Game Review

 Today I played a very interesting game for those of you who would like to have a cupcake shop business. The name of the game is Papa's Cupcakeria. You can play the game for free through this link　Papa's Cupcakeria



(Goal of the Game)

The goal of the game is to make cupcakes based on the customer's order. The cupcake can be customized with different batters, different frosting, different toppings and even different cupcake cups. You need to make it within the specified standard in order to make the customer happy. You can also receive extra tips if you have done a good job in making their orders.

In the beginning, the game has a tutorial session on how to receive orders, making the products, and also serving it to the customer. Here is a picture of one of the tutorial session.

After finishing the tutorial session, I tried to take the customer order and made it without any help. This is a picture that shows how the employee takes the order of the customer

Th next part is to create the batter of the cupcake. This is a picture that shows the batter station where I could choose the cupcake cups and the cupcake batter according to the customer's order.

After choosing the cupcake cups and the batter, we bake the cupcakes in the baking station. Here is a picture of the baking station. You have to keep an eye on this station because if it exceeds the white line you could have an overcooked cupcake.

After you are finished with baking, you can continue to the building station in which you can add the frostings and toppings to the cupcakes.

 

After you are finishes you can give the result to your customer and they willl evaluate your finished product and give you extra tips if they are very satisfied.

Lastly, this is the picture of the summary for each level

(Pros + and Cons -)

(+) The game is very realistic, even they teach you the proper way of making a spiral frosting for your cupcake
(+) Variety of toppings, batters, cupcake cups, and frostings
(+) You can be inspired to create new flavor combinations if you have a cupcake business of your own
(+) Trial and error of making cupcakes without wasting any raw materials
(+) The tutorial sessions are really informative


(-) It's quite hard because it's realistic, especially with the frosting area for me it's very challenging
(-) The customer decides how much you get, in reality you set the price for the customer so it doesn't represent the real condition
(-) It gets hard very quickly, even in day 2 you already get 3 additional customers


(Rating)

8.5/10

I think this game is very fun to pass the time. You can also learn a few basic cupcake business process if you are interested in opening a cupcake shop. You should definitely try this game out

Cargo Bridge 2

Today I played a game called cargo bridge. It is a very interesting game because you can also learn some basic engineering skills. I think game is a perfect way to learn a new skill because in a game, it is much simpler than reality and you can have a lot of trial and errors. You can try to play the game here: Cargo Bridge 2

This is what my design looks like for level 8: 

(Bridge Design)

3 ropes

6 pieces of steel

6 walks (floor pieces)

3.089$ left

My bridge lasted for more than 10 minutes. I tried moving bob around and finally the bridge crumbled down. Here is the picture I took when the bridge fell down.

I think I should have spend more money to add more steel in both corners of the bridge. Probably you can do a better job at making the bridge, especially for engineering students. Good luck :D

Food Packaging Survey Analysis

Food Packaging Survey Analysis

My research topic: Food Packaging

Target : Ritsumeikan University students

Number of respondents: 25 

(Summary) Ritsumeikan students answered 9 questions regarding food packaging

(Questions and analysis)

#1 

 

 Sweet snacks are very popular among university students in Ritsumeikan, I think this is why in the 711 convenience store at campus, sweet snacks are arranged near the cashier so it's easy for the buyer to just pick up the snacks and purchase it. 

#2

 

Surprisingly, the majority of the respondents for this survey usually purchase packaged food 1-3 times a week which is not that much to what I expected it to be. 17 people from an overall 25 respondents chose this option. 

#3

 

Most of my respondents purchased package food around the month of June so they recently purchased the packaged food before filling the survey. This result is predictable due to the ease of access to convenience stores and meal shops in the OIC campus such as 711 and OIC meal shop.

#4  

The design of the packaging is the element that interests the majority of my respondents. I think that this is why the packaging of food products put a lot of emphasis in the design of the products to attract the customer.

# 5  

 

From a range of 1- 5 where 1 means that it doesn't influence them at all to 5 where it highly influences them, the majority of my respondents chose 4 which means that it influences them to some extent but it doesn't highly influence them because they might have other considerations other than the packaging of the product.



#6

This part is quite surprising because I thought that majority of university students go to the convenience store with their friends and go to the supermarket with their families however my survey showed that the majority tends to purchase packaged food by themselves.

#7 

 

The majority of my respondents purchased packaged food at around lunch time probably as a side dish or dessert to their lunch. 4 and 5 PM are also popular times for Ritsumeikan students to buy packaged food because it is usually the time where most students are finished with their class for that day so they can head to the nearest convenience store to purchase packaged food.

# 8

 

In this section. I gave an open ended question to enable my respondents to express their opinions freely. Generally speaking, most of my respondents who chose supermarket rather than convenience store consider the price in supermarkets to be cheaper than convenience store which is the reason why they chose it. On the other hand, the ease of access to convenience store is the general reason why some of my respondents chose convenience store rather than supermarkets.



# 9

 

Generally, my respondents talk about the design of the packaging and how it is important to attract the customer. This correlates with the purpose of marketing, which is to attract the customers to purchase the product. The majority of my respondents also talk about the importance of packaging design in order to attract the customer so it is very important for a business to create a good packaging design that could attract the customer to purchase the product.

(CONCLUSION) 

In summary, I think that many people already realized that the packaging of products can influence the customer to purchase the product so the manufacturer of the product who wants to target university students must put an emphasis on packaging design. Furthermore, It is surprising for me that most of university students in Ritsumeikan purchase packaged food by themselves so they purchase it solely based on their personal decision and not by peer pressure or peer influence. I think this information would give insights to convenience stores and supermarkets who wants to target university students, especially Ritsumeikan University students.

 

Original Survey

Ice Cream Survey

My Invention

 The Multifunction Laptop Cushion

"Cush+"

 

Regular Laptop Cushion

Laptop Cushion with added features

(Original Problem & Idea / Solution)

Nowadays in this modern era, there are a lot of people that uses a laptop. However, it is quite hard to find space to use laptop in a small room or small apartments. It is also hard if you want to write something down and get a drink when you are using the laptop. The regular laptop cushion usually cannot provide you with the solution for these problems which is why I came up with an innovative and multifunction laptop cushion which is called Cush+


(Specifics)

Cush+ will provide you with a laptop cushion that can fix your problem because of several added features that are different with the regular laptop cushion such as:

1. It can also be used as a pillow
2. there will be a drinking stand to put your drink
3. There will be a built-in surface in each sides that can act as a table for you to write on
4. It is safer than using your laptop directly on your lap

The price of this product is only 2,000 yen while the regular laptop cushion usually costs about 1,800 yen. With only a small increase in money, you can get much more value with Cush+


(Materials)

* For the cushion sheet, we will use cotton material which is a very comfortable material
* Feather pillows, so the cushion can also be used just like normal sleeping pillows
* Balsa wood for the surface. Balsa wood is the lightest but strongest wood in the world


(Target Market)

* Businessman and Businesswoman
* Students
* People that uses laptop in general
* People in a productive age


(Summary)

If you use laptop on a daily basis and you do not have a lot of space in your room this product is perfect for you because just by buying Cush+, you can get a multifunction product that can deal with your problems. 

Product Review

Sekkisui White Washing Cream 

(Overview)

Sekkisui is a very popular skincare that are exclusively sold at 7-Eleven. They have won awards for two of their products which is their Cosmetic Mask for Translucency and their White Washing Cream. Currently, I am using their award-winning White Washing Cream. This product is a facial wash with a very creamy texture. It contains oriental herbal extracts which is said to give skin a very smooth feel. The manufacturer's suggested retail price is 460 yen (excluding tax).

(Features)

1. Effective whitening 
2. Wash away old skin cells to brighten the skin
3. Cleanses pores so it deeply cleanses your skin 
4. Combats dullness to give your skin a nice glow
5. It can prevent acne 
6. Contains coix seed extract which is well knows for its moisturizing properties

(Pros and Cons)

(+) It foams really well
(+) The price is very affordable
(+) Contains moisturizing ingredients, perfect for winter season
(+) Deeply cleanses my skin without irritating it
(+) Very easy to find, you can always find it in the nearest 7-Eleven

(-) Runs out too easily (this is my fault) ;)
(-) The packaging is way too simple, but I guess that's the brand image that they want to convey
(-) It doesn't give you a squeaky clean feeling after washing


(Video Review)

This is the video review of Sekkisei's product



Here is the official website of Sekkisui if you would like to know more about their other products

Sekkisui Official Website

You can also purchase this product through Amazon through this link:

I want to buy this now!!


(Rating)

10/10

Honestly, I find this product perfect and I would repurchase this product and bring it back home to Indonesia so I can use it in my home country. I love that this product gives me a natural glow because it melts away dullness and it has a very subtle scent. I use it 2 times a day and I've been seeing amazing results by using this product daily.

World Travel Plan: London

World Travel Plan: London

London is the capital city of England and United Kingdom. London is also the most populous city. It is also very popular among tourists - making it the world's most visited city measured by international arrivals. This city is also known for its diverse cultures and surprisingly, more than 300 languages are spoken in this region. I am very interested to go to London because London has a lot of interesting places and also unique activities that I will describe in more detail in this post. Here are some links about London in general.

London (Wikipedia)

London (Trip Advisor)

These are the few things that you could try when
you are in London:

1.  Visit Warner Bros. Studio Tour in London. This place can provide you with the opportunity to see behind-the-scenes of the famous Harry Potter films. You can also see showcases of beautiful sets, costumes, and props. The ticket for adult is about  £69.00 ((JPY10,201.17) per ticket and from £64.00 (JPY9,461.96) per ticket for child. You can visit its official website for more information: http://www.wbstudiotour.co.uk/. Here is the Google Map directions to go there 

2.  Try Coca Cola London Eye. This landmark is located at the heart of the city so it's very easy to access it. At 135 meters, The Coca Cola London Eye is the world's tallest cantilevered observation wheel. You can get a 360-degree view of the city and it has been the number one places to go to for tourist in London. The price for adult ticket is from £23.00 (JPY3,400.39) per ticket and the ticket for child is from £16.25 (JPY2,402.45) per ticket. Opening times are:

• 1 October-31 March: 10:00 - 20:30 daily.
• 1 April-30 June: 10:00 - 21:00 daily.
• 1 July-30 September: 10:00 - 21:30 daily.
• Closed Christmas Day.

3.  Buckingham Palace Tour. Here, you can catch a glimpse of one of the few royal palaces that are still active up to today. During the summer, you can join see 19 spectacular State Rooms which are decorated with famous paintings. Outside of summer opening, you can still see the exterior of the palace and watch the famous Changing the Guard. The good things is you can purchase "A Royal Day Out ticket" that gives you the access to The State Rooms, The Royal Mews, and The Queen's Gallery with a discount price.

4. Try Hop on Hop Off Bus Tour. Enjoy seeing London's iconic landmarks just by hopping in this bus. You can purchase a 24 hour ticket and enjoy unlimited travel across London. You will also get a free walking tour and free river tour by purchasing that ticket. A live tour guide and audio guide is available. You can also post photos of your trip in social media because they have free wifi available on the bus. 

5. Explore Madame Tussauds London. Here, you can meet famous people across the world in its wax figures. There are 14 interactive areas with more than 300 stunning wax figures. You can also see Star Wars characters at Madame Tussauds London. The price of ticket for adult is from £31.00 (JPY4,583.14) per ticket, child ticket id from £24.00 (JPY3,548.23) per ticket, and family ticket is from £100.00 (JPY14,784.31) per ticket. However, you can get lower price when booking online in advance. 

6. Visit Tower of London. At the Tower of London, you can discover history of a royal palace. Don't forget to see Royal Beasts and learn about the wild animals that have lived in the Tower. You can also see the Crown Jewels in Tower of London. Check out their website for more details: http://www.hrp.org.uk

7. Westminster Abbey. Here, you can explore the wondrous tales of British history. Every year, there are over one million visitors that come here to explore this 700 year old building. Audio guides are also available and it is free with individual entry tickets. The tour typically takes one hour. The English-language tour is narrated by the actor Jeremy Irons and audio guides are also available in German, French, Spanish, Italian, Russian, Portuguese, Polish, Hungarian, Mandarin Chinese, and Japanese.

8. Kensington Palace. In this palace, you can experience life as if you are in the 18th century. You can visit the King's and Queen's State Apartments which are finely decorated with remarkable paintings from the Royal Collection. You can access this place by using the Tube for Queensway/High St Kensington/Gloucester Road. 

9. The View from The Shard. This is a very famous visitor attraction because you can see the view of the city from the tallest building in Western Europe. The height of this building reaches 800 ft or 244m. Visitor's can even see as far as 40 miles away. The price of ticket for adult is £25.95 (JPY3,836.53) per ticket and for child ticket is  £19.95 (JPY2,949.47) per ticket.

10. Try London Dungeon. This is the perfect place for those of you who crave for a thrilling and adrenaline pumping experience. Here, you can come face-to-face with frighteningly funny characters such as torturers, judges, to local legends that will tell you stories about their past. Be warned because something might be staring at you around the corner :p 

Here is the google map link to London



and


and lastly, here is an additional video on another 10 things that you could do in London but this version is less touristy if you know what I mean ;)





 Thank you for reading my blog and see you in London :) 

A Travel Plan for Japan

Planning a Trip to Sapporo, Hokkaido

Hokkaido  (北海道, Hokkaidō) is the second largest of Japan's four main islands and it is home to approximately 2 million people. The weather in winter can reach below zero temperatures while in summer it's not as hot and humid as other areas in Japan which makes Hokkaido a perfect place to go to when you want a change from the city's humid and hot weather in summer. Hokkaido is mostly famous for its exquisite seafood, breathtaking nature, and its dairy product especially soft serve ice cream. 

These are the top activities that you could do in Hokkaido this year:

Sapporo Lilac Festival

1. Attend the Sapporo Lilac Festival in May or June 2017. This festival has been a tradition to local Hokkaido people since 1959. You can visit Odori Park in May 17 - May 28 and Kawashimo Park in Late May or Early June.









2. Try the Kaiten-Zushi (Conveyor Belt Sushi). The seafood in Hokkaido is very fresh so I recommend that you try their sushi. The place to eat conveyor belt sushi are usually always crowded so you can try to reserve in advance.
















3. Visit Mount Hakodate (函館山, Hakodateyama) 
 Mount Hakodate is a 334 meter high, wooded mountain. At night, you can visit Mount Hakodate to see the view of Hokkaido. It is included among Japan's three best night views other than the views from Nagasaki's Mount Inasa and Kobe's Mount Rokko.

4. Relax and Unwind in Cape Kamui (Shakotan-cho). Shakoran has been called the prefecture's "underwater quasi-national park" where the beautiful clear blue ocean is known as Shakotan Blue. You would have to walk 20 to 30 minutes to see a 300-degree panoramic view of Shakotan. It's quite a long way to go but the view is worth it.
Business Hours: 

Everyday ( 10:00 AM ~ 03:30 PM ).

5. Go to Farm Tomita. Hokkaido is also known for cultivating lavender. The best spot to view lavender fields is Farm Tomita, because you can see Tokachi Mountain in the background which gives a breathtaking view. Farm tomita is open everyday from 08.30 until 17.00. However, these opening hours may be shorter outside summer. The best thing is that there are no admission fee, it is completely FREE!














6. See the Beautiful Flowers in Takino Suzuran Hillside National Park. In summer time, there are more parks that you could enjoy rather than winter and there may be an additional fee to enter those park but it is usually not that expensive. There are also outdoor activities that you can do such as mountain bike riding and hiking, It is a good idea to have BBQ here with your family and friends.










7. Sapporo JR Tower Observatory T38. This place is directly connected to JR Sapporo Station. It is located on the top floor of JR Tower's tallest building in Hokkaido. It is 38 floors from the ground and 160m high. You can get a 360 degree view in all directions. It is open all year round and it is open from 10.00 AM - 23.00 (Last entrance 22.30).












8. Go Sightseeing at Biei-cho. In Biei-cho, you can savor the view of "Blue Pond". It takes about 5-10 minites walk through the forest in order to reach the blue pond. Here, you can take a relaxing stroll and take photos of this majestic view.
















9. Go to Hokkaido Beer Garden. This is a famous restaurant that is located in Sapporo. It serves the freshest seafood in Hokkaido and it is also known for their lamb steak. It is a type of self service BBQ restaurant. They are open everyday and the opening hours is 5.00 PM - 12.00 AM




















10. Visit Hakodate Morning Market. Here you can see a cluster of 300 shops and eateries selling fresh seafood and vegetables. If you can't go to Tsukiji Fish market in Tokyo, you can visit this market instead ;)

You can also watch this interesting video about Hokkaido

 For further information, this is the Google map to Hokkaido





Lastly, here are several links about Hokkaido, you can open this for more information

http://www.japan-guide.com/list/e1101.html

http://en.visit-hokkaido.jp/


Thank you for reading my blog and I'll see you next time :)

My Hometown: Jakarta

My Hometown: Jakarta

In this blog, I would like to introduce my hometown, Jakarta. Jakarta (formerly known as Sunda Kelapa, Jayakarta, and Batavia) is the most populous city of the Republic of Indonesia. Jakarta is a home to  9.59 million people. During the day, the number increases to another 2 million as commuters travel their way to Jakarta to work in the city. Jakarta is a very interesting city because it has a historic mix of cultures - Javanese, Malay, Chinese, Arab, Indian, and European which then influenced the architecture, language, and cuisine of Jakarta.  I would post several pictures, links, and probably some videos about Jakarta in this blog to give you a general overview of my hometown. 

In my opinion, the top 11 things which you enjoy in Jakarta are:

1.  Going to shopping malls - Jakarta is a city with the highest number of shopping malls in Southeast Asia. Shopping malls are can offer you a large variety of goods and services which might be difficult to find elsewhere.

2. Visiting the museum - Jakarta has many choices of museums that you could visit and the best part is the admission ticket price are usually very cheap.Some of the famous museums in Jakarta are National Museum of Indonesia, Wayang Museum, and Jakarta History Museum. Furthermore, I would post a link of the 10 best museums in Jakarta posted by TripAdvisor for those of you who need additional reference.  https://www.tripadvisor.com/Attractions-g294229-Activities-c49-Jakarta_Java.html

3. Kerak Telor -  Kerak telor (English: Egg crust) is a  traditional spicy dish in Indonesia. It is made from glutinous rice cooked with egg and served with serundeng (fried shredded coconut), fried shallots and dried shrimp as topping^. It is considered as a snack and not as a main dish.

4. Visit Modern Cafes - Local people in Jakarta are well known for their habit of staying at a restaurant or cafe for a long period of time with their friends and families just to catch up with each other. We even have a name for this kind of culture which we call "nongkrong" which is why there are plenty of modern cafes in Jakarta with a very nice ambiance. I would post a google street view of one of my favorite cafe, Union. It is located in a small shopping mall called Plaza Senayan. Union is a cafe that are well known for serving delicious cakes.

5. Try Gojek - Gojek is an online transportation application which you can use in my hometown. Gojek is an online based transportation which uses motorcycles. The background story of their business was because Jakarta is well known for their traffic, the founder thought that it was an opportunity to do business. The application is completely free and it helps a lot to tackle the traffic in Jakarta. 

6. Escape to Pulau Seribu -  Pulau seribu literally means "Thousands of Islands". Indonesia is known for its archipelago which is why we have Pulau Seribu in Jakarta. It is a nice option for those of you who wants to escape from the hectic atmosphere of the city life. Here is a link on the recommended islands, how to get there, getting around, things to do, etc. http://atravellersjourney.com/how-to-get-to-pulau-seribu/

7. Visit Ancol - Ancol is famous for its theme park which we call Dufan (Dunia Fantasi) which means "Fantasy World", they offer a variety of rides that might be suitable for adrenaline junkies and families aswell. For the ones who are more adventurous, you can try the roller coaster but for those of you who would like to relax and enjoy the city you should try the ferris wheel so you can enjoy the view of Jakarta. 

8. Try Durian - The name comes from the Malay-Indonesian language for duri or "spike". It is often regarded by many people in Southeast Asia as the "king of fruits". Although Durian has a very strong odor which can be overpowering for some people, it is a very unique experience for you to try Durian when you visit Indonesia because you might have difficulty of finding this fruit when you are travelling outside Southeast Asia. Here is a link that shows you the types of durian available in Jakarta, how to choose the right one, and where you can get it. 

                            I want Durian!

9. Visit Taman Mini Indonesia Indah  (TMII) - TMII or "Beautiful Indonesia Miniature Park" is located in East Jakarta, Indonesia. TMII showcase a miniature of Indonesian Culture (architecture, clothing, dances, and traditions). Here is a link of the official website of TMII for those of you that needs additional information, this website is in Indonesian language but you can translate the page if you are using google chrome. http://tamanmini.com/pesona_indonesia/

10. Visit the Old Town Jakarta - Old town  is a top destination for travelers. The buildings in Old Town are mostly influenced by Indonesia's Dutch colonial roots because in the 1600s, Old Town Jakarta became the headquarters of the Dutch East India Company. Old Town Jakarta is perfect for those of you who would like to enjoy a  more vintage side of Jakarta.

11. Exercise at Car Free Day - Car Free Day is a weekly event held on Sunday for people in Jakarta that would like to exercise in the main streets of Jakarta.It usually start at 6 AM and ends at 10 AM. Other than exercising, you could also find local delicacies in Car Free Day Jakarta.

Here are several links that you could check out to get around Jakarta

General Information about Jakarta

Travelling to Jakarta

If you would like to visit my city, this is the google map link so you wouldn't get lost in all the hustle and bustle ;)

and lastly, here is an interesting video that shows an additional 20 ideas of things to do in Jakarta that you could watch. Please enjoy the video :) 

Thank you for visiting my blog, please comment on this post if you have further questions or comments about Jakarta. I would love to respond to your comments and suggestions. See you on my next blog post :)