On the 29th, I went to a doujinshi event in Hamamatsu. Dounjinshi events - for the most part - are like a bit Artist's Alley event plus cosplay. Some people have actual doujinshi they've written, but others sell things like fanart, ears, etc.
I wasn't quite sure where the event was, even though I looked up the time and location on the internet, so I met up with a couple of my friends at the station and we followed girls with roll-y suitcases (because that's how cosplayers roll in Japan PUN INTENDED). We got there a few minutes early, so we stood there in line while I was nervous and excited and we got casually stared at by most everyone. XD
Admission to the event was 600yen. For that, you get a booklet with table information and you can walk around and shop or take pictures of cosplayers. Cosplayers have to pay an additional 500yen to use the changing area. You can't NOT use the changing area because you're not supposed to go around in cosplay in public in Japan. <_<# I wasn't too keen on having to pay extra, but I was THERE TO COSPLAY, so I did it. So you get in line, pay, and get a little sticker thing that is your pass into the changing room. If you lose it, you have to pay again. I checked with one of the people working to see if there was anything I needed to know. She said about the changing pass, no props over a meter long, something about guns or props you could hit/hurt someone with (I didn't have any of those, so no worries), and there were no restrooms in the event hall, so if I needed to go to the restroom, I should put my sweater on over my outfit, maybe take my wig off, and try to look as normal as possible when going into the hallway so that people weren't confused (or upset, I guess?). lol
The changing room is a screened-off area where everyone changes. Well, all girls in there. There were a very few boys cosplaying, I guess they had somewhere else for them. It was SO ORGANIZED in that room, I wish I could have taken a picture. Everyone was organized in rings! XD There was a ring around the outer wall, facing the wall. Everyone was sitting and getting dressed - standing up if they needed to - or putting on makeup. There were two more rings inside that. There was maybe two feet between them and the person in front of them and everyone kept their things very contained (unlike in convention hotels where my friends and I tend to EXPLODE ALL OVER EVERY). I found a spot on the wall and since I was nervous about doing something wrong, I asked if I could change there and the girls on either said said yes and scooted their stuff over so I'd have room.
Have you ever tried to put on a compression vest without flashing a bunch of people when you're in really close quarters? It's hard. Really hard. But I did it! It took about 40 minutes total for me to change and do my makeup. I felt bad that my friends were waiting and I was trying to hurry. I think 30 minutes is what it usually takes me for super-simple makeup and getting dressed in the comforts of NOT JAPAN, so 40 minutes isn't bad, I think! I designed a gijinka of Panda from Polar Bear's Cafe (Shirokuma Cafe) to wear. It's mostly stuff out of my closet, with the exception of the wig (which I bought and added some wefts to) and the scarf (which I made from pulling threads out of a bed sheet). Oh, and the purse. ^_^
I met back up with my friends and we wandered around the tables. I saw a few people with BASARA fanart - one which I told myself to go back to later. Not a lot of people were selling doujinshi which made me a bit sad, but it's cool. One girl had hair bows inspired by Hetalia and Tiger&Bunny! *A* I bought Sky High. I should have bought America and Wild Tiger too. I went back to get them before we left, but she was away from the table changing and it was probably going to be a while before she got back. DARN.
There were several tables set up with various ads. I didn't really look at what they were for, but picked up a bunch with Tiger&Bunny and BASARA on them. Doujinshi events, I think. It's cool. I'll decorate my room. It's too naked. There were a couple of tables set up with a store-like place selling doujinshi. I perused through there with Nicola (who was shopping for her sister). I looked at the BASARA and Tiger&Bunny stuff and bought a nice-looking BASARA one.
I hunted down some of the BASARA cosplayers to take pictures of. ^_^ There was a Gakuen Basara group with a Chosokabe, Mitsunari, Date, Kojuro, and Sasuke. My first victims.
I got some pictures of them. My flash was being bratty. I think it needs new batteries, so I had to get rid of it for the day, which left me with my on-camera flash. D: We exchanged cards. They were all pretty darn ticked with the fact that I was Tokugawa on my cards (MUAH HA HA! JUSTASPLANNED!). |
| Here we have (characters): Chosokabe Motochika, Sarutoki Sasuke, Katakura Kojuro, Date Masamune, and Ishida Mitsunari. A decent-sized group! |
Nicola took some pictures for me. ^_^ I look derpy. It's fine because Panda's kinda derpy. yay
 |
| Panda loves panda goods! Unfortunately, this wall was plastic and reflective, which meant to flash, which meant kinda blurry pictures. Le sigh. |
I continued to play Pokemon with the BASARA cosplayers (Gotta Catch 'em All) and got the Hisahide and alt. outfits Chosokabe and Mori as well as the Gakuen Basara Yukimura. *A* ALL THE BASARA~ Then the Gakuen Cho changed into alt. outfit Cho and so there were two very handsome pirates dressed in white and maroon.
 |
| Ivan and PaoLin from Tiger&Bunny! They were great! <3 |
 |
| Ao no Exorcist group. |
 |
| Just the Okumura brothers. I loved the Yukio!! <3 <3 <3 |
ONE PERSON KNEW WHO I WAS SUPPOSED TO BE! I was so excited! XD He and his friends had a doujinshi table. He came over and asked if I was supposed to be Panda. He said he'd been hesitant because they weren't sure, but then they saw the panda purse! Then they weren't sure if I could speak Japanese, but they heard me talking to someone else in Japanese, so he came over to talk. XD He was REALLY excited. Haha~ He asked for my picture and what event I'd be going to next and everything. AWESOME. I HAD A FAN. <3
I changed back, and we left. We got lunch at an okonomiyaki place called Toraya. It's yummy. Then we went to Zaza City because I wanted to see if UniQlo had summery stuff out yet (it's suddenly gotten quite warm here!) They didn't. On Saturday, Animate finished its move to the department store at the train station, so we were curious to see if anything had filled the spot yet (stores seem to move rather quickly here!), so we went downstairs. NO BUT THERE WERE COSPLAYERS DOWN THERE. *a*
They were taking advantage of the blank white wall to take pictures. O_o I was sooo confused as to why they were there. I guess there was also a cosplay event at ZaZa City that day, up by the game center on the third floor? or something like that? I don't know, but people were there in cosplay. Weird~~ Mind blown. Took some pictures of Brave 10 cosplayers (who had been at the event earlier, but I couldn't think what they were from) and then the Gakuen Basara people showed up. They seemed busy, so I didn't ask for pictures and we just left.
Went to the train station and bought crap I don't need at Animate (Tiger&Bunny doujin by a BL manga-ka I love, Tiger&Bunny glass, and some clear files - Tiger&Bunny and Amatsuki - I can use... for something. XD)
THUS WAS MY DAY OF COSPLAY IN JAPAN! I came home and worked on Mori Ranmaru (Sengoku BASARA) which I want to wear to the event at Okazaki Castle on the 20th. ^_^
0 件のコメント:
コメントを投稿