My summer with flumpool: Part 1 - Hiroshima & Himeji
I thought I was gonna let this go and keep in my memory then I realised it would all gone if I just let this slip away coz I will soon forget how awesome summer of 2012 has been for me when it comes to flumpool.
((Anyway, HI! it's Pat and well, now I'm such a big fan of flumpool - hence I rarely blogged about Arashi - hahah))
No concert report will be posted coz well, that was what everyone did and they definitely did it better than me.
Originally, I planned to attend flumpool's final live of this tour which was Hiroshima. Ticket was crazy to get since everyone seemed to have the same idea of going for the final. I actually had to communicate with my friend who helped me out from New York. Yes, I was on work trip in New York and L-san was in Japan, think about time difference we had to go through! In the end, I ended up with a standing ticket of 31 July, their then final live. A month later, they announced the additional dates and Hiroshima was no longer their final, it was Okinawa instead. So why did I have to go through those hassles?!?!? (￣＾￣) Well, I then decided I should try to get ticket at Himeji, their additional date instead of going to Yamaguchi as original plan. L-san was being fab, she got me a ticket at Himeji on first day it was on sale and it was like 10 row from the front. It was so fabulous!
Fast-forward to July 2012, I went to Japan and it was so hot that I swore to myself I would never go to Japan in summer again. Though last year I was in Tokyo in summer but that was the wet version it. This year, I walked under 34 degree celsius from place to place. My make-up melt and I just sweated a lot. It wasn't so fun.
poster in front of Hiroshima ALSOK Hall
My seat after the live at Himeji-shi Bunka Center
Can you find me among pooler? (＾ε＾)
Anyhow, flumpool was still flumpool as always. They are best at entertaining with their music and they really did it again in both Hiroshima and Himeji. I had a great time enjoying their live music. The quality of music they deliver just blew me away. I wish I could say highlight of this trip was during flumpool's live at Himeji since I was so close but I couldn't! I could never say that because...
I MET AMAKAWA GENKI-KUN & TAKATO DAIJU-SAN!!!!!!!!!!!
(side note: Genki is flumpool's bassist who happens to be, *ahem*, my favourite, and Daiju-san is flumpool's supporting keyboard for every flumpool tour. He's like unofficial member of flumpool)
It happened on 1st August around 3pm. I was walking back to JR Himeji from sightseeing at Himeji castle. Then I noticed this blonde hair guy that look so familiar. He walked past me and I realised he's Daiju-san! I turned around and saw that he walked with another guy with cap. Seeing just his back, I knew right away it was Genki-kun (you always know the guy you like from just looking at certain part of his body right? I was like that - hahahah). I turned back and started following them. My heart was beating like crazy, I was hesitated whether I should go up to him and say hi or not (and hell, I should be nervous esp. with my Japanese language skill!). Then I made decision that this is once in a lifetime experience, it's now or never. So when they stopped in front of Yamato Yashiki, I plucked up the courage and went up to them:
me: すみません、尼川元気くんですか。(Excuse me, are you Amakawa Genki-kun?)
[[duhhhh, I wish I could have better greeting. It was so obvious that it was him. It's like you ask Will Smith he is Will Smith when he wore Men in Black suit and stood next to Tommy Lee Jones]]
Genki: はい。(Yes)
[[he held up a paper to covering his mouth when he said that to me, was he surprised with my sudden attack?!（ ´(ェ)｀）]]
me: 私はflumpoolのタイファンです。(I am flumpool's Thai fan)
Genki: はー！
me: タイからflumpoolのライブ来ました。(I came from Thailand to see flumpool's live)
[[my Japanese grammar had gone down hill at that moment. that's all I can do - the best I can do. I had to emphasize that I came from Thailand twice coz at Hiroshima's live when I met Japanese fans, at first they thought I come from Taiwan so I want Genki to get the right information - hence, emphasizing "タイ" ]]
Genki: ありがとう! (Thank you)
He then bowed a little and handed out his right hand to me. OMG, was I gonna shake his hand?!?!?!? (≧▽≦) Of course I fecking grabbed that hand. His hand was so soft!!!!! I thought it would be harsh since he played bass & guitar but hell no, it was super soft. And he was so gorgeous. His skin was so smooth esp. his face. He's so handsome in person. Gosh, just think about this actually makes me melt inside. Anyway, I then turned to Daiju-san and shook his hand too (love his keyboard skill) when Daiju-san noticed my iphone case by Marc by Marc Jacob which was the same as him (I knew this coz I followed him twitter and saw him tweeted abt it). So he told me that we have the same phone case and he actually pulled that out from his pocket to show me. (Daiju-san, why you have to be this nice?! I'm gonna cry o(TωT )). I told them both 頑張って下さい (Ganbatte kudasai) before I let them go off to do whatever they want to which happened to be visiting Himeji Castle! (as they blogged abt it in ameblo & poolside blog) I was gonna say 'shit, I wish I followed them there' but then again, I don't believe in stalking shit anymore. I'd rather be civilized, let them know I'm existed as their fan and respect them.
I was really over the moon! I probably looked like an idiot when I walked back to the hotel which was behind JR Himeji since I had the biggest smile on my face and grinned from ear to ear throughout the time I walked back! I just couldn't believe my luck really. I mean, if only I stopped and went into Daiso, then I would probably missed this chance, the reason I went to Japan this summer (well, him & his friends).
Next: my summer with flumpool: Part 2 Singapore