MY FEET, THEY ACHE
I was lazy and got up at 10:30 today.
I didn't leave the hotel till like..1:45, and that's only because they were begging me to leave so they could clean my room. I really like the staff here - they're nice. Moreover, they remember who I am. They sometimes have my key out before I even get up to the desk. (Some hotels in Japan still use real keys. There's only one key to your room, so if you lose it, you're fucked. So everyone turns it in at the front desk when they go out - this way you're not liable if it's lost, and chances are it won't get lost.)
So today I walked around Ebisudori and Hondori, two of the major shopping arcades here in Hiroshima. Well, I actually spent a lot of time in Sun Mall and Parco, but let me tell you. Pictures will come when they come.
So! First of all I walked up to Sun Mall in Hondori. It's kind of far from my hotel but I was determined to get my Uniqlo scarf! Scarf was obtained after searching all over the store. XD Was tempted by 40 dollar yukata but um...festival season is practically over. I also own my own yukata which I plan to have my mother ship me anyway. At least I know that one fits me, length wise. I also got black socks because I lack them and a black long sleeved shirt that looks like it will fit me. Just kind of...work clothes in case all of mine from home are dirty or something I guess.
I then went upstairs to see what else was there. I found a comic shop that also had a lot of anime merchandise too. It was like...a very small animate. I found the...fourth? volume of the Viewfinder series and after consulting my camera, bought it. (Yes, I forget what I already own sometimes.) There are new versions of Kizuna out...I think it's basically two volumes packaged as one. But the cover art is beautiful...very tempted to buy them next time I am in Hiroshima...or if Kumano has a comic store... I also got gatchagatcha toys - one is of Marie Antoinette from Beru Bara as a chibi. It's called Beru Bara Kids. Apparently there is a manga of them all as chibis! I want it.
I also went into the Volks Salon. I have now walked around a Dollfie shop. Some stuff was cool, some of it was freaky, and all of it was confusing. Sadly, they did not have any Pullip dolls - the store was also a hobby store. Couldn't find my Code GAYASS Suzaku figure but I saw a lot of other figures? Jack Sparrow will be in the next Kingdom Hearts Trading Arts Figures set!
I also got to walk around Gothic Lolita stores. I...I laughed because something about people in frilly dresses being VERY SERIOUS about their FRILLY DRESSES is...humorous. Moi Meme Mette? Mana's store has a store in there. He'll be in Hiroshima to sign autographs on the 31st apparently! This amused me even more because they're advertising it like mad and I have a feeling gothic lolitas are going to descend on Hiroshima from all over Western Japan. XD I tried not to laugh too hard as I passed his shop - the poor girl working there looked bored insane. I'll have to say that if I was into wearing that stuff, I'd shop at Kera. Old kimono patterns for the win.
After that I went back down to an idol shop I saw. It seriously is the only idol shop and really it only has photos. It's small but man, I came away with 35 photos...all but four of those were of X Japan. I mean I couldn't pass up hilarious photos of Toshi and Yoshiki and hide, or all three of them! Poor girls at the counter had to spend forever getting them for me and some of them were the last copies in the store - like the display copies.
Oh! Before all this shopping I ate lunch at a very nice restaurant where kids were being taught how to cook/bake. I liked it a lot - they opened the doors for you even. I'll have to go back sometime.
I think after the idol shop I went to dinner. Well I had a Mister Donuts doughnut before the idol shop because I wanted one. So dinner was at Saizeriya, because it is an awesome restaurant and yea grape juice at the drink bar! However I felt very...very lonely. I missed Camille and Charlotte...I missed not being a mom eating with her family, or being the child there with her family. I wished I was the wife with her husband, or the girl there with her boyfriend. I know I like to kick it alone usually but today I just felt...really lonely.
After this I decided to try to find a pair of shoes. High prices and the inability to tell what my shoe size was left me with no shoes. Am I an L? How many centimeters is that? Even the GAP at Parco let me down - 8 was their largest size. I am at least 8.5 in shoes. =/
I bought a rose quartz star and a rose opal heart from one of the many stone stores. They were kind enough to do everything in English for me. I got them because they're my birth stones and they're supposed to like...empower me. Can't hurt right?
By this time it was like 8:30 and my feet were killing me. Like pain shooting up the back of my legs. They still hurt just sitting here.
I'm sure I did even more window shopping - I plan to check out more stores later when I have um...money that I am ALLOWED to spend. Hiroshima will be my place to get away to - lives, shopping, food, and site seeing.
Now I need to repack my stuff. I'm supposed to move to Kumano tomorrow but my company hasn't told me WHEN. This is not cool. =/ So gotta be prepared to book it early in the morning possibly. =3=
I didn't leave the hotel till like..1:45, and that's only because they were begging me to leave so they could clean my room. I really like the staff here - they're nice. Moreover, they remember who I am. They sometimes have my key out before I even get up to the desk. (Some hotels in Japan still use real keys. There's only one key to your room, so if you lose it, you're fucked. So everyone turns it in at the front desk when they go out - this way you're not liable if it's lost, and chances are it won't get lost.)
So today I walked around Ebisudori and Hondori, two of the major shopping arcades here in Hiroshima. Well, I actually spent a lot of time in Sun Mall and Parco, but let me tell you. Pictures will come when they come.
So! First of all I walked up to Sun Mall in Hondori. It's kind of far from my hotel but I was determined to get my Uniqlo scarf! Scarf was obtained after searching all over the store. XD Was tempted by 40 dollar yukata but um...festival season is practically over. I also own my own yukata which I plan to have my mother ship me anyway. At least I know that one fits me, length wise. I also got black socks because I lack them and a black long sleeved shirt that looks like it will fit me. Just kind of...work clothes in case all of mine from home are dirty or something I guess.
I then went upstairs to see what else was there. I found a comic shop that also had a lot of anime merchandise too. It was like...a very small animate. I found the...fourth? volume of the Viewfinder series and after consulting my camera, bought it. (Yes, I forget what I already own sometimes.) There are new versions of Kizuna out...I think it's basically two volumes packaged as one. But the cover art is beautiful...very tempted to buy them next time I am in Hiroshima...or if Kumano has a comic store... I also got gatchagatcha toys - one is of Marie Antoinette from Beru Bara as a chibi. It's called Beru Bara Kids. Apparently there is a manga of them all as chibis! I want it.
I also went into the Volks Salon. I have now walked around a Dollfie shop. Some stuff was cool, some of it was freaky, and all of it was confusing. Sadly, they did not have any Pullip dolls - the store was also a hobby store. Couldn't find my Code GAYASS Suzaku figure but I saw a lot of other figures? Jack Sparrow will be in the next Kingdom Hearts Trading Arts Figures set!
I also got to walk around Gothic Lolita stores. I...I laughed because something about people in frilly dresses being VERY SERIOUS about their FRILLY DRESSES is...humorous. Moi Meme Mette? Mana's store has a store in there. He'll be in Hiroshima to sign autographs on the 31st apparently! This amused me even more because they're advertising it like mad and I have a feeling gothic lolitas are going to descend on Hiroshima from all over Western Japan. XD I tried not to laugh too hard as I passed his shop - the poor girl working there looked bored insane. I'll have to say that if I was into wearing that stuff, I'd shop at Kera. Old kimono patterns for the win.
After that I went back down to an idol shop I saw. It seriously is the only idol shop and really it only has photos. It's small but man, I came away with 35 photos...all but four of those were of X Japan. I mean I couldn't pass up hilarious photos of Toshi and Yoshiki and hide, or all three of them! Poor girls at the counter had to spend forever getting them for me and some of them were the last copies in the store - like the display copies.
Oh! Before all this shopping I ate lunch at a very nice restaurant where kids were being taught how to cook/bake. I liked it a lot - they opened the doors for you even. I'll have to go back sometime.
I think after the idol shop I went to dinner. Well I had a Mister Donuts doughnut before the idol shop because I wanted one. So dinner was at Saizeriya, because it is an awesome restaurant and yea grape juice at the drink bar! However I felt very...very lonely. I missed Camille and Charlotte...I missed not being a mom eating with her family, or being the child there with her family. I wished I was the wife with her husband, or the girl there with her boyfriend. I know I like to kick it alone usually but today I just felt...really lonely.
After this I decided to try to find a pair of shoes. High prices and the inability to tell what my shoe size was left me with no shoes. Am I an L? How many centimeters is that? Even the GAP at Parco let me down - 8 was their largest size. I am at least 8.5 in shoes. =/
I bought a rose quartz star and a rose opal heart from one of the many stone stores. They were kind enough to do everything in English for me. I got them because they're my birth stones and they're supposed to like...empower me. Can't hurt right?
By this time it was like 8:30 and my feet were killing me. Like pain shooting up the back of my legs. They still hurt just sitting here.
I'm sure I did even more window shopping - I plan to check out more stores later when I have um...money that I am ALLOWED to spend. Hiroshima will be my place to get away to - lives, shopping, food, and site seeing.
Now I need to repack my stuff. I'm supposed to move to Kumano tomorrow but my company hasn't told me WHEN. This is not cool. =/ So gotta be prepared to book it early in the morning possibly. =3=