Monday, September 13, 2021

Twilight Express Mizukaze

What is the Twilight Express Mizukaze

Twilight Express Mizukaze (Japanese: トワイライトエクスプレス みずかぜ) is a luxury sleeper cruise train operated by JR West. This train is an excursion train, not a regular train. It is an atas train used for trips around Western Japan and with only a capacity of 34 passengers in a 10-car configuration, it is easily one of the most expensive train trips of the world. 


Image from TrainReview


Image from Wikipedia

Design of the train and logo

The dark-green livery of the train is borrowed from a popular sleeper train called Twilight Express. Twilight Express is a sleeper train plying between Osaka and Sapporo and operations was ceased on 2015 due to declining demand for sleeper trains in Japan. The dive in demand for sleeper trains in Japan is because of an expanding Shinkansen bullet train network, and emergence of LCCs and highway buses that runs between cities. 

Also, the Mizukaze logo have elements that are borrowed from the old Twilight Express logo. The "M" in the new Twilight Express logo is stylised in a way that matches the borrowed angels found in the original Twilight Express.

Lastly, the interior has some sort of a bland of 1920s Art Deco atas vibes with Japanese-style decorative touches from various regions that the train goes to.


Original Twilight Express logo
Image from charitabi


Twilight Express Mizukaze logo
Image from logomarketto

Facilities of this train

The 10-car long 87 series is branded as "a hotel rolling through beautiful Japanese landscape" as seen on the official website. Therefore, the interior comprises a facilities of a 5 star hotel.

Configuration of the train



Observation Cars (found in cars 1 and 10)

Car no. 1 is the observation cars of the train. It is simply used by passengers to observe the rolling scenery of western Japan as they sit back and lepak. In the observation room, the are windows that goes all the way up to the ceiling, so that it allows passengers to look up to the sky. Also, it is home to an open air observation deck, which is what this atas train is famous for. Passengers can go to the observation deck just to obtain some fresh air and enjoy the wind breezes while the train keep rolling. 








Car 2





References

1. https://www.jrpass.com/blog/twilight-express-mizukaze-the-most-luxurious-of-excursion-trains




Thursday, October 22, 2020

West Express Ginga (including things to do in San'in)

West Express Ginga is a luxury sleeper train operated by JR West. It runs between Kyoto/Osaka Area and Izumoshi in the San'in area. The rolling stock used in this sleeper service is the 117 series. The 117 series train was formerly used as shinkaisoku (新快速, special rapid service) commuter trains in the Kyoto/Osaka/Kobe area by the Japanese National Railways (kokutetsu, 国鉄, 國鐵). Btw, JNR was privitised and split into 6 passenger companies according to region and one freight company. However, some of those old trains was refurbished for use for sleeper services. Originally, this sleeper service was slated to start running by May 2020, but was postponed to September 11 the same year due to coronavirus infections.




117 Series for use on this sleeper service

San'in area
Made up of Shimane and Tottori, as well as the northern part of Yamaguchi Prefecture in the Chugoku region.

map of Japan with the San'in region shaded in red

rail map of the Chugoku area

Map of San'in (Japanese)

Access to San'in area







Service patterns
This sleeper service makes 2 round trips between Kyoto/Osaka and Izumoshi weekly since the start of operations on 11 September 2020. However, the eastbound service terminates at Osaka, so passengers going to Kyoto must switch to a shinkaisoku or kaisoku upon arriving in Osaka. Not just a sleeper service, it also operates as a daytime limited express train from Osaka to Shimonoseki in Yamaguchi Prefecture.

Sanin Route


Sanyo Route



Configuration
The West Express Ginga uses 6-car 117 series trains. 

Car 1 is the reserved green car seating. This car have a capacity for 16 daytime passengers during daytime, and half of that for sleeper services. For daytime services, box seats are arranged with a foldable table and lamp. But, those box seats can be converted to a single bed with the table folded away during nightime. This car also have a mini longue space which offers some books.


layout of car 1

Car 2 is a standard car only reserved for female passengers. It comprises of a mixture of reclining seats and couchette style sleeping areas. Those couchette style berths are fitted with individual lightning for each berth and luggage storage space for convenience.

layout of car 2

Car 3 comprises both standard compartment and "family cabins" which have a bench style seating that can be folded out into a sleeping area and can house families of 3 to 4 people. It also houses a free space area equipped with books and magazines for passengers to use when they want to get up and stretch their legs.
layout for car 3

standard seating area with reclining seats

family cabins

free space area

Car 4 houses a multi-purpose recreational space for passengers to hang out where 4 of its tables have inlaid board games such as chess and backgammon, as well as also used for events.
layout for car 4

layout for car 5


inside car 4


Car 5 is a standard car that houses couchette style sleeping areas, which has "nobi-nobi" seats where passengers can lie flat and sleep. 

sleeping berths in car 5

layout of car 6


Car 6 houses 5 premium green car cabins which offers sitting benches that can be converted to beds. 4 of the cabins are for multiple travelers, which holds up to 3 passengers during daytime and 2 during night time, while the other one is for single travelers. This car also has a free space area when passengers can seat and enjoy the passing scenery.

a green car private cabin in car 6
free space area in car 6



Things to do in San'in area
U/C

Suggested Itinerary




Day 0 - Kyoto ⇾ Izumoshi (West Express Ginga)
Day 1 - Izumoshi
Morning: Izumo Taisha Shrine and Former Taisha Station
Lunch at Izumoshi
Afternoon: JR San-in Line - Izumoshi ⇾ Matsue (46 mins) 
or Ichibata Railway - Izumotaisha-mae ⇾ Matsue Shinjiko Onsen station (1hr )
Afternoon: Matsue Castle 
Dinner + Hotel/Ryokan stay at Matsue
Day 2 - Matsue
Breakfast at accomodation + check out at Matsue accomodation
Take 25 min shuttle bus
Morning: Yushien Garden
Lunch 
Afternoon: JR San-in Line - Matsue ⇾ Yasugi (20 mins local train), then change to shuttle bus (20 mins from Yasugi Stn)
Afternoon: Adachi Museum of art
Evening: Samurai District + dinner
Evening: JR San-in Line - Matsue ⇾ Yonago (37 mins)
Evening: check in at Yonago accomodation
Day 3 - Yonago
Breakfast at accomodation + check out
Morning: Mt Daisen
Lunch
Afternoon: Local Train to Sakaiminato + Eshima Grand Bridge
Evening: Stroll around Yonago town and have dinner
Night: Yonago ⇾ Osaka (West Express Ginga)



Merchandise
Plarail S-39 West Express Ginga (JPY 2640 tax incl)

Riding the West Express Ginga
Video in Japanese only




References























Thursday, August 20, 2020

Developments of Singapore's MRT Network

2020 Q1-2021: Thomson East Coast Line Stage 2 (Springleaf Station - Caldecott Station)

2021: Thomson East Coast Line Stage 3 (Mt Pleasant - Gardens By The Bay)

2023: Thomson East Coast Line Stage 4 (Tanjong Rhu - Bayshore)

2023: North-East Line Extension (Punggol - Punggol Coast)

2024: Thomson East Coast Line Stage 5 (Bedok South - Sungei Bedok)

2024: Downtown Line Stage 3e (Xilin - Sungei Bedok)

2024: Johor Bahru Singapore RTS (Woodlands North - Bukit Chagar)

2025: Downtown Line Hume infill station

2025: Circle Line Stage 6 (Keppel - Prince Edward Road)

2026: Jurong Region Line Stage 1 (Choa Chu Kang - Tawas/Boon Lay)

2026: Johor Bahru Singapore RTS (Woodlands North - Bukit Chagar)

2027: Jurong Region Line Stage 2 (Tengah Plantation - Pandan Reservoir)

2027: Thomson East Coast Line Founders Memorial infill station

2028: Jurong Region Line Stage 3 (Enterprise/ Jurong Pier - Nanyang Gateway/ Peng Kang Hill)

2029: Cross Island Line Stage 1 (Bright Hill - Aviation Park)

2031: Cross Island Line Extension (Elias - Punggol)

2030s: North-South Line Brickland and Sungei Kadut infill stations.

2030s: Downtown Line Extension (Bukit Panjang - Sungei Kadut)

2040s: Thomson East Coast Line (Sungei Bedok - Tanah Merah)

2040s: Cross Island Line extension to Changi Airport T5 (interchange with TEL)

2040s: North East Corridor Future Line

Unknown: East-West Line Tuas South Extension from Gul Circle

Wednesday, August 19, 2020

Granny Chapter Two Helicopter

Helicopter Balcony | Granny Chapter Two Wiki | Fandom

To escape from the helicopter, the security key is required to unlock the security door. Grandpa always wear the security key as a necklace. To obtain the security key, the player must either steal it when grandpa is asleep or shot grandpa. 

Granny Chapter Two Backyard and shed

Backyard | Granny Chapter Two Wiki | Fandom

Backyard in Grandpa's house in granny chapter two

Source: https://granny-chapter-two.fandom.com/wiki/Backyard 

Backyard viewed from another angle in nightmare mode

Source: https://granny-chapter-two.fandom.com/wiki/Backyard?file=Nightmarepatio.png

One thing about granny chapter 2 is the Slendrina's baby. Slendrina's baby playhouse is located in the backyard. To access the backyard, the player must find the wrench to unscrew the pipe underneath the bunker to drench the water between the backyard and the play yard. If the player tries to access the shed without the wrench, they will get eaten by the water monster, sending them to the next day. The shed is 100% likely to contain an item needed to open boxes or doors or to escape the house. 

However, to access the shed, the player must knock out Slendrina's baby. If the player does not knock out the baby, he will immediately run towards the player and stun the player preventing from the item in the shed from the shed. The baby does not kill the player. But, if the baby is knocked out, Slendrina will appear as a ghost and the grandparents will come after the player in anger mode with red eyes.


Tuesday, August 18, 2020

How to play granny

What is granny

Granny is a horror game developed by DVloper in winter 2017. It is more specifically an Indie survival horror video game available on iOS and Google Play store for the mobile version and also available for PC download as well. Subsequently, a game sequel, granny chapter 2 was released in autumn 2019.

Granny

Granny - Apps on Google Play

Gameplay

The player wakes up in a bed in a dirty room on the second floor that they do not recognize. Also, they are locked up in Granny's decrepit house and the only way to escape is to explore the house and find tools and items that will unlock the front door. Meanwhile, the player must outrun granny and hide in beds, closets, tunnels, and coffins. 

In this game, the player has 5 (6 if the player completes the painting in the basement) days to escape the granny house. The player must minimize the noise made as granny hears everything and will come and knock the player out, sending the player to the next day. On Day 5, if the player happened to get knocked out by granny, fall through the unstable flooring in the attic, or get bitten by the spider, the player will get a game over. The player can escape through the car in the garage beneath the basement or through the front door.

The game exists in five levels of difficulties - practice, easy, normal, hard, and extreme. In practice mode, granny is not inside the house. In easy, normal, and hard modes, granny is slower than the player. But granny's speed increases with an increase in difficulty. In extreme mode, granny is faster than the player. 

Also, the player can choose to play in nightmare mode. In nightmare mode, granny's house is splattered with blood in every nook and cranny. Also, the bear traps are replaced by the flesh trap which wriggles and squeals when the player steps on it, alerting granny. Lastly, there will be spectral rats roaming around the house. If the player happens to be near the rats, they will get beaten, and in the process will alert granny.

Rats - Granny Wiki

Rats in granny's house in nightmare mode

Granny Nightmare Mode - YouTube

Granny is a crazy old woman who attacks her player (her enemy) by biting them with a baseball bet. She searches the house for the player by hearing the noise that had been made by them and comes after them. When she spots the player, she will come forward towards the player, or if she loses sight, she may lay bear-traps to catch the player. If the player is caught, granny will come towards the bear trap and knock the player out, unless the player manages to free themselves of the bear trap by looking down and press the remove button. 

Granny chapter two

Granny: Chapter Two - Apps on Google Play

Left: Grandpa; Right: Granny

Gameplay

The player wakes up in a bed in a dirty room in the basement that they do not recognize. Unlike the original game, the player was locked up in Grandpa's house instead of Granny's. Also, they are locked up in the house and the only way to escape is to explore the house and find tools and items that will unlock the front door. In addition to having granny in the house, the player should also stay away from grandpa unless they are playing in practice mode or "granny only" mode. Meanwhile, the player must outrun granny and grandpa and hide in beds, closets, tunnels, and coffins. In this house, there are three ways of escaping, via the front door, via the helicopter, or via the boat in the sewage area in the basement.

In this game, the player has 5 days to escape Grandpa's house. The player must minimize the noise made as granny hears everything and will come and knock the player out, sending the player to the next day. Unlike granny, grandpa is deaf and does not hear everything. The only noises that grandpa hears is the dropping of the vase opposite the piano, using the Maiden in the basement execution room, and the Slendrina's baby being shot. On Day 5, if the player happened to get knocked out by granny or grandpa, or got eaten by the water monster, the player will get a game over

The game exists in five levels of difficulties - practice, easy, normal, hard, and extreme. In practice mode, both grandparents are not inside the house. In easy or normal modes, the player has the ability to choose "Only Granny/ Only Grandpa" as an option. In easy, normal, and hard modes, granny or grandpa is slower than the player. But their speed increases with an increase in difficulty. In extreme mode, both grandparents are faster than the player. 

Like the original game, there is also nightmare mode. In nightmare mode, blood is splattered in every corner of grandpa's house. Also, the bear traps are replaced by the flesh trap which wriggles and squeals when the player steps on it, alerting the grandparents. Lastly, spectral rats are replaced by spectral spiders. However, unlike the rats in the original game, the spiders do not bite the player nor alert the grandparents.

Spectral Spiders | Granny Chapter Two Wiki | Fandom

Spiders appear in nightmare mode

Granny is a crazy old woman who attacks her player (her enemy) by biting them with a baseball bet. Grandpa is Granny's husband and he is a deaf person. She searches the house for the player by hearing the noise that had been made by them and comes after them. When she spots the player, she will come forward towards the player, or if she loses sight, she may lay bear-traps to catch the player. If the player is caught, granny will come towards the bear trap and knock the player out, unless the player manages to free themselves of the bear trap by looking down and press the remove button. Unlike granny, grandpa does not lay down any bear traps. But, when grandpa spots the player, he hits them with his cane instead of a baseball bat, sending the player to the next day. 

Weapons available to knock out granny, grandpa or the baby includes the stun gun, the shotgun, and the grenade. Keep in mind that if you are close to the grenade when it is thrown, you will be sent to the next day. If the baby is knocked out, the grandparents will know the player's location and come after them. 


JB Singapore RTS Link to be completed by 2026.

Hi everyone,

みなさんこんにちは!

Are you looking forward to the year 2026 when the RTS link to JB's Bukit Chagar Station will be commerce operations?

The Rapid Transit System consists of two stations, Woodlands North and Bukit Chagar. The RTS Woodlands North station on the Singapore side is linked to the existing Thomson-East Coast Line station while Bukit Chagar Station will have separated Customs facilities from the current Customs complex. Bukit Chagar Station will be located just north of KTMB JB Sentral Station and will be connected to the Iskandar Malaysia Terbau BRT line. BRT stands for Bus Rapid Transit, where buses runs on delicate roads seperated from normal traffic. The Iskandar BRT will maybe be starting operations by 2022. JB Sentral is where intercity KTM trains depart and arrives. This includes the Shuttle Terbau services which depart from here to Woodlands Checkpoint. The depot for the line is initially planned to be located in Mandai Depot as initial plans is that the RTS link will have MRT trains similar to the TEL. But a change in plans by Malaysia was made to cut costs. Thus, the depot was relocated to Wadi Hana, located along the Terbau Highway as shown in the map below. Meanwhile, the RTS will instead use LRT trains similar to the Ampang Line in the greater KL area. Initially planned to start operations in 2024, but due to the COVID-19 crisis and Movement Control Order (MCO), the completion date was pushed back to 2026 provided if construction starts by Jan 2021. Once the RTS starts operation, KTMB train services to Singapore will cease operations. 

New LRT Ampang Line Train Video Walkthrough ( MALAYSIA PUBLIC ...

An Ampang Line LRT train 

Train cars on TEL will have five doors, instead of four, on each ...

A Thomson-East Coast Line CT251 train


Bukit Panjang LRT  - RTS line not going to use this kind of LRT train.







Personally, I feel that the RTS link project is definitely necessary as it helps boosts the economy of the two neighboring countries together. Moreover, the line helps reduces congestion along the Causeway. Furthermore, it is convenient for our fellow Malaysians who work in Singapore. Lastly, the links help to bring our fellow Malaysians and Singaporeans together. Hope this pandemic situation improves ASAP and salutes and 頑張って to our frontline workers who work and slog tirelessly to keep us safe so that construction can start ASAP! 加油!Semoga Berjaya!


Map of RTS Link in English


Map in Malay



Source: 

Nelson Benjamin and Vanessa Devi (2020, 31 Jul) RM10bil RTS Link to go ahead, The Star Malaysia. Retrieved on 18 August 2020 from https://www.thestar.com.my/news/nation/2020/07/31/rm10bil-rts-link-to-go-ahead 



Iskandar Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) map taken from https://imbrt.com.my/ 



Thank You Frontline Workers Who Work Stock Illustration 1707662308

lifehouse」のYahoo!検索(リアルタイム) - Twitter(ツイッター)を ...感謝 心から。 | だひこのワードローブ

P.S. Thr RTS to JB is not the only proposed rail link to Malaysia as there will be a new high speed rail connecting Singapore all the way to Kuala Lumpur by 2031. The high speed rail (HSR) to KL will slash travel times from 4 hours by plane (inclusive of check in, security and getting to city centers), 6 hours by car (excluding traffic at the Causeway or 2nd link) and 8 hours by KTMB trains, to just 90 minutes by HSR. 

Btw, the HSR was initially said to be completed by 2026. However, after the defeat of the Barisan Nasional party led by former PM Najib in May 2018, the HSR was scrapped by Mahathir because of high costs. But, on 5 September, the HSR was announced to start operations by 2031. Meanwhile, it is said that there will be a cheaper alternative, which is upgrading the existing KTM line between KL and SG, with an extension to Jurong East.



E7 Series Shinkansen high speed train kagayaki at Tokyo Station, Japan


KTM Intercity Train, Malaysia

Updates
22 Nov 2020: Online groundbreaking ceremony at Bukit Chagar virtually by Johor's ruler Sultan Ibrahim Iskandar, Johor Crown Prince Tunku Ismail Sultan Ibrahim, Malaysia's Transport Minister Wee Ka Siong, Johor Chief Minister Hasni Mohammad and other government officials.  The station will be operated by MRT Corp. Next to the station is the ICQ building and transportation hub. Whether the RTS station will be linked to KTM JB Sentral station is still unknown.

groundbreaking ceremony

Layout of Bukit Chagar Station
Photo by MRT Corp. Malaysia

planned location of Bukit Chagar terminal station


26 Nov 2020: construction contract for Woodlands North is awarded by Land Transport Authority to Japanese company Penta Ocean Construction Co Ltd. (五洋建設株式会社Goyō Kensetsu Kabushiki-gaisha), which also in charge of Singapore's Thomson East Coast Line. The contract includes construction of tunnels to the station as well as the CIQ building.

Dec 2020: Sources has shown that Malaysia Government is planning to end HSR line in JB's Bukit Chagar instead of the original 2016 plan to end in Jurong East in Singapore. However, a HSR line between KL and Bukit Chagar is redundant because there is already existing KTM double tracking project that will bring down KL to JB travel time from 6 hours to 3-3.5 hours and doing so only duplicates existing infrastructure. Lastly, by doing so, the Malaysian Government have to pay RM 300m compensation to Singapore.




1 Jan 2021: KL SG HSR terminated after the 31 Dec 2020 agreement lapsed by both countries regarding changes proposed by Malaysia Government. 




References











Minor amendment to LRT Mutiara Line won’t have big effect on environmental impact assessment, says MRT Corp CEO

Source: Malay Mail MRT Corp chief executive officer Datuk Mohd Zarif Hashim said the minor amendment involved the LRT Mutiara Line alignment...