When in Fukuoka: Enjoy Cherry Blossoms at Nishi Park

One of the things I look forward to when visiting Japan is to bask in the beauty of cherry blossoms. Unfortunately, the forecast schedule for the blooms was incorrect and we were there a bit too early. But thanks to Instagram's hashtags and geotags, I was able to discover Nishi Park. 

Hello, Nishi Park!

Nishi Park is just one bus ride away from my AirBnB so it was so convenient for me to visit this massive area. The ride though is a bit costly at 230 Yen per way. 

Food Find: Köök Manila

I find it interesting how much I’ve changed over the past few years. Before, I’d make sure that I have plans on weekends and that I get to visit at least five restaurants to serve as my content the following week. As I grow older (with matching aching joints and slower metabolism), I now value staycations and enjoying my alone time in the comfort of my own home. And one staycation got extra special when I got a sweet treat from Köök Manila.

Hello mini vacation with Köök Manila!

I hurriedly went home as soon as the clock hit 6 pm and I placed the vacuum-sealed Greek Chicken in the sink to thaw as I prepare my cookware.

Since I do not have an indoor griller, I decided to pan-fry the chicken sans the oil. Though I do not recommend this as it took me quite some time to cook the chicken, it still gets the job done. Best to puncture or slice the chicken to make sure that all parts get cooked. (Mine took longer than it should have because I wanted my chicken to look pretty when I take photos of it. Priorities.)

How to make your weekend action-packed!

I have always wanted to try paintball but I never had the chance when I went to Tagaytay Highlands. I was so glad though that I joined Couch Surfing and that someone organized a paintball event on January 30, 2011. J I made sure that I WILL BE THERE NO MATTER WHAT. 

Finally, January 30 came and we all went to the La Mesa Eco Park (yes, there’s Global Gutz there too) to play paintball and to also try other things (such as biking, rappelling, wall climbing, fishing, boating). There is also a zipline inside the park. :)

 

We first tried to bike. We got a bit disappointed because rented bikes cannot be used outside the enclosed biking area. But since I saw a pretty interesting bike, I still rented one. It was a bit more expensive than the basic bicycles (basic bicycles cost P60/hour and the one I rented costs P80/hour). The enclosed area is actually “supposed” to be a good place to learn how to bike. BUT, the ground was pretty uneven and it was also quite rocky. So, for first-timers… good luck.

Bike at your own risk!

Don't worry. The first aid station is very near the biking area :)

After biking in circles, we decided to find food. To our surprise, there are very, and I mean VERY limited food options. No wonder some people advised us to bring our own food. But we were a stubborn group and hardly brought food. Some brought some chips with them and thank goodness for that.

Anyway, we are now excited to do something… violent. *Off to Global Gutz.* To be honest, I got super nervous and even hesitated if I should still try it since they made us sign a waiver that they will not be accountable for anything that happens to us inside the arena. (We were “quite” safe though because we were equipped with masks and chest… uh pads.)But since a lot were still very game to try it, I gave in. It costs P350 for 50 bullets and P500 for 100 bullets. Extra bullets cost P4 each. Yes, it is quite expensive. But I guess we are paying for the unique experience.

At first, I thought that 50 bullets is more than enough but I realized that it is so not enough because we all became trigger happy when we see the opposing team. Note: Be careful of getting hit on the head. IT IS PAINFUL. Also, make sure that you follow the rules. 1.) Keep your distance. 2.) Make sure that you do not attack people with their hands up for they either ran out of bullets or were hit twice already. The masks get blurry and foggy after some time since we sweat (unless you are some demigod who do not sweat at all but glow instead). But you have to wear your mask at all times or face the risk of your eyes saying hello to paintballs (which look like egg yolks).

Our P350 lasted for less than 20 minutes I think. >.< But it was a fun-filled less-than- 20-minutes game. And several mosquito bites as a bonus!

The before PAINtball picture

The others even had the energy to do wall climbing while the others opted to try the zipline. Since I was dead tired (and was not too keen with the zipline because of the lack of view), I opted to… buy ice cream and let the not-so-polluted air dry my sweaty top. (Disgusting, I know.)

Overall, I will go back to the park and try the other activities namely fishing, boating, and wall climbing. :)

Captured! Yihee! <3