The Insanity of Hello Kitty ...

Hello Kitty is outrageous. She's everywhere for starters & her followers are addicted. I know we have Hello Kitty back in the States, but I swear to you that every Japanese person has at least one Hello Kitty related item in their possession. Many of them have a serious collection and I would go as far to say some have small Hello Kitty shrines. Maybe I'm exaggerating, but maybe not.

Everywhere you go in Japan you can find Hello Kitty. EVERYWHERE. I was at the most country, hick town in the middle of nowhere Japan & found her at the only store for 50km. There are stores dedicated to her, movies and tv shows featuring her, amusement parks influenced by her, and young children (and some adults) obsessed with her. It's no secret that the Japanese culture is all about anime and it is a serious question when people ask you what character you like. At first I couldn't take this question seriously & the standard response was, "I don't have one", but this got nothing short of wide eyes and dropped jaws. I learned to find one I liked. Amanda fits right in. She loves Hello Kitty. I, on the other hand, am partial to Rilakkuma but I'll write about that later. I don't want to take the attention away from the craze of Hello Kitty.

The logo is plastered all over standard accessories like cell phones, key chains, straps, bags, jewelry and of course clothing, but you can also find her in what I first thought to be ridiculous places. Now I don't really look twice at Hello Kitty shoes, cars, or fingernails. Here are some of the crazy Hello Kitty things I've seen, although I won't take credit for most of the pictures. I swiped some of them off the internet. Whoops. :)

Hardcore rockers jam out with a Hello Kitty guitar, I can only imagine.

Not only did she tap into the music market, she is known in the food world as well.

In the form of poptarts:

And of course you'll need something to toast your poptart in:

And since we're in Japan, you have to eat sushi.

What's more Japanese than Hello Kitty sushi?

And she processed herself into some strange edible somethings that you can find in pasta.

And to prove Hello Kitty is marketed towards an adult audience as well, you can find a bottle of Hello Kitty wine.

And then you have the Hello Kitty vehicles. They're definitely not the standard and I don't see them on the daily, but the fact that they exist is crazy enough for me. Seriously, who drives these things?

Who doesn't want to travel in Hello Kitty style?

Or maybe you just want to accessorize your vehicle:

And of course she finds her way onto tour buses. I must say I'm slightly disappointed. Of all the bus tours Amanda & I have been on, we never toured around in a Hello Kitty bus.
And then to top it off, as if the cars, trailers, & buses weren't enough, you can catch a flight on the Hello Kitty Jet. EVA Air was crazy enough to paint her and the family right on the side of their airplane for all of your traveling enjoyment. And have no fear, the inside is apparently as nuts as the outside.

"EVA repeated the livery theme inside the cabin by creating a Hello Kitty fantasy with sweet Hello Kitty paintings on the walls, and by outfitting flight attendants with Hello Kitty ribbons for their hair and Hello Kitty aprons. Passengers booked on EVA’s Hello Kitty Jet will get pink Hello Kitty boarding passes and luggage tags. Onboard, they will enjoy a series of in flight Hello Kitty service accessories, Hello Kitty meals, and have access to exclusive EVA Air Hello Kitty duty-free shopping. "

And if that isn't enough to make you sick, why not get married in a Hello Kitty themed wedding?

All you need to do is get yourself a Hello Kitty wedding dress:

And matching wedding bands (yes, they are engraved with the logo):

And then book yourself the wedding of your Hello Kitty dreams at the following website:

Hankyu Princesskitty Wedding and you're set. Seriously, who does this?

Watch this clip too: Who does this?

And, just for Matt, in case you have an extra $5,000 laying around and nothing to do with it, you can buy yourself a set of solid gold Hello Kitty playing cards. You think I'm joking right? I'm so not ... According to the website, "On September 27, Sanrio announced plans to begin selling solid gold Hello Kitty playing cards, which the company will make available through its online shop beginning October 3. Each of the 54 cards (2 jokers included) measures 58 x 89 mm and is made from 0.73 gram of 99.99% pure gold. Pressed to a thickness of 7 microns with precision rolling technology developed by the Mitsubishi Materials Corporation, the cards are sealed in a protective laminate printed with colorful designs that depict Hello Kitty in royal dress."

much love
-tara-
xx

Geisha Spotting ...

I'm going to quote Wikipedia all over this blog for fear that I'm going to give false information, so here it goes ...

"Geisha (芸者) or Geiko (芸妓) are traditional, female Japanese entertainers, whose skills include performing various Japanese arts, such as classical music and dance. Contrary to popular belief, geisha are not prostitutes." (Wikipedia)

To go 'geisha spotting' you need to head to the Gion district of Kyoto. "It eventually evolved to become one of the most exclusive and well-known geisha districts in all of Japan. There is a popular misconception that Gion was a red-light district. However, as it was a geisha district, and as geisha are entertainers, not prostitutes, Gion is not, and never was, a red-light district."

"The geisha in the Gion district do not refer to themselves as geisha; instead, Gion geisha use the local term geiko. While the term geisha means "artist", the more direct term geiko means specifically 'a woman of art.'".

Amanda and I have been to Kyoto a few times and every time we are there we go 'geisha spotting'. We know exactly where to go, what time, how long to wait & what to do when you actually see one. It's kind of like celebrity spotting back home.

"Modern geisha still live in traditional geisha houses called okiya in areas called hanamachi (花街 "flower towns"), particularly during their apprenticeship. Many experienced geisha are successful enough choose to live independently. The elegant, high-culture world that geisha are a part of is called karyūkai (花柳界 "the flower and willow world")."

A lot of geisha come out of this building, but we don't know if it's an okiya or not.

We refer to it as the hideout.

Giesha Street:

"In modern Japan, geisha and maiko are now a rare sight outside hanamachi. In the 1920s there were over 80,000 geisha in Japan, but today there are far fewer. The exact number is unknown to outsiders, and is estimated to be from 1,000 to 2,000, mostly in the resort town of Atami."

Check out those red lips:

"Geisha are often hired to attend parties and gatherings, traditionally at tea houses (茶屋, ochaya) or at traditional Japanese restaurants (ryōtei). Their time is measured by the time it takes an incense stick to burn, and is called senkōdai (線香代, "incense stick fee") or gyokudai (玉代 "jewel fee"). In Kyoto the terms "ohana" (お花）and "hanadai" (花代), meaning "flower fees", are preferred. The customer makes arrangements through the geisha union office (検番 kenban), which keeps each geisha's schedule and makes her appointments both for entertaining and for training."

"There remains some confusion, even within Japan, about the nature of the geisha profession. Geisha are frequently depicted as expensive prostitutes in Western popular culture. Geisha are entertainers, their purpose being to entertain their customer, be it by reciting verse, playing musical instruments, or engaging in light conversation. Geisha engagements may include flirting with men and playful innuendos; however, clients know that nothing more can be expected. In a social style that is uniquely Japanese, men are amused by the illusion of that which is never to be. Geisha do not engage in paid sex with clients."

Whoa, geisha. Where's your make up? Who let her out of the okiya?

This geisha was running SO fast. She clearly didn't want to be photographed.

Sorry!!

So the geishas are kind of stalked by the Japanese/tourist paparazzi, and I'm just as guilty as the next tourist. This poor girl had to have had her picture taken 342 times between the front of the okiya to the taxi. Yes, all of those people are there to see her & get her picture.

A group of geisha paparazzi:

Trying to not stick out as we wait to spot geishas. :)

Amanda, Casey & I ... very patiently waiting for some geisha action.

And somehow we got our own paparazzi.

This man took our picture at least 10 times.

It tends to happen around Japan though. I've had my picture taken several times by the Japanese people. Once a lady in Kyoto asked us to come sit down around her & pose for pictures. Another lady was photographing us through a restaurant window once & another time a group of us were out eating and the people at the table behind us were taking our picture. Yes folks, we're that good looking. :)

This was the first geisha we ever saw on our first trip to Kyoto. We weren't looking for her and she just popped up on this street corner. We were SO excited we took her picture at least 30 times. I was just amazed by how beautiful she was.

Maybe it's her mom, haha.

There was quite a crowd on the corner, in the middle of the street, climbing on benches & dangling out windows to get her picture. I definitely was not the only one.

They don't typically smile so it's a big deal when they do.

Our first official night of geisha spotting we took this ridiculously long video (again, with really poor commentary) because I was supposed to go through the video and cut some good still shots. Yea, kinda need help with that maybe? Cathy? Seth? :)

much love

-tara-

xx

Shopping in Osaka ...

Everywhere you go in Japan there is good shopping. There are fantastic stores, Prada is comparable to Starbucks with one on almost every corner, and the arcade malls stretch for miles and miles and are filled with everything and anything you can imagine. Living in Cedar Falls back home completely deprived me of the means necessary to stack a brilliant closet, but here in Japan you can get it all. The only problem is that it doesn't exactly fit my 'western' style (and by western I don't mean cowboy hats & belt buckles).

Amanda and I like to go shopping in Osaka. Shin Sai Bashi Suji is a large shopping district with just about anything and everything imaginable for purchase. Kind of like heaven I can imagine. :)

This is what an arcade mall is like:

They're like half inside, half outside & typically packed with people. You can find them in every city ... believe me, I've found them.

Amanda and I share a love for Kate.

That's the first thing I noticed about Amanda - we both have the matching Kate Spade handbag, wallet & messenger bag. Instant soul mates. :)

The Nike Store in Osaka is pretty impressive and apparently you can go in and design your own shoes. It's the hot thing to do in Japan.

There's a Sanrio store with three floors of all that is Hello Kitty. Amanda loves it so I snapped this illegal shot of Hello Kitty on her wedding day just for her. Who did she marry? Daniel? I thought he moved to Africa? I'm trying to follow this whole Hello Kitty storyline but I don't really get it.

We went to the Disney store and I'm pretty sure my foot does not fit the Cinderella slipper. Everyone in Asia has small feet anyway ... the shoe is probably a size 4. I'd rather have the heels from Prada anyway. :)

Here is some of the wildness that is Japanese fashion:

Tights, leg warmers & leggings:

Always lots of lingerie:

Seriously, I'm not joking:
much love

-tara-
xx