Cheat Days - All Day, Err Day

This is for all of you out there who just can't accept that cheat day only comes around once a week. I confess, I am one of those people and I can't resist new and limited edition items - they could be a hit or miss but in my experience I've come across some amazing snacks.

Here in Australia, at the moment there is a Golden Ticket competition going on- much the same as in the book and movies - however in this one you don't get to meet Johnny Depp :( And sadly, I did not win a trip to the chocolate factory. But I did get to enjoy a very delicious chocolate bar.

Wonka Cookie Creamery is a "Creamy WONKA milk chocolate, cookie pieces in vanilla flavoured cream & a dash of secret sauce". Just the addition of a 'secret sauce' makes it something I need in my life. Although I don't really like Wonka chocolate this was really yummy and super cute with the little pieces. I give this snack 6.5/10.

This next snack is none other than good old Oreo's, but with a slight twist - Peanut butter and choc cream!! Who doesn't like peanut butter and chocolate?! A match made in heaven, combined with the dangerously addictive essence that seems to accompany Oreo's gives you a biscuit you're sure to gobble up in 10 seconds flat. 

 

Fun fact: Did you know that Oreo's are as addictive as cocaine? This is apparently true! Woah... explains a lot...

Yeah they make them in smaller packs now... probably a good idea as I don't stop until I've finished the pack.

Twist... Lick... and it's gone, sorry no time to dunk when I'm shoving it in my face. I give this snack 9.5/10. Utterly decadent. I hope these are around for a while.

This final snack is a chocolate bar that Australians should be familiar with - Cherry Ripe. When I was younger I always used to avoid these in the favourites boxes but as I got older I started to enjoy them more. I've seen this at the shops for a while but never really took an interest but on a whim yesterday I bought it. I'm not a massiv fan of dark chocolate but my my this was soooo good!

This is a 90th anniversary Limited Edition Dark Ganache Cherry Ripe. The description is amazing like all those on chocolate bars here "Ripe juicy cherries & coconut with an extra layer of smooth dark chocolate ganache in Old Gold rich dark chocolate". Oh my gosh I'm drooling now. Who doesn't like the sound of that?

This is one of those cases where the limited edition product may be better than the original... gosh Cadbury, it took you long enough, 90 years! ;) The dark chocolate ganache in the middle was oozy and to die for and made eating this chocolate a truly decadent experience so I would reommend you snatch one of these up before they're gone! I give this snack 9/10.

Apologies if today is not your cheat day but seriously just do it because you're only alive for a certain amount of time so why not eat nice things? - life motto.

That's all for now

Sayonara! xo

Paris Kids 'Nail Tip - One Touch Type'

Ok so it's no secret that I have an addiction to all things cute and nail polish/art so these caught my eye immediately! I have actually bought fake nails from this brand before 2 years ago and loved the easy one touch process to get them on and they were so pretty and sparkly!! *.* 

 I got these from a chain store called Sanki in Japan, but you can also get them at various stores that stock Paris kids products and Paris kids stores like the one I went to in Harajuku on Takeshita Street.  

Because I was in Harajuku I wanted to embrace the 'Harajuku Style' of crazy, cute and fun so I picked these up!

 They come with 24 nails of various sizes so that you are guaranteed to find the right fit for you. The top layer is embellished with little pearls, flowers and strawberries and the bottom layer is just a pale pink ombre glitter nail. The instructions and information are all in Japanese but don't worry, there isn't much to them, just match your nail size to the fake ones and stick 'em on!

 So many nails! <3

Although when I got back from Japan and looked at these I thought "how tacky" but they actually look super cute on and people actually thought I got my nails done at a salon! I chose to mix my nails up with some plain glitter nails and some with embellishments. The one touch type glue is sort of like a gel sticky adhesive attached to the nail which makes application easy, mess and hassle free! 

Even though my nails were pretty secure, after a couple of days they felt a little flimsy and like they were going to fall off, so I used a nail glue from Daiso to reattach them and they stayed for a week! And  I was super impressed that they didn't fall off at work- my nail polish has a reputation of chipping badly at work. Also, after a week of rough treatment by me it was understandable that some of the strawberries fell off and a couple of the petals of the flowers fell off but other than that I loved these!

And these are SUPER cheap at only 324 yen ($3.20 AUD)! And I must add that they aren't just cheap ones of poor quality... they are inexpensive, great quality, cute and are the perfect way to spruce up your nails for spring!

That's all for now,

Sayonara! xo

 

Japanese Snacktime #3 – Gari Gari Kun Ice Blocks

Gari Gari Kun is probably the most popular brand of ice blocks In Japan and it has been around for many years (since my mum was a kid) and they pretty much represent summer in Japan. They are super cheap delicious ice blocks that come in the classic Samurai Blue flavour (soda flavour), many different fruit flavours and also various limited edition flavours (some very very strange). 

This is the classic Samurai blue flavour which tastes like soda flavour and is just very refreshing and delicious! While I did not eat this one, the price is pretty low at 62 yen (60 cents AUD) and it is a classic, I give this snack 8/10. The other one pictured is Japanese pear or nashi pear flavour and it tastes EXACTLY like a nashi pear! The resemblance is extraordinary! One thing I’ve noticed with Japanese snacks and Gari Gari Kun in particular is the match of the true flavour of the food and the ice block form- I don’t get how they do it but it blows my mind! I give this snack 8.5/10. 

I should also explain the unique texture of Gari Gari Kun ice blocks- the outside is like a very hard ice block- like a regular ice block you’d find in Australia, but the inside layer is kind of like a snow cone- it is less dense than the outer layer and is very easy to bite through!

A couple of limited edition flavours I saw while I was in Japan were the Kiwi Fruit flavour and the Gari GaReeeeN flavour.

I really enjoyed the Kiwi flavour although it tasted more like a sweet green apple flavour to me – if you ever see it I definitely recommend trying it! I give this snack 9/10.

 

 

The name of the other flavour is a very funny pun that combines the two names of ‘Gari Gari Kun’ and the famous Japanese band ‘GReeeeN’ – I totally thought it was a great play on words and made me want to buy it- as well as the great packaging combining the GReeeeN logo (smile) and the well-known wide mouth of Gari Gari Kun. Gosh the packaging and advertising in Japan is crazy good! Anyways I didn’t enjoy the ice block as much as the packaging – it was a green apple flavoured ice block with little coloured sherbet drops through the middle. It was kinda fun to eat but nothing too special with regards to flavour. I give this snack 6/10 – but the packaging would have to score a 9/10. 

And let’s not forget that this is the brand that created the infamous Corn Potage (corn soup) flavoured ice blocks, continuing with stew flavour and now - *DUN DUN DUN* Neapolitan (spaghetti with tomato sauce). Having tried corn potage flavour 2 years ago out of curiosity, and not minding the flavour (although it was very weird to eat something that tasted EXACTLY like corn soup in the form of an ice block), I decided to try the Neapolitan flavour this time.

Warning signal #1- it was reduced to 30 yen at the supermarket (30 cents AUD)… not a good sign considering Japanese people eat a lot of crazy things and this was reduced drastically to try and sell them.

Warning signal #2 – all the tasting videos on YouTube all pretty much saying that it’s disgusting.

…Aaaand then I bought it and ate it…

Not the best idea I’ve had. It tasted like tomato juice and it even had little bits of tomato jelly through the middle- YUCK! So then I forced my family to try it as well *mwahahahaha*. One of the most foul things I’ve ever tasted, I give this snack 1/10… It gets one point because of the company’s bravery to release this flavour and the whole experience- like when are you ever going to eat a spaghetti flavoured ice block?... and the answer is now NEVER AGAIN!

I hope you enjoyed my very long post about Gari Gari Kun ice blocks– thank you if you made it this far! If you’ve ever tried Gari Gari Kun I would love to hear what flavours you've tried and your opinions on them!

That’s all for now,

Sayonara! xo