Jul 30, 2009

French Crêpes in Peru

Delicious and artistic crepes at the cafeteria located within the Alianza Francesa in the city of Arequipa, Peru. It is located just opposite the Santa Catalina monastery.
My main course:

Followed by sweet, sweet dessert:
A crêpe is a type of very thin, cooked pancake, usually made from wheat flour.

Crêpes are made by pouring a thin liquid batter onto a hot frying pan or flat circular hot plate, often with a trace of butter or oil on the pan's surface. The batter is spread evenly over the cooking surface of the pan or plate either by tilting the pan or by distributing the batter with an offset spatula.

Common savoury fillings for meal crêpes include: cheese, asparagus, ham, spinach, eggs, ratatouille, mushrooms, artichoke (in certain regions), and various meat products.

When sweet, they can be eaten as dessert. They can be filled with various sweet toppings, often including Nutella spread, sugar (granulated or powdered), maple syrup, lemon juice, whipped cream, fruit spreads and sliced soft fruits.

Bon appétit!

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Jul 28, 2009

Yukie Kawamura(川村 ゆきえ) and Sayaka Isoyama (磯山 さやか)

Since I'm back a little earlier than expected, here's a little something for all of you.

Yukie Kawamura(川村 ゆきえ) and Sayaka Isoyama (磯山 さやか) Sabra photoshoot:


Both Yukie Kawamura(川村 ゆきえ) and Sayaka Isoyama (磯山 さやか) are gravure(グラビアアイドル) idols, which are Japanese models who primarily pose in bikinis, leotards, and other provocative clothing for photo spreads in magazines and photobooks.

In recent years, some popular idols have released DVDs of their work, typically posing in revealing outfits. Fetish themes may include wrestling, martial arts, and superheroines from tokusatsu.

Gravure idols range from as young as age 9 to as old as 31. Gravure idols do not pose nude or perform sexually explicit acts in their work, though some simulate sex acts in their DVD releases.

The term is derived from photogravure, or, technically more precise, rotogravure, the type of printing process used in the production of glossy magazines.

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Jul 24, 2009

Weekend Poll

A little weekend treat. Your vote reveals a part of your personality:



Read on to find out what your choice signifies...

If you chose:
Girl on left: You adore innocence and purity, preferring to keep things simple.
Girl on right: You chase elegance, success and revel in sophistication.

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Jul 23, 2009

Away For A Week

As some might or might not have guessed, I work in the oil and gas industry in Malaysia as a geoscientist.

I am going to be sent offshore Peninsular Malaysia to an oil rig for a week. Until then, have fun with this Touhou(東方) game.

Also, I have scheduled a little treat post for this weekend on 8pm, Friday night!
(Time quoted as +8GMT)

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Touhou Game

A mini-Touhou game I downloaded from Dagobah. Enjoy!



The basic objective is to get all the items.

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Jul 22, 2009

Harry Potter and the J-fangirl

A Japanese fan girl interviews the Harry Potter cast, featuring eyelash fetishes and weird face touching.

Harry Potter himself (Daniel Radcliffe)


Harry Potter's best friend Ron Weasley (Rupert Grint)


And finally, a little girl on girl:
Harry Potter's female friend Hermione (Emma Watson)


Source: Japanprobe

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Jul 20, 2009

Total Solar Eclipse 2009

This is the LONGEST total solar eclipse in this century. It is observable on July 22, 2009. The pilgrimage of the solar eclipse begins in the holy land of India and ends in Japan.


The path of the Moon's umbral shadow begins in India and crosses through Nepal, Bangladesh, Bhutan, Myanmar and China. After leaving mainland Asia, the path crosses Japan's Ryukyu Islands and curves southeast through the Pacific Ocean where the maximum duration of totality reaches 6 min 39 s. A partial eclipse is seen within the much broader path of the Moon's penumbral shadow, which includes most of eastern Asia, Indonesia, and the Pacific Ocean.

これは、この世紀のロンゲ全日食。また2009年7月22日に観測されています。日食のは、インドの聖地巡礼で始まり、日本で終了。
The land of the Rising Sun will witness total darkness in Yaku, Amami and Akuseki-Shima. The times for watching the eclipse in Japan (Image from NAOJ):

日本では、 NAOJから(画像)日食が見られる時間:


Global eclipse path can be downloaded here.

Via NASA and NAOJ.

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Jul 18, 2009

Moo Death Moe

Moo ponders who to kill with its Death Note:



Moo trying to wear my cow slippers:
Moo has been my pet ever since it arrived in an Playstation One box at my doorstep 5 years ago (with no return address).

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The Family That Was

My online "family" at the Sankaku Complex forums:
Earlier this year I discovered Sankaku Complex and soon got involved in the forums. Being within the forums' community helped me a lot through a difficult emotional period when I moved back to Malaysia from England; and went from being a university student to a salaryman (which somehow ended up with me being a recluse and friendless in real life). Maybe I wasn't meant to be in an "adult" world of uniform corporate citizens, breeding children (in an already overpopulated world) and "golf". After all, I have always been part of another world and it is part of my personality, which will stay for life.

Although I am not as active in the forums as before, but I will never forget how its role in my life.

I realize that this is more of a rant post, which is different from my usual ones, but a little departure from the norm is good.

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Jul 17, 2009

Penis Matsuri 男根ら祭り

Celebrations held in honour of the phallus is held annually across Japan. Known under different names in different places, such as the Kanamara Matsuri (Festival of the Steel Phallus, かなまら祭り) and the Hōnen Matsuri (Harvest Festival, 豊年祭), these festivals are held near penis shrines.

The objects of worship can be carried:

Or ridden:

The food and tourism economy reaps benefits from the festivities:


A video of the festival by Kanamara Matsuri by tokyocooney:


Penis worship
In Japan:
Japanese penis worship has its origins in Shinto (神道), and celebrates the fertility afforded by the male organ.

In the rest of the world:
Phallic worship existed as far back as the Stone Age; and exists in the traditions of other notable cultures throughout the world, such as those of Ancient Egypt and Greece. Again, these are fertility centered.

Pictures via Sankaku Complex
Information compiled from the sources of various Wikipedia articles.
This entry is a submission to the July Weird Japan Matsuri, hosted by Gakuranman.

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Jul 15, 2009

A Russian-Japanese Musical Connection

A Russian connection to Japanese popular culture can be found in the anime music niche.

Kusumi Koharu (久住小春) singing and dancing to a Russian folk tune in Japanese. The song, Balalaika (バラライカ or балала́йка) was the second solo single for the Morning Musume (月島きらり) and Hello! Project member. The song was the opening theme for the shoujo anime Kirarin Revolution (きらりん☆レボリューション).

Balalaika (Russian tune sung in Japanese)




Same dance by Hatsune Miku:


Origa, a Japanese singer of Russian descent. After graduating from music school in 1990, she took an opportunity to visit Japan in 1991 and finally contracted with
the ROAD&SKY Organization in 1993. Origa has since participated in several projects with various artists in addition to the Radio Japan Series and being part of the chorus for the Kobe earthquake disaster charity single.

She gained fame outside of Japan by singing soundtracks written by long-time friend and composer Yoko Kanno, for the Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex (攻殻機動隊 STAND ALONE COMPLEX) anime series.

Inner Universe (sung in Latin, Russian and English):


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Thank You! Domo Arigatou! どうもありがとう!

For over the past 3 days, there has been a sharp increase of traffic to my articles on the Daicon 2009 event. I sincerely thank the visitors (over 200 a day) who came here.
の過去3日以上は、 Daicon 2009年のイベントの私の記事へのトラフィックが急激に増加している。私は200日(以上)ここに来た人は、訪問者に感謝します。

Fans of Minorin interested in the results of her interview seem make up the bulk of the visitors.
茅原実里のファンは彼女のインタビューの結果では、訪問者の興味が大半を占めるようだ。

Popular image downloads include those of:
れらを含む人気のある画像をダウンロード:
Minorin
The cosplayers
Figmas
The sword-guns,-girls gallery
The Asian gestures article
Scenes from the The Future (Time of Eve review) post
Pictures from the Anima article
My pictures of Haruhi sightings around the world
Yu-Gi-Oh cards I generated
Pedobear
and strangely enough, my family tree.

I would also like to thank these parties who have found the time to link to my articles and videos:
私も私の記事や動画にリンクすることを発見した時、これらの者に感謝したいと思います:
Thank You! どうもありがとう!

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Jul 12, 2009

Daicon

This article is a submission to the February Japan Blog Matsuri on Famous Japanese Events, hosted by LLP.

The Daicon 2009 was held at Multimedia University at Cyberjaya, Malaysia this weekend. The Daicon is a major convention held in celebration of Japanese visual arts, namely anime and manga - worlds in which the otaku dwell. This festival of a Japanese sub-culture was held on the 11th and 12th of July.


Among the things that caught my attention there were:

Minori Chihara's (茅原実里) Q&A panel and concert at the convention. This was her first visit to Southeast Asia. Minori Chihara is best known for being the voice of Nagato Yuki (長門 有希) in the Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya series (涼宮ハルヒちゃんの憂鬱).

Activities and displays for mecha lovers including a Macross goodies,

A Gundam constructors' championship,

A maid cafe set up for the occasion:
A hidden maid high up in the auditorium (second floor, behind the seats)

Cushion covers on sale for RM99.90 / USD27.9 / ¥2582. No dakimakura was visibly displayed for sale, probably due to the conservative sensitivities of the nation.

The Daicon banner flying outside the main entrance of the convention hall. A banner for all otaku in Malaysia for a weekend?

More Daicon 2009 News:
Minori Chihara Interview at Daicon

Minori Chihara Concert

Figma Gallery at Daicon

Stormtrooper Dancing Videos at Daicon

Cosplayers at Daicon

About Daicon (based on information from Wikipedia)
Daicon is a nickname for the Nihon SF Taikai (日本SF大会, Japan SF Convention), an annual science fiction convention held in Japan. Offical nicknames for the Nihon SF Taikai are given based on the locations that they are held in Tokon for one held in Tokyo and Daicon if it is held in Osaka. Thus, the Daicon 2009 in Malaysia must have originated in Osaka.

My thoughts:
It was my first major anime convention, and to be able to see one of the major seiyuu of the Haruhi Suzumiya series to boot really made my weekend. It was also my first J-pop concert and my first sighting of a celebrity (they always seem to elude me for some reason). And ended with a scrumptious dinner at Purple Cane restaurant with family. It is my most memorable weekend of 2009 to date. Ah, back to work tomorrow...

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Daicon 2009: Minori Chihara Concert


On the last day of the Daicon 2009 (today), Minori Chihara (茅原実里) gave a concert for her fans. The songs she sang are:


At the end of the last scheduled song (everlasting...), Minori promptly left the stage. However, light-stick waving fans demanded another round of Aoi Kotou (蒼い孤島) for about 10 minutes in Minori's absence.
To which Minori complied with a reappearance in a baju kebaya (a traditional blouse dress in Southeast Asia) and two other songs.

Due to copyright issues, photography and video was not allowed in the concert.
Thus I leave you with this for the moment - Aoi Kotou (蒼い孤島) from Minori Chihara Live 2009, from earlier this year:


More Daicon 2009 News:
Minori Chihara Interview at Daicon

Figma Gallery at Daicon

Stormtrooper Dancing Videos at Daicon

Cosplayers at Daicon

About Daicon

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Daicon 2009: Figma Gallery

The figma (figure) gallery at Daicon 2009, sponsored by Figure Mall


The Haruhi Suzumiya (涼宮 ハルヒ) corner:

An angel at Daicon?

Vita (ヴィータ) from Magical Girl Lyrical Nanoha (魔法少女リリカルなのは):

Shinku (真紅) from Rozen Maiden (ローゼンメイデン):



Nendoroid Section:
Death Note (デスノート)

Sayonara Zetsubou Sensei (さよなら 絶望先)
Kokonoe Rin (九重 りん) from loli anime Kodomo no Jikan (A Child's Time こどものじかん)


Nendo nen-nen

For Ichiro:


More Daicon 2009 News:
Cosplayers at Daicon

Stormtrooper Dancing Videos at Daicon

Minori Chihara Interview at Daicon

Minori Chihara Concert

About Daicon


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