During out last visit, I was pleasantly surprised by both the extensiveness of Ueno Zoo. It was a trip not regretted as it turned out the popular attraction was home to the greatest number of animals in Japan, including many rare and exotic species, some of which I had never even heard of.

To be honest, prior to this day, I had not visited any zoos apart from Singapore’s famous Zoological Gardens. This was mostly due to warnings from family members living overseas that the local parks are never as impressive as the ones in Singapore.

So while I had passed by many zoos in Japan on a number of occasions I had never quite entered any of them. The decision to visit the zoo this morning was the result of having spent too many days within the shopping districts of Tokyo.

Zoo is split up into different segments.

Ueno Zoo takes up the western most section of Ueno Park. In terms of just pure ground space, the zoo is just slightly more than half the size of the Singapore Zoo. Like the rest of Ueno Park, the land was originally the estate of the imperial family but was gifted to the state when the Showa Emperor married.

Draw points of Ueno Zoo include its convenience given that it is located just 5 minutes from Ueno Station and the low entry price of just 600 yen (approximately SGD$10) for adults. Students studying in Tokyo and children 12 years or under enter completely free. This makes it a great and viable weekend hangout for families, which made up most of the park’s visitors.

Click for full image.

Of the many animals on display, there are no more popular than Giant Pandas. One of the few places in the world where you’d get to see the endangered species, there are two on display right at the front of Ueno Zoo. There was a long (but fast moving) queue to catch a glimpse of the creatures.

Long queue for the park's stars.

Because pandas are from China.

Both giant pandas were asleep.

Unfortunately, both pandas were happily sleeping this morning. It was lovely weather to sleep in, so I wouldn’t blame them.

Giant panda.

On a related note, Singapore will be getting its very own pair of Pandas later this year at River Safari, its upcoming 4th zoo.

Sleepy.

Vultures.

Used their bodies as a pillow.

Right at the entrance, we see a pretty wide range of birds of prey like owls, eagles and even vultures. Ueno Zoo boasts over 2600 animals and 460 species. For comparison’s sake, the Singapore Zoo hosts 2530 animals of 315 species.

Up close with all the animals.

This is important because while Ueno Zoo does have a lot more variety, it comes at the expense of some of the animals having to live in isolation. Fitting all those animals into half the space also comes with certain sacrifice, though it isn’t as bad as the first point.

Gorilla den.

Patriarch.

In fact, each of the animals get a rather spacious enclosure of their own. It is a little depressing to see some of the animals having to live alone in such a large den, but the opposite of having smaller dens would had been worst.

Clean habitats.

Really large seal.

From observation, each habitat was meticulously kept. For example, so while the ocean loving animals in Singapore Zoo has to live in murky waters, all of the enclosures, like the seals’ pictured, are kept pristine.

Lonely polar bear.

Pacing around.

To pack that many animals in the limited park grounds, each of the enclosures have to be closer to one another. The pedestrian paths are not as wide, giving the zoo the appearance of being smaller than it really is. But this comes with the side effect of not having to walk far between sights.

Pretty large enclosure.

Posing for cameras.

Habitats are not distanced from visitors either and you can get a lot more up close with the animals at Ueno Zoo. While more dangerous animals like lions  or bears would have to be separated by a large a moat in the Singapore Zoo, the only thing separating us from the animals here in most cases was just a glass fence.

Also solitary.

Elephant.

Due to a traffic road, the zoo is split up into two halves, which are a short walk away from each other via a pedestrian bridge. The second half of Ueno Zoo is located just beside the Shinobazu Pond which surrounds Bentendo Temple. This part is actually a children’s zoo where kids can play and directly interact with farm animals.

Second half.

Petting farm.

While there are fences here, they are more to keep humans out of the enclosures rather than the animals in. All of the goat, sheep, chickens, duck and other domesticated animals are free to roam about the area.

Basking in the sun.

Free to roam around. But most chose just to hang out here.

Visitors are encouraged to interact with the animals with brushes, or help clean up their litter. Others ran around the park in an attempt to catch some chickens. Since it was a winter, most of the animals decided to laze around a rock structure which was in direct sunlight.

The billy goat was locked away.

Names of the animals.

Just like at the Osaka Aquarium Kaiyukan, the animals around the zoo have all been named with some given descriptions of their personality traits. The accessibility of Ueno Zoo makes it possible for children or park goers to build up a sort of relationship with some of the animals.

Just farm animals.

Felt a little bad for them.

Kind of sad.

Burrows.

Bunnies.

Hanging around the trees.

Closer look.

Unlike the first half of the zoo which had many lonesome creatures, lots of the small mammals, farm animals and flightless birds were packed into each enclosure on this side of the park. In most cases there were still ample space though.

A few penguin enclosures in the open.

Lots of penguins.

Vibrant plume.

Ton of flamingos.

Unlike the other pens.

Odd looking bird.

A couple of mountain goats duking it out.

Prairie dogs.

The second part of the park also hosts many other larger animals that we’ve come to expect of zoos. Sadly, like in the earlier parts, these pens held either solitary animals or were sparsely populated. Thankfully, all of the animals looked lively, though they were made to endure the cold winter weather. Many paced up and down their enclosures to keep warm.

Sad zebra.

Pygmy hippos.

Regular sized one.

Popular.

Lonely rhino.

There are other sub-sections of the park which showcase themed specimens. For example, the World of Darkness contained all of the zoo’s nocturnal animals, while the vivarium held an extensive collection of slimy creatures.

Photogenic meerkat.

Bats.

Some of the less dangerous animals are kept within arms reach and without any barriers and though I’m not sure anyone would want to risk a bite to touch them, it allows for visitors to observe these animals up close.

Getting up close.

No barriers.

Arms reach.

Amphibians and reptiles.

All sorts of scaly things.

Overall, our visit to Ueno Zoo was thoroughly enjoyable and had we more time, we could had certainly spent more than the morning there. The opportunity to view and interact with the vast variety of animals at Ueno Zoo is well worth the cheap ticket price.

If you love animals and have at least a couple of hours to spare in Tokyo, I would definitely recommend plotting Ueno Zoo on your itinerary, especially when traveling with young ones.

After a period of being closed for renovation works, the AKB48 Cafe Singapore re-launched with a new look. With several promotions going on, we visited the cafe to see what changes were made to the design, and how the cafe looks like now. After spending some time in the new cafe, the verdict is in: the results are positive.

Patrons gathering outside the AKB48 Cafe & Shop.

The main objective of the renovation of the cafe was to merge the cafe and shop together into a single entity. As opposed to the previous arrangement of having the shop on the second floor of SCAPE and the cafe on the third, this relocation means that visitors will now be able to enter both the shop and cafe on the same level. This somewhat mirrors the AKB48 Cafe and Shop in Japan, where both are next to one another.

The shop entrance now occupies what used to be the counter area.

Of course, this also meant a re-organization of how the goods are arranged in the shop. The new shop is even smaller than what was previously rather abysmal. However, one does not really notice the smaller size of the shop. Maybe this is due to the window partitioning the shop and cafe entrance, giving an impression of a larger space.

Fans of popular members were available for purchase.

Notable additions to the catalog are items that were available only at the 7&i net-shop in Japan. This means that AKB48 fans who want these items can instead purchase them physically at the shop, instead of having to jump through several hoops to get them on the internet.

Muffler towels of several popular members.

Charms to attach to your cellphone.

One thing that was disappointing during out visit to the revamped AKB48 shop yesterday was that only the popular members had goods on sale; even the members who had come to Singapore did not get space on the shelves for their goods, instead being replaced by the more popular frontgirls. While this is no doubt a wise business move, it was a little disheartening nonetheless. Some who came specifically to take advantage of the local availability of net-only goods left disappointed.

Oshimen mirror keychains.

Of course, key-chains were not the only things on sale at the shop. Also available were fridge magnets styled to look like the portraits of the girls you see when you visit the AKB48 Theater in Akihabara.

A wall of newly added goods.

The re-launch also meant new things for the AKB48 Cafe. Promotions such as free curry rice with a purchase of the AKB48 Official Singapore photosets and a special coaster with every drink purchase meant that many of the fans came down to visit.

The standee was moved to the inside of the cafe.

The cafe was packed full, with queues forming even before the allotted time for the beginning of the promotion at 5 pm. Many were there to visit the shop and to claim their curry rice. The AKB48 Cafe girls also gave a performance, performing hit songs like NMB48′s Zetsumetsu Kurokami Shoujo and Not Yet’s Naminoori Kakigoori. Unfortunately and to the dismay of many, it was rather early into the event, and many missed it, with no repeat performances this night.

The cafe was full-house by the time we got seats.

The serving of curry given free was not very large, but it was to be expected. Many who were asked felt that it was sufficient, especially considering that it came free with a purchase anyway.

Curry rice, decorated by a patron to enhance the eating experience.

Visitors received a coaster with a drink purchase.

The re-opening also saw several people visiting the cafe for the first time outside of events. The changed menu, while not particularly new, drew some comments from patrons, with their comments directed at the improved aesthetics of the menu.

The new-ish menus, with photos of the members and dishes.

We were served by a new staff member, Risa.

We were a little disappointed that the ice-cream didn’t come with free coasters, but were told that the deal was exclusively for drinks, despite the ice-cream costing more than most of the drinks offered and needing coasters anyway.

Vanilla, Ocean, Strawberry and Green Tea flavours were available.

It remains to be seen if this change in merchandise selection will bring in more customers than usual at the shop. The merging of the cafe and shop is a good change that facilitates shopping, as well as letting customers, who would otherwise be too intimidated to step into the restaurant-esque cafe, check it out.

It also solves the overcrowding problem that sometimes plagued the AKB48 Official Shop on event days; the space outside the cafe is more than sufficient to deal with an influx of people. Hopefully, this signifies a greater variety of goods being brought in and the addition of more net-only exclusives.

Photo of coaster courtesy of Lyrapro.

In March, IU made her Japanese debut with the launch of her single, Good Day. At a relatively young age of 18, she has achieved regional (if not worldwide) fame with her poppy dance numbers and soothing voice. With the recent influx of Korean pop artists breaking into the Japanese pop music scene, how does IU compare to the other acts, and what does this young starlet have that the others do not?

Born Lee Ji-eun, IU (pronounced eye-yoo) is derived from I and You, symbolizing the concept of people becoming one through music. While she is in her first year in the Japanese pop industry, she has been active in the Korean pop scene since 2009. With two albums and three EPs under her belt, it’s clear that IU is no newbie to the music industry.

IU looked different when she first debuted.

Groups such as KARA, Afterschool and SNSD are known for their legs and hip-hop inspired dance moves. With her relatively conservative dress, bubblegum lyrics and simple dance moves however, IU does not quite conform to the normal Korean pop export archetype.

Another factor that puts IU ahead of the curve is her Japanese ability. While she plays down her command of the language, it is more than enough to carry a conversation on television without needing to enlist the help of a translator. Given that many of the other groups that are active in Japan still struggle with speaking the language, it’s certainly impressionable that IU does not.

Circa 2nd mini-album, IU...IM

Fans, of course, will tell you that this is par for the course for the Korean starlet, who’s known to be a fan of Japanese animation. She even performed the theme song of anime Natsume Yuujinchou for a live performance she had in Japan to promote Good Day.

Live, IU is unrivaled. Even though just 18, she performs with the skill of a veteran performer. Fans frequently refer to the ending part of Good Day, where she hits three notes consecutively, as testament to IU’s singing prowess. More so than that, however, IU uses both her singing talent and excellent microphone control to make sure mistakes are kept to a bare minimum. In the opinion of this writer, IU is the Korean equivalent of Matsuura Aya.

She went through several image changes.

One caveat is she needs to work on her Japanese enunciation while singing. Some parts of Good Day are indistinguishable from Korean, despite the fact that the lyrics are in Japanese. However, one could easily argue that this is a direct result of it being translated from Korean and needing to keep the many rhythmic nuances to make the song sound the same. Nevertheless, this is barely cause for complaint, and I look forward to further releases from this rising star.

The official Japanese IU site can be found here. Visitors residing in Japan can also register on the site for bonus movies and wallpaper downloads.

Over this weekend, local toy designer and manufacturer Play Imaginative is holding a launch event for the new series of Disney’s Mini Figure World featuring popular characters from the later studio’s many animations. We donned out best clothes from Disneyland and dropped by Suntec City Mall where the Disney Mini Figure World Launch Event is being held.

We’ve seen Play Imaginative a number of times at popular exhibitions like the Singapore Toy, Game and Comic Convention and have their own permanent store at the youth-centric *SCAPE building in Orchard Road Singapore. This time they’re presenting a new line of figures and other Walt Disney exclusives.

Last Mile Atrium at Suntec City Mall (just outside Carrefour).

Most immediately eye catching is this giant Mickey Mouse x Pinocchio at the front of the event space. Surprisingly, the 70cm tall fiber glass figure is actually available for pre-order here.

70cm Mickey Mouse x Pinocchio statue.

All 25 of the Mini Figure World figures are on display. On close inspection, each is well made and will be loved by collectors. The alternate vintage Mickey in his classic black and white colors is a limited collectors item exclusive to the event only.

Mini Figure World.

Pretty well made.

25 different designs.

On sale here.

All of the other figures were available for sale on the spot. Also for sale were toys from the Mickey Mouse Vinyl Art series that Play Imaginative launched last year.

Also available here.

While not for sale, various custom Vinyl Art Mickeys were displayed here today. We’ve last seen these at STGCC 2011 and were rather intrigued by them. The collection of custom Mickeys have grown quite a bit since then.

Showcase of custom Mickey Mouse Vinyl Art Figures.

One of the many interesting ones.

More than 100 of these custom figures are being showcased. The figures were customized by artists from all around the world. Most were quite nicely done and the show of creativity made for a rather interesting display. As a world renown icon, the custom Mickeys managed to attract the attention of many passersby, who stopped to take a detailed look and snap up some photographs.

Yan's fave.

Personal fave.

Like others, we spent quite a lengthy time looking through the various customized models. It even inspired Yan enough to grab a blank Mickey of his own. Hopefully we’ll get to see his attempt soon!

Ridiculously well crafted Walt Disney Micky.

While the 90s brought us some of the most talented artists to have tread this earth, over the past decade, the Visual Kei scene had not recovered from the eventual hiatus of the many great bands.

Newer Visual Kei artists tend to sacrifice the talent of groups like Malice Mizer, Luna Sea and of course, the legendary X Japan for sheer showmanship. But one new group to have transcended this barrier is the band known as Versailles Philharmonic Quintet.

The magic of Versailles come from how they shun punk or glam rock themes for a more romantic style sometimes akin to symphonic metal. Versailles refers to its style as a concept of “absolute beauty and extreme aestheticism”. Dueling guitars are a significant trademark of their music which in their words “sound like rose vines grown riot over an agitated rhythm”.

Versailles’s symphonic style is only accentuated by the aesthetic outfits the band dons. The rococo inspired costumes have already seen a collaboration with Baby, The Stars Shine Bright sub-label Alice and the Pirates. The costumes lend themselves nicely to the iconism of the group too, with members generally wearing color coded outfits suggesting their “identity” in Versailles.

The members carry this Castlevania-like theme and personas into all of their productions, including an amusing mini-comedy/drama that they starred in last year called Onegai Kanaete Versailles. The theme song for the drama Philia, is an nice example of Versailles signature style.

Versailles was the creation of Kamijo and Hizaki, veterans from the visual kei scene. After half a year of gathering talents, the group was formally announced on 29th March 2007 and included a total of 5 members, Kamijo (vocals), Hizaki (guitar), Jasmine You (bassist), Teru (guitar) and Yuki (drums).

Straight from their first release “The Revenant Choir”, Versailles enjoyed excellent reviews and publicity from the media. Interestingly, the group turned down all local indie companies to sign up with CLJ Records, the German label that also houses acts like alice nine and the GazettE. A smart move considering the popularity of visual kei in Europe. As a result, Versailles indie releases saw strong launches in both Japan and Europe, where it has unsurprisingly garnered a strong following.

Since 2009 though, Versailles has had major releases through Warner Music Japan. Overall, the band releases few singles, instead focusing on completed albums and tours worldwide.

In late 2009, just months after they managed to sign to the major record label and while in the midst of recording their new album, Versailles announced that bassist Jasmine You would be suspending all activities due to poor health. This was followed a few days later by a sudden announcement on their official website that he passed away that morning.

The reason for his passing was not revealed. Aide from Kamijo and Hizaki, You had played the most integral role in the group’s formation and fans were shocked and grieved by the news.

The following year, after serving as a replacement on their world tour, Masashi was officially adopted as the group’s new bassist. The deceased You would be considered by the group as an “eternal member”.

Kamijo.

Hizaki.

Teru.

Yuki.

Masashi.

This year, as part of the 5th year anniversary of their first live, Versailles will be performing at the Ebisu Liquid Room on the 23rd and 24th of June together with a number of invited guests. Moi dix Mois will be making an appearance even.

Versailles will also be delivering their latest single Rhapsody of the Darkness, the first in more than a year, as a digital release later this month on the 25th of April.

More information about the group at the official web site of Versailles.

Mention Dotonbori to any foreigner and the image of Osaka’s famous Glico Man neon sign and giant mechanical crabs come to mind. But to locals, it is best known for its offering of nighttime entertainment. In either case, the streets of Dotonbori come alive each night to make for an interesting visit.

Dotonbori has its roots as an entertainment town all the way since the 17th century, when it housed a great concentration of Kabuki and puppet theaters for Osakans. But as times changed, it shifted toward less innocent forms of entertainment.

I’d love to say that this canal town also being home to carnal pleasures, but the nastiest of Osaka lies further south in Nishinari-ku’s Tobita Shinchi. Instead, you’ll find a great number of clubs, bars and kyabakura in Dotonbori, making it sort of Osaka’s equivalent of Shinjuku Kabukicho.

Possibly Osaka's most famous street.

Also one of the few places with an active night life.

As with any place in the world with an active night life, Dotonbori is also home to numerous eateries that open till late. The signs from these shops have become quite symbolic of the town, especially the giant mechanical billboard above each branch of Kani Doraku, a famous restaurant specializing in Hokkaido crabs. The giant crab has become just one of the many elements of tourist culture in Osaka. It is possible that Kani Doraku’s popularity inspired many of the other shops to adopt similarly outrageous signage of their own.

Walking along Dotonbori.

Ridiculous signage.

More extravagant displays.

Yakiniku Restaurant.

Another iconic character of Dotonbori is Kuidaore Taro. The robotic clown used to play outside of a sukiyaki restaurant here, but with the closure of the establishment, Kuidaore Taro is now exhibited on the first floor of the new Nakaza Kuidaore Building instead. Also on the first floor of Nakaza Kuidaore are a number of souvenir shops, selling exclusive omiyage.

Outside the Nakaza Kuidaore Building, which sells all manner of touristy stuff.

At Dotonbori Bridge.

At the northern end of the street, the Dotonbori Bridge connects to the adjacent Shinsaibashi, another lively popular shopping district in Osaka. Perhaps what makes Dotonbori so unsettling is that all of the host and hostess activity are concentrated on this one bridge.

Tons hostesses and many more hosts.

It doesn’t help that it is next to impossible to avoid Dotonbori Bashi if you’re coming here, since it is also adjacent to where the famous Glico Man sign is. Thankfully, compared to the touters in other Asian cities, Japan’s are pretty mild (and most avoid foreigners anyway).

To those who are open to it,  Dotonbori-bashi can be an interesting sight. And while activity here is mostly limited to host clubs and kyabakura. The availability of plentiful Love Hotels here suggest that there is more to meets the eye.

Glico man.

It looks like this year’s cherry blossoms are scheduled to start blooming today, with a full bloom anticipated by the 7th of April. The You can check out the yearly forecast by Japan National Tourism Organization provides a pretty accurate forecast of each year. Now is as good a time to look back at some previously unpublished photographs of Ueno Park in Spring.

As the largest park in Tokyo, Ueno Park is home to approximately 1,000 Sakura trees. This, coupled with the fact that entry is free makes it Tokyo’s most popular Hanami spot. Interestingly, the cherry blossoms at Ueno Park also consistently bloom earlier than most other places in Tokyo, though the ones at Koishikawa Korakuen still seem to blossom sooner.

The drizzle was of little consequence to these visitors.

The main path that passes through the park is lined with Sakura trees on both sides. Unfortunately, Hanami dates have been moving progressively later each year, such that even on the last days of March, the Sakura here had yet to fully bloom. Still, we had our lack of research to blame as this was considered an early year as far as the blossoms were concerned. If you’re planning a trip to Tokyo these days for Hanami, a good time to come would only be the 2nd week of April.

Long stretch of trees.

Still not in full bloom.

Yet, both this and the rains typical of this time of the year did not deter the many who had come to Ueno Park for a visit. In fact, the park is large enough and contains enough notable landmarks to be worthy of a visit any time of the year. There is the Ueno Zoo and a good number of museums.

For those with tight wallets, the flora as well as the parks many temples and shrines (which are free for entry) still make for a nice morning trip. In keeping with the Spring theme, this article mostly focuses on just the Cherry Blossoms though.

Some mats in preparation of Hanami.

Lots of litter and even some homeless people left behind.

Admittedly, we had mistaken plum trees for cherry blossoms the first time we saw them in Koganei Park. This was to the amusement of one of the other visitors there, who pointed out to us that those were indeed plum trees.

The plum trees tend to have a richer hue than cherry blossoms in general, but even then it is still confusing to immediately tell the difference between the two, as there are also pale plum trees and more richly colored sakura trees. It doesn’t help that almost all the parks and gardens in Japan plant a combination of the two.

Fluffy.

Just beginning to sprout.

The most reliable way to tell the difference between the two is actually to look at how the flowers grow. Plum blossoms tend to grow out of stalks directly from branches and are spread out individually. Cherry blossoms on the other hand grow out from stalks further segregated by sub-branches, which the flowers are clumped together on.

That and the fact that plums blossom from late February to March (the Plum Festival is held from February 20 to March 31). While Sakura blossom only at the end of March or start of April. A observation of the state at which the tree is in (budding, blossoming or wilting) at any time period should also give you an idea of what tree it is.

Shrouded in flowers.

Like at every event, festival food stands had been set up outside of all the temples and shrines at this time. The Hanami season is an especially suitable time to enjoy the festival offerings, since most would be simply here to enjoy the atmosphere at a leisurely pace. The most number of stalls are saturated on the bridge to Bentendo Temple.

More stalls outside Bentendo.

Find these at every festival.

At the extreme North West of the park, you’ll find Bentendo temple within a ring of 3 ponds. There are more Japanese cherry trees around the circumference of the ponds here. And despite being surrounded by the city streets, a quiet corner, safe from the crowds seen in the rest of the park. Personally, this is one of the nicest parts of Ueno Park that is not to be missed.

Check out the rest of the photos by Wilson below.

Around the outer edge of the pond.

Gloomy weather today though.

But beautiful nonetheless.

Some of the park's "wildlife".

Resting along the edge.

Strangely all the birds here aren't afraid of people.

Wide view of the ponds.

Just chilling.

Photos by Wilson.

With the AKB48 Kenkyuusei promotion announcement by AKB48 theater manager Togasaki at the Super Saitama Arena Concert last weekend, the final 5 members have been finally added into Team 4 and thus making it a full team. Congratulations to the 5 Kenkyuusei who have made it into the official AKB members club! Here’s a short introduction to all the girls of the completed Team 4.

Just a little bit of history. Before the formation of Team 4 in June 2011, all of the 9th generation members were already promoted as official members during the 5th anniversary theater performance back in December 2010. While were an occasional 1 or 2 members added to the team 4 subsequently, it was not until March 2012 that a full 16 girl strong team was finally assembled.

Shimazaki Haruka.

Paruru.

49. Shimazaki Haruka

Currently occupying the #0 spot in Team 4′s stage performance, Shimazaki Haruka has long been one of the favored girls of 9th gen during her research student days. In fact she placed 28th in AKB48′s 2010 election rankings, the highest ranking ever received by a kenkyuusei. Though it still remains a mystery as to why she was unranked in the following 2011 AKB48 election after attaining such a high rank previously.

Shimazaki Haruka might not have a permanent standing spot among the senbatsu performances but you’ll be sure that if any of the main girls couldn’t make it for the said media performance, Haruka is most definitely the girl replacing.

Shimazaki Haruka confessed that she has a soft spot for female idols, particularly favoring Tokyo Girls’ Style. With that in mind, it is said that she also secretly grades every member in the 48 family in terms of how “idoly” they are. Watanabe Mayu was of course given the full 100 marks in terms of idol-ness. For that reason, her nickname “Paruru” was tailored for her by Yonezawa Rumi, just like how she previously had given a similar sounding nickname to Watanabe.

Paruru is definitely one of the faces for Team 4 and has been furiously appearing in all sorts of media (sometimes even tie-ins with the Senbatsu members) for more exposure. She is one girl you won’t miss even if when new to Team 4.

Just last weekend during the final day of the Super Saitama Arena concert, it was announced that Shimazaki Haruka will join the Big Apple agency.

Oba Mina.

Minarun.

50. Oba Mina

Serving as the captain of the new Team 4, Oba Mina is one of the oldest members in the team. Since 2007, Oba Mina had tried auditioning for AKB Kenkyuusei spots without any success but after a total of 3 times, was has finally admitted into the 9th generation student. Since then “3rd time’s a charm” has been her favorite phrase.

Perhaps thanks to this same perseverance, it didn’t bring down her spirit or determination to stay in AKB48 despite being involved in a scandal last year. She was suspended in all AKB48 activities, including important ones like the AKB48 Janken Tourament and the first theater debut performance of Team 4. After begging the management (and fans) to give her a chance, theater manager Mr Togasaki Tomonobu finally allowed her comeback at the start of this year.

Prior to her suspension, Oba Mina was one of the more popular girls of 9th gen. Fans even furiously threw in votes during the AKB48 General Election to get her to #35, making her one of the only 2 Kenkyuusei Undergirls in 2011. After the scandal broke out, I would believe that she had probably also broken many fans’ hearts. Since her comeback this year, the management has been generous in featuring her in all sorts of media. Only time will tell if the fans have forgiven her.

During the final day of the Super Saitama Arena concert, it was announced that Oba Mina will join Japan Music Entertainment.

Takeuchi Miyu.

Miyumiyu.

51. Takeuchi Miyu

Before the inclusion of Tano Yuuka as an official AKB48 member, Takeuchi Miyu was the youngest fully fledged AKB48 member. Even though she has now been relieved of this “youngest” duty, Miyu still remains one of the major key girls in Team 4.

With a mother who is a veteran in show business, Takeuchi Miyu has been trained since young in all aspects of performing, including vocal training, music lessons and even classical ballet.

Due to her past experience and training, Takeuchi Miyu was given the role of backup (should they be unable to attend a performance) for the “ace members” of all 3 teams at the AKB48 theater. To perform as a substitute of the 3 aces (Maeda Atsuko, Oshima Yuko and Watanabe Mayu) would surely have to be a silent confirmation from the management as to Takeuchi being an invaluable asset both to the team, and AKB48 as a whole. Despite her age, Takeuchi is known to be one of the best singers within the 48 family, rivaling the likes of Takahashi Minami herself.

Takeuchi Miyu has been admitted into the Oh Enterprise agency during the announcement held in Super Saitama Arena last weekend.

Nagao Mariya.

Mariyagi.

52. Nagao Mariya

Another popular member of Team 4, the two most notable features of Nagao Mariya would be her duck lips and yaeba (double teeth). These two charm points alone have drawn her quite a decent following within the AKB48 fans. While yaeba is fairly common trait among Japanese people, Nagao’s stand out rather prominently. When combined with her lips, her smiles should have earned her the title of “pouting killer” rather than her catchphrase, “wink killer”.

Oddly, compared to the other popular members in Team 4, Nagao Mariya receives much less exposure. This is possibly why despite her popularity in theaters and handshakes, Nagao has yet to grow enough of a fan base to earn her a rank in the AKB48 elections.

Also strangely, is the fact that Nagao Mariya is the only among the 9th generation girl who currently does not belong to any agency. Maybe she’s focusing on her studies before finally stepping into the entertainment world?

Yamauchi Suzuran.

Ranran.

53. Yamauchi Suzuran

If AKB48 were to give out a “best fan service” award among its members it is likely that Yamauchi Suzuran would win. Tales of even non-fans walking away happily after a handshaking session with Suzuran is not unheard of. And waving and giving ample eye contact to fans during stage performances is also part of Yamauchi’s norm.  Not to mention that she constantly updates the AKB blogs with wacky and interesting stuff to keep fans wanting for more.

When combined with her good MC skills and dancing abilities, it’s little wonder why Ranran even as a research student had managed to get herself ranked at 36th in 2010 AKB48 General Elections. I even know of a fan who had casted 500 votes for Suzuran! It might sound absurd, but if a fan was willing to devote 500 votes to a “mere” kenkyuusei at that point of time, you can only imagine the drawing power of Yamauchi Suzuran.

Also known as the golf girl, with both parents as professional golfers, Yamauchi Suzuran has since her youth been trained in the sport. She even participated in a few golf competitions while off duty from AKB48 duties and even now she’s going to be have a permanently weekly part in a golf program.

An interesting side note, is that other than sharing the same birthday as Oota Aika and Yokoyama Yui. Ranran was also born on the anniversary of AKB48′s debut theater performance!

During the Super Saitama Arena concert, it was announced that Yamauchi Suzuran will join Horipro.

Shimada Haruka.

Haruu.

54. Shimada Haruka

With MC abilites not losing to veteran members like Minegishi Minani or Sashihara Rino, Shimada Haruka is one of the most vocal members in Team 4. More often than not, during theater MC segments or variety shows, Haruka usually is able to spice up the atmosphere with her witty chats and daring speeches.

Yet despite her strong and daring exterior, Shimada is known to get nervous and stressed out from her heavy duties. This is especially true during times such as when Team 4′s captain, Oba Mina was suspended from AKB48 activities and Shimada Haruka had to take up the reins as temporary captain in her place. At some occasions she could be seen in solitary meditation at the backstage before the start of a theater or concert performance.

Shimada Haruka will be joining the Office 48 family, as announced during the Super Saitama Arena Concert. Given that most of the other Office48 members are in the DiVA group, may it be that we’ll be able to see the inclusion of Haruka in the not so distant future?

Nakamura Mariko.

Komari.

55. Nakamura Mariko

Possessing a booming voice and a desire to perform, Nakamura Mariko also brings out some of the better MCs in the team with her great impersonation skills. Along with Takeuchi Miyu, Nakamura holds one of the best vocals among the 9th generation members. Also a big fan of enka music, it was said that Mariko would make a great enka duo with Iwasa Misaki after hearing her performance in AKBINGO’s karaoke special.

Despite not being the oldest of members in the team, Mariko is often regarded as the motherly figure amongst the group. Through her team members’ votes, she is also said to possess the most beautiful pair of legs. It’s little wonder that she used to be a former gravure idol before joining AKB48.

Due to the fact that she shares the same name as Shinoda Mariko, members started using the nickname “Komari” to differentiate them. This nickname has since stuck with her as both her catchphrase and nickname.

Nakamura Mariko will be joining Shinei Production as per announced recently.

Ichikawa Miori.

Fresh Lemon.

56. Ichikawa Miori

You might not be familiar with her name, but there is no way that you wouldn’t recognize Ichikawa Miori’s infamous nickname “Fresh Lemon”. Her catchphrase “I want to become a Fresh Lemon!” has been stuck in everyone’s head since her debut in AKB48, making her one of the most recognizable girls outside of the senbatsu.

Ichikawa gets her nickname of course from her ridiculous love of lemons. And apart from being able to eat them raw (without flinching), she boasts an extensive collection of lemon-themed goods. The management has been quick to catch onto this and the other traits that make up her wacky personality.

Ichikawa Miori was so outstanding in her display of caricature-like personality that she had managed to win over many fans in the shortest of time, evident from the fact that she gotten 39th place in 2011′s AKB48 elections. Making her one of the only 2 kenkyuusei ranked in the top 40 last year.

Together with Nakamata Shiori, Ichikawa Miori was one of the fastest 10 generation members to be officially promoted. Prior to that, fans often jokingly said that Ichikawa Miori belonged in the “9.5 gen” due to the amount of push and media exposure the management had given her. Ichikawa was also known to be closest to the 9th generation Oba Mina. She is also referred to as Miorin, or “Tenshi” by her fans.

Despite her youthful appearance and childlike demeanor, Ichikawa is actually one of Team 4′s older members. A trait that is sometimes pointed out during variety programs. Her tiny frame also hides the fact that she is one of the group’s stronger singers, having served as Masuda Yuka’s under as a kenkyuusei.

Prior to joining AKB48, Ichikawa Miori was part of Stardust Agency and another idol group called Power Age back when she was just 12 years old. Unfortunately, she is limited by her inability to articulate fluently due to a lisp.

During the members agency allocation during the Super Saitama Arena concert, it is announced that Ichikawa Miori will be joining Ogipro. Looks like Watariouka Hashiritai 7 will be welcoming a new member soon.

Nakamata Shiori.

Shiorin.

57. Nakamata Shiori

As a student of the prestigious Waseda University’s School of Political Science and Economics, it is said that probably no one else in the family of AKB48 members can beat Nakamata Shiori in terms of academic excellence. On the day it was announced that Shiori had been admitted into Wasada, the management had also decided to promote her. Coincidence? Maybe not. That aside, being able to cope with actively performing in the AKB48 theater and studying in a highly stressful university did earn me a high respect for her dedication.

Due to her highly busy schedule, Nakamata Shiori is usually active only in theater performance. Her appearances outside of the theater are limited to but sparse variety programs. This lack of media exposure does affect her fan base but she’s still very well received in theater shows.

The equally prestigious Watanabe Pro had spread their arms to welcome Nakamata Shiori into their agency, perhaps once she graduates from Waseda, there will be ample entertainment related opportunities waiting for her? Nakamata has in the past expressed her interest in journalism.

Abe Maria.

Maria.

58. Abe Maria

It might seem a little unusual for this un-idol-like girl to be admitted into Team 4, but Abe Maria is fast becaming one of the dark horses of the group. Even prior to her official promotion announcement, the management have been actively pushing Abe into all sorts of media coverage through the group’s full repertoire of variety programs and even stealthily with the senbatsu in product tie-ins. She was also one of the few kenkyuusei members given the chance to take part in overseas performances.

Perhaps knowing that each team needs a little diversity, Abe Maria was slowly groomed and exposed to more than just theater performance, possibly to boost her confidence as she is known to be rather shy and reserved at times. Abe is known to be closest to Iriyama and a self-declared fan of Ichikawa Miori.

As one of the taller and more athletics girls, Abe Maria is best known for her dancing skills, which she had admitted to pouring in countless hours of self practice to reach the level that she is at now. Abe has expressed her dream to become a model one day and it looks like AKS is helping to path that future for her. Aside from that, Abe is also known for her amusingly blunt nature.

Together with Oba Mina, Abe Maria will be joining Japan Music Entertainment.

Iriyama Anna.

Annin.

59. Iriyama Anna

Regarded as the member with the the highest hopes of being promoted among the kenkuusei at that time, Iriyama Anna was promoted together with Abe Maria to the newly formed Team 4 during the Seibu Dome concert back in 2011.

Despite her refined features, Iriyama is fully Japanese. She often plays upon this fact by mixing English words into her sentences and generally speaking as if she were a foreigner (with strange Japanese). Both fans and AKB48 members have pointed out her resemblance to Jaejoong from Korean boy band DBSK.

As quite the opposite to Abe Maria, the vocal Annin is rather adept at MCs, which she uses to display her endearing personality that has melted a good many fans’ hearts. Iriyama also declares her love for strawberries and has integrated this into her catchphrase.

In last week’s announcement Iriyama Anna signed up with the excellent Ohta Pro, which their lineup includes AKB48’s most popular girls, Maeda Atsuko and Oshima Yuko. Looks like she will really be going places!

Kato Rena.

Renacchi.

60. Kato Rena

A shy and reserved girl on stage, Kato Rena has since grown to be able to handle herself better during introductions and MCs. AKS has probably realized her potential after watching her performances improve dramatically in just a year since she debut and had decided to give her a larger push. The “push” a sudden influx of appearances in all manner of TV programs, magazines and other forms of media.

Interestingly, Kato Rena shares the same birthday with AKB48′s ace, Maeda Atsuko. Maybe the management had seen her to have the potential to become their next ace?

Kato Rena is one of the newly promoted kenkyuusei to Team 4.

Kawaei Rina.

Ricchan.

61. Kawaei Rina

When it comes to popularity, Kawaei Rina single handily wins hands down as the single most popular new kenkyuusei to get promoted into Team 4. Just how popular is she? During National Handshake events, Kawaei’s queue was comparable to those of the top senbatsu’s.

Part of Kawaei Rina’s charms comes from her cute boyish looks and equally boyish personality. Unlike some of the other members who were spotted early and pushed from the start, Kawaei didn’t stand out as much of a potential keeper to the management until the fans eventually made them realized what a gem they were missing out on. Since then Kawaei has been actively pushed in many of the group’s media and especially on the Ariyoshi AKB Kyowakoku program.

Ricchan is currently the only 11th generation member in Team 4, and the only other to be promoted besides former 7th generation member Suzuki Shihori. She shares the same birthday as teammate Ichikawa Miori.

Iwata Karen.

Karen.

62. Iwata Karen

Among her fellow 12th generation peers, Iwata Karen easily holds the best vocal and dance ability. She also possesses a confidence and calm that allows her to handle herself easily on the stage despite her young age (she turns 14 later this year). This is probably the reason why Iwata plays an active role in theater performances and important events.

Like Takeuchi Miyu, Karen has a mother from the entertainment industry. This would explain the plentiful formal training she had as a child. Her great dancing probably came from all the ballet, jazz and traditional Japanese dance she had picked up since then.

Hailing from Miyagi Prefecture, Iwata Karen participated actively in AKB48′s Tohoku Earthquake and was the only kenkyuusei to be interviewed for the “DOCUMENTARY of AKB48 Show must go on 少女たちは伤つきながら、梦を见る”.

Takahashi Juri.

Juri.

63. Takahashi Juri

The most popular girl among the 12th generation members would have to be Takahashi Juri. Aside from her good looks, she does also give off a very positive vibe that attracts fans. AKB48′s theater manager Togasaki once commented that when Juri is able to break off her barrier, she will shine as brightly as Maeda Atsuko. A big comment indeed.

Unfortunately, Takahashi Juri is very weak during MCs. And even though she can be quite a chatter box, she gets tongue tied quite easily. Kojima Haruna also commented that Juri has “dead fish eyes” which was a killer for her. Perhaps once all those problems are solved, Juri would be able to shine like gem.

Tano Yuuka.

Tanochan.

64. Tano Yuuka

Currently the youngest official member of the AKB48 family, Tano Yuuka is an odd choice among the kenkyussei to be promoted into Team 4. Surely in terms of seniority, experience or favoritism every fan could think of another girl who can “better” replace her as an official member. But this doesn’t mean that she is the weakest link of Team 4, for aside from Iwata Karen, Tano Yuuko would have to be the next best singer of the 12th generation.

Other than praising her vocal ability, Yuuka is also pretty adept in performances and MC’s. Only time will tell if she will be able to draw more fans to support her in the long run. Debates aside, some have pointed out that Yuuka bears a striking resemblance to Kuroki Meisa, whose marriage with Akanishi Jin has been making big news recently.

This past Tuesday, A-Sketch bands Applicat Spectra and WEAVER had a showing at the inaugural J-Live Asia event. Their first time performing outside of Japan, Singapore marks new territory for both of the bands. Supermerlion was there, taking a break from the usual idol music that happens at *SCAPE’s Warehouse for some honest-to-goodness rock fun.

Arriving at *Scape at 6:30 in the evening on a weekday was weird enough, but what was surprising was the queue that had formed to go into the venue. Two lines (corresponding to the two different ticket categories) had been formed, with some sitting down while waiting, obviously having been there for a while. Most in the queue were female; one was even armed with a board for WEAVER.

The queue outside the Warehouse.

Applicat Spectra lined up to open the show. While I had reservations about the vocals, they don’t sound too bad in a live setting. I earlier likened my first impression of their music to be more atmospheric and spacey, but it seems that this was specific to the track I had previewed. What was more apparent was the instrumental wall of sound, obvious in their track Clockwise, which in my opinion was their best song of the night.

The crowd before the start of the show.

A little disappointing however was the lack of interaction between the band and the audience. Only Ishikawa spoke during the MC parts with the rest chiming in with short words. There wasn’t even a proper introduction of the band, and awkward silence was common between songs. One issue of note was that Nakano actually sounded normal when he spoke to the audience, prompting the question of why he has to resort to a falsetto while singing.

After a break for the set up of the instruments to be done, it was time for Weaver to take the stage.

Weaver were the more experienced showmen.

Right from the get-go, you could tell that Weaver was in a different class. Veteran performers compared to their label-mates, bassist Okuno hyped the crowd up, getting them to clap along to the beat and occasionally stepping forward to throw some smiles. What followed the first song was a set list totaling a whopping fourteen songs, with very short breaks in between. Their command of English was also excellent all around, to the point where the banter between the members also happened in English.

Bassist Okuno in action.

Music-wise, WEAVER is decent, but rather mellow. The lack of guitar means that much of its repertoire lacks the punch one would expect. However, with the piano being such a central part of the band’s sound, it’s uncertain how they would be able to escape this. One upside though, is that the lack of guitar makes for easy listening, endearing WEAVER easily to the mainstream audiences that do want their music a little more upbeat without having to resort to the sounds of distorted guitars.

Bidding the bands farewell with a handshaking session.

The end of the concert, hilariously, was not unlike that of an AKB48 concert. As their set ended, WEAVER told all the fans to squeeze to the middle, so they could take a group shot with the fans in the background. Members of both bands were lined up for a handshake session, giving fans an opportunity to meet their idols. At such an affordable price, I’m curious to see what else J-Live has in store.

As detailed earlier, the Singapore Transformers Cybertron Con 2012 is now ongoing at Resorts World Sentosa. With the first in Shanghai, this is only the second time Cybertron Con has been staged. We visited the convention over the weekend to see what it had in store for visitors.

Preparing the toys for exhibition.

After a long (but fast) queue to get the tickets, we got into the event. The first thing one sees are standees of various Transformers. Many were taking 2-shots with their favourite robots, with panels showing information of the two robot clans – the Autobots and Decepticons.

Posing with a standee.

Up next was every toy collector’s dream. Showcasing Transformers over 28 years, it is a literal walk down memory lane, with toys from Generation One to Transformers Prime being featured. Some were also loaned from collectors in Singapore and Malaysia. Many visitors were seen photographing the toys, some recalling the toys of their childhood.

Visitors looking at the toys on display.

Both forms of Megatron.

The displays were also accompanied by information panels, detailing the history behind each of the generations. Given how many visitors were new fans, it was interesting to read the little nuggets of trivia one could glean from these panels.

The Transformers Energon section.

Also shown were videos of the various generations and the live-action movies. Some crowded around these monitors; adults with children in tow were seen watching the early generation videos, reminiscing about the Transformers together with their kids.

A crowd gathering to watch Dark of the Moon.

The new console game, Transformers: Dark of the Moon, had its own booth. Crowds gathered to see players trying out the action shooter. The kids seemed to have fun with the game, no doubt because having the power to transform at will is pretty nifty.

Trying out the game.

At this point the view opens up and one can see the 22-foot tall statue of Optimus Prime in full. Towering over the convention hall, a scaffolding was set up to allow visitors to take photos with the giant statue. At $20 for a 5R photo, some skipped and instead took photos with the statue at ground level. Nevertheless, the sheer size of the statue was captivating to all.

Optimus Prime with our media guide for scale.

At one corner of the convention hall was the KRE-O augmented reality section. A large screen was set up where visitors were able to interact with a moving KRE-O version of Bumblebee. KRE-O was Hasbro’s foray into building blocks. There were assembled KRE-O models of various Transformers characters on display, as well as a section where one could try building one with the help of assistants on hand.

Building KRE-O models.

In what was the highlight of the convention for me, there was also a section dedicated to ‘Transformers Re-imagined’. Showcasing custom Transformers model kits from hobbyists and celebrities. Kits of all forms were posed in varying situations, some elaborate enough to take up a whole exhibit box.

My pick for best custom build.

Toy enthusiasts are not the only ones to benefit however. All throughout the length of the convention, there are talk panels featuring various people involved with the Transformers franchise. Anyone interested in the TV series, movies or the workings of the franchise can grab a seat beforehand, or otherwise stand at the stage as people from Hasbro reveal some insights. At the end are also Q&A sessions where the public can also pose questions to the creators.

Listening to a panel.

Art sessions can be had at The Art Room, where attendees will be given art lessons on how to draw characters from the TV series, free-of-charge. Next door, selected episodes of the TV show as well as other Hasbro programmes are shown in the Hasbro 30-min Theater.

Having lessons at The Art Room.

Fans looking to commemorate their visit to the convention would be able to get some from inside the convention itself. With all manner of goods on sale, one can find anything from KRE-O kits, to t-shirts and masks. The merchandise was evidently very popular, with long lines snaking the length of the section.

The merchandise section in full swing.

One of many figures on sale.

All in all, Cybertron Con is enjoyable even as a casual fan who followed the series on and off through the years. It was especially heartening to see such a wide demographic enjoy the convention, and learning how one series of toys and TV shows linked so many people together of all generations. In the opinion of this writer, it is definitely worth the entry price. Cybertron Con will run till the 14th of March.

During the last weekend of February, the Supermerlion team and friends had planned a short weekend getaway to visit Jakarta for the AKB48 x JKT48 concert. While the main objective was largely accomplished, I had a secondary objective to fulfill; to actually try out some real Indonesian food. Warning: Tasty food inside this post.

Due to the factor that this was going to be a short 2 day trip in Jakarta involving attending a concert and following up with whatever events the Japan Pop Culture Festival was going to throw at us, we did not have any extra time to actually do some sightseeing. But no matter how frenzied our schedule was going to be, everyone’s got to eat something. So, we had better make this trip more enjoyable by planning for some great food to go with it.

The plan was simple. Between the several hours from getting off the plane and before the concert, we were to stuff ourselves silly with food. Then on day two, stuff more food down into our stomach right before our flight back to Singapore. With the aid of an Indonesian friend accompanying us on the trip, about anything that might had posed as a problem was solved.

First thing off the plane, Pre-lunch snack.

And a drink to go with it. Oh that's not Coca Cola by the way.

Normally, trying out food places in a new country involves some luck and gut feeling in picking out places to dine in. But this time the mum of our Indonesian friend offered to take us around to her favorite spots, eliminating our worry and saving us a good load of trouble from playing the guessing game.

First proper meal of the day, of course had to be the world famous Indonesian Padang cuisine.

Real Indonesian Padang.

Padang food is famous for having small plates of tasty dishes stacking together.

Right off the bat our “Indonesian Mum” brought us to her favorite Padang restaurant to try out what real Indonesian Padang is all about. There’s always this special feeling when having a particular cuisine in its home ground. Eating the same kind of food that the locals are accustomed to is what I have grown to love about visiting other countries.

It was definitely very different from the Padang food I have tasted in Singapore, since the authentic one is not actually tuned to suit our Singaporean taste buds (we do expect much spicier food somehow). Since Indonesian cooks are not shy with their usage of seasonings, anyone who has a low tolerance towards salt or MSG might want to give this a miss. With me feeling “mission accomplished”, off we went to our concert avenue with stuffed stomachs.

Food related. JKT fan giving out free snacks for the rest of the waiting fans before the concert.

Should had taken a piece.

On a side note, generous and friendly Indonesian fans were giving out free snacks and Pokari Sweat drinks to fans who are queuing patiently under the sweltering heat. It is hard work to wait patiently to see your idols but it takes real dedication to buy extra food and water to share with everyone else who had the same motive as you.

After the concert was over, our “Indonesian Mum” even roped in “Indonesian Dad” to bring us for a good dinner. Their dedication has to be saluted, since bringing us to sample those great foods meant traveling over an hour from one end of Jakarta to another most of the time.

Dinner.

Grilled sambal prawns.

Mussels cooked in some spicy sauce.

Fish. I'm really hungry now from seeing the pictures again.

Fresh coconut water to cool us down from both the heat of the food and AKB x JKT aftermath.

Other than Padang, the other notable stuff to sample would had been the Indonesian style grilled seafood, a.k.a. Kuring. As it was already late in the night and most shops locally don’t really open till late, much of the seafood our Indonesian hosts wanted to order were already out of stock. But that was really a minor issue when the soul of the restaurant lay in their chili spices. This one did a great job. Most of us had a second or even third serving of food, a small part due to the fact that we had drained most of our energy during the concert.

Our hosts did promise to bring us to sample one of the best seafood restaurant the very next day, partly also since our Indonesian friend wanted us to try out a particular fish that he had been raving about even before the trip. Truthfully, this was also the very best meal we had before we caught our plane back to Singapore.

Hey good looking fish. Lets go on a date?

We were brought to this restaurant to specially sample this fish my Indonesian friend was raving about.

You know you have to order the very same fish if the restaurant displays a huge painted stone version right outside their doors. And it does not disappoint when my friend claimed that he can finish one whole by himself, fins and all. Like him, I was won over by the clean, fresh and simple taste that this fish has to offer. Goes great by itself or paired with some belchean chili.

Miss fish no. 2.

Miss fish no.3 bathing in a claypot of gravy.

Fish number 2 was a clear winner for the rest of the gang, partly because this variation of Indonesian style cooking is hugely popular back in Singapore. Guess Singaporeans really can’t resist a well grilled, spiced oily fish to pair with rice. Only managed to steal a small piece of flesh before said friend took the whole fish back to his plate.

Pairs together with rice well.

Last meal of the trip. Everyone ate like a king/queen.

The only real regret, was that everyone had eaten from the hotel’s breakfast buffet an hour before we went for our actual meal at this seafood restaurant. Dining such great food at 50% fullness and not being able to sample more of the other dishes was a real pity that needs to be fixed during the next chance we get to visit Jakarta again. Recommended restaurant? Very much.

Best gifts to bring back home, fresh local fruits.

Jakarta food will be missed dearly. Perhaps they take overseas order?

To end off, a very huge thanks to both my Indonesian friend (who prefers his identity kept secret) and both his parents who had taken the precious time off their weekend to accompany us throughout the trip. Most of the plans in this trip wouldn’t had been possible if not for their intervention, right down from arranging a personal driver and car to fetch us around Jakarta to bringing us around the city with their superb knowledge of the locations and traffic. Thank you.

Last month Avex’s iDOL Street announced the formation of their newest idol group Cheeky Parade. The former iDOL Street students appeared decked out in some trendy looking fashions. It turns out, Cheeky Parade’s look is none other than popular Shibuya gyaru fashion brand JSG’s latest collection. Is it a coincidence that JSG stands for Japanese Super Girl?

JSG’s style bears certain resemblance to Super Lovers, a Harjuku street style brand targeted towards children and teenagers between 15-18. But JSG takes it to a whole new level with their bright colors and the generous use of pop art patterns contrasted by bold black outlines. This juxtaposition is also seen in their use of different materials that come together to give JSG’s fashion a loud, impactful image.

JSG calls their fashion “clothing for the Genuine Shibuya GAL”, their concept “Pop Treasure Box”. That about sums it up.

Cheeky Parade at their press release.

Here’s a look at some of the featured pieces, courtesy of the JSG Online Shop. It seems all of Cheeky Parade’s clothing are being sponsored by JSG, even off camera too. And while Cheeky Parade has yet to announce any releases, might we take this that the group will likely target a young female audience?

JSG Print Chiffon Studs One Piece. As seen on Watanabe Asami.

JSG Studded Shoulder Cardigan. Sekine Yuna and Mizorogi Seran get this in different colors.

Leopard Print Large Pocket Parka. As worn by Shimzaki Rino.

JSG Ribbon Follow Parka. Yamamoto Marin.

JSG Various Glasses PK. Won by Nagai Hina in off white.

JSG Ribbon Cardigan shirt. Worn by Kodakari Momoka.

JSG Geometric Pattern Setup Parka. As worn by the Suzuki sisters.

Well, if you were wondering where to get these fashionable jackets and tops, you know where to look now. The ones featured here are comparatively milder than many of JSG’s other fashions. You can see more examples at JSG’s Official website or visit their JSG Facebook page for news updates. The physical JSG in Tokyo is located on the 4th floor of the Shibuya 109 building.

Images by JSG.

On the last weekend of February, the Japan Pop Culture Festival launched in Jakarta, Indonesia. An event held to both commemorate and grow Japanese-Indonesian cooperation, the highlight of the festival was AKB48′s attendance. It was to be the first time the pop idols were visiting Jakarta to stage a performance and sister-group JKT48 was also roped into the concert, making it also the first time JKT48 had performed to as big a live audience in their home Indonesia.

Flower stand purchased by the Indonesian fans.

Not long after arriving in Jakarta, we headed to Balai Kartini where the concert was to be held. Of course, we expected to see people, but we didn’t expect to see people. The lines were split up for the different seating sections, with the result being 4 separate queues. As we were in the block to be seated at the back, we queued in the car-park, along with many of the other fans. The amount of people coupled with the Jakarta heat made for unpleasant queuing, so imagine the surprise when I discovered that some had been there as early as 10 in the morning.

The view from our place in the queue.

While the queuing environment was not very optimal, the people in the queue were. We expected the queue to be more rowdy and unorganized (considering the ones we experienced in Singapore) but the atmosphere was generally calm and everyone followed the instructions of the security guards.

The queue extended at least another 25 metres from the bend.

From looking at the crowd present in the queues, many were first timers to an idol concert. That didn’t turn out to be an issue, however. Clad in coordinated t-shirts (presumably made and distributed by fan-groups), there were people distributing drinks, lightsticks and even giving out free food. Besides the Indonesians, there were also multitudes of Japanese schoolgirls of various ages. No doubt, the daughters of the Japanese stationed in Jakarta.

Fans crowding around for lightsticks.

A member of the AKB48 Indonesia Forum giving out snacks.

The stipulated entry time of 4:30pm was missed by about 30 minutes, due to unforeseen delays. Photography was not permitted, as is the norm for AKB48 performances but what perplexed me was that drinks were not permitted in as well.

While this is a rule not uncommon during other concerts, that is usually because the organizers have their own concession stands that they want visitors to purchase from. This however, was not the case at the Balai Kartini venue. What this meant was early entrants to the concerts had nothing to drink for nearly 5 hours; full bottles of water were forced to be left on the tables.

Our tickets were for Block B, placing us at the very back of the venue.

We had already heard that the tickets were for a less than optimal view, but we had no idea of the extent till we stepped into the hall. Needless to say, it was gigantic. The girls were barely visible from where we stood, and all we could see were the screens put up in the middle of the venue. While there were some gripes about the view, it’s not really that different from what you would find from attending a normal arena concert.

The view from our block; the stage is in the middle of the two screens at the sides.

Many attendees in Block B were relegated to watching the screen. A common gripe was that only the popular members (Takahashi Minami had the loudest cheers whenever she appeared on screen) were ever given any camera time.

In front of us, Block A, had many rows of seats that were simply left empty. A look at the back showed a full-house Block B; which resulted in a river of silence between the front and back of the hall.

Many songs performed today were also short versions, including the unit songs like Bird and even some of the singles. I don’t quite know why this was the case, as there was certainly no occasion to rush.

The concert wasn’t all bad, however. The AKB48 girls spoke Indonesian, to raucous laughter from many in our section due to the bad enunciation. Nevertheless, the girls all gained a number of fans (Sashihara’s ‘Memancing’ is now a meme amongst fans who attended) as the local fans appreciated the effort.

Surprisingly, the best effort (in my opinion) were from Team K’s Nito Moeno, who spoke with clear enunciation and barely any accent. It was easy to tell that she practiced for it. The JKT48 girls did not disappoint as well. They performed a few songs, including an Indonesian version of fan favourite Kimi no Koto ga Suki Dakara.

A group of fans from the Kaskus forums being interviewed.

The concert ended with a joint performance of Aitakatta and Heavy Rotation by both JKT48 and AKB48 on stage. A poignant end, especially considering the aim of the event, which was to foster Japan-Indonesia relations. Having both the Indonesian and Japanese girls on stage together was a nice image to close it off with.

A fan showing off the fan-made shirt many were wearing for the live.

Fans filing out of the hall.

As the visitors shuffled out slowly, many were stopping to take photos, commemorating the first time their homegrown girls from Jakarta shared the stage with the top idols from Japan. It was then that it finally hit most of us just how full of potential JKT48 was. One only needed to hear the screams and shouts.

In the double-bill in Singapore this March, Applicat Spectra stands next to WEAVER as an invitee. The band has yet to prove themselves, with only a sole single and before that a demo release. Yet, Applicat Spectra are on the same label as bands like flumpool, ONE OK ROCK and WEAVER. What then makes this band special? The answer lies in the band’s instrumental versatility.

Officially, this 4-piece band has the standard-fare lineup of two guitarists, a bassist and a drummer. What’s interesting is that each of the members (save for the drummer) has a secondary instrument.

While multi-instrumentalists are not unheard of in bands, Applicat Spectra does not only use these instruments in the studio, where they have the benefit of multi-tracking. The guitarists each play the synthesizer and acoustic guitar respectively, while the bassist does the vocals and plays the sampling pad.

What does this versatility do to their sound? The band itself describes its music as a sparkly fusion of electro and guitar-driven rock. For the most part, I am inclined to agree. Both the sampling pad and synthesizer add electronic elements to Applicat Spectra’s sound. This added to the nuances of the acoustic guitar gives the music an overall feel of dreaminess, one not unlike that of bands like Spangle Call Lilli Line or advantage lucy.

The expansion of the band’s sound from the usual rock music combination definitely aids them, and makes for interesting listening. The only real problem is if the band themselves feel forced to utilize all the instruments at their disposal (especially if they become known for it) and run out of ideas. Given how young Applicat Spectra is however, I doubt that will be the case any time soon.

Applicat Spectra

Applicat Spectra is still very much new to the scene and can only go higher from here. Hopefully they have better singles in store, with some experimentation thrown into the mix. As stated above, they’ll be in Singapore with WEAVER in March. More information on that can be found on Facebook, and Applicat Spectra has their official site here.

For over 50 years, the Tokyo Tower has been the pinnacle landmark in Japan’s capital city. Located in Minato Ward at the heart Tokyo, the iconic 333 meter tall lattice tower served as the world’s tallest free-standing structure up until the completion of the Tokyo Sky Tree. Despite my longtime awe of the engineering marvel, it’s a wonder why we’ve had yet to give the Tokyo Tower a feature of its own.

Though dwarfed by the Sky Tree (which is nearly twice its height), there’s still something oddly comforting about seeing the orange-red tower peek out through the skyline. The tower’s classic lattice design, based on the Eiffel Tower, alludes to a more idealistic time. Then there’s the influence of popular media, that has brought us to associate the warmly lit up tower with romantic sentiments.

Peeking through the trees.

But one has to visit the Tokyo Tower proper to truly appreciate the beauty of the steel heart. The Tokyo Metro’s Daimon and Onarimon stations provide a nearer starting point. But failing that, the most convenient means of travel would be to stop at the Hamamatsucho Station on the central JR Yamanote Line, from which the tower is a 15 minute walk away.

Hamamatsucho is not far from other sights like Ginza or Tsukiji, making it a popular stop in the evening, especially among couples. It would usually be a little awkward if you’re traveling alone to such well known date spots, but the Japanese tend to keep to themselves such that any discomfort would have to come purely from oneself. The many families and plentiful tourists help too.

From below.

A popular time to visit the Tokyo Tower would be at the photographer’s magic or golden hour. This is also a time when Tokyo’s skies switch from a fully lighted day, to a pitch dark night in just a short moment. A result of the sky being mostly devoid of clouds to reflect the setting sun. This allows for those visiting at this time to experience the tower in both its day and nighttime glory.

Lighting up the otherwise pitch dark sky.

At night, the lights bounce off the orange tower, giving it a rich hue. Occasionally, the Tokyo Tower displays other colors or messages on the observatory windows during special events such as in the case of the New Year.

Note that while the Tokyo Tower switches on its ambient lights as soon as the sky begins to darken each evening, it is only fully illuminated for a short while after each night before switching back to a lower lighting mode.

The lattices.

Access to the Tokyo Tower costs 820 yen for the main observatory (150 meters) or another 600 yen (total 1420 yen) for the special observatory (250 meters).

As only a limited number of people can fit into the smaller special observatory, either ticket will require you to stop at the main observatory first, before taking a second elevator up. It doesn’t take long to get up to the main observatory but the wait for the special observatory may take an additional hour.

Unknown to most, you are actually able to climb the Tokyo Tower on foot via a spiraling staircase up. This option is only available on days of good weather and unfortunately, you climbers will still need to pay for a full priced ticket. It might be fun for those up for the challenge though. It takes approximately an hour to scale the tower.

Tokyo Skyscape.

Some additional photographs taken from the main observatory. At night, you can see the tower lights reflecting off the office buildings from as far as Shinbashi.  Lights from the Tokyo Sky Tree can be faintly seen in the photo above too. On rare clear days, you can also make out the silhouette of Mount Fuji.

Below, the brightly lit highway serves as one of the most immediately eye-catching landmarks from the Tokyo Tower, with its streets branching off towards Roppongi and Shinagawa. In the distance, the splendid Rainbow Bridge links Shinagawa to the man made Odaiba island.

The most brightly lit street.

Azabu-juban Highway.

Rainbow Bridge.

Inside the observatory, there aren’t too many facilities which lead many difficult tourists to complain (but more on that later). But there’s a small cafe, souvenir shop and more importantly Club 333, a small stage with live music every Wednesday and Thursday evenings and a DJ throughout Friday nights. Club 333 is free and is included in the normal observatory ticket.

The muddy view down.

The main gripe with Tokyo Tower seems to be its shoddily thrown together tourist traps selling souvenir items downstairs. This is of course, unforgivable. But most tend tend to forget to keep it a separate issue from the tower itself. It’s not as if you are paying to visit the souvenir shops, these are downstairs at Foot Town, a small 4-story mall below the tower that is free for public access, or avoidable if you wish.

One of Tokyo Tower's unfortunate mascots.

But while many of the souvenir shops here quite literally sell junk, others will appreciate the convenience provided by the shops below. Minato, where the Tokyo Tower is located, is very much a residential area. Making Tokyo Tower Foot Town the equivalent of your neighborhood shopping center. Which is why you’ll find that the majority of space here is actually occupied by a Family Mart, fast food, food court and various other cheap dining options.

Foot Town is also home to an amusement center and has a playground for children on its roof, which also serves as the starting point for climbing the Tokyo Tower by foot. I wish my heartlands mall came with a tower.

Sometimes the most literal ideas are the best.

For those who still do not buy into the idea of paying for an observatory, Tokyo offers many free options. But note that none offer the trinity of convenience, panoramic views and zero cost. We’ve covered some of the free options in this article on 10 Free Tokyo City Views.

Many choose to visit the Tokyo Metropolitan Government Building instead, which is one of rare places in Tokyo that has a 360 degree observatory too, but the building often gets ridiculously crowded with tour groups. On the other end of the spectrum, the Mori Tower at Roppongi Hills boasts an even higher open air rooftop view of Tokyo city, along with a premium price of course.

But the conveniently located Tokyo Tower still provides an excellent view at an affordable price and remains Tokyo’s must visit observatory for first time travelers. At least until the Tokyo Sky Tree opens in May this year. But with entry costs announced at 2,000 yen and 3,000 yen for the new tower’s first (350 meters) and second (450 meters) observatories respectively, a view from the world’s second tallest structure will not come cheap.

Japanese rock bands these days are a dime-a-dozen. Many bands fail to be noticed, with no way to distinguish themselves from being one amongst many. In the quest to be noticed and stand out, WEAVER have set themselves apart in a rather peculiar way: they don’t have a guitarist. In a scene dominated by guitar-driven rock, where do these self-proclaimed piano rockers fit in?

As it turns out, in a pretty comfortable position.

Debuting in 2009 with the digital-release Shiro Asa Yume, WEAVER charted in the top 3 on the Recochoku charts for three consecutive singles. In 2010, debut album Tapestry ranked 19th in the Oricon weekly album charts. Not a bad achievement, given that the band only had 3 digital download singles under their belt then.

The band has since had a regular release schedule, having released a few singles as well as 2 albums since then. They’ve also had a song chosen for an au LISMO commercial, as well as being used as the theme song of a movie.

So how does WEAVER compare to other bands, musically? While certainly many mainstream bands do have keyboards, they mostly stay in the background, providing melody and occasionally coming to the forefront should the track require it to. Most bands also use the keyboard to pave the way for a more experimental sound-scape, given their inherent versatility.

WEAVER rejects this, opting for the more organic sound of the piano instead. This results in the band sounding more mellow than their other guitar-powered counterparts.  That is not to say however, that WEAVER is not worth listening to. While some may deplore the lack of punch brought about by the guitar deficiency, it provides a rather refreshing departure from what most consider ‘rock’.

The band will also be visiting Singapore in the midst of their 33-stop Japanese tour. Joined by label-mates Applicat Spectra, WEAVER will be performing for the inaugural J-live event at *Scape. Seeing as it is their first overseas live performance ever, I’m sure many would be excited to see how they do; I know I am.

WEAVER has an official site and more info on J-live Asia can be found on Facebook.

Today marks the second anniversary of the Supermerlion site. And despite not being updated as much as I’d like it to be we’ve made some amazing progress over the span of the last year. Of course, none of this would be possible without the constant support of our readers. So here’s a big thanks and a report to keep everyone updated on the state of things.

For some reason, the past two years have seemed especially long. Looking back at some of our old articles, I have a hard time believing that it has only been that short a time since then.

After 3 months of coding, design and preparing articles Supermerlion launched publicly on 11th February 2010. The site began at a time when blogs were passe and news aggregators king. Our choice of sticking to editorial articles did not seem like a wise one.

But while we initially started with just 10-50 visitors a day, this focus on original content soon turned out to be a boon when Google rolled out various changes to their search algorithems a few months later, this resulted in being able to attract over 100,000 unique visits in our first 6 months alone.

We've managed to cover our many adventures in Japan since the launch of the site.

We were unable to mark the occasion due to most of us being overseas at the time but in all, 355 articles were posted by the site’s first anniversary. Looking back, this was a rather surprising number of posts since it pretty much managed to match our initial goal to have at least one post a day.

Our first year posts were pretty varied, comprising mostly of travel encounters, introductions to various Japanese and Korean pop artists, as well as food and drama reviews. In total, Supermerlion was able to achieve slightly more than 300,000 unique views by February 2011.

At about this time, pop idol group AKB48 had begun to boom in Japan and word of them had spread to the rest of the world. As a fan of their music for years, they were one of the artists I had covered personally in an article. This became our first year’s “breakthrough” post. To date, it has attracted nearly 50,000 unique views alone.

2011 turned out to be a rather eventful year.

Up until this point, the only available English information about AKB48 on the internet was in the form of fan spasms on Forums. Recognizing the need for information that could be understood by the rest of the public, I decided to dedicate a certain portion of resources to providing AKB48 related articles in this perspective. And while this alienated many of our previous authors (we lost quite a few writers at this time, though they were hardly active) the posts turned out to be a major hit.

Statistically, AKB48 related posts now account for 65% of our viewership, to the point where many associate Supermerlion as being an AKB48 site. This is despite only 20% of our content being AKB48 related. As you can see, covering select AKB48 articles had been good for us, hit wise at least.

The majority of this traffic come from people who were interested in learning about AKB48. This is apparent from the fact that the introductory posts to AKB48 and its members account for nearly 300,000 hits alone.

Of course, it certainly helps that Supermerlion places at the top of almost all AKB48 related search terms. In fact, up until some point last year Supermerlion outranked even the official site.

All these numbers may be nice, but at the end of the day, the greatest joy comes from the fewer people who have contacted us directly telling of how we have helped introduce them into the fandom. And in the process of everything, we’ve also managed to meet many new people.

We've managed to meet many new, crazy people.

Not all the best posts were about AKB48 though. Food posts in general have been our next biggest contributions, due to it resonating with a wider audience. One of our biggest breakthroughs came from the post on Ginza Cozy Corner, which thanks to the power of social sharing, managed to acquire 25,000 views in the shortest period of time.

In total, 566 posts have been published to date (577 if you count this one). Supermerlion has also managed to attract an additional 700,000 views over the last year. This means that we managed to achieve over 1 million views in the past two years!

This is further celebrated by the fact that these views were made by over 320,000 unique visitors.

To be able to reach this many different people is truly a surprise, but is largely attributed to 70% of visits being one time visitors who have arrived from search engine queries.

But more importantly, we must not forget our loyal readers, who while short of a thousand in number, account for 30% of all views. Thank you. You guys are awesome.

A humbling thing to take note of though is that our best content, was not even on-site. Instead our YouTube channel managed to receive an additional 880,000 views, most of it due to the virality of a single video on DIY Sushi Candy. Of course, all this attention comes at the cost of a whole lot of the typical racism going on there.

Inevitably, hosting the hundreds of posts and many more thousand photographs comes at a cost. Early on, I decided to adopt advertising as a painless alternative to begging for donations. Advertisements are kept as unobtrusive as possible and supporting either of our affiliates come at no cost to the user.

I’m relieved to say that while none of us will be quitting our day jobs anytime soon, financially Supermerlion does not operate at a loss.

Today, most of our financing comes from our two partners Agoda and CDJapan. I personally use both of these services reguarly and can attest to their value. Thus my willingness to support them.

A thing to note is that while AKB48 makes for the majority of visits, the small number looking for travel related content account for the majority of the funds keeping this site alive.

A couple of our care packages from CDJapan.

Moving on, we hope to continue providing the same quality posts and original content. I had once expressed the dream of being able to turn Supermerlion into a portal of sorts where more people would be able to write about the things they love and get compensated for it. Unfortunately, we’ve had a hard time looking for people interested in taking up this offer.

As always, if you’re interested in joining the team. Do drop us a message through the contact form here. Currently, the majority of Supermerlion’s posts are still written by Yan and myself, with Mus being the latest author to join the lot.

Many have contacted us directly to ask if we could continue posting AKB48 information or update the existing member posts. But with the media flooded daily with news about the idol group now, AKB48 related hits have been dwindling in recent times. I take this to mean that an equal number are being turned off by having AKB48 shoved at their faces.

Personally, I’ll be moving on to focusing more on other topics so as to diversify the site’s content. There are also many things to be done on the back end of the site and other related matters, as I prepare for more interesting developments. But I do hope that someone else will be able to pick up to continue the support of AKB48 related posts on Supermerlion, albeit in moderation.

I wish that we’d be able to keep up the same level of progress in 2012. And for that, we hope that everyone continues to support us as Supermerlion moves onto its third year. In return, we will promise to continue providing interesting content that visitors can enjoy reading.

As an added note, today is also SKE48 member Kizaki Yuria’s birthday.

After a long wait, here’s the follow up to our Made In Japan English article on Wasei-eigo, containing even more uniquely Japanese words that have come to adopt as English. It took quite a while to decide what words to feature this time as there are quite literally hundreds of examples, enough for at least dozen such posts!

As usual, some of these words have found such common usage that they have been readopted into the English language.

Hong Kong Shirt
We mentioned in the previous article how formal shirts were called Y-shirts and wearing sleeveless shirts was called “no sleeves”. Short sleeved collared shirts on the other hand are referred to as Hong Kong Shirts.

Base Up
When a company gives a uniform pay raise across all employees this is called a Base Up. To accommodate office whispers, the word is further shortened to just “be-a” (pronounced bay ah).

Hello Work
On a less fortunate note, employment centers (where one goes to get assistance in finding a job) are known as the amusingly positive, Hello Work.

Salaryman
White-collar office workers employed by large corporations. The term Salaryman is now commonly used in other countries too. While originally a prestigious (due to the old Japanese policy of offering “lifetime employment”) title, the name now suggests low pay and long office hours. The female equivalent of Salaryman are referred to as Career Women, a word that comes with the same negative connotations.

Kyabakura
A shortened form of Cabaret Club, Kyabakura are the now infamous hostess clubs found in places like Roppongi and Shinjuku. Generally regarded as the Salaryman equivalent of Maid Cafes, patrons can spend time with “Kyaba-jo” (Cabaret Girls) at the cost of overpriced alcohol. Not to be confused with escorts, sexual services are generally prohibited at kyabakura. Instead, money is traded simply for companionship and the fantasy woven by the hostesses.

SDN48 are not shy about their similarities to kyabakura.

Print Club
The name of the first popular machine developed and trademarked by Sega, Japanese photo booths have come to be known universally as Print Clubs or Purikura in short..

Image Club
In contrast, the less innocent “Image Clubs” refer to Japanese “kyabakura” or even brothels where patrons can indulge in companionship with women dressed up as various cliched occupations. Shinoda Mariko acts as a employee of such an establishment in the recent Salaryman NEO movie.

Morning Service
This one’s a little hard to figure since it has nothing to do with church, or even room service. Instead Morning Service is the practice where F&B shops offer discount prices early in the day for those on their way to work. This makes more sense when you consider the rampart use of the word “service” in Japan to refer to just about any act of hospitality. For example, when you are given something on the house, it is simply passed off as service (desu).

Bed Town
Known as Commuter Towns to the rest of the world. Bed Towns are residential sub-urban towns whom residents mostly travel out to cities to work. The people return home only for their beds, thus the term.

Green Car
While hybrid or electric cars are often called Green Cars. Green Cars are actually the name given to first class seating in Japanese transport. The term is popularized by the JR Company’s term for luxury seats in their Shinkansen. Instead, hybrid vehicles are called “Eco Cars” in Japan.

Paper Driver
A Paper Driver is someone who owns a driving license but doesn’t use it, as in a “Driver in Paper only”.

Game Center
Gaming arcades and amusement centers are known simply as Game Centers.

AKB1/48 is a typical Girl Game, albeit with some interesting features.

Girl Game
Contrary to the English meaning, adventure or dating simulation games targeted toward men are called “Girl Games” in Japan. These usually involve a number of (typically) anime female characters which the player can date. Adding to the confusion, the female equivalent of such games (which feature anime young men instead) are called “Otome Games”, which translates to mean the same thing.

Revenge
There’s a whole grouping of Wasei-eigo words that involve the Japanese taking a normal English word with a wider use and applying a single meaning to it. Here “Revenge” is used as a noun to refer to rematches in any game or sport.

Health Meter
Probably only confusing to geeks. But weighing scales are actually called Health Meters in Japan.

Grade Up
The Japanese word for upgrades, or when one needs to “grade up” themselves to stay more competitive.

Image Down
This wasei-eigo seems to had been invented purely to explain the feeling one gets when their perception of someone else has been ruined. An example sentence would be “The frequent scandals have caused the public’s view of the idols to image down”.

No Make
Being without makeup grants you the condition of “no make”. But if you are wearing makeup, the act of touching it up at particular points is known as “point make”.

Japanese Beauty.

Charm Point
One’s most attractive features are known as their “charm points”. This is a commonly discussed topic both in real life and in the media, with dimples, yaeba (crooked “double” teeth) and moles all being touted as charm points.

Old Miss
Like the proper English equivalent, spinster, Old Miss is a derogatory term for older unmarried woman. On a completely unrelated note, typos are called a Type Miss. If you find any “Type Misses” or have any other interesting Wasei-eigo examples to add, do leave us a comment below!

While Tokyo Girls’ Style continue to sway indecisively between their serious and idol images, Fairies emerged just 4 months ago as avex’s true successors to SPEED. In the short time since they’ve debut, Avex has not been shy to proclaim Fairies as their answer to the K-pop wave sweeping the rest of the world.

While Avex has been slow to jump onboard both idol and gayo crazes, only catching onto the less than subtle trends in the music industry in recent months. They have since brought under their wing the likes of SKE48 and After School. While Avex continues to use the knowledge to steer their first traditional idol group SUPER☆GiRLS to further success, it is through Fairies that they hope to combine popular Korean pop elements, with a more Japanese production process.

Shimomura Miki.

Fairies is managed by Vision Factory and signed onto Avex’s SONIC GROOVE sub-label, which is responsible for similar acts like SPEED, MAX, DA PUMP and Amuro Namie (who has since left for avex tune). The label boasts years of experience in the industry that certainly shows in the quality of the group’s first two double A-side releases, More Kiss / Song for You and HERO / Sweet Jewel. Many of the same producers who have worked with SPEED the past now infuse the same edgy tones into Fairies and DA PUMP’s KENZO provides the girls with the necessary dance tutelage.

Hayashida Mahiro.

But does Fairies really stray that far from Avex’s comfort zone? The company has been successfully churning out the same hip-hop inspired pop tunes, even before such a style was adapted in Korea. With Korean artists taking center stage in the rest of Asia though, one cannot deny that Korea’s take on the concept proves much more popular.

Kiyomura Kawane.

The 7 young members of Fairies wear not costumes but fashionably coordinated looks. In perfect synchronization, they perform catchy R&B-pop songs that occasionally throw in the song’s English title, that may or may not have any relevance to the lyrics. There is a heightened focus on sharp, hip hop style dances.

But while most Korean groups debut only after years of training, Fairies follow the typical Japanese fashion of throwing the girls into the spotlight unprepared. And it doesn’t get quite as young as this. All members of Fairies are aged between 13 and 15 years old, with most leaning toward the former.

Ito Momoka.

The first two singles have established Ito Momoka as the group’s center. In fact, she’s the only one singing in their more prominent first A-side, More Kiss. HERO expands this vocal lineup to include Nomoto Sora, though the rest of the members contribute to the song’s spoken lines and K-pop styled dances.

Fujita Miria.

Oddly though, the accompanying songs for each double A-side (Song for You and Sweet Jewel), tend to lean more toward pop, rather than the more distinct sounds of More Kiss or HERO. Though I suspect this is in part a result of the incorporation of the other young members’ high pitched voices. I’m not sure if it is intentional, the songs are still great (Sweet Jewel is possibly the best Christmas themed pop song in years)  but it does stray a little from the group’s primary image.

Nomoto Sora.

During the recent travel articles, I mentioned about the plentiful amount of posters and banners, advertising Fairies’s new single. Avex has spared no expense in promoting the new group and along with large billboards everywhere, we found the entire Omotesando covered with banners. I learned that Fairies had been actively performing live at malls all around Tokyo in the weeks before and after the release of HERO / Sweet Jewel too.

Inoue Rikako.

An interesting thing to note, is that we were totally unable to find Fairies singles at any regular music store outlets in the vicinity of Akihabara like Softmap, or even general stores elsewhere in Tokyo that also happened to carry some idol CDs, such as Don Quijote. Something tells me that Avex is putting in extra effort to distance Fairies from the surplus of idol groups sweeping across Japan.

This might seem counterproductive to sales. And indeed Fairies aren’t selling as well as you’d think they’d be. More Kiss / Song for You sold only about 12,000 copies on its first week, with HERO / Sweet Jewel performing slightly below that. Though if true, Avex values the group’s image far more and not associating them with idol acts could well be part of a longer term plan.

Instead, Fairies seem to resonate well with a primarily young female audience much in the same way many other Korean groups do, a possible a sign that the group is headed on the right track.

Near the end of 2011, AKB48 staged its own singing contest prior to the perennial NHK Kouhaku Uta Gassen. Aside from being the first time such a singing competition was staged by the AKB48 family, it was also the first glimpse many Japanese (as well as the overseas fans through Google+) caught of the Jakarta-based AKB48 sister group, JKT48.

Akimoto Yasushi has constantly spoken of plans to expand the AKB48 family overseas. Given the presence of shops in Hong Kong, China, Taiwan and Singapore, these locations were the first guesses for any probable new sister group, given their cultural closeness to Japan, as well as already proven fanbases. Indonesia, for all intents and purposes, was not on anyone’s list of places.

This only added to the surprise many had, when auditions for JKT48 were announced on the Internet. The initial lack of any official announcement by AKS only served to exacerbate fans’ doubts. These doubts however, were erased by an eventual official announcement on the official AKB48 blog.

Not long after, flanked by the 28 first generation members of JKT48, Akimoto Yasushi introduced the first overseas sister group of AKB48.

Right out of the gate, the girls were placed in a prominent ad, endorsing drink brand Pocari Sweat. Many were quick to point out that the commercial featured the AKB48 hit Heavy Rotation – in Bahasa Indonesia. With that, many came to realize the portability of the AKB48 formula. Refined to the point of being culturally odourless, the AKB concept was exported to Indonesia for the Indonesians.

A country that’s no stranger to idols (local versions of La Academia and Popstars were huge hits), Jakarta presents the perfect place to start a sister group to AKB48. With the AKB brand giving it a jump-start in the beginning, JKT48 aims to be the ‘original Indonesian idols’. Of course, this is made easier when you have a huge library of existing pop hits to localize from.

The 1st generation of JKT48

The new group doesn’t fall too far from the AKB tree. With the initial selection of 28 members, girls from the age of 12 to 22 were selected, with as broad an archetype range as you could possibly have. Part of the 48 groups’ established formula, that has proven to attract fans – there is, after all, something for everyone.

Response to the group has been favourable in Japan as well; the cheers were as loud as ever when the group performed the Indonesian version of Aitakatta to a full capacity crowd at Tokyo Dome City for AKB Kouhaku Uta Gassen. The group also performed at the actual NHK Kouhaku Uta Gassen, and even made an appearance at this year’s Request Hour Set List Best 100 concert.

JKT48 performing Aitakatta at AKB Kouhaku

With a now solid fanbase of Indonesian fans, there is no doubt that JKT48 is bound for success, even if the extent of that success is still very much unknown. Even many who scoffed at the idea of an overseas 48 are now sitting up and listening.

What will be next in Akimoto Yasushi’s plans for world domination and where will JKT48 end up in the grand scheme of things? Only time can tell. And I, for one, am excited for the prospects.

JKT48 has an official website and YouTube account. Updates on events involving JKT48 are also frequently posted on their Facebook page.

Today was the last day of our new year’s trip to Tokyo. The last minute nature of things meant that we would neither plan nor think through on a lot of decisions.

As it turns out this second Monday of January was the annual Seijin no Hi or Coming of Age Day in Japan. A day typically marked by women turning 20 flocking to temples and shrines in elaborate furisode. We would also learn during our concert visits that SUPERGiRLS were holding a free live and high five session at Yoyogi Park in the afternoon.

Our flight was at 5.10 PM, which meant that we had ought to reach Narita Airport by at least around 4. Considering that the live event started only at 1 and that it would take us a combined 2 hours to get back to our hotel for our luggage and to travel to the airport, we knew we were cutting it close. Still, I was sufficiently intoxicated by their catchy tunes to give it a crazy try.

We checked out early in the morning, leaving our luggage at the hotel counter while we headed over to Harajuku Station. There we grabbed some onigiri for breakfast. Having not reached my quota for strange drinks, I had bought 3 different bottles of strawberry flavored drinks two nights ago from the supermarket. So my other concern was how I was ever going to finish them.

Strawberry Soda.

Managed to down the Strawberry Premium Calpis (which was awful) yesterday. While Calpis proper is great, I’ve now learnt to stay away from the Premium series.

This morning and afternoon had me drinking nothing but Sapporo’s Ichigo Soda, that tasted like carbonated sour candy strips (bad) and Bireley’s Adult Strawberry Milk, which turned out to be smashed strawberry pulp (good).

Adult Strawberry Milk.

The Meiji Shrine was filled with plenty of visitors this morning, but hardly anyone in kimonos. Maybe we were at the wrong temple, or perhaps too early or late. But we didn’t have time to find out.

Wasn’t thinking properly this morning so ended up making a wrong turn during an attempt to find a shortcut out to Yoyogi Park (we should have just back tracked to the entrance). This brought us to the wrong end of the park and to save time we had to take a train back one stop to Harajuku Station.

Seijin no Hi.

Northern park at Meiji Jingu Naien.

Today was indeed a frantic rush. And had I known about the event prior to the trip, would had surely had chosen to stay another day. I tried changing our return flight date after finding about the free SUPERGiRLS live, but unfortunately we weren’t allowed to with our non-refundable tickets.

Another miss, was not confirming which part of Yoyogi Park the live was set to take place at. We spent half an hour exploring the huge park, passing by a few out of place looking youths who were equally lost.

Eventually, we managed to find the venue by following a lost looking grade school girl, who seemed to had figured out where to go after checking her cell. Yes, we stalked a loli and it worked.

As it turned out, the live was to be held outside the park, at a clearing beside the Shibuya AX and NHK Halls. There was a flea market going on this morning too but we didn’t have time to waste, there was already a long queue ahead.

Long queue.

The queue was for wristbands. The staff had started distributing these half an hour ago at 11 AM. These were the same “gigabands” you get at AKB48 theater lives to prevent you from selling your ticket.

If you’re wondering what they were doing giving them our during a free event that was open to the public anyways, these were actually more for the hi-touch session later. To ensure everyone gets a fair chance to meet their idols face to face, the band is required for the hi-touch session and repossessed after your turn.

According to official sources, approximately 4,000 people were gathered here today, though Japanese and sensational online news aggregators claim the number to be at 4,800 and 5,000 respectively. But despite the number of people in line, we managed to get our wristbands within an hour. Since it was a free show, audience here today were a lot more varied. There were not only the typical rowdy wota youths but also office workers who had sneaked off from work, a lot more fashionable young women and an odd middle aged woman who had various pins and keychains of AKB48′s Ishida Haruka.

To get the wristbands.

After getting our bands, we spent the next half hour trying to find a suitable standing spot. Had little luck on the right side. Like before, it was pretty hard getting a decent view with all the tall young people. The stereotype where all Asians are supposed to be short stumpy folk, clearly does not take ethnic Japanese or Chinese into consideration.

We managed to find a clear spot at the center, but was soon obstructed by the ridiculous amount of media who joined and their camera crew. Each time another cameraman set up camp in front of us, the guy behind us would exclaim “うそでしょう”. Like in Singapore, some of them had pretty weak amateur equipment setups but they stood on high chairs which made it impossible to see past them.

The last straw before we looked for another place to stand was when one guy simply shoved Gage aside to get in front of him. Polite Japanese, also only a stereotype.

Had some difficulty finding a place to stand.

We eventually settled for looking from further afar at the absolute left side of the stage. There weren’t too many people here so we could get a view, provided we tiptoed our way through.

At some point during an announcement that Akita Eri would not be taking part in the live this afternoon, a pink unmarked coach pulled up unnoticed near us. No one paid it any attention for quite some time, until everyone realized that the only way up the small stage was through the front.

A whole bunch of people came running forth our side as the bus doors swung open. We took this chance to move further up. Decked out in their EveryBody JUMP!! outfits the SUPERGiRLS members, sans Eri emerged, making their way up to the stage.

Maidoru Keycode.

The girls performed a total of four songs this morning. Opening with EveryBody JUMP!!, they covered all of their singles in reverse order.

There was an interesting mix of audience this afternoon, many of whom were seeing a live for their first time. Some were pretty amused by the wotas (crazy idol fans) up front, who were brandishing light sticks in broad daylight. During the MC, the speaker/manager mentioned that fans from as far as Fukuoka had come down today to see the performance.

Two young adults in front of me were especially amusing. They were high from being able to see the SUPERGiRLS members in person. The one in front kept turning around and exclaiming excitedly to his friend the Japanese equivalent of “Kaepyon is so pretty” and “Amita is too cute”.

When Kano Kaede said her spoken line during Ganbatte Seishun, complied to respond but not quite sure how to, the guy in front shouted back “Thank You!”.

It was already nearing 2 PM by the time the live ended and it was time for us to leave, it didn’t seem like the event was to continue anytime soon either as the media took to the main stage to prepare for a photograph session and interviews. Would have done anything to stay on for the hi-touch session, anything but waste our flight back.

Somehow, we were the only ones who spotted the girls at the back window of the small room behind the stage. We waved at Tanaka Mirei a few times, while she stared motionlessly at us for a while. Eventually, another member shut the blinds, perhaps so they could change. I wonder if the members themselves would had noticed the window had we not waved out.

Stuck at the station.

Rushed back to our hotel to get our luggage. We were delayed for a few minutes when I realized that the strawberry drinks in my bag were leaking. Till now that bag still smells of artificial strawberries.

Only after entering the gantry at Nippori did we realize that we had missed the Keisei Skyliner by 10 minutes and we would have to wait another 30 minutes for the next one to arrive.

Even with the trip by Skyliner taking only 40 minutes, this would mean that we would only reach Narita Airport at about 4.30 PM. We would have probably missed our plane had we attempted taking the limited express.

Danish Cream Puff.

It would had been doubly stupid if we had missed both the plane and the hi-touch session. Took a break from panicking to get some snacks from the vending machine here. The only other thing we had to eat so far were the riceballs we had earlier.

The two buns tasted about just as good as anything you’d be able to get from a vending machine in a train station. Which is to say, pretty tasteless.

Sweetened red bean bun.

Ice cream from the vending machine.

Got off at the end of the line, at Narita Airport Terminal 1 and made our way to the ANA baggage counter. The tall slim ground staff here looked like one of those countryside types, pleasantly cute. Which was good, since it softened any possible annoyance at us. Which was our fault, of course.

She made sure that we returned to the self-check in terminals before giving any human assistance but as the time window had expired, we returned to the counter almost immediately.

Through sheer luck, or perhaps precisely because of us, the flight time had been delayed by 10 minutes. The staff assisted us in taking our luggage to the check-in area before escorting us customs and then to the boarding area, constantly urging us to hurry.

We thanked her profusely and apologetically, before running off to join the last people boarding the plane.

Zipping off to Narita Airport.

Like our flight here, the plane back home was mostly empty. I didn’t have time to take any books out from my luggage to read on the way here, so would spend the evening choosing from the limited inflight entertainment instead. Ending up watching the amusing Salaryman NEO movie and the predictably cliched Real Steel.

Last moments on Tokyo soil.

Hamburg steak.

Dinner options were between a Western hamburg set or Japanese rice meal this evening but since we were situated at the far back, there was only one of each left by the time it was our choice. Still, the in flight food this time was probably some of the most decent we had encountered so far.

Japanese seasoned rice and noodles.

If I were to continue recounting, I would describe how we landed at Singapore slightly late due to the bad weather and how I had to prepare to return to work on the same morning. But that would be quite a bore. So that’s it for this photo tour series of our winter trip to Tokyo.

Somehow, I don’t have nearly as many afterthoughts this time round as before. Perhaps because most of the trip was spent revisiting past places. Might be returning again sometime soon when the Tokyo Sky Tree finally opens and if there is sufficient funds to do so.

I still have intentions of visiting Nagoya and giving Kansai another chance. And while Tokyo loses some of its charm after repeated visits, it’s still the one place I feel most at home with.

Like in the past, you’ll continue to see the occasional article elaborating on some of the stuff featured in this trip (though most had already been covered before). But regular random scheduled posts will resume again tomorrow.