グリンランド遊園地 - Greenland Amusement Park

At the end of March I was invited to tag along to the local amusement park. Now, seeing as how Kumamoto is not a huge city, I wasn't expecting a huge park. Japanese people think on a whole different scale (so different to the dinky playgrounds we sometimes have in Latvia). This place was so huge, I couldn't see where it ends. I've never been to Disney World or other such grand places, so I can't compare, but Greenland Amusement Park is by far the biggest I have ever seen.

Cute nails

Recently, as a procrastination device I developed an interest in painting my nails. Now, I'm pretty much a newbie at this so it takes me ages. I also only own 7 nail polishes, 3 of which came in a set.

Yeeeaah, not much of a collection >_<

Regardless, I decided to experiment a bit and bought some super sparkly decal stickers at the 100yen shop. I proceeded to follow the instructions on the card, which was no mean feat. They say you get what you pay for. This was that sort of deal. The stickers wouldn't stick at all, so I resorted to using clear polish as glue :D Although it took me more than an hour, the result wasn't too bad.

☆ Oooooh, sparkly ☆

Today's experiment was the 'Heart nails'. These seem to be popular among youtubers, as that is where I got the tutorials from.

Cute ^_^ if a bit wonky.

Some years ago I bought stick on nails with a fancy design. They were too big for my fingers so I had to file down the plastic (that took way longer than I wish to admit). I have yet to wear them in public because I find the length kind of awkward. Plus, they don't stick too well to some of my nails. But from time to time I like to wear them around the house if I want to feel extra glamorous.

★ Fancy ★

If I ever come into possession of lots of moneyz, I'd like to get more fancy nail stuff like stick-on jewels or bows. Because sometimes it's more fun to do random unnecessary things than studying or working.

K-rin Digital Award 2013

A month ago or so I was roped into helping Shiv with a small presentation for a local event. The K-rin Digital Award presentation was held at the 競輪場 (Keirin stadium) - the local velodrome. The big screen was used to stream the live feed as well as show the contest entries, intermission videos and some awesome video clips by Tateishi Kazuya san.

This was the first time the event was organized, so it was a pretty small affair. As always Shiv didn't deem it necessary to explain where we're going or what the event was prior to arrival. He then swiftly proceeded to get busy. Fortunately, I was not left sitting alone. Another helper for the day was Inada san (Izumiken's Chief Secretary), so we got to hang out. After awhile I managed to figure out what the place was called and what the event was about.

What I didn't take into consideration was that it was really cold and windy that day. Especially in the stands where we were sitting. Both Inada and I got really cold.

During the event we were approached by a photographer who was taking photos for the stadium's web page. He was looking for young people to do pretend posing as if they were watching the race, cheering and so on. We agreed to help, but as we are definitely no models, it was just too funny to keep a serious expression for too long. I think the photographer guy got a bit frustrated >_<

A fun entry for the contest was a racing game with an actual bicycle. Inada, Tateishi san and some others gave it a go.

Scattered around we're these posters - when you take a picture with a corresponding app a 3D racer appears beside you.

Suspended in midair...

Our part in the event was to do a small sketch type presentation using Kinect. The idea was that Shiv goes about his day and objects (including me) appear and disappear depending on whether he's thinking about them or not. We came the evening before to do a test run and it worked smoothly enough. However, we've never tested it during daylight. And the day being cold and windy also turned out to be really sunny. The poor Kinect sensor couldn't handle all the light and we had to scrap our idea :((( Instead, Shiv made due with a small explanation of how it works.

Because I had very little to do, I tried taking some footage for a vlog type video. It's mainly comprised of me trying to speak Japanese (unsuccessfully) and Inada being cute (successfully).



We were assured that the event would become an annual feature. Or maybe even biannual. It would be fun to come again, especially if it is hosted in warmer months ^_^

Hinamatsuri - 雛祭り

At the beginning of march every year there is a Hinamatsuri (ひなまつり). It's a festival of dolls and cute girls (^_^)

In Kumamoto the doll sets that represent the emperor, empress and the court are displayed in Shimotori (下通).

The placement of the dolls is kind of complicated at first glance, because it's difficult to tell what some of them are. On this picture there are emperor and empress, court ladies, court musicians, food and ministers, samurai with some trees, furniture, carriage and some swords.

The Emperor doll from one of the sets.

The Empress from another set. I think I'd boil in all those layers if I wore her kimono.

The details on the dolls are awesome.

Also during hinamatsuri we (foreign people :))) get to dress up for cheap in furisode (振り袖) - a long sleeved kimono. Generally these are worn by young unmarried girls. But who cares about the details when you get just a few hours to wear such pretty clothes. It takes about an hour to put on and they wrap so much stuff around you to get that cylinder shape that it feels like a corset. I think a few hours is more than enough for people who are trying it on for the first time.

This is the kimono I got to wear this year. I generally can't be bothered with intricate hairstyles, but other girls make their hair look very fancy indeed.

Last year I chose a blue kimono with a much more grown up design, but I think this one suits me better.

After dressing up we get to have a mini tea ceremony - basically we are brought sweets and tea. Then we get to take photos. As a last treat we get to see a small traditional music number and a dance. We get to learn a few simple moves as well. It's a different dance every time and this year we got a prop - a kind of a stick with bushy tassels on the ends. Reminded me a bit of those pompoms cheerleaders have.

After all the fun and excitement we get to take off all our finery and go home.

I will definitely come next year as well (＠⌒ー⌒＠)

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Lab trip - day2

Part 2 of the Hiroshima trip. Another massive photo dump post.
Our accommodation was just a few minutes away from the Hiroshima Peace Memorial Park.
We took a group photo opposite the big fountain with a view towards the park. It turned out to be out graduation photo gift :)