Yearly Archives: 2011

Erin’s Challenge! I can speak Japanese

I am months late to the game, but I found this interesting Japanese-learning website set up by the Japan Foundation called Erin’s Challenge! I can speak Japanese. It has a few dozen short skits with copyable soft-subs in Japanese, kana, … Continue reading

Posted in Japanese | Tagged , | 5 Comments

Neurowear Necomimi

A small Japanese start-up called Neurowear is marketing what it calls “Necomimi” — head-worn fashion gadgets that move in response to brainwaves. The company calls it “Augmented Human Body”. Or to put it in simpler terms: goddamn nekomimi cat ears … Continue reading

Posted in Tech | Tagged , , , , | 11 Comments

AKB48 Singapore

A short press conference was held today for the opening of AKB48’s official merchandise store in Singapore and their first permanent theatre outside of Japan. There was also a short photography session with Misaki Iwasa, Mika Komori and Miho Miyazaki … Continue reading

Posted in Music, Otaku | Tagged , , | 9 Comments

Why Android will dominate Japan

Sharp is releasing an Aquos Android clamshell phone with a 16-megapixel camera running Gingerbread. This is the latest step in Android’s quiet and gradual takeover of the Japanese phone market. I believe that Japan will eventually become a strategic stronghold … Continue reading

Posted in Tech | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 17 Comments

Valkyria Chronicles 3

I’ve been spending the past two weeks burning my way through a long list of backlogged games I want to clear before school starts and I lose my NEET badge, including Shadow of the Colossus, Red Dead Redemption, Dragon Age … Continue reading

Posted in Games, Reviews | Tagged , , , , | 5 Comments

Wii U

Wii U is the sound you make when you try to whistle but you don’t know how. It is also Nintendo’s new console announced today during E3 that finally brings them up to speed with Sony and Microsoft in terms … Continue reading

Posted in Games | Tagged , , , | 8 Comments

SDN48 Singapore Live

SDN48 posing in front of the Merlion, Singapore’s manufactured tourism symbol I caught SDN48 live performing in Singapore at Scape last Friday. I was going to wait for the official concert photos to be distributed to the blogosphere before I … Continue reading

Posted in Music, Otaku | Tagged , , , , , | 5 Comments

Japan Anime Map

Japan National Tourism Organization made a simple map showing the locales of some popular anime titles and the major anime retail hotspots across Japan. While an interesting initiative, the map itself is rather light on details, so this is more … Continue reading

Posted in Otaku | Tagged , , , | 8 Comments

Game of Thrones

Games of Thrones, a new HBO medieval fantasy drama series, scratches an itch of mine that had not been properly addressed since Twelve Kingdoms. It is probably the most amazing thing on BitTorrent television right now, edging out Community which … Continue reading

Posted in Reviews | Tagged , , , | 12 Comments

Trip Report: Kagoshima

This is the post about my visit to Kagoshima in southern Japan. I am really pushing out these articles at the breakneck speed of a limping three-legged turtle, considering that I was in Japan in early April and so far … Continue reading

Posted in Blog | Tagged , , , , | 6 Comments

Magic: The Gathering Online

Elesh Norn, Grand Cenobite Magic: The Gathering, the most successful trading card game ever, and I have an on-again-off-again relationship spanning more than a decade since the time of 4th Edition and Ice Age. Recently, I have been reintroduced to … Continue reading

Posted in Games | Tagged , , , , | 7 Comments

The West Wing

It seems like I am forever playing catchup with my sources of entertainment. Half a decade after The West Wing finished airing, I finally took the time to finish all 156 episodes. Seeing as each episode is 42 minutes long, … Continue reading

Posted in Reviews | Tagged , , , , , | 7 Comments