Lady Lara Jones' Adventure Blog: Stories of a Geek Girl Living in Tokyo

Some fun videos with food and animals!

2010-03-10T22:01:00.000+09:00

You may have caught these on your youtube travels, but if not they are definitely must-see!
The first is from a Japanese game show: "Stacking food on animals." I find it to be hilarious and yet somewhat mean to the animals at the same time...I mean...wouldn't you want to eat the food if it was being stacked on you!?!

The next is the youtube dub series, "Cooking with Dog." I'm not really sure how this got started, but these videos are actually super useful.I have already begun planning far more meals than I ever would have attempted here in Japan thanks to these awesome videos.

Enjoy everyone!
Lady Jones

Some Awesome Stuff Inspired by Sushi

2010-03-05T17:36:00.001+09:00

I heart sushi. I could seriously eat it every day. Don't know how good that would be for me...but I would.

Sushi has traveled the world to become one of the most popular foods to come out of Japan. The so-called "Sushi Boom" of the 1980's and '90s made sushi extremely popular in North America and especially in the U.S.
I can remember the first time I went for sushi with my family in high school. The thought of eating raw food, particularly fish, was pretty shocking to most New Hampshire residents and my parents and I were included. We started pretty safe by ordering California rolls (which have artificial crab meat and no raw ingredients) but quickly moved into raw varieties and loved everything we tried. I can remember falling in love with Salmon and to this day can easily pack away nothing but salmon nigiri sushi (Salmon laid over a flat bed of rice) when I go out for Kaiten Sushi (sushi on a conveyor belt that customers pick by plate color/price) here in Japan. Of course, I have expanded my sushi preferences since spending time in Japan (the only sushi I have found that I don't like are Octopus and Natto (rotten soybeans)),

Oh it looks sooo disgusting...I can't even handle how gross Natto is...let alone Natto sushi...

but it occurred to me recently that I'm ordering completely different sushi than I was back in the states and that it is true that only certain Western sushi has come back to become popular in Japan. I have to admit that I really miss Caterpillar Rolls, a popular Western Maki Roll that has Avocado and Eel (unagi) wrapped around it with a special sauce that is absolutely delicious. Of course you can get rolls with avocado and eel here in Japan, but no caterpillar role per se. I mentioned this to a Japanese friend of mine and he said he had never even heard of the variety, further proving to me that there is a lot of Western sushi that is truly of American origin and distribution. Curious about my discovery, I went on Wikipedia and found the following had been written about "Western Sushi:"

"Western sushi

The increasing popularity of sushi in North America as well as around the world has resulted in variations of sushi typically found in the West but rarely if at all in Japan. Such creations to suit the Western palate^[11] were initially fueled by the invention of the California roll. A wide variety of popular rolls has evolved since. Some examples include:

California roll consists of avocado, kani kama (imitation crab stick), and cucumber, often made uramaki (with rice on the outside, nori on the inside)
Caterpillar roll generally includes avocado, unagi, kani kama, and cucumber.
Dynamite roll includes yellowtail (hamachi), and fillings such as bean sprouts, carrots, chili and spicy mayonnaise (In some parts of Canada, especially western Canada, a dynamite roll consists of a tempura-fried shrimp, masago (capelin roe), avocado and cucumber.)
Rainbow roll is typically a California roll topped with several various sashimi.
Spider roll includes fried soft shell crab and other fillings such as cucumber, avocado, daikon sprouts or lettuce, roe, and spicy mayonnaise.
Philadelphia roll almost always consists of smoked salmon, cream cheese, cucumber, and/or onion.
Salmon skin roll has grilled salmon skin with sweet sauce and cucumber.
Crunchy roll a California roll deep fried tempura-style, often topped with sweet eel sauce or chili sauce.
Seattle roll consists of cucumber, avocado, and raw or smoked salmon.
B.C. Roll contains salmon skin, roe, cucumber, sweet sauce.
Louisiana Roll contains blue crab and/or crawfish, spicy mayonnaise, creole seasoning or hot sauce, and sometimes green onion and cucumber.

Other rolls may include scallops, spicy tuna, beef or chicken or teriyaki roll, okra, and vegetables.Sushi rolls can also be made with brown rice and black rice. These have also appeared in Japanese cuisine.
In Hawaii, there is a predominant style of maki sushi that includes shoyu tuna (canned not fresh), tamago, kanpyō, kamaboko, and the distinctive red and green hana ebi (shrimp powder)."

I couldn't help but find this very interesting, and now I think I may have to make some of these sushi rolls for some Japanese friends and see what they think!
Well, enough about Western Sushi...it's making me hungry!
Here are some awesome things I discovered recently that were inspired by the awesomeness that is Sushi.

Sushi Cat is an awesome Flash Game designed by Armor Games
"Sushi Cat is lonely. Lonely and very hungry. Help Sushi Cat out by guiding him to as much sushi as possible. Watch him grow fat as he eats more and more sushi along his way. Fill up his belly to win."
Sounds pretty simple right? Well, it is for the most part, but sometimes it's true that simple games are pretty damn fun! This game is fantastic and a great way to kill 30 minutes between a class!

This Amazing Sushi Bento Art I found on Google Images is sooo neat! I wish I could buy a bento like this!

The People at SushiorDeath.com brought us this fantastic advertisement from Canada. It reads "Here is a fantastic adverts for a local sushi bar in Canada. Yuzu Sushi in Quebeck used the agency Lg2 to come up with this one. An innovative use of a spare tire, don’t you think?"

And here are some of the best Bentos I have ever seen. Laura, you have some serious talent making lunch!!!

http://www.flickr.com/photos/laurabento/sets/72157614207302713/show/with/3352740938/

It makes me so hungry...now I feel like I have to run down the street to our Kaiten Zushi bar!!!

and let's not forget the boatload of T Shirts, Pillows and other fun products inspired by delicious sushi!!!

This sweet T Shirt called "Human Sushi" is available at oneinchpunch.net

and this kawaii one is on Zazzle.

and last but not least, from my favorite retailer on the web ThinkGeek.com
Sushi Pillows, Magnets and Plushies...
Those plushies are seriously awesome and making me wish I could afford shipping to Japan because, interestingly enough, I have never seen sushi plushies out here in Japan (though I bet they probably have existed at some point. Just today I saw plushie Mameshiba at Don Quixote.)

Awesometastic.

Well I'm off to go get some sushi...because I'm really craving some now!

Hope you are out enjoying some sushi in the near future.

Lady Jones

Kotobukia....it's been said before, but I'll say it again. This place rocks!

2010-02-23T21:49:00.002+09:00

Just wanted to do a quick post about my recent trip to Kotobukia. It's a chain of stores that has all sorts of fare...but what I'm always excited to see is the floor or two (or more, so I hear, depending on where you go) of collectibles, figurines, plushies and other geeky fare. I mean, I was seriously blown away by this place. I've traveled around Akihabara a bit and I've been out to Nakano Broadway (where you can get a lot of older collectibles that were retired from the Akihabara area since they were either too old or not well-known enough to warrant shelf space there.) but this store is definitely among my must-see stores in Tokyo.

The first floor was so intense I had no idea where to go first! Right upon entering there was a whole row of Star Wars goods like new R2D2 and Darth Vader USB Hub devices and a whole set of glowing chopstick lightsabers (yeah, awesome, I really wanted some). To my right was an entire section devoted to Ghibli films. To my left was rows of Final Fantasy Figurines and Plushies. This is where I had purchased my cute Chocobo plushie (now named Merlin) a few weeks back and since I have taken every chance to stop into this store when I pass it.

I really like this Rogue Figure. By the way, her name in Japanese is "Rougu."

Photo Property of Kotobukia.

Used for non-profit, informational purposes only.

What I didn't know after my first trip was if you go to their website you can see EVERYTHING they stock and believe me it seems there is no end to the cool stuff they sell. From Marvel Collectible Figurines (some which say they are Kotobukia exclusives) to DC Collectible Figurines to Indiana Jones to Anime Figurines like this one from the series Air...I even saw some figurines from the movie Gremlins and some other neat and eccentric things like Mameshiba (Little Bean Dog) keychains and Alpaca Earphones/Ipod Case. Yeah, seriously, if you're in Tokyo for only a short while, you should get yourself to one of these stores! There is one in Akihabara pretty close to where you exit the train station. There is an English map in the train station at the information desk if you need one (usually a good idea as Akiba is confusing to first time visitors and you don't want to waste time getting lost!).

I couldn't believe they had these neat Gremlins Figures!

Photo Property of Kotobukia.

Used for non-profit, informational purposes only.

So yeah, if you haven't checked them out yet, give their site a look! It's pretty sweet!

Signing out for now,

Lady Jones

The Sun Came Out Today and Soon the Sakura Will Too!

2010-02-23T16:39:00.001+09:00

     It was a genuinely beautiful day in Tokyo today. I couldn't believe how warm it was, perhaps because I had grown so accustomed to the bitterly cold February days of Maine. By moving to Tokyo I was able to take my surroundings from a chill 10 degrees farenheit to a warm 56 degrees farenheit. I have to be honest, It's fricken awesome. Not one part of me misses the cold New England weather. Since I can't afford to ski anymore and I don't spend much time doing winter sports it had become a long and arduous season in which I was stuck inside wishing it was warmer so I could go for a run or take a photo walk around the neighborhood. In Tokyo I can go running whenever I like. Better yet, I can sign up for any of a million offered dance and yoga classes, go running, and enjoy the sun even in the "winter." We have experienced a little snow here in the past two months but the cold has been nowhere near what I was used to back home. Today, especially, was beautiful.

     I stepped out the door this morning in a T Shirt and felt the warm sun wake me up faster than any cup of coffee I've had this week. It was welcome after last weeks somewhat chilly weather. I spent a moment feeling the sun on my shoulders and watching it shine down on the cute garden behind our apartment. It reminded me that Cherry Blossom Season (Cherry Blossoms are known as Sakura in Japanese) was coming soon. As I walked up to the bus stop and put on my headphones I thought about how excited I was to see my first Sakura blooming in the early spring. Every time I've come to Japan until now has been in the dead heat of summer, when there are still beautiful gardens to view around Tokyo, but sadly the Cherry Blossoms are long gone. They only last a couple of weeks and then they are gone until next year. This symbol of seasonal beauty has come to represent so much in Japanese culture and society. "They have been used to symbolize the transience of life; this symbolism meshed well with the teachings of Buddhism. Also, since cherry trees blossom en masse, they have also been used as metaphors for clouds. Fallen blossoms, not to be ignored, are likened to snow and later, as a metaphor for a warrior killed early in life" (Baird, M: Symbols of Japan).

     Every year the Japanese prepare for Cherry Blossom season by planning picnics or walks through the famous spots for watching the trees. As the season moves north through the country, people make their best guesses of when the best time for viewing will come that year. Since it varies by a week or two every year, you can imagine how tough it is to guess the exact time in which they will be "best." By talking to a few people around me, I've come to figure out that there are also a few spots in Tokyo that should be avoided during this time due to crowds. The most cited spot to avoid was Ueno Park because, apparently, people will camp out overnight to get the best spot for their family/friends and therefore the casual observer and/or visitor might be overwhelmed and never find a good spot to sit. Again, this is just hearsay, but I'm going to try to find an ideal spot that is considered "less traveled" for my viewing. I really want to take this in, and take some fabulous photos, so I'm planning on having everything I need in a backpack the week that is scheduled to be "best" and then judge for myself which day I should head out. We'll see how it goes! These are the average days of "first bloom" as reported by
About Japan.com for 2008, 2007, 2006, and 2005:

March 28

March 20

March 21

March 31

This gives me a little help, but obviously I'll have to judge for myself what seems to be appearing on TV and around Tokyo when the time comes!
Gambarimasu! (I'll do my best!)
If you have any advice on good viewing spots that are lesser known/traveled, please let me know! Thanks!
Lady Jones

Mission Statement? Statement of Intent? Thesis Statement? Whatever, I guess that's not the point...

2010-02-16T23:42:00.001+09:00

Many of you may have noticed that there has been a serious lack of posts in my usual form. Those of you familiar with my writing probably know that I like to relate to my readers and share my personal experiences and thoughts in order to keep writing and obtain feedback. Lately, I feel as though my posts have jumped around from Borderline-Cliche Travel Blog to Criticism Rants to some Sparse Geek and Game Related Information to all sorts of other random things. Hadn't really been thinking about it until one day when I realized my blog looked like a schizophrenic mess and since I haven't been posting very often it probably looks like a jumbled puzzle to anyone stumbling across it for the first time.

After this realization I sat down and really thought about what this blog is and what it means to me. I think this is the first time I've really thought to myself, so what am I trying to do here? What do I want to accomplish or achieve by writing this blog? Or is it not so much achievement, but more a creative outlet for me as a writer and photographer who likes to connect with others as not only an anthropologist, but as a person living a crazy and eclectic life traveling all over the place. As you can imagine, this was quite the self-reflection. I didn't even know what the blog was anymore. A long time ago I knew, but since I've been caught up in my crazy life I think I lost track of it somewhere (and I can't even remember when).

When I was a little kid I saw someone spinning a globe on television once and stating to the person across from them that they would go wherever their finger landed. I wanted to do just that. I wanted to spin a globe, pick a place, and see it. Of course when I was nine I only dreamed about eating exotic food or speaking to new people. Now I dream about immersing myself in everything a country has to offer and connecting with all sorts of people, but at times, due to the obvious need for the finances to travel, it sometimes seems impossible to achieve this goal despite the vast interconnectedness of our world today.

     When I started the blog in 2006 it was a part of a class I was taking in Tokyo Japan in Visual Anthropology. There were some simple posts about my experiences and how I felt about my experiences in Tokyo. At the time blogging was gaining popularity but was not nearly the multimedia home of expression and discussion that it is today. It wasn't yet known not as a social media tool but as a new way to write on the web. Now it is discussed not only as social media, but sometimes as a hub that contains networking, creative expression, news, and all sorts of other kinds of information rolled into one. The blogging-sphere is always changing, and I like that, but I feel like being caught up in the change has forced me to figure out what's going to work for me. I feel like the loss of my creative writing pieces in search of a more cutting edge feel has really hurt this blog, and I want to finally achieve a balance of what I think my readers like with what I think would be good to enhance the blog. Of course trying new social media technologies is great, but I feel like so many people are just obsessed with "having it all" and then end up missing out on what's most important in a blog - quality content. Really I'm speaking from experience because when I go back and read my blog lately I feel like the quality has really taken a dive. If the creator is that displeased then imagine how my readers must feel! I always get so inspired to write on this blog about my thoughts of the day or an experience I've had but what it's come down to lately is that I've been too tired and exhausted to do the blog justice. All that inspiration dissolves and sputters out by the time I get to my computer and I need to find a way around that.

     What does this really mean? Well, I think it means I want what I wanted in the beginning - for my blog to be a creative outlet for me to connect with others, but not just some flashy thing that comes off as fancy marketing or a rather cliche travel guide to the non-traveler. (You'll note the google and amazon bars to the right of my blog, but notice that I tried to make them minimal and I don't want to have lots of ads on this site. There is nothing I hate more than stupid pop-ups, and seriously if anyone ever gets a pop-up ad on this page I will tear blogger apart for integrating that function.

     I want people to actually feel what I'm going through - to experience my travels as if they were traveling themselves. In many ways I want more feedback because I want to know what other people would do or think if they were in my situation. It's just interesting to me, and I've always liked connecting with others. Furthermore, I want to connect with people through my hobbies of dance, gaming, fantasy, sci fi, hiking, and all sorts of other things. I feel like my blog doesn't even represent who I am anymore, and to me that's a problem.

     I feel like the need to re-define this blog has come at around the same time that I am re-defining my life. I moved back to Tokyo in January and found myself asking a lot of questions. Why am I back in Japan? Is it to finally become fluent in Japanese? Is it to get my Masters Degree in Education so that I can teach and travel at the same time? Is it to escape from my student loan debt in the United States and attempt to secure a job in a market where I appear somewhat more competitive as both a degree-carrying foreigner and a woman? Who am I now, really? Am I still an anthropologist if I go into education and TESOL (teaching English as a second language)? What really makes an anthropologist, anyways? Is it just that PhD? Or is it something more? Who do I want to be anyways? Geek girl - well of course. I think I will always identify myself as a geek girl, but when do I draw the line professionally and personally beyond that? I like to think I'm kind of a complicated person and that people sometimes have a hard time understanding me or relating to me, but at the same time is that me just refusing to understand myself and take the time to figure out what I really want out of life?

   It's a lot to think about, and certainly I'm not done here, but I wanted to give you a glimpse of maybe what's to come. I'm going to write more narratives and more creative pieces about things I'm passionate about - whether that be adventure or travel or gaming or anthropology, and I want you, the readers, to feedback. I want to connect, and I hope people out there want to connect in return. Joining my blog is my husband, Brian, who also wants to share and connect with the world. I think he'll make a great addition to this blog and since he and I have different opinions and experiences I think it will present an interesting dynamic that I can't achieve alone.

   So here's to hoping that this is truly the return of Lady Lara Jones to what she feels is her home in the blog sphere. If you'll excuse me I'm off to study some Japanese, eat some chocolate, and have a power nap.

Signing out for now,
Lady Jones

Cake does sound pretty good right about now. Image from icanhascheezburger.com

Ueno Park: attractions and guide.

2010-01-30T23:43:00.001+09:00

     Ueno Koen (park) is one of the largest parks and outdoor walking areas in the city of Tokyo. Year-round it serves as a fantastic escape from the tall buildings and city surroundings and provides hikers, walkers and runners with a great place to go. Tourists often flock to Ueno in spring for its fantastic Cherry Blossom viewing (although it is ridiculously crowded at this time, so be warned), in the fall for foliage, and year-round for a trip to the zoo located in the center of the park or to the many wonderful museums and art galleries that have been built around the circumference of the park. The zoo, known as Ueno Zoo, is a wonderful day trip and only costs $6 USD (600 JPY) for adults, and the museums are truly unique and wonderful visits as well. If you want to see certain things in Ueno and only have a day or so to be there, I suggest going to websites and trying to plan out your day based on which attractions you would like to see the most.

     The history of the area is steeped in change. In 1868, Ueno Hill was the site of the last stand of the Tokugawa Shogunate. 2,000 or so Tokugawa loyalist samurai tried to stop the new government from taking control, but were ultimately defeated.

     The Tokyo National Museum (Japan's oldest museum) was founded in Ueno Koen in 1872 and holds over 110,000 artifacts that are rotated through exhibits periodically.

   In March of 1872, the National Museum of Nature and Science (then known as the Ministry of Education Museum) was planned and founded. All specimens and exhibits were destroyed in the Great Kanto Quake of 1923, but the museum was able to relocate to a new site in Ueno, rebuild and reopen in 1930. It is still open in the same place in Ueno today and houses simply fantastic and stunning exhibitions year-round.

     In 1882, Ueno Zoo was opened and today maintains its goal of educating patrons not only about animals from all over Japan, but from all over the world as well. It's a fantastic day trip and the walking paths to get to the zoo are filled with wonderful sights and sounds to take in as well. You can see street performers in the center of the park on weekends, or you can walk through temples and shrines that dot the landscape. We took in a few and wanted to share some pictures with you and videos from our trip through the park and the zoo.

Enjoy!

Above: Shrine to those who passed in the Battle of Ueno Hill.

Kiyomizu Kannon Do, Buddhist Temple established in 1631 by Tenkai Sojo (high Buddhist Priest).

Bad luck lately? Write it on a piece of paper, tie it to this rope, and wish it away!

Wish for good luck in the year to come on a woodblock here in the temple.

Messages were from all over the world and written in many languages!

The water spout is an ornate dragon. Here you would fill the cup with water, rinse your hands and mouth, and purify yourself before going up to the temple for blessings.

Leaving the Temple.

Pathway to a Shinto Shrine dedicated to the Fox Trickster spirit.

These Tori mark the entrance.

Some are in need of repair!

The trickster himself.

Ueno zoo entrance is marked by this neat totem poll with many animals figures on it.

The entrance doesn't look like much but it really is a fantastic zoo.

Here's some video of a red panda!!!

This Thai Pavilion inside the zoo was a gift from the Thai government symbolizing years of good relations between the two countries.

Looked stunning on the inside!

Brian touching bamboo for the first time.
Video of a cool Sumatran Tiger 'noming on a stick.

Oh Brian. lol.

Gorilla munchin' on something.

Cabbage

I think this Polar Bear believes that hoomans smell delicious. hehe.

Another neat building in the zoo.

Anteater.

Meercat.

Bush Babies.

Crocodiles.

Mandarin Ducks.

For the kids, there are a bunch of rides, including this cute Pikachu here.

Once you leave the park (to the right of the metro station) you'll see lots of shopping, restaurants, and the famous Ameyoko Arcade which is a shopping street known for it's delicious sweets and unique gifts. It's usually packed tight in there with people bargaining and especially right now since it is around New Years! Definitely worth a stop and try some Japanese sweets if you haven't already.

Ueno also has a fair amount of Nabe places. Nabe is a kind of hotpot dinner where you cook a bunch of food in a sweet sauce over a hotplate. It's sort of traditional and usually expensive so watch out when you are going out for Nabe because you will be charged PER PERSON and often receive a table fee as well. Definitely delicious though and worth the price if you've saved up or found a place running a good deal. These wax food molds look so real that I have to say I'm usually very tempted to go in and splurge!

Before leaving for the day we took a few minutes to enjoy the seasonal lighting that is still up around the park. There are even cute animal light displays like this one here!

Hope you enjoyed the photos and video!
Please feel free to leave comments. Thanks!
Lady Jones

Mameshiba Commercials

2010-01-30T23:07:00.002+09:00

Recently stumbled across a series of Mameshiba bean commercials that I thought readers might find entertaining. The basic gist is that each commercial features a kind of cute, talking bean that informs the person about to eat it with a piece of random, usually strange trivia that generally confuses or disgusts the person. They are seriously hilarious and so I decided to post some here on the blog.
Enjoy!
Lady Jones

This one is my favorite because of the ridiculous "English speaking" bean. It's great.

And finally: the Mameshiba Theme Song!
Enjoy!

Merlin the Chocobo

2010-01-28T22:24:00.001+09:00

Sorry for the lack of travel posts lately. I have been very tired and overworked and thus I decided to make a lighthearted post about my most recent purchase at Kotobukiya in Akihabara. Kotobukiya is this chain store of geek goods and cute gifts that always seems to have the right thing to cheer me up. They often carry some serious favorites like Final Fantasy Characters, Nintendo Plushies, and cute figurines from the Ghibli movies like the famous Totoro (from My Neighbor Totoro) and Nekkobasu (Cat-bus also from My Neighbor Totoro).

Well, I've had my eye on these cute Chocobo Plushies

that have cute little theme hats for quite some time and finally had a little cash for one.
They are shelved right near awesome
Tonberry Plushies (also from Final Fantasy) and I was psyched to get one.

So without further ado, presenting the newly purchased Merlin the Plushie who will adventure with me around Tokyo! (This is what it takes to de-stress for a masters degree candidate geek girl. Plushies, chocolate and the occasional sushi binge. heehee.)

Kweh!

Woo hoo Chocobo Plushie! Super cute, super awesome and definitely going to be my new travel companion. This is the best geeky purchase I've made in a while (next to my Nintendo DS and Japanese Kanji software, of course. I'll write more about that later though.)

Goodnight for now!

Coming soon, Travel Destinations in Ueno Park area, Tokyo!

Oyasumi!

Lady Lara Jones

Riding the bus in Tokyo

2010-01-22T10:51:00.003+09:00

What the bus looks like on a quiet weekday afternoon. Now just imagine wall-to-wall people during the evening commute!

First observation: It's clean, but it's also REALLY crowded at night when I take the outgoing bus to Meguro ku. This can probably be attributed to the obvious reason that people are commuting out of the city after their work/school day has ended and therefore more people have to try to share the space. Even though it is very crowded, Japanese people tend to avoid shoving or ignoring other people who are forced to share the space. There is a great amount of consideration taken and the word Sumimasen! (Excuse me!) is actually used. Some will shove but it's a great deal easier to deal with then a group of Americans grappling for space and swearing at each other when their is no compliance for their selfish needs. I'm American, and yes, I can say those things about my country because in many places, and at many times it has been true. Been there. Experienced that.

Second observation: Protocol is quite different than on a bus in the US. If you're lucky in Boston or NY, the usual situation is that the driver will occasionally shout into their microphone with a gravely, often cigarette-induced voice that you've arrived at a stop. The bus will screech to a halt, and if you don't get off fast enough you'll be stuck there until the next stop. People might sympathize with you and give you that knowing look of "yeah, I'm sorry," or they might laugh at your misfortune, or exclaim "That sucks!" right to your face. It's quite the experience, really! And yeah, I know it's not ALWAYS like this, but I'm sure everyone from a major city in the US can attest to that terrible bus ride they had once where everything seemed to be gross or going wrong around them.

The bus in Japan is based on a much more planned out system. When passengers want to use the next stop, they look up at the screen and see their stop is next. After seeing this, they will press a little red glowing button in front of them that says "Tomarimasu!" (Stop, please.) and it will make a friendly little "Ding Dong" noise to tell the driver that you wish to get off at the next stop. He then announces with his microphone someting like, "Wakarimashita! Tomarimasu!" (Roger! I will stop!). Not only are stops written in Kanji/Hiragana on the screen in front of you, but they will also scroll by in Romaji text (English text) if you can't yet read what your stop looks like. I've sort of memorized the Kanji for my stops now but for new-comers to Japan this is really helpful and kind of them to do. The same thing doesn't really happen as much, from what I've been told, in China or Korea (or for that matter, outside of Tokyo!) so I'm thankful that Tokyo bus companies seem to be willing to help visitors out.

Observation #3: You think your bus in your local town is clean? I have ridden some rather clean Greyhounds back in the states where it looks like the bus is brand new and just rolled off the assembly line, but I still can't get over how clean they keep interiors of ALL the buses over here. I mean, really! They are super nice! When I sit on a cushy seat I'm not worried that it will be wet, ripped or bumpy and uncomfortable. Also, there isn't any trash kicking around on the bus, or butts from old cigarettes. That's pretty nice, in my opinion.

Observation #4: People are very quiet. This is a trend in Japan that has evolved probably in response to observations of shared space and cultural etiquette. I'm not saying that some quiet chatter on the bus isn't okay - what I'm saying is that as guests in another country you might want to think about respecting the local etiquette and go with the flow. If it's quiet, maybe you should be quiet. If people are talking, then whatever. That's what being a good guest is all about!

So hopefully I gave you a somewhat encompassing picture of the bus. I just wanted to give you a more comprehensive picture of what riding the bus in Japan is like.

Signing out,
Lady Lara Jones

A Really Well-Edited AMV (Anime Music Video) Project

2010-01-18T14:41:00.003+09:00

Anime Music videos; they're a pretty controversial topic in the media community. Some people find them to be a fantastic way to further anime production and export to countries around the world. Many also find it to be an excellent medium for expression and indeed it is a fantastic way to master video editing, but tons of copyright conflicts exist in the world of the anime music video maker. Anime music videos, by default, are automatic copyright infringement for two reasons. The first infringement case involves the unauthorized use of footage in compositions, and the second involves the use of music that is usually the property of an artist other than the creator of the AMV. It's easy to see why people get up in arms about this, but I'm going to admit to you right here and now that I love AMVs and I hope very much that people continue to be allowed to make them for non-profit purposes. As long as you're not making money from your AMV, I don't see why we shouldn't be making them and furthering the medium. Of course, many people will disagree with me, but it's my personal opinion and I will stand by it.

That being said, here are two of the best projects I've seen in a long time. The first is a collaborative piece (many segments from many creators put together by a master editor) by Strawberry Kiss Studio of Re-Evolution Studios. Re-Evolution Studios seems to be an international gathering of Anime Music Video artists on Youtube. It's pretty cool. The editing is fantastic.

The next project I'm going to share is actually not an anime music video, but a pretty neat art project done by Kama152a. It's really sweet!

Hope you enjoy the videos!
Lady Lara Jones

Taiko no Tatsujin (Taiko Drum Master) and 3D Dot Game Heroes are made of win.

2010-01-17T20:11:00.000+09:00

Many of you video game enthusiasts out there probably already know about Taiko Drum Master, known in Japan as Taiko no Tatsujin (Master of Taiko). Indeed, it is a fun series in the same genre as Guitar Freak, Drum Freak, the late Dance Dance Revolution (which I miss dearly and wish still existed in arcades around Tokyo) and other rhythmically driven arcade games. It's a pretty simple concept, really, but is super fun in the arcade and especially with another person. Basically you stand in front of this giant monster of an arcade machine with a big LCD screen above two giant Taiko drums.

Brian plays Taiko no Tatsujin.

And sure, the game has been around for quite a few years now, but I wanted to do a little post about it to show my support to the developers. This game isn't as complicated as Rock Band or Drum Freak, but it's really fun and can get rather difficult if you gear it up to the highest difficulty setting. There was a short-lived time in the US where you could get the game on PS2 (and I think the Wii has a version as well) so if you can pick up a copy at your local game store you get a sense of how fun it would be in the arcade. If you have an arcade near you that has this game then GO PLAY IT! Take a friend! It's worth your 100 JPY!

The next game I want to mention is something based on a game near and dear to my heart. 3D Dot Game Heroes is practically a rip of the NES Legend of Zelda (with some obvious changes to avoid copyright infringement) but you can't really argue with fun + works well + well designed = an awesome game. Seriously, there is no reason people shouldn't make new games using the classic top-down Zelda, dungeon crawling formula. It's fun, it works, and I know a lot of people who love it just like I do. We were told the game finally received a US release date so if you haven't picked up a PS3 yet this is just one more reason to get you motivated.

The summary (from Wikipedia) reads as follows: "The game's gameplay
(good job wikipedia writer, that's some good English you have there.....game's gameplay....ugh sorry)

- strongly resembles that of retro 8-bit games of the past, particularly that of The Legend of Zelda. Players move characters from screen to screen exploring dungeons, battling enemies, collecting items and solving puzzles reminiscent of the classic games of past. When the player's health bar is full, the player's sword will grow to tremendous sizes whenever swung. Swords in game can be customized and leveled up to increase its length, girth as well as magical power, other special items that can also be used include boomerangs, lanterns, candles and bows."

Okay, I would like to note here that it does not just strongly resemble The Legend of Zelda...it fricken takes like every other enemy and alters their appearance only slightly with 3D Modeling in order to not be sued. Again, I don't have a problem with this. I think it's neat to see what Legend of Zelda could have been with a 3D (yet still somehow 2D) top-down environment. Also, when they say your sword grows to tremendous sizes, they mean it pretty much extends across the screen to destroy everything standing in front of you. It's a good innovation on the "launching beam" that came when you had full hearts in the original Legend of Zelda.

The dungeons are cool, and admittedly we can't read enough Japanese to know where we're exactly supposed to go next (or what we're supposed to collect) but for the most part we've been winging it and still getting pretty far. When the English version comes out we'll be sure to pick it up because we're only borrowing the Japanese version from a friend for now.

To give you a better sense: here's an awesome preview video for 3D Dot Game Heroes:

Sooo cool! Everyone out in the US should get ready for this Instant Classic.
Lady Jones and Brian Jones

The Natto Experience

2010-01-17T19:23:00.000+09:00

Ah Natto, that staple of the traditional Japanese diet. Known for its healthy qualities, nutritious supplements and...disgustingly pungent smell and stretch. Did you ever wonder to yourself what it would be like to eat Nickelodeon Gack (remember Gack? Yeah I went there...)?

Well, Natto is probably as close as you're going to get, so look no further to fulfil your dream.
Here is a fun video about Natto!

The only thing we forgot to mention is that it was a staple of nutrition in Feudal Japan, and throughout history. Brian and I just can't seem to eat it, but we're sure it's quite good for you!
Anybody else out there try to eat it?
Lara and Brian Jones

Shibuya and Harajuku in Winter Part 2: Tourist Destinations and Cool Japan

2010-01-16T16:38:00.002+09:00

First up is to finish last week's post about Shibuya and Harajuku. I'll finish posting about Harajuku and tell you a little bit about why I've spent so much time in that area.

(Walking towards Takeshite dori, you can see there are no cosplayers in my sights. Further proof that cosplay on the internet and cosplay in real life are two completely different things that people often do not understand. A note about this photo: if you look to the far right you can see a really sweet Back Country and Powder Ski Shop. Squee!)

Harajuku is a tourist destination like no other in Japan. Every year it pulls in thousands of tourists based on one simple cultural draw: The Fashion Scene of Harajuku. Of course, I cannot pretend to be apart from these tourists, as the first time I came to Japan in 2006 I couldn't wait to run down to Harajuku and see all the fashion movements and expressions going on. As an anthropology student pursuing my BA, I wanted to get research towards my senior thesis about Cosplay Culture in Japan and America. Of course, I didn't realize that cosplay is a lot harder to track and write about then initially expected. It's not just exploding out of the streets in Harajuku every Sunday. In fact, to find some really hard core cosplayers you have to get a lot closer to the places they hang out when they're not the type to show off their costumes in a crowded place. There are TONS of cosplayers here who only go to some very specific locations to engage in cosplay, and at first glance through the interwebs you really don't get that impression. If everyone believed everything they read on the internet about cosplay then they probably think Japan is just full of people dressed like characters all over the place! Unfortunately, this is not the case. I suggest going to places like conventions, parties and costume cafes to find some real cosplay going on.

Some teens browse some really cute tees right outside the entrance to Takeshita Dori. I personally happen to like the I Heart Inifinity ones.

Happy New Years Balloons over the Takeshite Dori sign.

Everything that I said about Harajuku is true, but I would never discredit the district from its role as a fashion mecca and breaking ground for a lot of expressions and movements. Absolutely come here if you want to see some of Tokyo's most interesting fashions and youth who enjoy expressing themselves through breakdancing, rock and roll, and other kinds of music and dance performances in nearby Yoyogi park and over on the famous bridge that leads to Meiji Jingu Mae (Meiji Shrine that is dedicated to the late Emperor Meiji. It resides in Harajuku and the police are very particular about breaking up public performances when an important event is going on within the grounds of the shrine).

Weekend shopping in Harajuku.

These stairs lead to Body Line, famous for their gothic and lolita fashions which include the newly defined subcategories like Hime Loli (Princess Lolita) and Wa Loli (utilizing traditional Japanese fashions like the Kimono with a gothic flair).

Since photography is banned inside the store (and they are VERY strict about this), this photo was the best I could do. Sorry about the poor lighting! I should go back at night when there is only back-lighting to illuminate the outfits.

This photo advertises some of the major brands in Gothic and Lolita fashions at this time. If you pick up a copy of The Gothic and Lolita Bible magazine (available in the US) you can see and learn a lot about these fashions. They're really quite fascinating!

So, I spotted this adorable Haruhi Suzumiya costume outside a cosplay costume shop in Harajuku and wanted it because I feel my sewing abilities to be inadequate when it comes to making a costume like this. Plus, I love Haruhi. So I went upstairs to try this on and came to realize (again) that I'm too big for Japanese clothing. Even though I'm only a 5-6 Women's in the States it is too big even for a Medium MENS SIZED COSTUME! Sad face...that's all I have to say about that.

This Japanese store really reminded me of Mexicali Blues if all they carried was stuff from Asia. Thought it was pretty neat though! Tried to explain to the clerk that I had worked at a similar store in the US, called Mexicali Blues, but I don't think I was articulate enough in Japanese to get my point across.

To the girl on the right: whoever you are, I love your hair extensions! So Kawaii! (cute)

More adorable fashions in the world of the cute girls of Harajuku. You know what? I would be totally okay with wearing fuzzy bunny ears as a winter hat all the time. Maybe next time I will pick up a hat and rock that look as the random girl gaijin in Kawaii wear.

The gothic gown at this perfume stand was simply amazing. I love the colors and traditional look.

As night approaches, this blurry shot shows us making our way to Meiji Jingu Mae Shrine to see the new years celebrations and blessings. It's January 9th today but there are still some festivities going on to celebrate the new year. Also, Monday is coming-of-age day in Japan and a national holiday celebrating those who have turned 20 this year and are now adults. You see lots of young women and men in traditional Japanese kimonos and the like this weekend around Tokyo.

As darkness approaches, the electric versions of these traditional lanterns spark to life and illuminate our path to the shrine.

More beautiful paper lanterns.

In the distance: a young photographer with a Nikon tries to get a good detail shot on some of the paper lanterns.

The entrance to the shrine is currently adorned with lots of New Years blessings and Woodblocks celebrating 2010 as the Year of the Tiger. I was born in 1986 so it is said to be lucky that the year of the tiger has come again! (This also means I will turn 24 this year!)

Close up on the gigantic Tiger Woodblock. I think they are extremely cool and I love the hand-painted design of the tiger surrounded by calligraphy.

It's so crowded that Brian and I actually can't get anywhere near the shrine today. Everyone is waiting in line to receive New Years and/or Coming of Age Day blessings. Instead we decide to snap this shot of the shrine overshadowed by the Shinjuku version of the Empire State Building.

Leaving the shrine area, you can see that the exit is colored with the falling sun, and we decide to head out for the day and continue our adventures after some well-deserved sleep. We're still recovering from Jet lag almost a week later at this point, and sleeping when the sun is down is pretty much the only way to effectively convert to the new sleep schedule!

That's it for now. Thanks for reading!

Lady Lara Jones and Brian Jones

Shibuya and Harajuku in Winter Part 1: Tourist Destinations and Cool Japan

2010-01-09T20:43:00.001+09:00

Shibuya and Harajuku: When you open any guidebook about Tokyo you will see these two districts prominently featured. It's easy to see why, as each holds a wide array of unique shopping, technology and truly fabulous sights to see. Most popular in recent years are Takeshita Dori (home of the unique teen fashion shops that have sprung up around youth groups like the Lolitas and Punks) and stores in Shibuya like the 109 (cutting edge fashion that is sometimes a unique and Japanese twist on the New York City, London, and Paris fashion runways). Since it was Brian's first time in Japan we thought it would be great to start with these areas, and we wanted to share our experience with you. Enjoy!

I apologize for the shaky camera. Brian is learning how to hold it without taking us all for a ride! Still, this video gives you a pretty good idea of how crowded the Shibuya station area is. When you come off the train you are immediately taken in by the sights of large crowds, two gigantic television screens on the tall buildings in front of you, and TONS of shopping.

Still image of the Shibuya rush.

Decided to be a typical couple and take a photo with Hachiko. Hachiko was a dog that met his master at the train station every day when he came home from work. Eventually his master died, but Hachiko continued to come to the station every day in hopes that his master would return.

The new Alice in Wonderland film is coming soon! We can't wait to see it!

Inside Tokyu Hands. Tokyu hands is my favorite store in Shibuya because it's basically like Target, Home Depot and Micheal's or A.C. Moore all rolled into one. Here you see some AWESOME new USB Hubs from Star Wars. I want them...very much.

Final Fantasy XIII Elixer Soda...mmm...I think? We weren't really sure about it and it seemed overpriced so we didn't buy any, but we're definitely looking forward to the game! So far the general consensus is that it's quite good and we're just waiting for the English version to come out because neither of us can read enough Kanji to play the Japanese version.

You too can grow your very own plant in a Bubble Tea Cup...This isn't really bubble tea but I couldn't help but think that these plants look like they're growing in Boba.

For those of you who always wanted to know the inner workings of fish, you can buy these specimens with all their vital bits died various neon colors. ooooooo!

Back outside of Tokyu Hands, I couldn't help but be taken in by the Shibuya Outback Steakhouse. It looks quite interesting with the Japanese lanterns added. Back in the States, Outback really isn't all that fantastic, so I wonder what it would be like here in Japan.

Club Sega Arcade. Went and got my butt kicked at Tekken 6 by someone sitting across from me. Was doing okay and I think he let me win the first few rounds just to completely crush me later on. Still, it was pretty fun!

Love Hotel Hill: The place to go if you want an impromptu sexual rendezvous with your partner. Never really got why Love Hotels caught on so well in Japan, but I suppose it's just the thrill or new experience to revitalize a couple's sex life...or something...Anybody know about why these are so popular in Japan?

Baby Doll Petstore. This is the place to get designer pets that cost more than your first car did.

This cute little Nekko here is only approximately $1,280 USD.

Remind me to look for strays if I ever want a pet.

I can't help but think that the building above the Disney store (to the left) looks like a gigantic castle greenhouse. It's very neat. On the inside of the Disney store there are stained glass windows and other neat additions to complete the shopping experience.

Shibuya Disney Store: Disney is waaaaay popular in Japan.

Another afternoon in Shibuya: the sun was very pretty but made for very tough photography with my little Nikon!

Before our completely failed attempt at making a video in front of the 109. It was TOOO LOUD and we needed to bring a mic. Next time I am not going to forget that important bit!

Could not even believe how loud it was, but they were pretty determined to make as much money as possible during this New Year's Sale! It was crazy busy in there so I didn't bother to ask if we could film inside. I got the feeling that people weren't going to be too happy if I did. Took a few covert photographs, though.

These escalators allow you to travel through the building. Shops are organized in circular fashion around this escalator. On each floor there were anywhere between 5 and 8 shops.

Shops!

Bargain shopping everywhere. Overwhelming crowds - soooo overwhelming.

I felt like I was being tossed around crowds and stores like the people in this ad!

At a nearby pharmacy in Shibuya: Butt pillows! Complete with pantsu (panties)! Shelved right behind them are fuzzy pajama suits featuring Pikachu, Piplup, Tigger and Hello Kitty.

Outside the pharmacy in Shibuya.

Nearby was a sweet guitar store and ukulele shop.

The Red Bull car was handing out free samples so there was a line forming pretty much the whole time they were out.

Our good friend Travis back in NYC helped to style and dress SMAP for their Softbank advertising campaign. This wasn't the particular ad he worked on but we thought he'd like to see just how prominent they are advertised around Japan.

This is the ad campaign filmed in NYC. Color Life.

Taito Game Station (an arcade): More awesome video games, including a sweet Gundam simulator where you sit in a cockpit and pilot your Gundam (mecha) with joysticks on each side of you and pedals on the floor in front of you. It's a 360 degree, nearly virtual-reality experience and we were soooo sad they wouldn't give us permission to film. It's probably because of copyright...but still.....sad face.

New Kingdom Hearts game just came out on PSP. Anybody interested in picking it up? I honestly haven't heard anything about it yet, but to be fair it's been a while since I worked at Game Stop and so I'm slightly more out of the loop then I used to be. I need to listen to more Giant Bombcast (video game podcast) but I never have time...

Walking to Meiji Jingu Mae and Harajuku from Shibuya.

In the distance, past the tracks, you can see the Tokyo version of the Empire State Building in Shinjuku. It's smaller, but looks strikingly like the real thing.

Omote Sando is a pretty upscale shopping street, and it didn't really surprise me that we saw this building belonging to Audi.

Brian is following the piggy footprints to a sale.

It seems the piggy prints led down the path to a cute little garden!

Well that's it for now! I'll work on more later but I want to go get a snack and study!

Next time: Harajuku!

Until then, this is Lara and Brian Jones, signing out!

Some Photos from the first few days in our new apt. in Tokyo

2010-01-07T17:48:00.000+09:00

Here is the beautiful little backyard garden we get to look at from our glass doors. It's really rare to have a first floor apartment with lots of gardens and if we hadn't had help getting this apt. I'm sure we never would have been so lucky. Unfortunately, gardens and other prime real estate are EXTREMELY pricey and spots are tough to compete for when you are a foreigner. We got this as a free bonus to our student housing so we really lucked out.

The garden facing the other direction. You can see other apartments and houses in the distance. I think this photo is a good example of how lucky we are to have a garden behind us, because normally there would be houses and apartments RIGHT in front of our backdoor. Tokyo is very crowded! If you didn't know, there are about 12.7 million people living in this city which makes it seem pretty packed.

Some flowers are still present even in January, which shows to me how mild the winter really is compared to the northeastern United States. When I left the Boston area it was about -5 Degrees Fahrenheit while the average temperature here in Tokyo right now is around 40 - 50 Degrees Fahrenheit during the day. At night it rarely drops below 30 in the winter.

This is what our porch door looks like from our back "yard."

The apartments and houses in the distance.

The top of our television is graced with Zelda, Hammerin' Hero Figurines, a Tokidoki doggy, and Sumomo from the anime series Chobits. A lot of people complain about the somewhat sexualization of robots in chobits but I don't think it's as bad as people say it is. The series can be quite cute and entertaining to the non pervy anime watchers out there like me! So yeah, there is the question that Hideki finds his persocom to be attractive, but it's really more of a satire on that notion than anything else. Definitely an interesting series to watch and I recommend checking it out if you like a lot of anime.

Japanese style kitchen. And by kitchen, I mean kitchen unit on one wall of your hallway. Apartments are quite small in Japan but you'd be amazed how easy it is to make them feel like home. The small size seems very efficient to me and I kind of like these little kitchen units. You can see the sink on the right and to the left is the stove top. For cooking oven-type items you use a mini oven / sort of what Americans would consider to be a large toaster oven (which is located on our fridge). There are shelves and drawers below and above to maximize organization. The rice cooker (between the sink and stovetop) is a staple in Japanese housing because rice is what helps to complete every meal. It helps you to fill up and is why Japanese cooking often features smaller portions of meat and vegetables.

The stovetop. It is very important to remember to turn off your gas when you are not using the stovetop because if there was ever an earthquake there is the risk that your gas lines could cause a fire. Also, shutting off your hot water and gas when you leave the home can save on energy bills.

The top of our fridge door is currently housing blueberry yogurt, yellow mustard, and Caesar salad dressing.

The bottom shelf holds our green tea, milk tea and juice. The milk tea (second from left) is a very delicious drink but I find that a lot of Westerners I meet don't seem to like it. It's pretty much just tea with milk flavor added. Kind of sweet but I can see why it's an acquired taste. Japanese people drink some kind of hot or cold tea (depending on the season) quite often, and much more than Americans drink water or soda.

Tomatoes, Gyoza (Japanese dumplings) Lettuce, Milk, Fish Stock (back: for soup stock and the like) and Soy Sauce (front).

Ham and Cheezu (Cheese). Cheese is quite expensive in Japan. For only eight slices we paid about 300 JPY (almost $3 USD).

We haven't had time to do much shopping yet but we did get Chocolate ice cream snacks!!!

2 Kg bag of rice. Inexpensive, tasty and a true staple of Japanese cooking and everyday life.

Spaghetti, Sesame Oil (for cooking), 8 slices of bread (a "loaf"), Apple Tea, Canned Pineapple and Canned Mango.

Shoes off at the door! You don't want to ruin the nice floors!

In Japanese housing the toilet is separate from the wash area (bath, shower, and main sink). In this case our toilet is in a little room just across the hall from our bathroom. You can see that all we really have in here is toilet paper. Interesting fact: when you flush the toiled, the water that is coming in to re-fill the top of the toilet comes down through a mini sink that is above the toilet. This allows for great water conservation because you can wash your hands off in the clean water as it goes down to fill the toilet after you flush.

When you first enter the bathroom across the hall you see the sink area. to the right are the doors to the shower/tub room. Basically the room is designed so that the shower sprays out into an area (essentially what Americans would consider onto the shower-room floor). There is a drain on that floor to let the water out. This is also right next to a large bathtub which you can soak and relax in after you have cleaned yourself off in the shower half.

You can see here that the first part of the shower room is reserved for the shower nozzle and shelving for your soaps, etc.

Looking down, you can see the drain in the floor I was talking about, and the edge of the large, Japanese-style bathtub.

Looking down across from our sink you can see where we sort our trash. Trash is sorted into burnable, non-burnable, cans, bottles, and things like stacks of magazines and newspapers. Special care must be taken to dispose of electronics and other hazardous waste items properly and I believe they all have different fees. Different kinds of trash are taken to the curb on different days of the week. Sorting rules are quite strict.

Here is a little guide that our housing provided us with to help us recycle.

So there you have it! These photos perhaps make the apartment look much bigger than it really is, and it's hard to photograph our living room/bedroom area so I'm going to make a short video to give you a more accurate sense of the space. Stay tuned!

Lady Lara Jones

From The Cosplay Project Research Blog: My interview with Reni Chan, Anime Cosplay Singer in NYC!

2010-01-06T20:03:00.002+09:00

This post is syndicated from my Cosplay Research Project Website. Please check out the website if you enjoy cosplay and this post! Thanks!

   As the anime loving community increases in the United States, there has been a recent increase in the travel of artists and personalities from Japan coming to major cities in the US to perform and work. Reni Chan, now a growing star in the NYC Otaku Community. is gaining a lot of popularity through her performances around NYC and at the NYC Anime Convention every year, plus social networking sites like Youtube, Facebook and other social media sites that allow her to connect with new people. I had a chance to interview Reni and was happy to find out more about how she came to the US to perform and become a part of the growing Otaku Community.

Here is a short version of her biography:
Reni Mimura Bio (Medium Version):

      Reni, born and raised in Japan, currently resides in New York City and specializes in Akihabara style performances, a genre that emphasizes the cute look of Japanese pop-culture with the hip appeal of Japanese animation. Through her singing and dancing she creates an adorable, peaceful, yet exciting mood. Her first Japanese CD, released in 2006, was produced by Takahiro Yamautsuri, who composed the music for one of the Pokemon movies. In 2009, she began her regular monthly Japanese 'Maid' Show events in NYC, and has been invited as a guest performer to Japan Society, Otakon and NY Anime Festival. Reni offers the most fun and authentic Japanese pop experience without ever having to travel to Tokyo. Reni is quickly winning over the hearts of many new local fans, thanks to her pretty stage costumes, upbeat personality, and her outstanding singing talent.

(Interview questions and my responses are listed in Italics)

Do you think the travel of things like cosplay, anime and manga are shaping a new community of people in the US?

      Yes! It is great to see! This is largely a result of the Internet society.
I think the community will grow bigger and bigger to overcome stress and isolation in society.

Why did you come to the United States?

     The internet has made our life very convenient, but people need to make places to interact socially and physically more actively and consciously. I am here as an artist, committing myself to create the kind of environment focusing on communications among people through entertainment. I would like to play an active role not only in Japan, but in the world. To do that I thought it might be better living in the U.S. than in Japan.

Do you enjoy living in New York City? Have you found yourself a part of a new, vibrant community there?

      I enjoy it very much. I see many different people, cultures, lifestyles, expressions, but I also see the similarities we share as human beings. Things like being lonely, happy, and in love are shared around the world. NY makes me feel like I am a baby again because it is so new to me. I am curious about so many things.

As a cosplay singer, what does your average day involves?

      I take dance lesson everyday, train my voice, image and plan the future performances, have a meeting with staffs. I always think about my fans (I call them friends and angels). How they like to enjoy my shows, what idol they want to be, and so forth.
     I get lonely sometimes, but angels give me energy and keep me moving.

Do you find that you get a lot of enthusiasm from fans who are very interested in cosplay and anime culture? What does that enthusiasm mean to you?

     I feel it is very important, for my style of performance, the entertainment has to be easy to be enjoyed by people in the culture. Japan has different style of entertainment from the one in the U.S.
     Doing shows in the U.S. and getting a lot of reactions and suggestions from friends (fans) are precious resource that I have in order for me to grow as a better artist.
     So I will never forget these fans. Of course, Jessie, you are the one too (^ ^)

Why do you think cosplay has been growing so much in the US and around the world in recent years?

      Cosplay can transform you to different personality. For example, by wearing different costume from usual, it might make you speak to other people easier and more friendly, The other example is for a couple doing cosplay - through it their relationship might be refreshed. You can be a main character or anything you like. We can have a lot of fun with it, and make people happy at same time. I think this is very futuristic thing to do. It's like a game in real life!

And Last Question: What would you like most to achieve in your career in the cosplay media industry?

     I would like to communicate with people by actually meeting and seeing them in person, and looking at their eyes. I would like to focus on finding out what we lose from the heavy use of the internet, and be one who is participating to solve those problems. I would like to see people with no scary feelings toward each other, no lonely hearts, and see them having happy lives together in peace.

     Thank you so much (^ ^)

And Thank you Reni Chan! I look forward to more of your performances on Youtube. Since I am in Japan I currently keep up with Reni through her youtube videos. You can see some of her performances below and on her youtube channel.

Find Reni's blog at http://www.renireni.com/ and listen to her new album at http://www.dfjamsstore.com/index.php?target=products&product_id=1360
Join Reni's facebook fan page here.

Moving to Japan as students: Part One

2010-01-05T23:43:00.001+09:00

This somewhat foggy photo from Minami Azabu District in Tokyo was taken due to my Jet Lag causing my photography skills to shrink into pretty much nothing...I kept the photo because I feel it was appropriate to see a foggy setting sun as a symbol for Jet Lag!

Konbanwa! (Good evening!)

     Brian (codename Richard, as you see here on the blog) and I have finally arrived to officially move into our student apartment in Japan. It is almost a little bit surreal as it took us literally a whole year of planning, paperwork, saving, and logistics to get here. It's definitely a relief to finally be on the ground and running. If I could just put more emphasis on the word RUNNING for a moment... Seriously! Not only is Tokyo a fast paced city (one I have spent quite a bit of time visiting and yet still feel like I could spend years exploring more and more), we also had to do a lot of orientation activities for our university and move into our temporary, transitional apartment that the school has provided us to assist in our transition to Japan.

   I have to say that one of the most difficult parts of the travel, for me, is the flying. This is because I get motion sickness and also must suffer severe jet lag during the first week. Although I have read up on some preparation for Jet Lag - drinking lots of water and staying up as long as the sun is up once arriving in Japan - it is still quite difficult for me to recover quickly. Some students here seem as though they recover much faster than I do, so maybe it's just that my body has a hard time with it. Brian seems to be having some difficulty as well but at least by the end of the week it will have passed. Just a tip: If you are flying more than 16 hours to get to Japan (we flew from Logan in Boston and had to endure a lot of layover and flight time) make sure you are ready for possible disorientation and tiredness, and if you don't drink water you will be much worse off! Just remember to drink some juice or something hydrating every time the flight attendants come around and you should be in a lot better shape. Note: stay away from soda, heavy caffeine, or alcohol - these are terrible for you when you are flying long distances and could experience jet lag! I know people who have made this mistake and regretted it very much.

     I intend on writing a much longer post when I get the chance, but wanted to give readers a small update about what we've gone through as we move to Japan as students. In my next post I'll get to talking much more about adjusting to daily life in our apartment and surrounding community, and a small bit about buying staple, everyday Japanese food items in our fabulous trip to the local grocery. I also have a fun video blog to post about our apartment, so stay tuned for that as well. I apologize if my grammer is not great in this post as it is very late and I am experiencing Jet Lag! More quality to come soon, I can promise!

Until then,
Oyasuminasai! (Good night!)
Lady Lara Jones

A restaurant entrance in Jiyugaoka District of Tokyo. Jiyugaoka is kind of an upscale shopping area with some seriously pricey cafes and western-style shops. I could only imagine my wallet turning inside out and vanishing at the site of prices in some of these shops. I'll talk more about living on a budget in Japan soon. Brian and I have a lot of help from other students and advisers here at University but I can see how it would be really easy to just watch your money disappear before your eyes if you weren't very careful and good with making budgets!

Home for the Holidays then flying back to Japan

2009-12-30T14:57:00.000+09:00

Hey Everyone,
Just wanted to give you an update. I will be home for the holidays here in the states and without internet for a little while as Richard and I are now picking up and moving to Tokyo to pursue our next degrees, and hopefully find ourselves more permanent and interesting careers in our respective fields. We've been preparing for the big move for about six months now, so we're really happy that it's finally time to go. After packing all of our "lives" into two suitcases each we are anxious to just get the long, miserable flight over with, get over our jet lag and start our new lives in Tokyo! I have to say I am overjoyed to be returning to Japan with hopes of making it a more long-term home for a while. I have missed Tokyo, and will happy to be back!
On that note, if you haven't had a chance to check it out yet, I've been working very hard to build The Cosplay Project Website to make my thesis and research more available on the interwebs. Please check it out if you haven't yet.

Signing out for a while, but coming back with great new posts from Tokyo!
Lady Lara Jones

Japanese for Dummies: It's actually pretty good, but don't plan on being fluent!

2009-12-23T10:23:00.002+09:00

     So, a note about this post. I am writing this post for people who want to start learning Japanese. I am in no way fluent at Japanese. In fact, I am still a beginner! Probably much like you if you are reading this post looking for information about learning Japanese! Please take this as advice of a person who has been trying to get to a language class for about a year now and is finally getting the classes I need to become more fluent in Japanese. Every person learns differently and so this advice might not work for you! Be flexible, but most importantly, work hard, and you can learn any language! I became semi fluent in Spanish in high school, but Japanese is a lot more work for me because of the writing. Be prepared to work hard, however, and I'm sure it is possible for everyone to learn Japanese! Now, back to the post...

     Have to say I was really surprised by the quality of the book Japanese for Dummies. It's not half bad for an intro-level text! The "for dummies" series is often hailed as an excellent group of books, but I'm not always blown away by their quality. Most of the time they sort of introduce you to a concept but don't necessarily make you all that proficient at it. I was particularly impressed with Japanese for Dummies as an entry-level text, however, because it does not pretend to make you an expert and informs you straight away that you are learning introductory-level, conversational Japanese. If you're going to vacation in Japan for a length of time, or wish to pick up enough Japanese to watch more anime with less subtitles, then this seems like it's not a bad title to add to your collection.

     Now, don't get me wrong, I think taking a real class, with a real professor, and doing real practice conversations and tests and the like is the best way to learn a language, and ESPECIALLY Japanese. The character memorization alone can take a long time if you don't have a good system worked out to help you practice and remember. I honestly have a really hard time memorizing characters. It's a lot of work! The other problem many people have trying to learn Japanese out of a textbook is that they can't test themselves enough and therefore have a hard time retaining the information they are reading/taking notes on.

So far I have found that a good way to start learning Japanese and make yourself a sort of lesson plan when no course is available (or you can't get to Japan for immersion), or if you can't afford a course, is as follows: (Please add to this and make recommendations to!)

1. A good dictionary that can translate from Japanese romanji (English Characters that spell out the pronunciation of Japanese words) to English and vice versa. I have four of them that I got donated over the years (a few people heard I was studying Japanese one year and my holiday presents became language-related. lol), and my two favorite language mini-books to tote around on a daily basis are the Lonely Planet Japanese Phrasebook (excellent to carry around in one's purse or pocket) and the Websters Compact Japanese Dictionary is great for a beginners level dictionary.

Note: If you are trying to learn kanji, the following is hailed as quite excellent: Kanji Learner's Dictionary

Don't be scared by the sheer amount of characters in this text. It's probably the most useful dictionary I've ever bought in that it lists ALL the kanji I could ever need. However, it is quite difficult to find things in this dictionary because I'm not good with writing and reading in Japanese yet.

2. A text book. There are sooooo many Japanese textbooks that it is downright overwhelming to pick one if you have no idea where to begin looking. My suggestion is to pick ones that are being used in a University Syllabus (some university classes have their books listed online and you can search them through google) or ones that have excellent reviews on sites like Amazon.com

My recommended book for absolute beginners who only want a vacationer's grasp or very basic conversational grasp on Japanese is Japanese for Dummies. It really helped me to start picking up the basics.

3. A program, website, or hand held video game to practice, practice, practice.

     Many, many people are praising My Japanese Coach on the Nintendo DS but I have to say it didn't really do much for me. I think it's great for people who don't have to take notes while studying, but I'm one of those people that relies on studying and taking notes into a notebook at the same time. If I write it down I'm more likely to remember it. My husband, however, thought it was the best program for little practice sessions on the bus or the like because it allows you to easily practice characters, etc. on the go. This is all dependent on your learning style, of course.

     Websites: there are so many websites that claim you can learn Japanese and I want to say that you should probably be careful and not pay for something unless you know it's going to help you. Please, do research BEFORE you sign up for a website. Don't just jump on because one person or the site themselves claim it's good. Many bloggers about Japan get paid to tell you an instruction site is good (Seriously, they're paid "per impression" when you click over to the site they have linked on their page, and this can be big bucks for them so they might not actually believe in the site they support. Tread lightly. If they have some of their own feedback about the site and it's got some decent sounding criticism alongside a decent review then it's probably alright. Just use your best judgement.). Just something to remember that when you're making your decision. Personally, I don't use any websites. I just haven't really needed them since I've been signing up for classes (and tests! yikes! lol), but I can definitely see how they'd be another great way to provide practice and repetition.

     Rosetta Stone or other Japanese Language instructional software: I think Rosetta Stone is great for practice as you are using a book and other materials to go with it. I tried it out and I'm not quite sure how I feel about it honestly. As a beginner I think it's alright, but I definitely wouldn't use it by itself. The US Government and many other organizations back Rosetta Stone, but I just want to stress that it's good to use many different materials to learn Japanese. It really does help to become well-rounded in a language, and get cultural context alongside your language lessons. Using all these options together will really increase your abilities, as well as improve your sense of Japanese culture alongside the language itself. This was my experience with learning Spanish as a second language, and the same techniques are definitely so far working very well to help me learn Japanese alongside culture and context.

Might I suggest "The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya" to help you learn Japanese and watch a fun anime at the same time?

4. Consume Japanese Media! Watch Anime! Watch Live Action Films! Read Manga! Listen to Japanese Music! Anything that can expose you to more Japanese as spoken or sung by a Japanese person will help you to hear and comprehend the language much more. I love learning Japanese alongside anime, because I feel as though I really begin to understand more of the show then by just reading subtitles (which are often watered down from the exact translation).

Most importantly: Practice! Writing, speaking, and reading in Japanese all take lots of practice and the more time you spend away from your practice and lessons, the less you will become really integrated into your "syllabus" and of course the less it will "stick."

Good luck! and remember, learning Japanese is NOT EASY. There is no "easy solution" for learning an entirely new language, and especially one that uses four separate writing systems and a whole bunch of very different rules from Western-style languages. Trust me though, it's worth it. You'll be happy you did! I am already quite happy that I picked up basic language skills before going to Japan. I have a feeling it is going to help me a lot in class and in general.
Signing out,
Lady Jones

They're Making a Haruhi Movie! Yay!

2009-12-22T08:13:00.000+09:00

     I just found out they're making a Haruhi Suzumiya Movie...thank you youtube for your wonderful information exchange. For anyone that doesn't know, The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya is one of my favorite anime series of all time. It features a young girl who had god-like powers that is obsessed with experiencing strange and unusual events in her life. Because she wants to experience them so much, they come to pass, as though she has some strange power over fate itself...but I won't spoil it for you!!!
     Anyone who loves sci fi and fantasy in their anime will love this one. Kyon is definitely my favorite character because he somehow manages to put up with Haruhi throughout that whole series, and it often looks as though he's really struggling to comply, albeit with cynical remarks and a hilarious attitude.

    For those of you who have seen the series, check out this neat movie trailer below!
Yaaaay Haruhi!

Why you shouldn't be afraid to try and fix your own computer! - Save your Computer from a Virus Edition.

2009-12-17T11:41:00.001+09:00

This is what happens when you tear apart two computers, pile all the working parts onto a table, dust them off with canned air, and then re-build them into one, full-functional "Frankenputer." One of my favorite projects is to save people's computers from what many companies assure them is "the end." The end you say? I say you're just trying to get them to buy a new machine (which isn't always necessary!).

I've been meaning to write a post about this for a long time but didn't really get the time until last night when I had a good 'bout of insomnia (I am an occasional victim to insomnia, and it most frequently happens when I have a lot going on in my life at once because I can't quiet my brain down to sleep). The only good thing about said insomnia is that a way I have found I can relax is by doing something somewhat productive and focusing on it and then passing out once I've exhausted my brain (Seems to work quite well actually. Another recommendation I've had is to make a list that you will look at in the morning so you feel okay about not worrying about your "to do" anymore).

So, on to the topic at hand. Why you should not be afraid to try and save your computer from a nasty Virus or Spyware! A lot of people tend to really freak out when they think something is wrong with their computer. Understandably so, because it often coincides with paying someone LOTS of money to fix it (many techies charge $60 an hour for work that I could honestly do in my sleep. Sometimes a fix is just that easy.), or fighting on the phone for hours with your outsourced company (think, someone who probably doesn't speak your language but has been taught to answer questions from a series of lists...) to get your warranty. (I'm talking about companies like Dell or HP.....who I have personal experience with and was not happy with their service AT ALL). Most of the time, you end up trying to claim your warranty and they deny you, or, they take your computer away for several weeks and wipe your hard drive as "standard policy" before they return it to you.

If you are like most average computer users you probably don't have a backup and you just lost everything....which sucks.

So here is some basic advice that can often help you to avoid losing everything on your PC or paying money to go to some stupid chain that overcharges (I'm talking about you, Best Buy!!! Your Geek Squad is soooo overpriced for basic work!). Just see if you can get rid of your viruses on your own before calling the so called "experts."

Disclaimer: This is all meant to be helpful advice to the average computer user. this advice is not recommended for total beginners (also known as newbies) to computers and this advice will certainly not work 100% of the time. Obviously, problems can vary on a case by case basis and I assume no responsibility if you mess up your computer. You are following this advice or reading it because you want to learn one person's strategies and therefore I am not responsible for any losses caused by this post. Now, with that out of the way, on to my advice...

This article deals with Viruses!
"Viruses = Very Yes?????"

(Strong Bad Email: See the awesome Strong Bad email about viruses here.)

Oh noes! You have a virus? Spyware? Well, try not to panic!
What to do if you think you have a computer virus (On your PC with a Windows Operating System).

Some signs that you might have a virus include: your computer screen is flickering in select places (but not because you dropped your monitor), your programs are freezing for no reason (and you know you have plenty of memory or this is a new problem), strange colors are appearing on your screen, your internet has suddenly become slow for many days and it's not because of your service provider (sometimes it's good to call and ask if they are experiencing problems), your startup menu or window operations are not what they should be, things just seem to be working strangely when you use your computer and you don't know why, etc. etc. etc.

There are a lot of things that can point to a virus. My suggestion is: if you don't have antivirus installed then you probably have many Viruses and Spyware /Adware entries on your machine. The interwebs are riddled with electronic plague, unfortunately.
Virus = A catch-all name for a series of Trojans and other programs designed to really EFFF up your computer. Bad. If you're surfing a sketchy site then you must prepare to deal with the consequences, which usually means viruses (especially if you don't have a good antivirus program).
Spyware/Adware = These often come from Pop up windows and usually entail a program that is trying to index your information and/or cookies to some company out there. Princeton calls it, "computer software that obtains information from a user's computer without the user's knowledge or consent."

They are both really annoying, can be hazardous to your computer and your security (can give away your passwords and documents to the jerk who wrote the virus or spyware), and can be really hard to remove if you don't already have antivirus installed.

That being said, there are some steps you can take to ensure you don't lose everything and try to rescue your machine without the help of some expensive techie.

Step #0: Are you using Microsoft Internet Explorer as your browser? Well, DON'T! Many techies will tell you that it has security flaws and that a majority of viruses out there are written to penetrate this program. Mozilla Firefox, Opera, and Google Chrome are much more secure and honestly I recommend Firefox 9 times out of 10 for everything because it is a much better internet exploration program anyways. Another good tip is to go to your preferences and set your internet browser to dump all temporary and personal files each time you exit the program. This will help clean out some possibilities for viruses to sneak into that pesky temporary files folder. Also, I never have my browser save my passwords as a security precaution. It just doesn't seem like a great idea to me, personally. Consider writing your passwords down somewhere or getting good at memorizing them instead of letting your browser remember them.

Step #1: If you do have antivirus or antispyware (or the ability to still install programs despite your virus) then SCAN the crap out of your machine (seriously, scan it twice if you think it will help). Scan everywhere including archive files.

If you don't have a good antivirus or anti spyware program I recommend *AVAST Antivirus Home Edition (or AVG Home Edition) and *Spybot Search and Destroy (or AdAware free edition) as they are both free and pretty decent programs. Install AVAST and SPYBOT together and they make a great team of stopping viruses and spyware from getting on your computer. Of course, you could choose to pay for slightly better protection and if you do this I recommend Panda Antivirus (there are others but I have had really good results with Panda, and I only paid $14 a year.). If you can't install these files for some reason then download them onto a disk on a friend's computer and then try installing them on your computer in "SAFE MODE." (You can start in Safe Mode which often prevents some viruses from "kicking in" since you are temporarily severing your computer's internet connection and all but the most basic processes.

The only program I will absolutely not recommend is McAfee because those cheating bastards made their program install like a virus that infiltrates your system and makes it difficult to remove (when you inevitably decide you hate the program). Above that, their protection sucks. Don't use McAfee. Just don't. It's not worth your money.

Step #2: Is your computer improving at all? If not, turn your computer on in "SAFE MODE" (so that it reduced everything to the basic state and it's easier to get around viruses) get your windows installation disk and try "Repairing" your copy of windows. Just follow the instructions on the disk.

If you have a "Ghost" or "Rescue" disk instead (from when you bought your computer and first set it up) then go to that process instead (usually your rescue disk program comes with basic instructions. If not then call whoever made the disk for you and ask).

*****Just make sure you save any documents you created after your "ghost" or "rescue" disk because restoring your computer to that state will cause you to lose all your most recent documents/photos/etc. Only back up files to disks (recommended) or jump drives and make sure they are not corrupted or you are just transferring your virus to your rescue state.******
A word of advice: you should be backing things up as you go anyways in case anything like this ever happens. I keep 3 backups of all my work (especially college work) because if I lost it I would be devastated. This occasional backing up of your work can be done on disks, external hard drives, jump drives, etc.

*Note: If you don't feel comfortable trying Steps 3 or 4 then proceed to Step 5 and call for help.*

Step #3: If this did not work, then see if you can figure out what kind of virus you have and Google search some forums for recommended removal solutions. Be VERY careful here because the internet does not have a "100% awesome" techie site to go to and you could follow bad advice. I suggest staying away from removing your registry entries (if those are what got infected) because this is a very tricky process and most people will end up screwing up their operating system permanently.) A more recommended solution would be to get your windows installation disk or ghost disk and repair your copy of windows. This will not always remove your viruses so see step 4 as your LAST DITCH EFFORT.

Step #4: The LAST DITCH EFFORT, when all else has failed miserably and your computer is still sick with an electronic plague.

If you cannot install antivirus, can't get any programs to operate, and can't get anything resolved (even in safe mode) because your computer is so screwed up, then you will probably have to rescue your important documents/photos and wipe your user account and/or hard drive clean to eliminate the viruses. This is where things can get tricky and you have to be careful that you don't mess up your operating system. Again, this is completely within the realm of something you can do on your own but you want to make sure you follow your operating system re-installation and re-format instructions carefully and don't lose important "drivers" needed to run your PC (drivers = make things like your keyboard, mouse, screen, in-house programs function smoothly and without them your computer will be lost and confused).

If you have your Windows Installation Disk and your Computer Drivers Disk (or know where to download your drivers from the computer manufacturer's website) then you can proceed to do the following as a completely last ditch effort to clean your computer.

A. Rescue only your most important documents, work, and pictures onto disks (etc.). If it looks like any of these files have been corrupted or infected then DO NOT SAVE THEM because it is probably too late.

B. Put in your Windows Installation Disk and go to the option "Install New Copy of Windows." Windows will see that you already have a copy installed, and on this screen you can DELETE the installation and FORMAT your hard drive (usually it's installed onto a "C" drive but it could have another name) to a fresh, clean hard drive.

C.This will allow you to install your operating system and drivers fresh onto the machine.

IMPORTANT NOTE: Now, sometimes this is not a perfect process. Wiping your hard drive completely can cause you to lose a little space on it, and sometimes re-installing your drivers doesn't go as smoothly as you want it to. I recommend just taking your time and carefully reformatting your computer so that you don't get angry at yourself later when your function keys don't work properly or some other weird driver isn't working properly. Most of the time, however, if you have your Drivers Disk and your Windows Installation Disks this is a fairly straightforward and effective process. If you had any lingering viruses they are definitely gone now! (This process is the techie equivalent of stomping on your hard drive until it behaves.)

D. Put in your Drivers Disk and re-install the drivers onto your computer. You can also go on somebody else's computer and download all the drivers you need from a manufacturer's website (if they offer them there) and make your own Driver Disk with all the files on it that you need. I have done this in the past and it worked out fine. Just make sure you download the right drivers for your specific computer model, year, etc. Also, be VERY CAREFUL if you attempt to update a computer's BIOS. Screw up the BIOS and you will DEFINITELY need a techie's help to fix your system. Seriously, you might just want to avoid anything associated with BIOS unless you are an expert user and know what I'm talking about here.

Step #5. If you have screwed up your computer, or still have viruses (or don't want to attempt Steps #3 and #4 on your own because you don't feel comfortable with it) then I suggest calling for help. It's okay to call for help if you have already followed steps 1 and 2 because it means you made an effort and gone through some basic steps that can often fix a basic virus or spyware problem.

This article is meant to help save the average user from spending an average of $60 an hour that a techie will charge you to fix viruses on a computer. We are in a recession and many people should definitely try to avoid paying for a techie if they can fix a problem on their own.

I hope something I have suggested here did help, and that you can save some money. If this article is too complicated, or you feel I should clarify some points, please leave a comment. Again, I am not responsible for any losses, computer problems, crashes, mistakes, etc. caused by the advice in this article. It is meant to be BASIC, FRIENDLY ADVICE and nothing more.

Ja Mata Ne!
See you later,
Lady Jones

To all you no-justification Anime Haters out there: Watch Before You Judge!

2009-12-08T12:38:00.002+09:00

Okay, I just want to talk about something that's been bothering me lately. People are often inquisitive about my decision to move to Japan. It's fine, because I recognize that wanting to permanently move to a country other than the one you were raised in could seem somewhat unusual to some people, and to be honest, I really like having the opportunity to educate people about Japan. I enjoy teaching people about a country and culture that they are unfamiliar with, and I am always especially excited to teach people about cultural and subcultural nuances in depth because that's what I'm passionate about. It's why I became an anthropologist, of course! Many people I meet here in the States very much like their home town and can't picture themselves living anywhere else, and I totally understand that.

What I HAVE been having a hard time with lately, is the following series of comments from some Americans I have met who seem to know nothing about Japanese Animation:
"Anime? Isn't that those Japanese porn cartoons?" or "Anime, that's stupid, isn't that for kids?" (the list goes on, ranging from insults to accusations.)

This is generally followed by either a large sigh or frustrated sputtering that I struggle to contain (mostly because there are sometimes profanities involved). After all, it is my job as an anthropologist to be understanding (as much as possible, because let's face it, we all have our moments...) of other people's views, no matter how ignorant or un-informed they may seem to me. My job, I find, is sometimes to break down cultural stereotypes and try to bring understanding to others who have been living under a rock and make accusations about things like this with no prior knowledge of the topic to back it up.

I can understand how a lot of people don't know much about Japanese Animation (Anime is pronounced in Japanese as "Ahh Nee May"). Unless you are a part of the recently rising generation of anime fans in the United States (these are mostly between the ages of 8 and 25) then you are probably not too familiar with anime. There are many exceptions to this, of course, but I find the older the person is that I talk to about anime in the United States, the less likely they are to know anything about it. Of course, this is a natural consequence to the fact that Anime only recently blew up in popularity in the past ten years (plus, the interwebs, because it's awesome), and I am totally okay with explaining to people why I really like a lot of Anime, but insults and biases about an entire medium is just uncalled for. Why? Because it not only shows a lot of ignorance, it also shows that the person is seriously closed-minded. I mean, seriously people, we live in an age where you can get almost any information you need off the internet in seconds, and you can't take a few of those seconds to go look up some more about something you're going to bash insult others about. Really? REALLY?

That being said, I actually do take the time to explain the following:
The reason I came to love anime is because the medium is as diverse in style, theme, and topic choice as film. You can find Anime about nearly any topic, taking place in all imaginable kinds of universes, with all kinds of people, things, and happenings. Anime is only called Anime because it is comprised of animation as opposed to Live Action Filming. This means that you can have any genre you like (and some that are multiple genres put together and brought to you in an all new light!).

Samurai Champloo is a genre-bending thrill ride of Awesome, in my opinion. It was fairly popular in the United States on Cartoon Network for a while, but came nowhere near as popular as Cowboy Beebop.

Cowboy Beebop is the anime that literally changed my opinion on the medium forever. It was full of such vibrant storytelling, animation, and character development that I loved it more than any other show I had seen when I was 14 (and it is still one of my favorite series of all time). Furthermore, it was about Science Fiction, Space-Cowboy-Bounty-Hunters in the future and the way they told the stories of all the characters involved was often nothing short of poetic, and really pulled you in to the universe. Furthermore, Japanese Animation intrigued me as a child and encouraged me to learn more about the culture it came from. I wanted to know why they were telling stories with much different influences and themes than the ones I saw here in the United States (and, most importantly, I wanted to know where I could find a Kickass Gundam! When is science finally going to give us Gundams?!) But seriously, all joking aside, Anime is a fantastic way to get people interested in Japanese culture. And no, it's not just for children. There are anime series and films designed for all different age groups (some of the ones designed for adults are so violent and graphic by US censorship standards that they would most certainly be rated R in the United States. Maybe even NC-17 in some instances...)

Cowboy Beebop would probably be that fuzzy line between PG13 and R because of all the blood and violence, but I think it's already to be just PG13. Beebop broke out in America on the television network Cartoon Network (back when the block of Anime cartoons known as "Toonami" used to air every night past 9 PM) and is often credited as being one of the most succesful international anime series of all time because it aired during the years when anime went from being a niche interest to a full-blown phenomenon here in the States.

Someone on Giant Bombcast made this about Toonami when Cartoon Network decided to pull the plug on their all-anime block in 2008. I agree, I was quite sad that they decided to can their Toonami programming, as it was a great way to watch new anime series in the US (although I will admit sometimes they didn't pick the best shows of the anime crop for their programming slots. Usually they were very good).

And for those of you out there who don't know, there is actually Animated Pornography in Japan, so the rather crude comment above is not entirely without grounding. The genre is usually referred to as Hentai (pronounced Hen-tai-ee)and yes, a lot of people do watch it. I make educated guesses ranging from "it might be because in Japan pornography must be censored around areas showing genitalia (meaning they are blurred out) or the fact that Japanese people are immersed in a culture full of animated characters since they day they are born." Mascots for all kinds of companies and products are animated characters, and therefore there is probably less aversion to animated pornography in a country with such conditions. (You can feel free to argue with me here, because I don't pretend to be ultra-knowledgeable about this particular point).

I'm not putting a video here, for obvious reasons! If' you're that curious then go look it up yourself!

The main point I'm really trying to make here is that I don't like when people make accusations and insults to those who love Japanese Animation when they have nothing to back their reasoning up. They've never watched it. They just make assumptions based on hearsay or the people they see watching anime. They merely speak ignorance about the entire medium and therefore end up insulting or hurting others due to their stupidity. Maybe I have just happened to run into a lot of closed-minded people in my life (and apparently Brian has as well, because he has also run into people who spout of this nonsense.). Now, don't get me wrong, I totally understand not liking anime, I just think spreading hate and ignorance around isn't the right thing to do. Make an educated decision! Please!

What do you think about it? Have you run into people that sneer at you or give you a close-minded opinion about Anime when you tell them you watch it? Or am I just meeting a lot of anime haters in my path?

Signing out for now,
Lady Lara Jones

Photo from Icanhascheezburger.com, where you can get your daily dose of LOLCats.

Possibly our Last Snowstorm in America and Packing to Move to Japan...

2009-12-07T12:52:00.002+09:00

This is the pile of books AFTER I had already cut down my "books I can't live without when I first fly to Japan" pile down twice. The worst part is that this pile doesn't even include my Japanese language textbooks (I have two that I use most often - one of which is "Japanese for Dummies" which is an excellent jump start on the beginning aspects of the Japanese Language. The other is a much more advanced text and there is no English in it at all.).

   Drove to New Hampshire to see some good friends from college this weekend, and drove right into a snowstorm. Now, I've grown up in New Hampshire for most of my life, so snowstorms are nothing new to me and I'm usually alright driving in them, but they really do they get annoying. There are times when I am driving down the road at about 30 miles an hour through snow that is pulling my tires all over the road (and my steering wheel with it) and thinking to myself how happy I am that living in Japan means no more driving (at least, in theory, as I will be commuting by train and bus pretty much all of the time.) Last time I was in Japan I was so thankful to not have to drive anywhere. I know some people who go to very large cities like Tokyo from small places like where I am from and they are overwhelmed by how to get around. This was not really the case with me as I quickly acclimated to the train system, allowed myself to have a sense of humor when getting lost (which is totally unavoidable at first but kind of awesome when you find someplace new that is cool and unique), and then ended up really enjoying not having to deal with gas, long distances, or car maintenance/payments.

   I find myself looking around for things that I will again miss when I return to Japan, but there aren't too many. Was driving to work the other day and thought about how my trips to Dunkin Donuts or my 40 minute commute (one way) would not really be missed in particular, but then I saw a beautiful sunset over the ocean on my way home and realized there would be little things to miss here and there as there always are when you leave a place behind. Last time I was overseas I found myself wishing I had brought a better laptop computer and this time I am making sure to bring more things that I want to Japan so I don't end up wishing I had brought something. Brian and I have been working on a list (this is mostly non-essentials) based on my last venture to Japan (plus his input on things he really wants to bring).

   Please feel free to add anything you think I've missed that's super important. Keep in mind that because we are flying (and not having anything shipped due to our being college students), we can't afford to pay for more than one checked bag each. It's expensive! Especially if you go over the 50 lb. limit per suitcase.

1. A laptop, external hard drives, jump drives, and lots of useful computer software and hardware bits. We were informed by the school that we have to bring Windows 7 (we haven't upgraded our PCs yet) with us so that we ensure we can get it in English for a reasonable price.

2. Our Nikon and Sony Digital Cameras, and my Video Camera. Without photography or video I am a very unhappy person indeed.

3. As many DVDs and Playstation Games as Brian and I can cram into those multi-disk holders. We put all our jewel and plastic cases into storage and just alphabetized my disks to a pretty decent amount of organization. All of our disks fit in 3, 100-pack storage cases.

4. The Playstation 3 and the Super Nintendo, which we just could not to leave behind.

5. Brian has to make sure he brings plenty of clothing and shoes with him to Japan, because he is 6'4" and absolutely nothing will fit him over there. We are pretty sure we are going to have to send money home once a year to have his parents send him back clothing and/or shoes.

6. School Supplies like pens, pencils, sharpies, and notebooks, because they are cheaper to buy here then they are overseas.

We are putting our office supplies and other random things into ziploc bags because they really are a great way to pack things into a suitcase.

7. Curtains, a couple of tapestries, some small posters, LED string lights, and some other little decoration type things (Like my collection of Yoshis!!! I can't leave them behind! Brian got me these for my birthday last year and I love them sooo much).

In case you were wondering, these were the Yoshis we used in our Wedding Centerpiece. I was the Red Yoshi and Brian was the Green Yoshi. I really need to get my pictures back from my friend Laura who was the photographer at our wedding because I still haven't been able to post anything here on the blog (or facebook). We had a beautiful outdoor wedding in New Hampshire with an Indiana Jones theme and other geeky references thrown in. It was the best day I could have asked for.
And while we're on the topic of Yoshis, here is my favorite yoshi commercial from the US.

8. Books....ah books. They are heavy, expensive to ship, and as an anthropologist and geek I own WAAAAY too many of them and don't want to part with them. Since we do not currently have the money to ship books, however, I will be picking only a few from my already reduced pile and bringing them over in our checked baggage.

There is some other stuff but really those are the major things. We've been planning the move for about six months now because it is our sincere hope that after being in school for a couple of years we can get jobs in Japan and possibly just not come back to the states. (Fingers crossed... a lot). Have you traveled for a long period of time and had issues with packing your belongings into one suitcase?
Signing out,
Lady Jones

More Cosplay and Harajuku Photos (to go with my previous post)

2009-12-04T10:23:00.003+09:00

Hey all,
So apparently, Blogger has locked me out of my last post and won't let me edit it because there is probably too much in it already. I've decided to upload more cosplay photos here instead so that you can still see them.
Again, I would love for everyone to reply to my cosplay post and let me know what you think. Just look at this post as the Photo-tour of Harajuku/Cosplay to go with your thoughts.
Thanks everyone!
Lady Jones

Harajuku Station is pretty much a copy-pasted German design. I think it's rather cute. The bathrooms there often serve as last-minute dressing rooms for cosplayers who hope to get out of their house without their family seeing their costume. This was a busy Sunday morning in 2006 (JLG 2006).

To contrast the last photo of Harajuku bridge I put in my prior post, here is a photo of that same bridge on a weekday when everyone is in school or at work. Crazy how empty it is in comparison!

A Western Girl (probably American) asks these two Fruits Fashion enthusiasts if she can have her picture with them. When asked, they said their inspiration for their outfit was the American cartoon series, Strawberry Shortcake. (JLG 2006)

Super cute fashion sense, and they were very nice to let me interview them as long as I did! (Sometimes I have a habit of interviewing for too long and I feel bad about it afterward.) (JLG 2006)

Across from Harajuku Bridge and the entrance to Yoyogi Park, you will head across the street towards the Snoopy Store and the path will lead you to the famous Takeshita Dori (Takeshita Street).

Heading down Takeshita Dori, you can already see all the stores filled to the brim with young shoppers looking for great discounts and cutting-edge fashion. This particular shot, aimed down the street below the sign, is commonly taken by travel photographers. (JLG 2006)

One of the stores down the street, Mighty Soxer. My favorite part about this store is not just its fabulous selection of cute leggings, stockings, and socks - it's actually the store's motto, "With Beautiful Smiling Face." 'Cause using English is cool and trendy, you know? (JLG 2006)

Seriously, their legging selection is super awesome. It's great for a dancer like myself because I'm always in need of new leggings. (JLG 2006).

Harajuku Daiso is one of the growing-in-popularity 100 Yen Shops around Tokyo. I'm a big fan because it's one of the few places I can actually afford to buy some dishes. While it's true that most of those dishes will be made from cheap plastics, I can't really afford to be picky. Besides, most of the stuff in this store isn't half bad. Much higher quality than US Dollar stores for sure. (JLG 2006).

This is a silly shirt. I mean, I can understand why it would be "cool" or "motivational" but I think it just comes off as sounding pretty silly. Again. English is trendy/cool...right? (JLG 2006)

A packed-to-the-gills, discount jewelry store. By the looks of it, most of this stuff was imported from China and Thailand, but it's an inexpensive way to pick up trendy goods. (JLG 2006)

Every bit of 80's and 90's clothing you can think of has made it into this store. It was amazing how much vintage and used clothing you could find in Harajuku that would be sold in America for pennies at a yard sale. Here it sells for 20 - 30 bucks per article of clothing, and it makes me wish I saved all my cheesy 80's and 90's clothing to sell here in Harajuku. My favorite bit in this photo, by the way, is that dollar bill pinned to the vest on the right. I don't know what makes it cool, but sure, why not? (JLG 2006)

Crepe Shop!!! Weeeooo! I have to admit I love crepes. I especially love the dessert crepes. MMMM Strawberries and Cream...or Blueberries and Cream! (Great, now I really want one...) Crepes are handy because you can cruise around and shop with them in your hands and they're not too messy. (JLG 2006)

Another dessert favorite from the area - This is a green tea ice cream cone with bean paste and other fun Japanese accents. It's from the 31 (Baskin Robbins is called the 31 in Japan). (JLG 2006)

Another American-style, vintage clothing store in Harajuku. This one sold clothing my mother wore pretty much every day in the 70's. Each article ran anywhere between 10 and 200 dollars depending on its "rarity." (JLG 2006)

Body Line sells Gothic and Lolita clothing similar to the iconic "Baby the Stars Shine Bright" from the internationally successful film, Kamikaze Girls. I was able to find a black and purple flower, gothic-kimono, outfit for myself here, and it actually fits quite well despite me being a size 6-8 and usually having a hard time finding clothing in Japan. (JLG 2006)

Takenoko is....well....an interesting store. It's kind of a costume shop, but it also parallels along that "other kind" of costume shop, and by other kind, I mean fetish shop. So you can dress like a magician's assistant, a cheerleader, or pick up a lolita-maid outfit. It's all up to you! Quite the interesting mix of stuff in Takenoko. Notice the little "No Photos" sign in the middle. Well, sorry, but I needed this for research. Science demands it! hee hee. (JLG 2006)

Teens hanging out near the Harajuku Bridge. (JLG 2006)

Some Westerner (shown on the left) gives a strange looks to these Visual K Cosplayers. Contrary to what he was probably thinking, these guys were really nice. (JLG 2006)

More views of the bridge. (JLG 2006)

Last photo for now! Look for more soon.

Exploring Cosplay. Excerpts from my undergraduate thesis.

2009-12-01T13:15:00.004+09:00

Probably the most common question I am asked after a person learns that I have spent time in Japan is, "So what's up with cosplay, anwayays?" (or something to javascript:void(0)that extent.) Indeed, cosplay peaked my interests many years back so much so that it drove me to write my senior thesis in Anthropology about it. So here it is folks: some excerpts taken from my undergraduate thesis about cosplay. Although I have expanded my research since my senior year, I would like to note that this thesis is copy written and therefore, PLEASE do not attempt to use any part of these excerpts OR photos without my permission. If you would like to cite it please contact me at my email. ladylarajones@ladylarajonesadventures.com

What I would really like to know is what other cosplayers think about some of the conclusions I have made. Do you think there is something more to cosplay? Or is it just another fun weekend out? Read through and then respond to the questions at the end. Also: Please note that I was not able to upload all of my photos due to slow internet, I am working on adding them over the next couple of days. Please be patient as they will not all be immediately available.

Thank you,
Lady Jones (aka J.L.G.)

A young male cosplayer (shown center) plays the part of a member of the Visual K Band "The Gazette" (Copyright JLG 2006)

This thesis is the written product of an ethnographic project that will give the reader everything they need to know in order to obtain a basic understanding of the cosplay youth culture phenomenon from Tokyo, Japan. When possible, the author has used photography to further illustrate concepts and images that are difficult to describe with narrative alone.

Why I became an observer of Otaku

I attended my first Anime convention in the spring of 2005. Anime Boston was still a small convention at that time, growing and gaining popularity alongside the new waves of anime coming over and being distributed by large corporations for the first time in such volume. Anime, for me, had been a kind of media that stood out and grabbed my attention amidst a sea of cartoons that attempted to either sell merchandise or comply with a series of guaranteed money-making criteria. Since I wasn’t Japanese, Anime did not (outright) seek to grab me as a consumer, and I appreciated it as a new media. I had first watched anime on Cartoon Network when I was in middle school in the late nineties and was drawn in by its unique art and animation styles, along with plots, themes, and ideas that would never have come out of an American production company. As a casual viewer I started picking up titles here and there, looking for things that were well-translated (a more difficult pursuit before major corporations in the U.S. starting distributing anime) and appealed to my then-teenage mind. As time went on I started reading about Japanese culture and history and grew interested in the more nuanced understanding of anime. I soon found myself analyzing films and series for content, theme, and inspirations from Japanese society, historic contexts, religious myths, and international influences. Around this time I began studying anthropology at Franklin Pierce College and found myself at Anime Boston with a group of students who told me conventions were the “thing” to attend if one was a true fan of Anime and Manga.

When I first walked in the door I saw a group of students in their late teens dressed as characters right out of an anime I had seen on television only a few days prior. I opened my eyes in disbelief and wondered how they had acquired such costumes in America. “Did those people go to Japan?” I asked my friend. She laughed and replied, “No, those are just cosplayers. They just make costumes for conventions like these.” Immediately I was curious about this idea. It reminded me of science fiction conventions and Renaissance Fairs. After taking numerous pictures and asking people casually about cosplay at the convention, I returned to my dorm room and browsed the internet for information about cosplay. What astounded me was there were not many authoritative sources to go to for information about this brightly colored movement. All I could find were young people talking about cosplay in forums and on blogs, all referring to Harajuku, Japan, and the mysterious cosplay communities. Little did I know that my initial curiosity about cosplay would take me to Tokyo for a summer, and spark a series of hypotheses that I would eventually develop into this senior thesis.

Thesis Statement

In this thesis I hope to give the reader a more encompassing picture of cosplayers and their lives, one that does not yet appear in books or on the internet, in such a way that unravels the mysteries and social contexts that cosplay surrounds. I will describe cosplay and then go on to explain this phenomenon. My hypothesis is that cosplay, like many costuming cultures before it, is a hobby that is pursued for many reasons – including escape, artistic expression, and fun!

Does Japanese cosplay emerge in response to a stratified society that places immense pressure on its youth to succeed? Does it manifest itself in relation to anti-corporate movements? What part does identity formation play in this? Why would people identify with such a vibrant, artistic expression if not to escape and at the same time make a social statement? I will answer all of these questions in this thesis.

Introduction to Theory

Social construction theory (also known as social constructivism) states that everything we know is based on the mental construction of our reality, which emerges from specific historical and cultural contexts. This means, in turn, that our positions in a culture, a time, and a place affect what we know.

“These meanings are varied and multiple, leading the researcher to look for the complexity of views rather than narrow the meanings into a few categories or ideas. The goal of research, then, is to rely as much as possible on the participants’ views of the situation. Often these subjective meanings are negotiated socially and historically. In other words, they are not simply imprinted on individuals but are formed through interactions with others (hence social constructivism) and through historical and cultural norms that operate in individuals’ lives” (Creswell 2007: 20-21).

I will answer the following questions that social construction theory poses: What is cosplay and what are the properties that make it up? Who wears these costumes and how are they made? How is cosplay constructed, both literally and figuratively? Why are things made in certain ways and what do they express? Finally, what are the historic and social contexts that have created the perfect environment for cosplay to exist in?

A Brief Introduction to the life of the Youth of Japan and Cosplay

Japan exists as a dichotomy, a society that struggles for a balance between those who uphold strict social standards and values, and a people who are trying to be unique and understand themselves as individuals in a place with very few foreign citizens. Less than 1% of the total population of Japan is foreign, yet vast amounts of outside influences come into Japan through the various routes of our globalizing world. Japan, in turn, insulates itself by making technologies specific in such a way that they can sometimes only be produced in Japan, protecting their market and insulating them against outside corporate control of any kind. Donald Richie referred to this process as becoming “uniquely Japanese” (Richie 2000: NP). Furthermore, the people of this fairly young nation state (solidified in the late 1800’s) are fighting to understand their national identity alongside their government’s attempts to finally detach Japan from the last remnants of American occupation. “Tokyo’s civic identity has been formed and reformed by fluctuating cycles of disaster, exodus, growth and change; and the social system – if there could be said to be only one – has created buffer zones and boundaries to help deal with such things” (Knafelc 2004: 13).

(Shibuya: JLG 2006)

Japanese students within their strict society are under tremendous pressure to succeed. Japan’s current population is estimated at around 127.5 million with 14 million of those people concentrated in Tokyo alone (State Dept. NP). (See Figures 1-1 and 1-2.) This means that in a country only slightly smaller in size than California, people must compete aggressively for jobs and educational opportunities. Schooling and placement exams are a matter of extreme stress and concentration for young people until their early to late twenties, depending on how far they pursue their education. The expected course of action after school is to find a company that will hopefully give lifetime employment and job security, but lately Japanese youth have been more reluctant to follow in their parents’ footsteps.

In Harajuku, Overlooking the famous Harajuku Bridge that leads to Meiji Jingu Mae Shrine on the far side. (JLG 2006)

Understanding and Defining Cosplay

Cosplay (コスプレ, kosupure) is a contraction (or portmanteau) of the English words “costume” and “play.” It is, more specifically, a Japanese subculture that focuses on dressing as characters from manga, anime, video games, Japanese live action television shows, fantasy movies, Japanese pop music bands, and sometimes pop culture icons from other countries.(See Figure 2-1 and 2-2 to see a youth cosplaying as the video game character “Link” from the Zelda Video Game Series.) Cosplayers gather in Harajuku and many other places to see others’ costumes, show off their own elaborate handmade creations, take lots of pictures of one another and in large groups, and participate in costume contests that have become so big that prizes can range from a free cell phone to a trendy boutique gift certificate. Magazines and fashion designers scour these streets, taking photos of cosplayers and the like, hoping to catch the next big wave in fashion and to in the future make profit from these pioneers. (See Figure 2-3 which displays a photographer on the Harajuku Bridge.)

(Photographer on the bridge. Possibly a scout? JLG 2006)

Cosplay has been called many things: an art form, a youth clique, a social event, a designing process, detachment from society, or even just something to do out of boredom. All of these things can be true, at least in part, but the essence of cosplay is that it is a form of expression for young people in the Japanese subculture that practices it. Alongside this expression is fruits fashion, also known as extreme fashion, which sprung up in Harajuku around the same time as cosplay. These two movements are important to understand both independently and together, because in many ways the members of both groups often overlap in various ways. Extreme fashion is the idea of creating an outfit that protests corporate fashion trends and is instead “initiated by the wearer” (Aoki 1). (See Figure 2-4 of some Fruits Fashion known as Kawaii “Cute” Overload.) Cosplay, specifically, is the act of dressing up as a character, person, or creature from an anime, manga, movie, music group, or other Japanese pop culture genre. People who cosplay “take on the role of” their character for an entire day or weekend. The construction of the costume is done by the wearer and involves very little purchasing of items from stores if one is considered a “core” practitioner. (See Figure 2-5.)

Cosplay in

Japan

is a matter of being a part of one of the tribes that have formed in relation to its practice. In Tokyo that means going to Harajuku and joining one of the many groups or cliques hanging out by Meiji Jingu Mae every weekend. (See Figure 2-6.) One must become an insider to even get the slightest glimpse into a cosplayer’s life during the week, to go behind the bright makeup and hand-crafted clothing they wear, and the identity they take on as their own each weekend. Most cosplayers who are considered core members of a group have several outfits that they have spent tedious hours carefully crafting to perfection. The looks they create are a direct representation of the ideal they wish to express. It is an original response to societal pressures; a visual art form of expression that manifests itself through the idea of becoming another person through an outfit, makeup, and alternate attitude from normal, everyday life.

The Historic Context of the Cosplay Sub Culture

It is said that cosplay became popular in the late eighties, but no one is sure why the trend first got started. It is pretty much impossible to get only one answer from anyone about the roots of cosplay in Japan. Some say it was because Star Wars and Star Trek conventions had brought with them to

Japan

people dressed as characters. In turn there were Japanese who took the idea to a whole new level. Others say it was initiated by the trendy new wave fashion artists on the streets and a natural result of fashion experimentation.

Some people argue that Nov Takahashi (from a Japanese studio called Studio Hard) specifically coined the term “cosplay” as a contraction of the English-language words “costume play” while he was attending Worldcon in the 1980s. It is said that he was so impressed by the hall and masquerade costuming there that he reported about it frequently in Japanese science fiction magazines and further encouraged cosplay as a way to promote anime series in

Japan

. (Cosplay 2007: NP). He has said in public appearances that he worries some people become too obsessed with costumes, and have less enthusiasm for the series itself, but still promotes cosplay avidly. Again, this point is debatable, even though Takahashi himself said he invented the word, since cosplay is a word made by combining two words, something that happens quite frequently in

Japan

. Karaoke and Pokemon are also words made by combining two words together.

Where to go and what to do: Introducing Harajuku

TCVB said this of the famed Harajuku District in Tokyo, Japan, “Fashionable Harajuku is the perfect soft-landing in Tokyo with its cosmopolitan air and some of the best of traditional and modern Japan. Most people associate the name Harajuku with the Champs Elysees-like zelkova-lined avenue called Omotesando and a couple of nearby back streets, notably Takeshita-Dori, a cut-price fashion avenue teeming with teenagers.” (See Figure 3-1 for Takeshita Dori.)

Harajuku started out as a main contact point between Western and Eastern culture during occupation-period

Japan

until the 1950’s. Western clothing was suddenly available to the Japanese in bulk, and it would soon affect styles and fashions being worn by the residents of that area. Although Western clothing was commonplace by the 1920’s, “Japan’s attitude to western clothes has been unfettered by the accompanying rules of class and status that clothes in Europe have been soaking in for hundreds of years (as indeed has Japan’s own system of indigenous dress). This, coupled with the country’s rapid postwar modernization into a hyper consumerist society, has led to an evolution of yofuku that sometimes looks nothing less than spectacular to the eyes of the westerner” (Keet 8).

Harajuku has been the name of the area around the Harajuku Station on the JR line within the Shibuya ward of Tokyo for many years, but did not achieve its current icon status until around the mid-1980’s. At the time Omotesando had been closed to traffic on Sundays (a “pedestrian paradise” known as Hoko-Ten in Japanese), and so the area in and around Harajuku seemed the perfect place for teens to go hang out, watch performances by young musicians and dancers trying to get their start, and where teens would exchange new ideas and concepts that would develop a myriad of youth subcultures unique, for many years, to that district alone (Aoki 1).

It became, by way of exchange and interaction of Tokyo’s young adults and teenagers, the spot for cutting-edge fashion in the nineties when teens initiated for the first time in shaping fashion the way they wanted it to look and feel rather than following designated trends that are so pushed in a capitalist society (Aoki 1). This fashion movement and the cosplay subculture have made Harajuku a special community for the many teens that travel there on weekends or afternoons once they are done with school or work. It is important to note that this community primarily gathers on weekends, particularly Sundays, and this is reflected in the entire community with businesses in the area closing by 9 P.M. on weekdays and staying open sometimes until the early hours of the morning on weekends. (See Figure 3-2 for what Harajuku Bridge looks like during weekday work hours.)

Harajuku Today

The youth of all social circles come up and spill out from Takeshite Dori (pronounced TA-KEH-SHTA-DO-REE), the street commonly known for its designer shops and fashions found no where else in the world. Takeshite Dori forms the edge of the Harajuku community and is also where businesses attempt to market to the local cosplay groups who hang out up the street. There are boutiques that specialize in socks, t-shirts, cosplay accessories such as wigs, mismatched outfits for the fashion movement, American vintage clothing from the 1970’s, and even stores that sell random accessories or jewelry. (See Figures 4-1, 4-2, and 4-3 for stores on the street.) Many western businesses like McDonalds, Doutor Coffee, and the Wolfgang Puck Express restaurant also dot the street.

When you pop back out from Takeshite Dori and cross the street towards Harajuku Station, leaving behind you the Snoopy Store and the Fashion Movement, you are immediately taken in by the sights of Harajuku Bridge. The main passage from the metro and JR lines to Meiji Jingu Mae Shrine, the sidewalk over Harajuku Bridge and across from Yoyogi Park is loaded with groups of teens who have set up parade blankets and strewn out their belongings on them to hang out for the day. Here, and especially on Sundays, you will commonly see the cosplayers and extreme fashion movement teens side by side: a few girls dressed in frilly Lolita Maid outfits trading candy or a few guys in Punk or Gothic garb trading cigarettes out across the blankets. They will look up causally from time to time, but are generally facing away from the large crowds of tourists from Japan and around the world who are making their way through this diverse setting to see the Shrine or Harajuku’s youth culture, UNLESS they are posing for pictures, which I will talk about more later on. Most often they are also listening to or watching someone playing guitar, singing, or dancing.

Cosplayers also come together to attend conventions, concerts, and public gatherings devoted specifically to cosplay. Every year there are cosplay conventions in

Japan

, and anime, video game, and sci-fi conventions also support the cosplay community. The world’s largest and most famous convention, Comiket (also known as Comic Market), is still held in the Odaiba Area of Tokyo, Japan bi-annually. Dojinshi, or fan produced manga, that cannot be found anywhere else in the world due to their rarity are sold here. Cosplayers from around the world often spend months or even years making costumes to wear to this convention. Cosplay parties held at amusement parks, nightclubs, and cafes now draw followers to new parts of Tokyo and greater Japan to interact with the ever-growing group.

Discussion

Construction and Creation

Cosplay is certainly a construction, and it has several fundamental properties, as well as nuanced components, that make it whole. Each cosplayer makes a conscious choice of what to express by picking a character and “look” to cosplay in their selected community. That community varies, depending on the location and age of the cosplayer, but the general idea is that being an accepted insider is one of the many keys to being a successful cosplayer. Each member will probably also choose a subgroup or category for their inspiration, whether that be Lolita, Goth, Anime, Manga, Visual K Rock, Hip Hop, Fruits Fashion, or Kawaii Overload (cute overload) (Macias and Evers 2007: various). (For an example of Visual Kei Cosplay see Figure 5-1.) One will note that many of these subgroups exist in their own right and are not distinctly a part of the cosplay community. A member of the hip hop group becomes one because they wish to be a part of that community every day, whereas a cosplayer of someone from the hip hop community is only doing so for a weekend (or other short period of time) to express an ideal they do not actually live in their everyday reality. When they dress up they take on not only the full appearance, but also the complete personality of that person or thing. In a way they are like actors playing parts in their own version of a community-wide, completely improvised play.

In Character

Many of the youth cosplay community can often be seen shopping and hanging out with other cosplayers who are also acting “in character.” Examples of being “in character” by cosplay enthusiasts are similar to actors on a stage. Their actions could include making trademark facial expressions, or memorizing lines to say and reciting them out to people who pass by or interact with them. (See Figure 6-1: In Character “Aname.”)

An example of playing “in character” I witnessed while in Japan in the summer of 2006 that I found particularly interesting was a couple of girls dressed up like Strawberry Shortcake, a female character from the now-classic American children’s cartoon of the mid 1980’s. They had even memorized several lines from the show in English and spouted them out to me when I interviewed them. They were acting spunky, caring, and lighthearted just like Shortcake herself. They told me they had chosen Shortcake after purchasing a purse that had her drawn onto it. They found copies of the cartoon episodes online and watched several before making their outfits.

Making the Outfit

Creating the actual outfit one will wear is the most time consuming process of being a cosplayer. From start to finish it is an intricate process that begins with designing a pattern that must be sewn. Sewing often is done with a standard sewing machine, but intricate and delicate parts of an outfit must be hand-stitched. If one cannot make a part of a costume (which is a surprisingly rare occurrence with the amount of information available online guiding cosplayers to make virtually anything their costume needs) then items are often traded with other cosplayers or bought only under extreme circumstances. A frequently purchased item is the wig because they are so difficult and costly to make without proper supplies. This system of making clothing by hand and trading it with others is shocking to some adults who simply didn’t understand why their children suddenly wanted to learn how to sew, an art that is certainly not used much anymore with clothing being so readily available at low cost to the consumer. Cosplayers feel a kind of loyalty to their craft, however, and for the most part will refuse to spend any money on the pre-crafted designer cosplay clothing you can find in Harajuku specialty boutiques like Body Line and Takenoko.

Accessories are usually the most difficult part of a costume to make or complete with accuracy. Many anime characters wield weapons and thus it is difficult to create an accurate replica of a sword or gun without actually knowing how to do metallurgy. Most cosplayers will use a kind of synthetic material to create the weapon and mold it by hand. (See Figures 7-1 and 7-2 for complicated craft items.) Hair dye and styling are also an extremely important part of completing a character, with Japanese youth finding ways to shed traditional hair color for any in the rainbow. Neon hair colors are especially popular along with spiky hair styles that defy gravity with gels and sprays that are similar to glue in texture. Contact lenses of various colors (all over pigment or iris cover only) are also used to complete a landscape image.

So Who Are These Cosplayers?

Based on my observations, I have found that most cosplayers are between the ages of fourteen and twenty-four, making it a primarily-youth based subculture. Since most of these people are students, it is easy to see how cosplay is the perfect weekend escape from exams and stress (See Figure 8-1 for a crowded Harajuku weekend). Japanese students attend school six days a week, often also balancing a part-time job and/or an extra-curricular activity with a social life and time with the family at home.

It should be said, however, that there are hundreds of reasons people give when explaining why they choose to cosplay. Many people simply enjoy being part of such a fun and diverse group that accepts people no matter who they are, and has found a place to call home in Harajuku. While it is true that having fun is very important to a young person, and most young people will tell you that’s what it’s all about, it is easy to see that social expression is the deeper (often subconscious) meaning to this group’s intentions.

“It is the sheer variety of styles to be found here – some in the form of fast moving trends, others belonging to little pockets of devoted followers of a subculture scene – that makes Tokyo fashion quite unlike that of any other city in the world” (Keet 2007). Truly Dr. Keet has here appropriately defined the unique concept that is Tokyo’s fashion scene. With so many options available, making a conscious choice of what to wear reflects a deep commitment to the ideal it expresses. One says a lot by projecting visually their ideal image, especially in a city like Tokyo where standing out among the suits and business attire really makes a statement. (See Figure 8-2 and 8-3 for youth and adult mainstream crowds.)

Tiffany Godoy also has some excellent words to apply to

Japan

’s youth expressions. “Japan’s youth culture has always evolved in relationship to what preceded it, with the kids – typical of youth everywhere – seeking a new identity separate from the one dictated by standard social norms” (Godoy 2007).

Fashion as an Identity Marker

In Victoria Chambers’ book, “Kickboxing Geishas: How Modern Japanese Women are Changing their Nation,” she describes to us that fashion takes a very important stance in expressing oneself in Japanese culture. The old saying, “Don’t judge a book by its cover,” seems to take no place in Japan. To go further on this idea, Chambers’ quotes Donald Richie, famous filmmaker and writer of Japanese culture for western audiences, as having said that “the surface truth is always the real truth. This is something that all Japanese people believe. You proclaim it, you put it on your name card and that’s who you are” (Chambers 31). This explains, Chambers says, why “there’s no such thing as casual Fridays at Japanese companies and why, if you are hiking in the countryside, you will see whole Japanese families dressed up like the Swiss Family Robinson. It’s not just a costume; those are their “hiking clothes” (Chambers 31-32).

So where does this idea of surface truth apply to cosplay? Since cosplayers are trying to stand out among a sea of those “dressing for their environment,” as Chambers put it, (meaning, in this case, salarymen, school uniformed teens, and others conforming to the masses) cosplay can be seen, in a way, as youth members creating a new environment, and then dressing to fill it appropriately (See figure 9-1 for the quaint Lolita). What is most interesting is that this environment takes no definite shape or style, and therefore possibilities of inhabiting it are seemingly limitless. There are a few social codes that go along with being a cosplayer, but really it’s all about the individual. In part, cosplayers did not have to work very hard to find a place to house their environment. Harajuku has been the place for fashion experimentation since the mid 1950’s. It was only natural that there would be room for cosplayers among the Fruits Fashion, the Goths, and the Hip Hop Crew (See figure 9-2 for more Visual Kei cosplayers). When cosplayers moved in, there was a natural space made for them on Harajuku Bridge for them to make a statement. What is special about cosplay is that it cannot fit any one category or definition socially. In many ways it is a hybrid of categories and definitions.

There lies a very important point: cosplay as a hobby can be an escape, but can also be a very important social statement in a country where a movement similar to the American social upheaval of the 1960’s has not yet really taken place. Women’s rights are just now being expanded and pushed past their social boundaries in Japan. Rather than a glass ceiling, Japanese women call their boundary a rice-paper ceiling, and in many ways that ceiling is tougher to break through than any other modernized country in the world. So here, in Harajuku, we find a lot of young women who are growing up and at the same time telling society in their own way that they don’t just want to fall into place when their rights are limited, and further more they will refuse to do so. Chambers makes a very important point about fashion in relation to women in Harajuku in her text:

“Gwen Stefani sings about the Harajuku girls and their “wicked style.” But Harajuku is also an anthropological petri dish of young women and how they are choosing to react to all the changes in their lives. From the thirty-plus-year distance of our own American women’s movement, it’s difficult to remember how many women were terrified of equal rights. In

Japan

you can see that same kind of “fear of flying” at work, in strangely theatrical, uniquely Japanese ways” (Chambers 32).

Fashion has always been a way to make a statement, and cosplay takes this concept one step further. In Japan, fashion trends are frequently initiated by individuals who were undergoing drastic changes in their simultaneously changing surroundings – the teens. Shoichi Aoki, who pioneered the magazine Fruits (which covered extreme fashion movements and experimentation in Tokyo) calls this idea, “fashion initiated by the wearer” (Aoki 2001). It makes sense that this happens because teens around the world are not given a voice of authority. Teens recognize their lack of an authoritative voice in society, and in turn they both subconsciously and consciously act out against their constraints. What better way get attention than dressing extremely, listening to loud music, and hanging out in large groups?

My thesis goes on from here, but really I just wanted to include these specific excerpts to prompt the following conversation. I want to know what YOU think. Personally, I feel that cosplay is a hobby that means something more than just making a costume for a convention. I think the root of the larger cosplay community means something more on both artistic and personal-expression levels. But I want to know what American cosplayers and Japanese cosplayers think about my conclusions. Is it something more? Or is it just a fun weekend out? Is there subconscious meaning beneath it? Or is it just another fad?

I truly believe there's something more here, but I want to hear what you think.

Patiently Waiting and Hoping for some constructive responses,

Lady Jones