Crazy Weird Wonderful: March 2016

Wednesday, 30 March 2016

Top Ten Disney Easter Eggs

Who doesn't love a good Disney Easter Egg? After mentioning about the one hidden in Disney's new movie Zootopia in my last post it gave me an idea to write a post on my top ten hidden Easter eggs.

Now if you don't have a clue what I'm on about then shame on you ;) just kidding! Basically a Disney Easter Egg is where they hide something in their movies that reference another movie or someone or sometimes this can be hints of whats to come that you often won't even notice until they have released the movie somewhere down the line.

Here's an example: Little Mermaid

Mickey, Goofy and Donald can be seen in the crowd during King Triton's entrance

So here's my Top Ten:

101 Dalmatians

Lady and Tramp make a quick cameo during the twilight bark

Zootopia

When Duke Weaselton is caught selling Disney knock offs

Oliver and Company

Jock, Peg and Trusty from Lady and The Tramp make a quick cameo

Monsters Inc

When Boo found Nemo and the Toy Story Ball

Tangled

When Rapunzel and Flynn read in the library 3 classic Disney movies appear in book form;

1. The Little Mermaid

2. Beauty and the Beast

3. Sleeping Beauty

Frozen

Rapunzel and Flynn are seen at Elsa's coronation

Tarzan

Mrs Potts and Chip are in Porter's Camp

Basil the Great Mouse Detective

When Dumbo shows up as a bubble toy in the toy shop

Hercules

Scar is the slain Nemean Lion

Aladdin

The Beast appears as one of the Sultan's toys

There are so many to choose from even picking some of my Top Ten was difficult! What are some of yours?

March 25th 2016: Birmingham - The Vamps

Before anyone makes any judgement on me for liking The Vamps haha this is my guilty little pleasure like for most of you who like One Direction is ;) just wanted to put that out there hehe!

As I've mentioned in a few previous posts that I was going to see The Vamps Wake Up Tour in Birmingham on the 25th March with my best friend Samiee who also loves The Vamps. This flew around considering we booked this back in October 2014!

We travelled up to Birmingham on the Friday afternoon via train and checked in to our hotel around 3 pm giving us plenty of time to go shopping and grab some food before the show started. We were quite lucky actually that our hotel was by one of the main entrances to the station making it easy for us to leave the following morning.

When we got there we checked in and headed straight for Primark which was next door to our hotel luckily ;) I was highly surprised that I didn't end up spending as much money as I thought I would considering how much I picked up and tried on and ended up hating everything apart from one top.

With being Disney lovers the Disney Store was next on our list considering we no longer have one in Bristol anymore which is really annoying. As soon as we got in there were made a B line straight for the Tsum Tsum's and mugs obviously we both ended up buying some and spending more than we bargained.

I also picked up the Hunger Games Mockingjay Part 2 as I missed this in the cinema and it was part of a 2 for £20 deal.

Now when ever me and Samiee do something together its like a ritual that if there is an Ed's Diner then we will eat in an Ed's Diner regardless as we love this place and luckily our partners don't think much of it!

This time I had a simple Bacon and Cheese burger with a side of chilly cheese fries which were AMAZING! I have had the bacon cheese fries before and even those were amazing. To drink we always have a Nutella shake!

When we finally made our way over to the arena it was about 7:00pm as we decided we didn't really want to get there that early because for some reason they had 4 support acts and the first one was on at 6:30pm and The Vamps weren't on until 9pm so heck were we waiting around for 2 plus hours to see them.

This is the 3rd time we have been to see them live now and don't get me wrong they were as amazing as always but I felt that the 2nd time we saw them in Birmingham was the best we also accidentally missed the last song as they went off stage and didn't come back on for AGES so we thought it had ended whoops!

I really loved it when they sand Kung Fu Fighting and they included scenes from the new Kung Fu Panda movie which I went to see a few weeks ago. My favorite bit of any Vamps show is when Tris comes out and does an amazing Drum solo at one point during the show I thought they weren't going to do it but they did!

It was really nice to spend the night away with Samiee as we haven't done it in a while as we used to stay away for events quite a lot so was nice to get away to somewhere different and grab some food and do some shopping even if its ended up me being POOR!

Next up we have Disney On Ice in Cardiff on the 23rd April which I'm dead excited about!!

I love ZOOTOPIA (Zootropolis)

I'm sorry but I cannot stand calling this movie Zootropolis in the UK when its always been Zootopia until very recently when the producer decided that they wanted to call it something different in the UK but anyways moving on ...

I went to see this movie over the Easter Bank Holiday weekend as I couldn't wait any longer to see it and I fell in LOVE!

Basically Zootopia tells the story of a highly motivated bunny called Judy who dreams of becoming the first and only ever bunny cop and her story. The start of the story is quite sad with her being told to give up on her dream by everyone and is also then bullied by her fellow class mates but does this stop her? No it doesn't! (I don't want to say too much as I don't want to ruin it for you)

The amount of effort that has gone in to this movie is incredible and you can see this just from watching the movie. Throughout the movie once again Disney make references to other films and has the most amazing Disney Easter Egg which has to be my favorite so far! As well as the amazing reference to "Breaking Bad" once again Disney making it appeal to adults.

Zootopia is well written, amazingly animated and I have never laughed so much. It has so many lovable new characters that you fall in love with instantly and who make you laugh. What is so great about this movie is that it teaches us so many life lessons about not stereotyping people and never giving up on your dreams.

Now I am off to go and find the Tsum Tsum's of these little guys!

Tuesday, 29 March 2016

Review: March Tokyo Treat Box

I have been dead excited waiting for this box to come, for a while now I have always wanted to try out one of these food subscription boxes and after an add popped up on Facebook for a company delivering Japanese candy to your door it was a must do for me!

After lots of looking around on the web at what was available I narrowed it down to 3 options and took to Instagram/Youtube to see what people had posted and Tokyo Treats had won my vote.

Who Are Tokyo Treats:

Tokyo Treats are a Japan based company who provide a subscription service that delivers premium Japanese snacks and candy right to your front door on a monthly basis.

What drew me to chose them was that all they're subscriptions contains full size treats only and no small sample products which a lot of other boxes do. They all come direct from Japan and are all authentic products.

Free delivery worldwide is always a great bonus as the price you see is the price you will pay no additional extra costs on top making the subscription more expensive.

Subscriptions:

They offer 3 different sized subscriptions containing a variety of snacks and candy with the premium box containing a drink and a surprise gift which I think is great!

Small:

$14.99 USD/month
5/7 Full Size Japanese Candy and Snacks
Up to 1lbs in weight

Regular:

$24.99 USD/month
8/12 Full Size Japanese Candy and Snacks
1 DIY Candy Kit
Up to 1.5lbs in weight

Premium:

$34.99 USD/Month
13/17 Full Size Japanese Candy and Snacks
1 DIY Candy Kit
1 Drink
1 Special Item (i.e special drink, premium DIY Kit, High quality toy)

For this review I purchased a regular box which cost me £18.51 in GBP which is very reasonable for what you actually receive.

What is great is that you can cancel your subscription at any time or upgrade/downgrade whenever you like.

As I was short of money when purchasing this box I have already upgraded my subscription to the premium box for next month because its they're 1st year anniversary so are planning a special box and whats even better is they are offering a great discount at the moment for life!

The Box Itself:

So my box was posted from Japan on the 29th February and I was told this should arrive between the 20th/28th March and I received my box on the 23rd March.

The box includes this cute little booklet which contains the names and product information of everything that is included in the box and the other 3 subscriptions as well. It also has a very helpful page on how to make the DIY kits that are include inside the Regular and Premium boxes along with lots of other cool things and competitions.

Items Received:

In my box I received 10 different items ranging from candy to snacks and I've tried each one and rated them out of 5. As mentioned above the box comes with a cute little booklet that tells you what is included in your box and what everything is. So below as well as my comments I've written the description of the products below in "Italic"

Hello Kitty Strawberry Biscuit Stick (4/5)
For the Sanrio lovers out there, we have the ultimate sweet treat for you! Enjoy rich strawberry frosting topped upon crisps and delicate biscuit sticks

So these are essentially like Pocky and I love Pocky but I've never had the chance to try strawberry flavored ones and these were yummy and the fact that they come in a little Hello Kitty designed box is just a win win!

Strawberry Wheat Chocolate (3/5)
These delicious nuggets of candy are something confectionery dreams are made of! Enjoy puffed and crispy wheat biscuit drop dipped in decadent strawberry for a sweet treat you will not be able to resist.

They sure love they're Strawberry flavor in Japan and there was nothing to dislike about these. Crunchy rice puffs covered in strawberry? What's not to like?

Punifua's Its Hard No To Be Happy with Old-Grape Taste Gummies (3/5)
These luscious gummy snacks are the most adorable and most enjoyable. Enjoy soft creamy texture of paw print kitty shaped gummies that are paired with an old age flavor of grape.

So I am a massive Grape lover but I didn't love these, don't get me wrong they were nice but they left a horrible after taste which I did not like one bit. The overall look of the product is so cute having animals on the front and shaped like paw prints was really cute but the taste for me not so.

Caramel Corn Peach-Flavored Hinamatsuri (5/5)
In honor of the well known Japanese doll festival or Hinamatsuri, enjoy this delicious serving of savory popped corn that yiu can see for sale during the time of this particular celebration in Japan. This Caramel Corn is combined with a peach flavor to an airy sweet experience with a burst of fruit.

So I was a little scared to try this because of the peach flavor and it being a savory product but I was highly surprised and fell in love with the sweet tasting corn! The texture of the product and the flavor was amazing and I cannot wait to try over variations as I know they did a special Christmas one as well.

Barbecue-Flavored Scones (5/5)
These delicious savory slivers of bread pack a huge punch! Enjoy a bold and smokey barbecue taste paired with a crisp and crunchy bread stick for the ultimate treat.

OK so I've rated these 5 out of 5 people these are the best thing I have ever had and wish these were available in the UK! They remind me of the "Rib n Saucy Nick Nack" crisps but there are 100% better they are a lot thicker but have the same texture and the BBQ flavoring is perfect! Where can I get these?

Kracie's Kneading Land Grape Soda (2/5)
Enjoy playing with your food? We have an awesome DIY Kit that we know you will love! This candy kit features grape flavored fondant in various colors that you can shape into whatever you like, Kit comes with with instructions to make a couple of example designs.

So I did attempt to be all creative but I failed and ended up just eating all the bits inside which I have to say tasted very yummy with them being Grape flavor. The only reason I gave it a low rating is because I'm not very creative.

Tyrol Sakura Shiriejo (2/5)
These robust and luxury candies are made and inspired in the shape of the Italian panna cotta dish. Enjoy a hint of floral Sakura blossom flavor mixed with cherry to give you the true Japanese feeling of spring.

So these were totally weird, I thought they were going to be soft and squishy but they weren't they are hard with a jelly filling. There was two flavors and I am not sure which was which but looking at the packet I preferred the one on the right as it was more subtle taste the other one I thought tasted awful but my mum really liked it so.

Strawberry Cotton Candy (5/5)
As puffy as a cloud, enjoy traditional cotton candy that you would maybe see at a Japanese festival of Carnival. The strawberry flavor paired with the fluffy cotton feel to the candy is a nostalgic experience for almost everyone.

So this is basically Candy Floss which I love so when I saw this in the packet I was so excited to try it. The Strawberry flavor was amazing and very very sweet and such a cute little designed packet. Definitely one of my top 3!

Hi-Chew Honey Kumquat (4/5)
This unique chewy candy is a limited edition from Hi-Chew! Enjoy the soothing flavors of Honey and Kumquat that will ease you through irritation and also are delicious to the taste.

Hi-Chew are some of my favorite soft candy from Japan with Grape being my favorite flavor so when I saw the chance to try one that I didn't even know existed it was great with it being limited edition. These were very sweet and you could taste the honey more than anything.

Bourbon Usuyaki Mix (2/5)
Enjoy three types of flavors, onion, tomatoes and spinach over savory crackers that satiate that salty craving that you have! A combination of these three flavors packed with bourbon sauce taste gives an unforgettable experience in a crack snack.

So I wasn't overly fussed with these as I am more of a sweet person than savory. I think the flavors were pretty bland and they tasted the same but the texture was nice.

Verdict:

Overall I was really happy with the items I have received as there is a good variety of snacks and candy to try and they're all full sized and no taster packets. The value for money even without the offer is excellent although shipping does take a while they do aim to have the box delivered with in a certain time frame in which mine did.

Maybe tracking could be provided but would that make it more expensive who knows? I have actually ordered my April box and gone for the Premium this time as the offer was such a good deal and I couldn't resist. I am dead excited to try the Sakura Pepis in my next box so I shall try and review then!

Thanks for reading. This is my first review so any feedback is most welcome :D as stated above this was purchased with my own money and I was NOT paid to review this by Tokyo Treats.

Tuesday, 22 March 2016

Mini Disney Movie Challenge #5

Its Tuesday again and time to pick another movie!

What Movie are you choosing?
Tangled

Favorite Character?
Maximus

Least Favorite Character?

Once again I cannot really find someone I dislike as there is such a range of characters!

A scene that makes you smile?

When Rapunzel dresses Pascal up in a dress haha!

A scene that makes you emotional in anyway?
When Flynn takes Rapunzel to see the lanterns its just so romantic!!!

Favorite Quote?

"You were wrong about the world, and you were wrong about me"

Favorite Song?

"Mother Knows Best" I love this song soooo much!!!!

Least Favorite Song?

Another movie where I love the soundtrack sorry ;)

Wednesday, 16 March 2016

Ben and Jerry's Ice Cream I REALLY Want To Try!

If you don't know this about me already then here is a little secret I am a MASSIVE Ice cream lover and I mean I will eat this all year round regardless of how hot or cold it is I will eat Ice Cream and the tub will never last more than a few hours or a day tops in our freezer (hides in shame)

I love trying new brands and flavors but my favorite brand is Ben and Jerry's and I get extremely excited when I spot new flavors in my local supermarket especially as the UK doesn't get many compared to the variety available in the US.

After finding out my local Tesco now stocks the Dominions exclusive Switched Up I will be off there to pick up a tub this evening but for now here are some of the flavors I've seen on Instagram that I really want to get my hands on!

P.B & Cookies (Non Diary)

Vanilla non dairy ice cream with chocolate cookies and crunchy peanut butter swirls

Cake My Day

Vanilla cake batter ice cream with vanilla cake pieces, buttercream frosting and raspberry swirls

Peanut Butter Fudge (Core)

Chocolate and peanut butter ice creams with mini peanut butter cups and peanut butter fudge core

That's My Jam (Core)

Chocolate and raspberry ice creams with fudge chocolate chips and a raspberry core

A Swirled of Difference

Peanut butter ice cream with a crunchy peanut butter swirl and a raspberry swirl

Boston Cream Pie

Boston cream pie ice cream with yellow cake pieces, fudge flakes and swirls if pastry ice cream

Cheesecake Brownie

Cheesecake ice cream with cheesecake brownie chunks

Chubby Hubby

Vanilla malt ice cream with a pea-nutty fudge covered pretzels with fudge and peanut buttery swirls

Chunky Monkey

Banana ice cream with fudge chunks and walnuts

Everything But The...

A collision of chocolate and vanilla ice creams mixed with peanut butter cups, fudge covered toffee pieces, white chocolate chunks and fudge covered almonds