Day 47

Headed out for Nakano with a friend from the house for some final AKB shopping. I couldn't resist more bearbricks and ended up buying three more, plus some expensive photos to complete a collection. This is the guy who had all the bearbricks on sale that I talked about earlier. You rent these glass boxes and put in stuff you want to sell, then you just go to the clerk who works there and say what you want to buy. The sellers can come back any time to collect their cash and put new stuff in. You can also see what each glass box currently have on their website. The one on the picture below is number C-199. I'm not sure how often they update the photos, but I think once a week or so. As you can see, this guy has a few new items like the Yuko daruma and 5400secs micro SDs, but still plenty of bearbricks.

Then we meet with another friend of mine who I met in Japan three years ago. As with many other people I know, we don't really stay in touch, but still make sure to meet whenever possible. Had dinner at an Italian resturant which means pasta and escargots.

And these are the bearbricks and pictures I got this time. Some of them were expensive, but I want to have 6 of each set so they take up a full spread in the binder. Still want more of the election posters.

Day 44

Today was the yearly held Cave Matsuri in Akihabara. Matsuri means festival, and summer is the season for alot of different festivals - cultural ones like obon, omikoshi, hanabi and tanabata, as well as popular cultural ones like Comiket and the Cave Matsuri. I decided to sleep it out and not line up for anything this time. I got to the Cave festival around 12:30, and was handed a ticket to the shop for 16:30. Let's take a look at some of the stuff they got for sale this time.

The new bath house door covers, called "noren" in Japanese. The one to the left says "women's bath", and the other one men's.  

And Evac emblem you put on your belt.

5 chip pillows, which felt nice, but a little bit too expensive for just one. If it was 2200 yen for all five of them, then I would get them without thinking twice.

I thought I was gonna be able to just walk through and get my stuff, like two years ago when they had the Rakuen Baby festival at the same place. When I got there, there was an event going on at the stage - Wasshoi 5.5. The players in the newly released Mushihime-sama Futari Black Label & Death Smiles Mega Black Label Super Replay DVD was there to show the people some live playing.

I went there with a friend to show him some of Akihabara, so we went around to a few weird shops. In Akihabara you can find just about anything. If you can't make out what this is, don't bother.

Also checked the regular AKB stuff that I always do when in Akihabara. At the official shop I got the B3rd DVD, Ucchi's t-shirt and a CinDy clear file. In the hallway of the theater floor there is a big MVP frame with nicknames of people who have been lucky enough to get to see their stages a hundred times. And you can see the member's pictures being mirrored in the glass.

The Liberty near the big crossing is starting to sell more pictures. Prices are slightly more expensive than Trio 2, but you can find some cheaper ones here. I will stick to Trio 2 though as you can browse freely there.

Before going back to the Cave festival we paid a quick visit to Yodobashi Camera, to rest in their massage chairs, look at electronical dictionaries and iPod protection, and to meet up with a guy who wanted to sell one of his bearbricks. When we got back to the Cave festival I could buy the stuff that I wanted, and soon after there was another event going on - Midnight Live 360, which was being broadcasted on the Internet live. It was a continuation of last year, so not sure what it was all about, but I think IKD was there to talk about how it is working as a producer. And they were gonna take their time to listen to their fanbase to see what kind of shooting games they want.

Near the wall they had a bunch of framed artwork and sketches. People who wanted to, could write or draw something in the visitor's sketchbook. They also had the Ketsui helicopter 3D-pixelated inside a glass box.

Before heading home I met a friend there who I met at the same festival two years ago. I got to try the Daifukkatsu on his iPhone, which was great for being handheld and with touch pad. If I had an iPhone/iPod Touch, I would definitely get their games. I don't have enough interest in games anymore to hang around for longer, so decided to call it a day after this. Before jumping on the train home we had dinner at the nearby sushi-go-round.

This is the stuff I got today. First the Cave stuff, which is the men's noren, that I will put outside the shower or something, the new History Book with lots of data from all of their titles and events, Guwange chopsticks (called "ohashi" in Japanese), and a B2 sized poster of their latest title Akai Katana. I actually managed to not spend too much money on shit this time. Then it's the AKB stuff that I was talking about earlier in the picture below.

And this is what the bearbricks looks like unboxed. I will get a third one before I go back home, just because I'm thinking three of them will look good together on the shelf. I might get Ishida's, but not sure. I need to go to Nakano Broadway again.

Day 43

In the afternoon I went to Yokohama to visit the park that appears in Kanpeki Gu~no Ne, some other locations, and to shoot some film after dark. Was short on daylight time, so I did Kanpeki quick, and then headed for the Ashita wa Ashita no Kima ga Umareru location. I need to buy these singles before I go home.

Watarirouka Hashiritai - Kanpeki Gu~no Ne

Watarirouka Hashiritai - Kanpeki Gu~no Ne

Watarirouka Hashiritai - Kanpeki Gu~no Ne

Watarirouka Hashiritai - Kanpeki Gu~no Ne

Watarirouka Hashiritai - Kanpeki Gu~no Ne

Watarirouka Hashiritai - Kanpeki Gu~no Ne

Chocolove - Ashita wa Ashita no Kimi ga Umareru

This shot was weird. I think they filmed at the other end of the building (seen in the picture below), and then mirrored it. Or I missed to check around the corner. Still look the same!

Chocolove - Ashita wa Ashita no Kimi ga Umareru

Instead of the Mendol locations, of which I wasn't sure I would be able to get to anyway, I did the three resturants that appear in Osawagase Food Show (100515).

Osawagase Food Show (100515)

Osawagase Food Show (100515)

Osawagase Food Show (100515)

Their food was a little bit too expensive for me, so I had tantan-men instead, a spicy ramen. Nothing compared to the bakuhatsu ramen though.

I wanted to get some film footage so headed for Osanbashi first. I will upload the finished movie once it's done. Enjoy a some random photos meanwhile. First, a stray cat. In Japan there are many stray cats, most of them are very thin since it's hard to find food in a city made of mostly concrete. I've seen many cats stick together, and play - or fight. I'm not really sure which. Have you ever seen large pet bottles filled with water tied to a street light or put near houses? It is said that the moonlight reflecting in the water inside the bottles will scare cats away from getting near ones house at night to look for food.