Japan IV: Sayonara Osaka

Checked out of Swissôtel at 7:00 am. Took the train to KIX and had a breakfast of curry katsu udon at the terminal. Before heading to the gate, we made a toilet stop and when I got out, nobody was around. So I thought they had all went through the security check. As I was lining up, I saw SK and The Tribe, but mum and KH were no where to be found. Opps! I rushed back out to find mum at the toilet. Gosh. What a lapse of judgement to just go off without warning. And I saw KH making his back from the money changer. Past immigration, we did some last minute shopping. SK's colleague had the gall to order ten boxes of Royce chocolates. What a nutty request. She ignored her. We took longer than expected because there were limited cashiers. Finished our leftover coins at the vending machines and convenience stores. During the flight back to Kuala Lumpur, I watched two Asian movies. The first was "The Great Shurara Boom", based on a Japanese novel. The story revolves around two feuding families who have special powers granted by the God of the Biwa Lake. Laughed out loud at several of the scenes. Entertaining.



Secondly, I watched "Personal Tailor", a movie by Feng Xiaogang. A comedy about a company that grants temporary wishes to people for a fee. Made up of many short stories, they poke fun at social situations in Mainland China in an extravagant way. IMDB describes it as 'didactic'. I still had time for one last movie-- "The Grand Budapest Hotel". Fantastic style, great dialogue and a gripping plot.



My favourite scene, the origins of the name Zero Moustafa, the Lobby Boy:

You're now going to be
officially interviewed.
Should I go and light
the candle first, sir?
What? No.
Experience?
Hotel Kinski, Kitchen
Boy, six months.
Hotel Berlitz, Mop and Broom Boy,
three months.
Before that I was a Skillet Scrubber...
Experience, zero.
Education?
I studied reading and spelling.
I started my primary school.
I almost...
Education, zero.
Family?
Zero.
Why do you want to be a Lobby Boy?
Well, who wouldn't,
at the Grand Budapest, sir?
It's an institution.
Very good.




Didn't quite finish the movie. I had to watch the ending at home. Didn't have to get acclimatized to Malaysian weather, as it was hot as heck in Osaka. But it was quite disconcerting that there were no taxis available. Most probably due to the fact that it was the second day of Eid. In the end, we got the only thing that was available, a van. An old and bumpy vehicle that I felt was going too fast. Back home, we had Chinese for dinner! Five dishes and we finished it all. Felt so hungry. LOL. Had to work the next day... Arghhh... I miss Japan already!