meeting people
2007/06/30: VERSAILLES instore event
heh, got to go to an instore event [basically you get to meet the band and either shake their hand, get their autograph or get your photo taken with them, depending on the band's preference] of VERSAILLES. i was lucky, and someone gave me a ticket to the first part of the event [photo w/ band], so i didn't have to pay. you could also get your photo taken w/ an individual band member if you paid extra, but that is a bit too intimate for me. it was bad enough just meeting them as a band! anyway, was happy, since i've been wanting to meet Kamijo [ex. LAREINE] since i started listening to LAREINE in 1999/2000 and Hizaki [various projects] who is a rocking guitarist.
- left to right: Jasmine You [bass], Yuki [drums], moi, Kamijo [vox] and Hizaki [guitarist]
it was kinda intimdating meeting them, since you have to introduce yourself to them, and i was pretty much one of the few who did NOT bring anything for them. anyway, they were obviously used to fans being nervous meeting them, so they were really nice about, and Jasmine and Yuki gave me really sweet reassuring smiles. Hizaki just looked tired and bored, but i guess after an hour of sitting down, shaking people's hands and getting your photo taken can be tedious. Kamijo also gave me a nice smile, but his EYES! woah. i'm so used to seeing him wearing blue contacts for LAREINE and looking very prince charming, that i got a huge shock when i saw him in his white contacts. and while i like those in general, i was not mentally prepared to see them up close:
/Kamijo holds my hand, i stare at hand, then looked up/ hey, nice friendly smile, he fixed his teeth!
/start to relax, looked up some more/ OMG, those are freaky eyes! they totally don't go with that smile!
/SHELLSHOCKED STARE/
and when i was leaving, Jasmine gave this kinda creepy wave [he did it to everyone]
anyway, that was pretty much it. i met some really nice international fans from america, france and germany. and took photos of some of the japanese fans
- the middle girl is a Hizaki cosplayer, while the girls flanking her are lolitas
- this girl [same girl as the one on the right of the above pic] is too cute! i wanna put her in a glass case. and throughout the course of the event, she changed at least THREE times
2007/07/02: dad's friend and steffi
met dad's uni friend, Yoshi, and his wife, Kyoko, who took me and Erika out for lunch. had thai food buffet, and talk about nostalgic feelings! while i love japanese food, i forgot how bland it can be! and spicy japanese food is pretty much non-existent! OMG, the thai food was so good! and just the right amount of spiciness. but i felt sorry for Kyoko since this was her first time eating thai food, and she apparently can't handle hot food that well. Yoshi seemed to enjoy the food though. i ate way too much curry, pad thai and laab [which is more laosian than thai].
we were taken to a cadfe which specialised in chocolates. and if i known how expensive this cafe would be before hand, i would not have let Yoshi take us there. but it was DELICIOUS! had hot chocolate, and while not as good as the ones i had in italy, it was pretty close. and we also had chocolate. i tried this praline one, and after i had bitten into it, i did not want to finish it! coz if i did, it would be all gone. it had to be one of the nicest pieces of chocolate i have had!
afterwards, Erika and i decided to go to shinjuku, since at the moment japan is having 'sparking sales'. yep, sparkling sales, which is basically stocktake sales. and i wanted to go to OIOI to look for a nice white or red dress shirt to go with the coat i bought a couple of days previously.
note: i have been wanting to buy this coat ever since i saw it in the gothic and lolita bible [a fashion magazine] a couple of years ago, and when i first came here, went looking for it; but disovered it was:
1: too expensive [brand new is around $350]
2: the one i saw was kind of ugly, didn't look anywhere near as nice as the one in the photo
3: and the shop that was selling it only had it in a tiny tiny size
so i gave up and thought photoshop must be a very clever invention, because, it really was ugly. but then i found a used one at closet child in harajuku, and it looked just as good as the one in the photo, and fitted me like a dream! plus, it was less than $100, so i snagged it. one small problem, i only have one shirt that goes with it [but i can get away wearing nothing underneath]. hence the need to go to shinjuku ^_^.
and guess who we bumped into at OIOI!?!? STEFFI!!!! [and her friend] it was quite funny, since i rounded the corner, and we saw each other at the same time, and spent about a minute pointing at each other gaping like fish! and Erika was like, what the heck are you two doing!?!?! it was quite funny. so we teamed up with her and her friend and we all ended up buying something [peer pressure at its best ^O^], but not the nice white or red dress shirt - most of them were too frilly, or had to be done right up at the neck which i hate - which i was looking for. oh well, gives me an excuse to go shopping again later on. heh.
30 days of night
i love that title! saw the trailer for 30days of night which is a horror movie based on a comic book series of the same name. i never got into the comic book series because the art was a real hit and miss [i read the books though], but i really liked the concept - alaska during winter when the sun sets for 30days and vampires come out and feed and kill and etc. i usually steer clear of vampire movies/books, but these ones rock, they're not the usual angsty, pretty, horny, annoying cardboard creatures hollywood favours, instead they're like zombies on steriods - lots of fangs, blood, killing, and no sex. that is one sweet concoction in my books. anyway, the trailer had this funky instrumental song going, and i couldn't place it, but i swear i heard it before [turns out it was used for the unleashed / danny the dog trailer as well]. turned out to be the intro to muse's 'apocalyspe please', and boy do the first 20seconds of that song ROCK! but i was kinda disappointed when i heard the rest of the song on youtube - needs to maintain the OOMPH! oh well. i still want to see the film though and i am legend [another vampire film, but based on a book of the same title which leaves dracula for dead!].