Feeling just a tad punchy today, as we all went to sleep around 2am last night/morning. We were spending a lot of time winnowing through Alan's collection of photos he'd taken during the day. I put up a small selection as a web gallery here. I reserve the right to take them down again if I run low on storage.
We all got up around 8:30, and have been lounging around posting articles and surfing the web until the next activity. I think Alan and I will be hitting the road for some food soon regardless. Later!
Friday, July 4, 2003
The DVDs
I may fold like a cheap suit and buy more, but here are the HK and Korean DVDs I grabbed so far:
- Aces Go Places I - Another ensemble cast comedy series, again with Jacky Chan
- Beauty Investigator - Moon Lee and Yukari Oshima go undercover to investigate crime in the cosmetics industry -- and much martial mayhem ensues...
- Foul King - Korean movie about a social reject finding self respect through professional wrestling
- Iceman Cometh - a 'serious' movie with Yuen Biao
- Killer Clans - Shaw Brothers Old School
- Royal Tramp - a Stephen Chow movie
- Running Out of Time - I wrote up Running Out of Time II previously. I grabbed it off the International Channel, and subsequent research indicated that the first movie was better, so here it is.
Thursday, July 3, 2003
Healthy
We went back to Downtown Disney, using a route I was sure was shorter than last time, but alas no. I enjoyed the walk, but John and Tom both got blisters. This time we ate at the ESPN Sports Restaurant. I had a chicken sausage sandwich, a bowl of green beans, and a bowl of brocolli (brocolli and cheddar, hold the cheddar). My body thanked me profusely.
It's late, so I'll wait until tomorrow (sometime) to detail all the Hong Kong and Korean DVDs I bought in the dealers' room. 'Night all!
It's late, so I'll wait until tomorrow (sometime) to detail all the Hong Kong and Korean DVDs I bought in the dealers' room. 'Night all!
Idol
We did quite a bit of wandering around the con before and after the Idol Contest, and they got a rocky start, running over an hour late. But I enjoyed it quite a bit. These kids have got a lot of guts getting up on stage in front of a hundred or two tired anime fans. The competition was either voice acting or pop singing. We only stayed for about six competitors, as they ran so late, but some of them showed real promise.
The one that stuck with me was a young woman reading Kubla Khan by Samuel Taylor Coleridge. She had a really nice voice, perfect for narrative. I was trying to decide if she was British and nervous, or awkwardly trying to imitate a British accent, but it seemed stilted. And she slurred some of her words. But I surely hope she gets professional training, because I actually closed my eyes and listened to her voice for a minute there. It's got something to do with the fact that I've always loved that poem fragment (it's a crowd pleaser, so that's no surprise), but it also had to do with my love of a fine voice. Very nice.
On another note, poor Ross Johnson! He's down here working on AX staff, and is trapped working some of the nastiest panels (BBS get-togethers, Sailor Moon musicals, for instance). The guy who is supposed to be helping him and giving him breaks is a no show. If I had any knowledge of the equipment I'd offer to help him, some. But we'll be meeting with him after he gets off, around 11pm...
The one that stuck with me was a young woman reading Kubla Khan by Samuel Taylor Coleridge. She had a really nice voice, perfect for narrative. I was trying to decide if she was British and nervous, or awkwardly trying to imitate a British accent, but it seemed stilted. And she slurred some of her words. But I surely hope she gets professional training, because I actually closed my eyes and listened to her voice for a minute there. It's got something to do with the fact that I've always loved that poem fragment (it's a crowd pleaser, so that's no surprise), but it also had to do with my love of a fine voice. Very nice.
On another note, poor Ross Johnson! He's down here working on AX staff, and is trapped working some of the nastiest panels (BBS get-togethers, Sailor Moon musicals, for instance). The guy who is supposed to be helping him and giving him breaks is a no show. If I had any knowledge of the equipment I'd offer to help him, some. But we'll be meeting with him after he gets off, around 11pm...
Opening Ceremony
Opening ceremony was par for the course. It was improved by the introduction of two 'special' mini-events. One guest (Akira Kamiya) brought an anime his students at Nipon Engineering College produced. It was a cute little short about a boy who wakes up and has turned into a dinosaur, from the waist up. Pretty funny.
The second special was a song performed by pianist/composer Yuki Kajiura and a vocalist whose name I didn't catch. These two events are atypical in my experience.
After the open we milled about while Alan took a bunch of digipics with his digital SLR (Nikon D100) and then we met with Chris and Valeska. She wanted breakfast, even though it was 11:30am by then, so we went to Coco's. I had a turkey and brocolli quiche, and lots of orange juice and copious caffeinated bevies. Now we are resting before hitting the dealer's room.
Tonight we'll probably go to the Idol contest (Idol's are the Japanese equivalent of Britney Spears and Christina Aguilera -- manufactured pop stars), then hit the road in search of a late night snack. I found out that taking the right route we could easily walk to Downtown Disney, not even needing a shuttle. So maybe Sunday for the next try...
The second special was a song performed by pianist/composer Yuki Kajiura and a vocalist whose name I didn't catch. These two events are atypical in my experience.
After the open we milled about while Alan took a bunch of digipics with his digital SLR (Nikon D100) and then we met with Chris and Valeska. She wanted breakfast, even though it was 11:30am by then, so we went to Coco's. I had a turkey and brocolli quiche, and lots of orange juice and copious caffeinated bevies. Now we are resting before hitting the dealer's room.
Tonight we'll probably go to the Idol contest (Idol's are the Japanese equivalent of Britney Spears and Christina Aguilera -- manufactured pop stars), then hit the road in search of a late night snack. I found out that taking the right route we could easily walk to Downtown Disney, not even needing a shuttle. So maybe Sunday for the next try...
Wednesday, July 2, 2003
Six Days and Five Nights
First post from Anime Expo! I brought my laptop (an original Blueberry iBook) and our room has broadband available, so I'm able to dash off a post now and then. Don't expect too many, as I'll be busy doing, but...
Of course I had to launch the trip with a burst of bad health choices. In the concourse of the Portland Airport Dan and Alan and I went to Good Dog, Bad Dog (botique sausage restaurant) and had sandwiches for lunch. I had the BratReuben, a bratwurst with Reuben toppings. Yum, yum!
The flight down was uneventful, and I even escaped the nasty sinus pain that sometimes afflicts me when we descend rapidly. We caught a shuttle to the hotel, and checked in with little trouble, although the room assignments were somewhat flakey (we got rooms across the hall from each other, and the rooms were 'smoking' -- I keep forgetting that not all states are as healthy as Oregon).
Tom and I were both 'paid pre-registered' and got our badges and other material in a matter of five minutes. Dan, Alan and John had to wait for two hours to get through the lines for their registration.
While we waited for them, we joined James and Jeremy to check out their weird Japanese import Playstation 2 games. One was a 'Killer Trout' fishing game, with mutant zombie fish. The other was a disc with dozens of mini games, such as the wedding pie toss and the afro growing game. Lotsa crazy stuff.
Finally, we marched out in search of food, and ended up going to Downtown Disney (we took the long way around, due to some misnavigation, turns out the shuttle entrance was right across the street). We ate in the restaurant portion of 'House of Blues'. We skipped the club since there was a $13 cover charge to get in and it was really loud. I had a salad and veggies, other folks had major dishes. Now we are back, and winding down for the night. Gotta get those earplugs ready!
Kelly, I miss you already. Jean, I miss you too! Take care.
Of course I had to launch the trip with a burst of bad health choices. In the concourse of the Portland Airport Dan and Alan and I went to Good Dog, Bad Dog (botique sausage restaurant) and had sandwiches for lunch. I had the BratReuben, a bratwurst with Reuben toppings. Yum, yum!
The flight down was uneventful, and I even escaped the nasty sinus pain that sometimes afflicts me when we descend rapidly. We caught a shuttle to the hotel, and checked in with little trouble, although the room assignments were somewhat flakey (we got rooms across the hall from each other, and the rooms were 'smoking' -- I keep forgetting that not all states are as healthy as Oregon).
Tom and I were both 'paid pre-registered' and got our badges and other material in a matter of five minutes. Dan, Alan and John had to wait for two hours to get through the lines for their registration.
While we waited for them, we joined James and Jeremy to check out their weird Japanese import Playstation 2 games. One was a 'Killer Trout' fishing game, with mutant zombie fish. The other was a disc with dozens of mini games, such as the wedding pie toss and the afro growing game. Lotsa crazy stuff.
Finally, we marched out in search of food, and ended up going to Downtown Disney (we took the long way around, due to some misnavigation, turns out the shuttle entrance was right across the street). We ate in the restaurant portion of 'House of Blues'. We skipped the club since there was a $13 cover charge to get in and it was really loud. I had a salad and veggies, other folks had major dishes. Now we are back, and winding down for the night. Gotta get those earplugs ready!
Kelly, I miss you already. Jean, I miss you too! Take care.
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