Since last I posted, I've visited two more animation studios, done some adventuring out in the city, and spent lots of money. Oh, and I'm in Kyoto now too! Here's the breakdown!
Toei Animation: Toei animated series like Sailor Moon, One Piece, Digimon, and Yu-gi-oh! (to name a few) and is a pretty well know studio both in Japan and overseas. We got to tour the space, though we did not have access to many of the individual series production areas. Even so, we got to see the color and ink process, as well as the special effects process before sitting down with one of the administration for a Q & A. It was very awesome to see and we had many solid questions answered. They surprised us all in the end when they dumped a ton of stuff on the table and told us to take whatever we'd like. Yay free swag!
There's definitely a prestige to Toei that some of the companies we had visited thus far did not have, and they have a lot of pride in their company and what they do. It was really good to see, and then later compare with other studios.
Telecom: Telecom was much smaller than Toei, but felt much more comfortable. It was only one floor above a grocery store and was very cluttered, but it had a homey, friendly feel to it. We got to see behind the scenes, looking at how they worked/what programs they worked with, how they drew, etc. They even showed us some footage that they'd be airing later in the week. It was awesome to see some of the programs I've been working with in action, and to actually see animators at work with the process I've been learning. They were very nice too, and I really enjoyed the overall atmosphere.
Nakano Broadway: Shopping mall for anime fans. Straight and simple. Figures, cards, music...you name it, they had it somewhere. They also had general clothes, shoes, and the usual mall fare too. Throw in some tea shops and you've got Nakano Broadway. I got a lot of my gifts there, as well as a few things for me. ;)
Karaoke: Our second to last night in Japan, we went out as a group to Karaoke. It was an absolute blast! We sung a lot of songs together, and I sung "Kiss Me Goodbye" from Final Fantasy XII myself. I also sung "Feeling Good" with Laura, and we kicked butt. Some of the regulars were played and we had so much fun to as a group, and good times were had by all!
Kyoto: We've been in Kyoto for a day and a half now. We took the bullet train down from Tokyo and Laura and I spent the afternoon at the hotel, taking some time to recover. Our first full day we spent visiting some of the shrines and temples in the area, hiking up and down hills and taking lots of pictures. It was a wonderful, beautiful experience. The day maker, however, was the Kimono and traditional dance. We were dressed up in kimonos, and a well established dancer taught us part of a traditional Japanese dance. It was fantastic, and probably the highlight of my trip thus far. Pictures from it are up on Facebook, along with many other shots from the trip.
Well, we've got another long day tomorrow, so I'm off. Have a good day/night, where ever you are! Thanks for reading!
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