Welcome to Tokyo!

I popped down to Tokyo on Saturday to meet up with my galpal Hisako. We hung around Shinjuku for about 2 hours while waiting to meet up with her daughter and in that time, we caught a few odd sights. Nearby, there is a Robot Restaurant and we saw a huge truck circle around the corner twice but it was out of camera shot. So we patiently awaited it's arrival and sure enough it surfaced again and posed for us.

I pleaded with her to let us go check it out but that'll have to wait for another day. Be sure to click the above link and take a look at its dancers. Now I know why the ladies balked at going.

Still waiting, my phone was dying so I bought a new charger and let the Force charge my iPhone.

Our waiting spot happens to be Lion Square and appropriately, there is a Leo-guardian.

In that same Square, there was an Onigiri shop handing out free samples with an assist by a rice-headed fellow and a rabbit.

Her daughter, Manami, finally did show and we looked around for a suitable restaurant. I wanted to check out this MahJong Parlour but once again I was vetoed by the ladies.

I don't recall the name of the Izakaya that we ended up in but the food was yummy enough. This was a fish jerky type dish and the tempura was something that I labelled "Mystery Veggies". Apart from the obvious there were a few veggies that were completely unidentifiable. The sashimi and salad were average but the asparagus spears were quite nice.

I did learn that my companions do tend to clash a lot but I'm too much of a gentleman to  go into details. Let's just say that this photo is somewhat posed.

Upon entry to the station, we encountered a rather odd sight but apparently Sailor Suit Old Man has gained quite the reputation and following. I can see why.

We went our separate ways and I met a few friends at the Aldgate. One of the better pubs I've ever had the pleasure of visiting, I wisely only had two so I could be in good shape for the following day. A trip to Ghibli! (Details tomorrow!)

Tekken To The Limit!

My camera is on the fritz yet again which is too bad for I came across some cool stuff that I wanted to photograph today.

For example, I picked up some cool mini-planes that come with canned coffee (once again proving my theory that Japan is trying to get their kids hooked on caffeine at an early age) and gave them to a co-worker's two boys. Thus I had to snap this with my keitai (cell phone.) 

Around 11 tonight, I was startled to hear a nearby siren and then another and another. When I ventured out along with dozens of similarly-minded neighbours, we were surprised to see about a dozen fire engines and cop cars congregating along a side street around the corner from my abode. Based on the distinct lack of smoke, the dispersal of the emergency vehicles and the gawkers murmuring, "Baka" (idiots), I concluded that it was a false alarm. 

So since I can't upload any other photos, here's a few trailers and clips from the new Tekken-Blood Vengeance movie.

Hey it's got a panda so it must be good!

Who Is My Boss?

Since the demise of the Star Wars franchise, the stars have fallen upon hard times like the rest of us and need to make ends meet somehow. Our favourite Jedi has been forced (see what I did there?) to become a shill for Docomophones. One can see his visage on huge billboards and in the shops throughout the country.

As you can see, he's done a couple of enigmatic ads. I always thought the Emperor was his boss, but I suspect they had a falling out. He has graced the cover of the last few NTT Docomo promo mags.

I'm almost ready to switch, they've offered him up as a Phone Strap so you can dangle him every time you make a call. Cool! Now, if they could only get his voice as a ring tone, I'm sold!

Batter Up!

In honour of the Rakuten Eagles wonderful run this year making it to the semi-finals, I picked up this cute (though expensive) Phone-strap.

Here are Kitaro and the gang playing 野球 (yakyuu = baseball):

Phoning It In.

Thanks to my latest win at UFO Catcher, I will never be caught without a fully charged phone again!





Unlike the poor folks in this video...



Now if I can only figure out how it works!

Phoning It In.

Woohoo! I got a new cell phone. It's half as heavy as my last phone, has a slightly bigger screen, and tons more functions. (Old=green,new=blue)









It has a built-in Japanese-English dictionary, Global functions, a better camera & movie capability, emails, net access, bar code reader, etc. etc. etc.!

It'll take me ages to figure all these functions out, but I AM excited!

UPDATE: I forgot to mention that with a sale price plus all the points I'd added up, the phone was free!!
Furthermore, I finally ditched my old cell phone email address since I was unable to cure my SPAM problem. That means no more ads for Rolex knockoffs, Cialis, Viagra or penis enlargements. Now I'll have to seek out those products on my own!