in-law's old house

Before my in-laws sell off their 40+ year old house, I took a video of their small garden. There are plum trees, chives plant and others. They intend to either demolish the house and build another one or sell it off. Currently, they are living in the new house in which we are "camping".

Japanese convenience stores or konbini and sushi dinner

Mini Stop is a konbini or convenient store in Japan. Besides MS, Japan has other
konbini like 7-11, Lawson and Family Mart. They sell hot and cold beverages, sandwiches, onigiri (rice balls), instant noodles including ramen etc.
Konbinis also offer services like banking services through their ATMs, fax machines, copiers, postal services, ticket reservations for concerts, theme parks, baseball game, tickets for highway bus services etc etc.
This morning, my wife and I took a 10 minute walk to the above konbini and had our coffee (100 Yen or S$1.25c) and sandwiches. The sandwiches ( 250 Yen or S$3.10) were one of the best we ever had. The bread for the sandwiches were soft and the fillings were absolutely tasty.
Konbini offers free wi-fi but we particularly like Mini Stop because it provides seats besides free wi-fi. Most Lawson and 7-11 do not provide seats for their customers. Most konbini operate 24/7. As usual,car parking is free of charge.

                                                                                Dinner@ home

We had the bamboo rice which was prepared by my mother-in-law, sushi and potato salad which we bought from the supermarket. They are scrumptious and fresh as well as reasonably priced !

Small cars, big cars, parking etc in Japan

There are 2 types of car licence plates in Japan,one is white and the other is yellow in colour. The white one is applicable to cars over 1,000cc and the yellow plate is lower than 1,000cc. The yellow plated cars are known as " K " or karui which means "light vehicles". "K" plated cars are lower in taxes etc and in some places have dedicated or specially allotted parking lots. Most " Ks" are used as second car in the family.
In Japan, the number of vehicles owned by a family are determined by the number of car parking lots they have.
Most, if not all public car parking are free of charge except in the cities and at train stations.

About cars in Japan

We finally bought the above car, a Toyota Sienta 1.5 liter for S$32,500 with all the extra features. We decided to pay half the amount for my parent-in-laws as a present. In return, we have the privilege of driving the car whenever it is not in use. Renting a car in Japan is very expensive.

My sister-in-law got her Mitsubishi 650cc for about S$20,000 last year. This car is fine if you do not carry too much cargo or baggage or more than 2 people. It is economical and reliable too.

Had sushi for lunch

We started the day by having salad.
The temperature is a comfortable 23C at 12 noon. In the night, it is usually around 19C. It's still springtime and we are enjoying the lovely weather.
In the afternoon, we went to eat sushi. The sushi may not be the best in terms of taste but it was quite cheap. The damage for the 4 of us was S$40.

First day in Fukuoka, Japan

We are staying at our parents-in-law's newly built house. My father-in-law had to scrap his 15 year old Toyota Wish and so we told him we would help pay half the price of his would be new car, a 1.5ccToyota Sienta (aka sporty mini van). The Sienta is about S$25,000. In Singapore, with a 10 year coe it would probably cost $90,000.
As for lunch, we were each given a set of fried pork,pickles and salad. The food was absolutely marvelous (cooked by mum-in-law).
We may stay in Japan for 3 months.

LiHO bubble tea at Seletar Mall 😁😀🤩

We are so glad that LiHO bubble tea has arrived at Seletar Mall. It replaced what used to be a spectacle shop in Seletar Mall. My wife and I used to like the bubble tea at Koi at Seletar Mall but now it is LiHO all the way. LiHO provides seats for its customers whereas Koi does not. Personally, I think the drinks at LiHO are so much better. I don't go the cheese tea but rather sticks to milk pearl tea which is pleasant in taste and cheaper than most ($3).

Delicious pasta from Saizeriya

All the above with free flow of hot/cold drinks and salad for S$19....good value 👍👍👏👏👌

Durian party

I came across this at a HDB void deck. The party was almost over with lots leftover durain. I offered to buy some but was told they were not for sale. None of the staff offered me the durain. I was wondering what are they going to do with the leftovers. Will they repack and sell them the next day?