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La Cittadella Kawasaki

Wed, 05/22/2013 - 21:19

La Cittadella [ラ チッタデッラ] - a slice of Italy in the heart of Kawasaki. Stylised to look like a small town in Italy, La Cittadella contains a cinema complex, concert hall, shops and a load of restaurants - especially Italian ones. La Cittadella is also home to the annual Hallowen parade too.
Today wifey and I go for walkies around the area. You can see a bit of what the area is like by day in the video below.

To get to La Cittadella, get of at Kawasaki Station and head to the following location on the map.
[gmap=35.528299, 139.697878]


We start off our evening by parking at Kawasaki Lazona and then walk towards La Cittadella. Building in the background is the MUZA concert hall.


Latest news in Japan is that they want to raise the initial fare of Tokyo taxi's to 730 yen which would last for the first 2 kilometers before you need to start paying more.
How does that compare to your neck of the woods? Tis better than some of the taxi's I tried to take in Malaysia at least - when I ask "How much to Blah" the drivers would answer "How much you got?"


Walking through Kawasaki Station.


Starting to explore more of Kawasaki.


Discover a street filled with a ton of restaurants.


Due to the lack of space in Japan, each building more often than not contains many restaurants or shops so always make sure to always look up at the signs or you may miss some gems.


Many restaurants have some really nice exterior designs.


"Kawasaki Blender"
It says that a cosplay girl with give you a wash.

You already know the word Oppai (meaning mammies) but another useful daily word you should know is "Kyonyu" [巨乳[きょにゅう]] (pronounced kyo-nyuu) which means "BIG OPPAI."
"巨" means "huge" or "gigantic" and is the same kanji used in "進撃の巨人" (Shingeki no Kyojin).

When you reach the end of this post make sure to shout out "Kyonyu" 50 times to memorize the word.


Check out more plastic food and find out where to buy in Japan.



"Aroma Beauty Salon" - photo annotate the one who you want to attend to your beauty needs.


Many of these "DVD rooms" allow you to "watch DVD's" in the privacy of your own small room. I know many gaijin folks who are travelling cheap use these places to stay in instead of a hotel as the rates are really cheap in the early hours of the morning.
For example its 3,000 yen for 12 hours.


Can you read that katakana? If not then I'll need to bring out a Katakana learning product in addition to Moekana.


I always stop by a Gatcha to see if there is anything 1/3 cale for my daughters - and when I find something I usually get it but ends up in the cupboard most of the times ><


The gate you see across the road is the entrance to La Cittadella.


This place looks like an Izakaya - its like a Japanese pub.



This is the main square at La Cittadella - kinda looks like a set to some movie.


A list of some of the restaurants at La Cittadella.


Moo.


Nice place to take a stroll in the evening.





And after walking for a bit, once you see things turn back to normal then you know you have left La Cittadella ^^


La Cittadella have a fountain show that takes place at certain times throughout the evenings.



The seeing-eye dog will open your mind and show you the future.


Occasionally you will see the head of some sea monster placed in a bucket of ice outside a restaurant to entice you to go in.
There is a poll embedded in this article.


Heading back to Lazona.


Exploring the shotengai in the area.


Remember to always take the stairs if you dont get the chance to exercise much!


Back at Lazona.


Got to meet comrades from many corners of the world who I went to see Iron Man 3 with.


Then its a quick look around Lazona. Would love to go camping but probably very unlikely that I'll ever get to relax in this lifetime to be able to do so ><


I've only seen bicycles like these in Japan where the child seat is at the front. Bicycles like these are usually called Mamachari [ママチャリ] which is a short form of Mama Chariot. "Chariot" [チャリ] is a term used to refer to a bicycle.


Looking for some magic potion to keep water off the car.


More magic potion that keeps water off the windscreen.


Time to look for some noms.


We got Auntie Anne's in Japan too.


The best food is the fastest food - down in the food court.


Sushi go round.


Snap with one of our readers from Singapore who came to watch Iron Man 3 with us but was too shy to jump in the group photo ^^;


Katsu Curry noms.


Oyako Don noms.


Japanese traditional sweets noms.


Time to check out my readers goodies starting with this very nice Sony DSLR.


No Service.


From Singapore - my most fave mints! Cant find these in Japan >< I always steal some from Shawn's car - the guy who brings us AFA ^^;


The Japanese Galaxy S3 comes with an antenna for ONE SEG TV.


I always thought that hole in Galaxy S3 cases was for LTE models.


Time to grab some groceries.


Picked up one of these rolls. Was supposed to have a crisp layer around it though ><


Krispy Kreme Sakura n Green Tea doughnuts.


Ichigo = Strawberries.


Some side dishes for dindins.


Back to the Mirai Mobile.


Our grocery catch for the day.
More places to visit in Japan listed up in the photo posts below.


Read more about Mirai Suenaga >>>


Dark Magician Girl

Wed, 05/22/2013 - 21:06

You is being familiar with Yu-Gi-Oh! If so then you will probably be familair with this little lady - Dark Magician Girl which has been given the Cu-Poche treatment by Kotobukiya.
I managed to nab one from the Kotobukiya offices before she's out this July.


Dark Magician Girl will retail for 3,990 yen and if she tickles your fancy then you can check out one of the following online retailers who may have her up for pre-order.


As with the other Cu-Poche figures, this little lady comes with a load of accessories and face plates.


How many of you have consumed Yu-Gi-Oh! contents (anime, card games) in your lifetime? Many people I speak to say they used to when they were younger.
There is a poll embedded in this article.

















More figure photo reviews listed up below.


Find out more about the Culture Japan girls >>>


Attack on Titan

Tue, 05/21/2013 - 22:16

Shingeki no Kyojin (Attack on Titan) [進撃の巨人] - one of the most awesome anime series I've seen so far that I simply must babble about!

Its a story about man eating giants who have been kept separate from humans for many moons by tall walls - until those walls are destroyed. We then start to see the struggle against the giants as friends and family get om nommed for brekkie and dindins.
Check out the trailers below.


There is a poll embedded in this article.


The anime is based on the popular manga series of the same name. Now that the anime has come out - many folks (including me) have been wanting to get the entire set of manga only to find that its pretty much sold out everywhere until they can print more.
There is a poll embedded in this article.


The series is so popular that apparel maker UNIQLO made Shingeki T-shirts too. This belongs to my comrade at Yuzusoft.


When I forget to record/watch Shingeki every Sunday at 11:30PM, I get to catch up on Crunchyroll using Apple TV to steam to my TV ^o^


This is one of the heroines in the show - Mikasa who is such a cool cutie.


I've been posting a load of Shingeki stuff on my facebook of late too ^^;
By the way - do you refer to the show as "Shingeki no Kyojin" or "Attack on Titan" ?
There is a poll embedded in this article.


This is my comrade Wada-san who just happens to be the producer of the anime series Attack on Titan. He also produced Guilty Crown, Robotics Notes and Psycho Pass.

He is also the big boss of WIT Studio which is a subsidiary company of Production IG. I have regular meetings at Production IG and caught up with him yesterday to see if he was free to come over to Anime Expo 2013 which takes place next month. I've also asked if he can bring some exclusive Shigeki footage to AX too.

I'll let AX give the official announcement ^o^


Shingeki no Mirai - made by a Twitter user who I lost track of who used the MMD Mirai Suenaga data.


Kaiyodo Office Tour

Sun, 05/19/2013 - 05:48

One of my agenda items during my visit to Kansai this week was to meetup with Shuichi Miyawaki [宮脇修一] - the boss of Kaiyodo which is one of the longest standing hobby makers in Japan who produce the Revoltech series and also own the worlds biggest figure and garage kit event Wonder Festival.


Before we settle down to talk and visit their office, we go for some nom noms Osaka style.


The Kaiyodo office is located in Osaka which we headed to straight after meeting up with Volks in Kyoto. The exterior of the Kaiyodo headquarters is a mixture of modern and the past with the brick walls which is not so common in Japan.


Greeted by a huge sculpt at the entrance.



One of Kaiyodo's major hit products - Revoltech Danbo.


Miyawaki-san is really into military stuf and owns a few vehicles used in past World Wars.


Yep - he owns a few anti aircraft vehicles too ^^


...and a few cannons ^^



A peak around the Kaiyodo warehouse.


Ton O figures ready to hit the shelves.


Huge Ah My Goddess figurines.


A look around the main meeting/show room.






Now taking a gander at the sculptors studio.


Got to meet sculptor BOME! He made my first ever figure of Aya Natsume that I got back in 2005.


Taking a look at the workspaces of the other sculptors.


The design of ED209 is classic.






My precioussssssss.



Airbrush booths.


I need more practice if I want to paint my own doll faces one day.


Name that thingy.



Still my most fave ship from Star Wars.




Now its time to take a lookie at Miyawaki-sans model collection - certainly the biggest in Japan and possibly the world?


























Time to sit down and talk about this and that and a new collaboration ^o^





I should have got one of these way back then ><





Bottle caps in Japan are most coolsome.




The Yotsuba Danbo has seen many collaborations so far with companies like Amazon, 7/11, Tamiya, Pepsi and Calbee.


I think you can guess what comes next ^o^
Check out more office tours of other Japanese companies in the anime industry listed up below.


Read more about Mirai Suenaga >>>


Volks

Sun, 05/19/2013 - 01:20

Had the pleasure of being invited by the Managing Director of Volks (pictured here to my right) to Kyoto a while ago but only just managed to make the trip this week ><

Volks is one of the major players in the Japanese hobby world. They have a long history of manufacturing injection moulded kits and also bring us the Super Dollfie and Dollfie Dream line of dolls.


Today Volks gave us a tour of their Tenshi no Sato museum in Kyoto and after we had a long lunch meeting to discuss this n that ^o^


Yuki-chan is my fave Dollfie Dream who got to go with me to Tenshi no Sato.


While I do have some comrades who work at Volks, I've never really had the chance to hook up with the top management but now that I have, I can tell you that they are one of the nicest family run businesses that I've ever had the pleasure of meeting. The Managing Director is such a sweet lady too who is also the wife of the big boss.


I've always loved their Dollfie Dream line of dolls which have really had an impact on my life - not only are they so cute and great to have around - they have also enabled me to connect with other Dollfie Dream owners around the world. My first Dollfie Dream I got was Saber back in 2008.


The Dollfie Dream line of dolls is also one of the factors that has influenced my decision to produce my own doll of my mascot Mirai Suenaga too.


I'll talk about it when the time is right but Volks and I will be working together on some really cool stuff in the very near future - keep em peeled ^o^


The last few photos in this post with Yuki-chan taken at Arashiyama in Kyoto which is very near the Volks Tenshi no Sato.


Just spent a week in Kansai (Kyoto, Osaka, Kobe) going through back to back meetings - will post photos of my trip soon.


Read more about Mirai Suenaga >>>

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