Day 29

Yesterday was totally unplanned so needed more rest today. Didn't go anywhere except for dinner, which was tempura meal set from the Tendon Tenya.

Day 28

Resting day. In the evening we went to see some traditional summer fireworks (hanabi) which was quite massive with great view.

Alot of people were going home immediately after it ended, and tons of bicycles were parked along the way. Some people had problems trying to find their bike in the dark. In the comedy movie "Boku-tachi to chuuzai-san no 700 nichi sensou" (700 Days of Battle: Us VS The Policeman) there's a similiar scene where they try to find their bicycles at a fireworks events.

Then the landlord took us for more free food and booze. For nice and serious people, he always does that when they're about to leave the house. This time a German and a Belgian guy were going home after their Japanese summer course. Squid and octopus are popular snacks, and very delicious. Before we knew it, it was already 3am.

Day 21

Since I was extremely tired from the Kyoto trip, which was awfully hot, I wanted to rest. Went to Akihabara to pick up the new photobooks, then to Nakano for some more photos. I'm thinking I should just collect sets of 3 or 6 since they look good together in the binder.

The landlord cooked curry and tacos for everyone which was nice. Free food!

Day 2

Had AKB Team A "melon bread with whipped cream and strawberry jam" and the Kagome juice from 7 Eleven for breakfast. The bread was awesome but that juice tasted awful. Next, I went to Akihabara to loiter around before hopping on the train to meet zabitan. Found a nice showcase in a store called Liberty, and couldn't resist the 30 trading cards (the new ones) for 1000 yen. I got to browse the cards beforehand, and when I got to see Chikarina's smile I just said I'll take it. No senbatsu members but I'm cool with that as I love all the members!

Then went to meet zabitan for some chatting and trading. Really nice and cool guy! Afterwards it's back to Akihabara. Paid a quick visit to the AKB shop and theater before going to get the laptop. Since my old one is 3 years old and really slow with Vista, I didn't bother to bring it. I had already decided to get the Macbook Pro 13", and looked at kakaku.com for the cheapest store. Went there, but they were out of stock. Saw another similiar shop but they were also out. I asked if they could check kakaku.com for another store, which would have it in stock, and then it's off to buy it. I'm talking about really small shops, outside the center of Akihabara and its Sofmap/Yodobashi/Laox/etc. The small shops are wholesale, so you can get the same item for thousands or ten thousands of yen cheaper then at a normal store.

Back at the lodging there's a birthday party going on and a mongolian guy showed us something awesome. Left like 10pm to go to Shibuya and get the Seishun no Flag singles. I had already called to make sure they still had first press, but when I got there they were being assholes and said the only first press bonus is the event ticket. So I just bought the Akkanbebashi DVD, because it had another card with it. Was still pretty disapointed, so decided to hang around and take pictures. Got my first shot down.

img of mendol shot

If you ever wondered who designed the senbatsu posters, they're inspired by the politicians election posters.