2010 Hyper Japan London

I still have to blog about the Matsuri 2 weeks ago :) but I'm back to London for another event.
It's near where the Matsuri was , so I get to park for free again at White Rows , where the whole second floor is reserved for motorbikes only. Bikers rule !

I'm meeting a couple of friends on the show : April, Lyuba, Hong and Francesco.

From left to right : Lyuba and Hong

Really lovely kimonos they've got on !

Interesting geta Hong is wearing. I wondered why she looked so much taller :)
That's a very pretty flower motif. Actually , they're not geta they're okobo.

Francesco is going to get fitted into samurai warlord gear ! I don't know if that's an obi, but April will definitely tell me what it is. It looks really pretty.

Getting ready for war is like getting ready to ride a bike. Tedious minutes of getting dressed just right because once you're riding, you can't adjust it anymore.
Don't want any arrows getting through  :)

Getting the helm fitted . It's really shiny.

Ready for war ! Bring them on ! Better yet, bring my horse : we'll go get them.

Francesco-sama and Hong-hime

They look totally lovely together, don't they ? 

My hero! "Must you really go off to war?"
"A man's got to do what a man's got to do, Hong-san."

This is my favourite picture : totally natural, no posing.

(I uploaded this picture to Picasa  click on the picture to get a really large version )  

After the show ,we went to eat something near Japan Center.As it began to rain umbrellas came out and Hong put on a rain garment to protect her kimono. I HAD to take a few shots.

"Wat are you taking pictures of me for ? "

 Lovely looking fabric , that is. I never knew such a garment existed : I learn something new every day.

Aha ! Food : glorious food ! And good company too, what more can you ask for ?

 My seafood sushi : yellowtail, tuna , mackerel, salmon , salmon roe , tuna , octopus and my first ever sea urchin( the yellow bits in the middle ). It was very tasty!

Hong's deep fried "somethings".

Lyubas tempura

Francescos salmon 'carpaccio ?'

Click here for the set on Flickr ( if you need the full size version of any, mail me )

Part of the Hyper Japan dealt with modern fashion and Lolita is a big part of that. These models come from all over. There's even a few from Japan to answer everybodies questions.

Lolita overload ! All the models crowding together on the stage.

Day 2 on the Hyper Japan.

At the kimono fitting stall , I saw this young woman. That's a very nice green.

While on the other side of the world , lots of Japanese are discovering Western fastfood and takeaway (which is not so good for their health) ,
Atsuko-san (from my cooking lessons) is over here in the UK trying to win us over to Japanese healthy cooking.There's a certain irony there.

I'm going to tell you all about this wonderful Japanese way of packed lunch!

I caught a fish THIS BIG yesterday ! ( OK, That's NOT what she was saying, haha :)

Can YOU spot the Pikachu in this picture ?

Behold. The mighty Bento box!

You put the rice in the bottom half.
The other goodies go in the top half.

The models from the Lolita event are joining in to have a go at bento making. Their abilities ranged from "I can cook an egg", " I only prepare spaghetti" to " I never cook" ( the Japanese girl on the right ! ). At least they were totally honest about it.  The blond girl on the left is a Belgian ! We're everywhere these days :)