Small Con

I went to my first Con today. It was interesting to say the least. Had a laugh or two at some of the costumes people were wearing. I am afraid they only had two small anime/manga booths. Very few figurines so I did not get any :( But more importantly I got some new collectable's :D

That's a wall bank

Now for manga...One of my top favorite anime series MONSTER. So now I just need the rest lol.

For a light novel one of my favorite harem anime's LOVE HINA

 

Now for small posters :P

All in all I spent around $25 on all of it. $10 For the posters and $15 for the light novel, manga, wall bank.

Sorry for the bad pictures. I was in a hurry to get this posted so lighting/picture quality has suffered greatly.

Meganekko

So what might Meganekko mean? To put it simply "glasses girl"

Megane for glasses and ko for girl. So meganekko is a girl who wears glasses.

The stereotypical meganekko in anime usually tends to be one or most of the following: smart, bookworm, polite, strict, follows the rules, class president, geekish, prudish, friendly. Most of these will be used to enhance the characters traits.

But those traits are not always followed in anime and defiantly not in real life.

And what do we have here? Hmmm could it be Meganekko nekomimi :p

Would this one be called a Meido(it means maid but we will get to that another time) meganekko nekomimi

Sakura

No not the pink haired girl from Naruto. But I bet you have seen one or two in anime.

The Sakura I am referring to is the beautiful Cherry Blossom Tree. Japan has a wide variety of sakura with over 200 cultivars to be found. Japanese Meteorological Agency track the sakuras front(zensen) (picture seen below) as it moves north with the warmer weather. The blossoming begins in Okinawa in January and normally reaches Kyoto and Tokyo by the beginning of April.

Hanami festivals are held to celebrate the beauty of the sakura. Hanami literally means flower viewing. Hanami festivals have been held in Japan for many many centuries. The sakuras blooming is something that is very symbolic to some. As it is seen as representing life and death. With their sudden arrival, beauty, and their with their quick departure. As the full bloom only lasts for about a week before the petals begin to fall.

Imperial Japan often planted cherry trees as a means of claiming occupied territory as a Japanese space.

A few popular spots to view the Sakuras in bloom.

Tokyo: Ueno Park, Shinjuku Gyoen, Chidorigafuchi, Sumida Park, Aoyama Cemetery, Koishikawa Botanical Garden, Inokashira Park

Yokohama: Kamonyama Park, Sankeien

Kamakura: Dankazura

Nagoya: Nagoya Castle

Kyoto: Maruyama Park, Philosopher's Trail, Heian Shrine, Arashiyama, Kamogawa, Daigoji Temple, Hirano Shrine, Okazaki Canal

Osaka: Osaka Castle Park, Osaka Mint Bureau

Yoshino: Yoshinoyama

Himeji: Himeji Castle

Tohoku: Kakunodate, Hirosaki Castle

 

Here are a few more picture of Sakuras in anime.

 

    

This is only a small taste of how the Sakura is held in Japanese culture. As with most of the things that hold value in Japanese culture. There is a long and colorful history to be told.

I can only hope my small entries in this blog will make you want to find out more. So that you may find a bit of facts and history you will hold as a fond memory.

Tanuki

I am sure you have seen these little guys many times if you watch anime, read manga, or keep track of all things Japanese. Tanukis are very prominent in Japanese folklore and culture. 

 

This little fellow is a real Tanuki(Nyctereutes procyonoides) or Racoon Dog. That's right not a racoon at all. In fact this is the last extant species in its genus. Tanukis are often called racoon's or badgers by mistake. So be sure to smirk the next time someone calls them a Racoon because you now know the truth.

Tanuki statues are often found outside of temples, restaurants, and businesses in Japan.  In metalworking, tanuki skins were often used for thinning gold. So the critters became associated with gold and other precious metals. So tanuki statues are a charm to bring luck and wealth. Giving rise to one of the savings about how the Tanuki has large kintama meaning gold balls.

Which brings us to another colorful thing you may have noticed with the statues and in the stories about these little guys.....They are normally always shown as having large testicles.

There is a school yard song that goes

Tan Tan Tanuki no kintama wa,

Kaze mo nai no ni,

Bura bura

Roughly translated, "Tan-tan-tanuki's testicles, there isn't even any wind but still go swing-swing-swing"

Why you might ask. Well the real tanukis have rather large ones. So the story tellers and artists depicted them this way to add humor along with artistic flare to these interesting creatures.

Even our friendly neighborhood plumber has been seen in a "tanooki" suit. 

Why is it that tanooki Mario changes into a statue? Well that's another great legend about the tanuki. They are said to be shape shifters.  

Which brings us to the popular tale Bunbuku Chagama.(info from wikipedia)

The story tells of a poor man who finds a tanuki caught in a trap. Feeling sorry for the animal, he sets it free. That night, the tanuki comes to the poor man's house to thank him for his kindness. The tanuki transforms itself into a teapot and tells the man to sell him for money.

The man sells the tanuki-teapot to a monk, who takes it home and, after scrubbing it harshly, sets it over the fire to boil water. Unable to stand the heat, the tanuki teapot sprouts legs and, in its half-transformed state, makes a run for it.

The tanuki returns to the poor man with another idea. The man would set up a 'roadside attraction' (a little circus-like setup) and charge admission for people to see a teapot walking a tightrope. The plan works, and each gains something good from the other--the man is no longer poor and the tanuki has a new friend and home.

In a variant of the story, the tanuki-teapot does not run and returns to its transformed state. The shocked monk decides to leave the teapot as an offering to the poor temple where he lives, choosing not to use it for making tea again. The temple eventually becomes famous for its supposed dancing teapot.

But there are many many versions of this story.

Kemonomimi

I am sure you all have seem them in plenty of anime's. But may have been unaware of what they are called. Well you guessed it those cute anime girls with the animal ears and tails are called Kemonomimi. Kemonomimi meaning animal ears. Kemonomimi characters normally appear for the most part human with some animal traits like Horo from Spice and Wolf pictured above and below.

 

Horo is considered  okamimimi > Wolf

 

Then we have the common nekomimi > Cat

usamimi > Rabbit

inumimi > Dog

kitsunemimi > Fox 

You will find more but that covers what you will normally see.