HATACHI~~~~~~~

In Japan, those who will turn 20 years old (hatachi) is honoured with a national holiday, Seijin-Shiki (Coming of Age day), which falls on second Monday of January. 20 years old is considered the legal age in Japan, where one can vote and drink.
On this special day, women wear special kimonos called furisode and men wear hakama or business suits and are invited to the local city offices to commemorate their transformation into adulthood.
After that, it's a special day to go partying and drinking (when better is it to go booze bingeing). Just imagine every 20year old Japanese in Japan doing it. A united affair of the embracement of adulthood, on one single special day.
In Singapore, however, its usually private meals with close friends or if you're lucky, a chalet with all your pals. That is, if your birthday dont fall during exam period, then its rescheduling of your day of birth, or give the teacher a big duck egg as your birthday gift. haha...
On my last day as a 19year old, I could not understand why I knew this birthday was going to be kinda special. Maybe because 20 years old in Singapore is still the metamorphosis stage of transformation from an "old" teenager to waking up one day (your next birthday) and finding you're a full-grown man.
Here's a pic of my last meal as a 19year old kid. Chicken chop with Garlic sauce.

Delightful!

Anyway, mine started off with a haircut I desperately need, to tidy up the mane that's reaching for my toes. It was perfect. Tidy and short.
After going back home and slack alittle, I was up and about again. No way was I going to rot at home and see my precious Hatachi birthday getting abducted by time. So I decided to go town for a long stroll and see what's the world doing on my birthday. It was a peaceful and refreshing experience. Sometimes, one just needs some quiet time to discover once more the rich ever-changing realm around him and touch the soul of his amazing world. Here's a photographic tale of my journey.

Ok... it looks abit too much of an urban jungle rather than an enlightening spiritual experience but hey, I am in Singapore. The tree spirits and wood nymphs now hides in concrete fingers reaching for the stars and a giant river where the duck-tours operates their cheesey tourist-dollar-sucking sampans from. haha.. Anyway, after my so-called mesmorising experience as a local tourist, I saw a crab in a small drain near my home, so I ran back home, grab a net and found myself a new pet for my birthday. Here's a photo of the rather disgruntled captive:

my precious...........