Tag Archive for 'Holiday'

Super Festival 46

Published
by
Electric Pig
on May 1, 2008
in Toys and Uncategorized
. 1 Comment

I don't really know why April 29th, the former "Green Day" holiday, has been renamed "Showa Day". I thought it could have been thanks to the negative associations with the diet-punk band of the same name, but then that doesn't really explain why it would be renamed in honour of a war criminal ex-emperor. According to various reports, the change (which had completely flown over my head when it took place in 2005), was meant to encourage reflection on the turbulent period of the Showa Emperor's (Hirohito as he is known in my head), rule. I imagine that the right-wingers wouldn't be too unhappy that another concession has been made to their goose-stepping, pencil moustache-wearing lunacy either. Apparantly, "Green Day" has been moved to May 4th, and "People's Day", has now been abolished. So, in the end it seems rather fitting that an Emperor that did so much to aid the suffering of his people has once again manage to barge his way, at their expense, into the spotlight.

This Omnipotent-Fascist-Ruler Day Showa Day, Eri and I went to Super Festival 46! Super Festival 46!! was a chance for Eri to see a live performance by Kazuo Umezu, her favourite manga artist and all-round lunatic. He actually lives a road away from me, and we see him almost every day, walking to and from his latest project, the much-protested-against-by-small-minded-neighbours red and white striped house he is constructing near the park. He was scheduled to perform some of his songs and would be selling some hard-to-find Umezz-goods, which Eri was dying to buy. I was a little worried by the thought of being at a 6 hour live performance and question/answer session in Japanese with an octogenarian mad-man (as Eri described the event), but was happy to go as payment for numerous things she has gone to with me in th past. The event was in Ueno at the science museum.

Except that it wasn't. Eri had glanced at the flyer which said blah, blah, science museum, blah, blah、importantaddressdetails, blah, blah, blah, and had presumed that the science museum mentioned was the huge National Museum of Nature and Science in the Ueno Park museum complex. We got to Ueno, left the station from the wrong exit, and walked about a mile in the hot sun (me with a streaming cold), up the hill to the right exit and had a look at the park & museum map. The science museum was there, except that it was National Museum of Nature and Science and not the Science Museum Tokyo, where the event was being held. After checking the flyer, we realised that the actual event was in Kudanshita, about 30 minutes away by two trains.

When we finally got to the museum, I found out (to my utter dismay), that it was a good, old-fashioned toy fair, with loads of old and new toys, figures, comics and props and most amazingly of all, a meet and greet with ADMIRAL CRIX MADINE of Star Wars fame!!!1111 Oh, and we were also too late for the appearance by Umezu. Still, I met the Admiral, forgot to get a photo with him, bought 5 Star Wars Kubricks for 1000円 (bargain), and met some famous Japanese Manga people that I hadn't heard of. Eri did manage to buy a lot of Umezz-goods so was not too sad at not meeting him. I just wished I had known about it earlier as I would have been able to (finally) meet an Ewok. Oh well, the quest continues.

Beijing Day One

Published
by
Electric Pig
on March 5, 2008
in Travel
. 3 Comments

It was very tiring to fly at 6.30 and arrive in Beijing's new Olympic-ready airport at 9.30 and then at our Hotel at about 11pm. At least that's the only excuse I can think of for the map-reading error that lead Eri and I to wander almost all the way to Tiananmen Square in search of a district Eri wanted to visit that should've been just-a-little-further until we realised that the next page of the map was nothing to do with the previous one, and we had, in fact, been walking into the spine of the book for about 20 minutes. Still, it was a good way to wander through Beijing's pretty empty, wide dusty streets.

It's hard to overstate just how polluted Beijing is. The sky, on a cloudy day like the one we were greeted with on our first day, seems dark brown, and though this is partly due to the sand blowing from the Gobi, the pollution is more to blame. Things turn gray/black that should not be. Beijing seems vast after Tokyo. The communist planners lost nothing to their Moscovite comrades when designing the boulevards and public spaces of the city. They dwarf Tokyo's dense warren of streets. People gather. At the weekends, the migrant workers that have been the fuel for China's recent economic boom visit the free sites and congregate around the train station, ready to board trains back to distant villages. 80's eastern block suits rule here. The ubiquitous tricolour bags hold the hard-earned dreams of far-away families.

The crowds in Tiananmen Square. Everyone is watching everyone else. Mao watches over all. People try to sell watches and flags under his nose. Through a gate that would have meant death 100 years ago. A massive square. Another gate. People try to sell tickets that are not needed. Another gateway and then another vast square. Artificial streams. Bridges. One for the Emperor, flanked on either side by one for his soldiers and one for the politicians. Tour groups flow through, washing up at pre-agreed viewpoints and exhibits. Flashes in No-Flash-Photography areas. Americans can be overheard asking stupid questions "Where did they film Crouching Tiger?", "What's to eat around here anyway?". The usual concerns of the world leaders, Bread & Circuses. A small child is beautiful and poses like a professional.

A garden at the rear of the forbidden city. A man uses a spike at the end of a long pole to fish notes from the frozen water of an imperial pond. People watch. Trees, bent in old age are held up by arboreal canes. Coffee. Cake sticks. Leaving the Forbidden City. Walking through a Hutong. People live here. Bicycles, old men playing cards. No mahjong now that poker has arrived. Dirt and rubbish. Shirts that should have been thrown away are hanging to dry. Feet starting to hurt. Turn a few more corners. The Beijing Department Store. Communism in action. The night market isn't open. Not surprising, it's 4 pm. Go for lunch. Noodles, Gyoza - take that teachers at school in Japan. Spices. Walking through a (really quite touristy - but them who cares) market. Eating miniature toffee apples and toffee strawberries. Wander through a massive department stall. Marc Jacobs, Armani, Vuitton, the new cadre.

Home to change, book a tour and head back out. The subway is crowded, and old. Many people smell of piss. Semi-perms on beautiful girls. Night market at night this time. The food (if it can be called that) is amazing. Some of it isn't dead yet. It's not revolting. Interesting. Foreigners, experimenting with facial hair are the only ones that seem to be eating the stranger stuff. Eri won't let me. I'm glad. Subway, take away, shower, brownish water, chocolate, teeth, bed.