Tuesday, May 31, 2011

Back From Anime North 2011!

(Pictures are at the bottom. Many are blurry, so I'm sorry. If you see a picture of yourself and would like to use it, please feel free to do so.)  


I had lots of fun ! (Which is of course to be expected!) I saw so many cosplayers this year. While it had its ups, it also had its downs.


The downside? Just a few things. My sister crushed a new manga by accident and totally damaged it (it's fine though. we can always buy a new one) and my phone almost lost my pictures. No idea how. I actually asked people for their pictures this year, including two very cute fairy kei girls, a girl from Pretty Cure, and a Su from Shugo Chara. Now for my exciting trip!


My sister and I arrived before 9:00, and there was already a line. It wasn't too long, so we were relieved. We expected much more people there, but it was Sunday, the day with the least number of attendees. from what I can recall, there was a Yuki Cross, a girl with half of her hair shaved and the other half purple (amazing, the dedication people put into this!), a girl with a Yoshi shirt, and several girls in mini skirts. While waiting in line, a few cars drove up behind us to drop off other con-goers. Among one of them was a lolita wearing an Angelic Pretty dress! I think it was the Jewelry Jelly Print. Later, we saw a girl in a fairy kei outfit, and immediately, I knew who it was! One of the members of Pinkly Ever After! They have a blogspot where I'm one of their followers, so that's the reason why I know who they are. There was a man with a troll mask carrying  sign with some of the "Friday" lyrics on it, and people said, "Not that song!"


9:30 rolled around, and eventually we went inside to register for the day. We got the Weekend Otaku passes instead, of the usual Sunday passes, so I guess they decided to save time this year and go with one type of pass. We had wait in line for the dealer's room and other events until 10 because there weren't any events that would start until then. One minute before 10, the line started a countdown, and we were let in.


To get to the Dealer's Room, you have to go through the Crafter's Corner. For those who don't know, the Crafter's Corner is an area where people sell their 2D fan or original artwork, in the form of 2D keychains, posters, bookmarks, buttons, well, anything 2D. It was here were I bought my friend a Vocaloid bookmark (since she 's such a huge fan of her!) from the Artist, Eranthe, who has a deviantart account. I love this artist, and definitely will continue to support them if they decide to continue to venture into the next years, which, undoubtedly, they will. I bought a Yuki Cross bookmark and button from them last year. Here's the Yuki Cross bookmark:   

My sister also bought a Vocaloid bookmark from them, and two other buttons. After walking down more aisles, my sister bought a pokemon water type button from another seller. We walked down almost all the aisles, until we decided to go to the dealer's room. Heading towards the entrance, we saw a very fairytale - like area, which turned out to be Pinkly Ever After's table. We knew that later, we would return to look at their items.

In the dealer's room, we made sure to walk through all four corners, and walked around the room without buying anything until 10 minutes before the beginning of the Lolita Fashion for Beginners Panel. We didn't stay for too long, because my sister decided we were going to eat. (I was disappointed, since I was learning a bit about lace that I didn't know before!) We went out and crossed the street to the Congress Centre, where we ate and walked. By the time we got to the Dealer's Room entrance, we had finished our lunch and went to shop around some more. I forgot to add: as we walked, I asked a Cure Black from the anime, Pretty Cure for a picture! That was the first time I asked someone for their picture, so I was somewhat proud of myself. In the dealer's room, I focused on getting Anna's mangas. Armed with her list of mangas and her $200, I hunted for the tables that sold mangas at $5 each. Oddly enough, none of the books there were on her list, so I turned to the tables that sold mangas 10% off of the US price. Throughout this second trip to the dealer's room, I heard a sales person to the side say, "Look at this shopper, a list, and everything." I smiled and said, "A friend sent me here with her list." Another sales lady at the side pointing to the mangas said, "This is all in alphabetical order so..." I replied, "I think we have a long way to go." We bought some manga, and headed towards other sellers and bought everything we could find from her list. We left the dealer's room for a bit so we could count of all the manga we got. We ended up with 19.

We returned, and finally bought our own things. I bought an Onigiri hat from Fruits Basket, and a Sailor Moon nuigurumi. My sister bought a Domo "green" bag, and Shugo Chara Volume 10, which seems to be unavailable in Chapters at the moment. We walked around, and found several places that sold Lolita things. I saw the Gothic Lolita Bibles, and wanted to buy it, but was turned off by the price ($35!). I also saw a Bodyline skirt for $45, but didn't buy it, for some unknown reason. I regret it so much now. T^T

We went out and sat to rest for a bit, until V-chan texted me to tell me she was in the Sheraton Hotel doing DDR. We went there and spent the rest of the time there until 3, and went home.

Now for the pictures!!!



pre registration line

































Our bags of things we bought!



Today marks the last day of Asian Heritage Month. To end this post off, for the last time this year, happy asian heritage month!!!

Friday, May 27, 2011

Anime North Begins Today!

Today marks the beginning of Anime North 2011! I'm sure that there'll be a lot of pictures posted up of today's events by the end of the day. My friend, V-chan went today and is going today and tomorrow, so she'll have plenty to tell me about and what to expect when we see each other on Saturday. I have a super busy schedule ahead of me, so my posts until sunday (or even after!) will be relatively short. I might not even be able to blog until the weekend's done, so I'll see you soon with lots of pictures!

Thursday, May 26, 2011

Anime North Starts Tomorrow!

That's right! I'm super, super, super excited! Oh my gash. (I spelled gosh like that on purpose.) I haven't gotten my things together yet, and some arrangements in place either, but I expect them to be in place tonight. I have yet to prepare my bags and "supplies", but I will get right to that tomorrow.

I'm praying that everything will go alright for Sunday! I really want to be able to get into all the lolita fashion - related events.

Last year, I brought my Chococat bag, but this year, my Domo will be tagging along!

Get ready for a load of pictures!!!

Tuesday, May 24, 2011

Anime North Lolita Fashion Excitement

In less than a week, I'll be on my way to my second anime convention! (Still hoping that nothing will get in its way!) I browsed through the site for events I might want to attend, and I really hope I'll be able to attend all the lolita - related events! So far, I've seen three: Beginners in Lolita Fashion, the Lolita Swap Meet, and the Lolita Tea Party.

Beginners In Lolita Fashion speaks for itself. It's a self-explanatory panel.

The Lolita Swap Meet is where Lolitas get together and buy or sell items. You need to RSVP, but you can still join if there is enough room left. I'm really excited for this one, but now that I've found out this event exists, I feel terrible for spending all that money on food and other stuff. T^T I could've bought an Angelic Pretty JSK with the combined total of spending in the past three months. Still, I'm satisfied that I have the amount of money that I do. This event is perfect for me, since I don't like buying online. I can try things on myself instead of having a guessing game. Things I'm hoping to buy (if I can't afford a dress or a JSK) are the huge hairbows, maybe a petti, socks, and any other accessories I can buy. Another thing I forgot to add: you an bargain!

The Lolita Tea Party also speaks for itself. The cost is $15 if you wear cosplay or lolita to this event, and $20 if you don't wear those. I'm trying to find something my sister can wear to this so she'll pay less, even if I don't. Save a little money, right?

I'm super, super excited!

Countdown to Anime North: 3 days!

Sunday, May 22, 2011

Asian Word Of the Day

(Post #7 of the Asian Heritage Month series)

Today, our Asian word is...
Aujourd'hui, notre mot asiatique est...

Usagi

...rabbit, in Japanese.
...un lapin, au japonaise. 

Saturday, May 21, 2011

Asian Phrase of the Day

(Post #6 of the Asian Heritage Month Series)

Our Asian phrase today is...
Notre phrase asiatique aujourd'hui est...

Chúc mừng năm mới

...Happy new year, in Vietnamese
... Bonne année, au vietnamien.

Friday, May 20, 2011

Anime North Doubts

    I'm not too sure if I will be able to make it to Anime North this year, but I'm praying that I will have nothing that will keep me from having at least a few hours there. I'm not going the full weekend, but I'm still debating over saturday or sunday. On saturday I have commitments in the morning and in the later afternoon, which would leave me with a few hours, just like last time (it was still worth it!) and I also might have to go to a party. On sunday is another morning commitment, but I would have the rest of the day for fun. If I were to go sunday, I would only make it at around one o'clock, leaving me just about 5 or 6 hours to fun with other otakus.

    Another change this year is that my friend, V-chan won't be going with us, and will be going with her school's anime club (they are so lucky they have one!). I was really hoping I could go with her again this year, but things happen. I might bump into her there, so who knows? I bumped into a lot of other school friends there last year!

    I'm hoping with all my might! My countdown would be a waste if I don't go. I really hope I will!

Thursday, May 19, 2011

Asian Word of the Day

(Post #5 of the Asian Heritage Month Series)


Today, our Asian word is...
Aujourd'hui, notre mot asiatique est..
Tsukue

...desk, in Japanese. 
...pupitre, au japonaise.

Countdown to Anime North: 8 days
Compte à rebours à Anime North: 8 jours

Monday, May 16, 2011

My Favourite Asian Food!

(Post #4 of the Asian Heritage Month Series)

I grew up in a country renowned for its cultural diversity, but I still prefer European and American food over asian food. Nevertheless, in throughout the journey of my life (so far!) I've come across Asian food that have become favourites of mine. 

Japanese
Tonkatsu  -  is probably my favourite so far. I haven't had much experience with Japanese cuisine, since my first time eating it was earlier this year. (I did have some Japanese earlier than that, but never had a full meal to myself!) This was the first dish I ate on my first time at a Japanese restarurant. Tonkatsu is fatless breaded pork, so it's much healthier than our regular meat. I've only ever had this twice, but I'm dying for some more!

Filipino
Puto   -  is definetly my favourite Filipino food. It's a rice cake, but you can add food colouring to add to its aestheic appeal. I've heard that there are different flavours, but I've never come acoss one of those in my life. My friend's aunt makes the best ones, that even my mom can't duplicate.

Vietnamese
Pho  -  was the first Vietnamese food I tried, and I fell in love with it the first time I tried it at a Vietnamese restarant with family, a few years back. I love the beef. I can't exactly describe it, but I can say for sure that most of the beef don't have too much fat in them. It's my sister's favourite too.

Chinese
I don't have a favourite Chinese food. I've eaten a lot of them, but I don't know what their names are. I've never come across something so good that I had to remember its name. I guess all I can say right now are their noodles.

I've never had a taste of Korean food, aside from the snacks at the supermarket, but I'm sure I'll find a favourite soon.

Friday, May 13, 2011

Asian Word of The Day

(Post #3 of the Asian Heritage Month Series)

Today, our Asian word is...
Aujourd'hui, notre mot asiatique est...

Kanin


Rice, in Tagalog.
le riz, en tagalog.


I had a week's hiatus, and I'm here now!
J'ai un hiatus pour une semaine, et maintenant, je suis ici!

Countdown to Anime North: 14 days
Compte à rebours à Anime North: 14 jours

Wednesday, May 4, 2011

Asian Word of The Day

(Post # 2 of the Asian Heritage Month Series)

As part of my Asian Heritage Month Series, I'll be putting posts up of words in different Asian languages.

Today, our Asian word is...

Kodomo

meaning child in Japanese.




Countdown to Anime North: 23 days



Tuesday, May 3, 2011

Today's Kawaii Item(s)! Day 15

Today's kawaii item is...
Le chose kawaii d'aujourd'hui est...


...My Hello Kitty Year of the Tiger Keychain!
...Ma chaîne de clé anneé du tigre!

About the item:
L'information de la chose:

I bought this item from a gachapon, again! Heheh. As always, it's from an Asian Supermarket.
J'ai acheté cette chose d'un gachapon, encore! Heheh. Comme toujours, c'est d'un magasin asiatique.



Countdown to Anime North 2011: 24 days
Compte à rebours à Anime North: 24 jours

Monday, May 2, 2011

Happy Asian Heritage Month! & Today's Kawaii Item(s)! Day 14


Happy Asian Heritage Month! Well, I'm a bit late on that one, but better late that never! Today's post won't have translated French for the reason of not having time. Sorry! To start off my string of posts to celebrate Asian Heritage Month, we celebrate with the arrival of today's kawaii item:

... my pink Love Bunnies cell phone charm!

About the item:
I got this cell phone charm in a gachapon at an asian supermarket. This is my first Love Bunnies Item, so it's something I treasure a lot. I chose to buy from the gachapon this is from because, well, I find that it's a bit close to loli fashion. Okay, not really, but it had a bow, and was pink! If it has those elements, you'll find me stuck to it as a child is stuck to a toy. That's right. My childish side is showing.

I'm sorry for today's post being very short. I will put much more time into tomorrow's post for sure. I will try to expand more on Asian Heritage tomorrow.

For now, it's back to studying!

Countdown to Anime North 2011: 25 days