2011's akb48 24th Single Janken Senbatsu Tournament

 

September 20, 2011 Nippon Budokan, Tokyo, Japan the stage for the AKB48's 24th Single Rock Paper Scissors Tournament Selection ended in such high drama as the oldest member Shinoda Mariko won the Center position *finally* over 50 girls. 2nd runner up goes to Fujie Reina, 3rd Minegishi Minami 4th Kobayashi Marina, 5th Akimoto Sayaka, 6th Sato Sumire, 7th Oya Shizuka, 8th Maeda Ami as Media Senbatsu (Selection).

You might think what's the fuss about this? We'll it was probably the most watched Japanese Idol themed show in Japan that day, it was also shown simultaneously in South Korea, Hong Kong, Taiwan, Singapore and Thailand. They sell over a million *though some fans buy in bulks*, thanks to tie in events and other "clever" marketing strategies. It just feels so weird living in the Philippines with one of the biggest pop acts in Japan and east Asia who has a half-Filipino member (Akimoto Sayaka's mother is Filipino) totally unknown here by the mainstream media. I guess that's for the better. Just shows how much this country is being left behind by its neighbors when it comes to class and trends.

One week

It has been a week already since my last post. There hasn't been much of stuff to talk about though I did go to Cine Europa, I only got to see three films: Little Greek Godfather, Mammoth and How about love. Little Greek Godfather is my personal favorite out of the three, it being funny and somewhat fresh. But compared to Eiga-Sai (Japanese Film Festival) and the Silent film fest, Cine Europa failed to excite me. But that's just me, I know some people who were totally anticipating this Film Fest.

Events to look forward to for the rest of the year: JLPT exams on December and Nihongo Fiesta next year February. There are some "Anime Cons" before the  year ends: U.P AME, Level-Up Games and Cosplay Mania, the problem with these type of cons is that they don't offer much, same old stuff: cosplay, pirated anime merchandise, bands and kpop invaders.

Speaking of JLPT, I really miss studying Nihongo, I already finished my Elementary course and passed JLPT level 4 back in 2008. I hope I will have the time and money to enroll for the Intermediate course soon and get my JLPT certifications asap.

Cine Europa 2011

Yet another Film Festival week ahead, this time European Films! Starting September 9-18 at ShanCineplex in Shangri-La Mall, Edsa cor. Shaw Blvd. from 12nn to 9pm. First come first served basis. For more information check out http://www.shangrila-plaza.com/

Obenkyo

If you have an android smartphone and learning the Japanese language then Obenkyo is a very helpful free software that you can download for free at the Android Market. It has lessons ranging from hiragana to JLPT level 1 kanji, vocabulary and particles. After that you can test what you have learned and they have a very good writing recognition for hiragana to kanji. I'm very impressed with this software, esp. the fact that it comes free, far better than most paid Japanese Language software. Again the name of the software is Obenkyo, just search and download it over at the Android Market. みなさん一緒に日本語を勉強しましょう

Sake Sushi Resto

Sake sushi is a restaurant based on Singapore that serves Japanese cuisine. They have several branches here in the Philippines for two or three years now. The nearest branch to my apartment is in SM North Edsa Anex. Sakae Sushi is famous for their conveyer belt sushi system. Right now they have a P399 buffet for their conveyer that comes with a free miso soup and bottomless cold or hot green tea. The buffet is whole day btw. Come and visit their branches, they have a good crew and nice ambiance.

Nihongo Center Foundation

I suddenly miss my days studying at the Nihongo Center Foundation in Manila. I studied there for two years, from July 2007 up to June 2009. The teachers and the facilities are great. Every year during September they celebrate an Open House, where in fun Japanese related activities like Sumo, tea ceremony and karaoke are held. How I miss those Saturday afternoons.

If you guys are interested, you can visit their webpage Nihongo Center Foundation Manila. I definite guarantee your money's worth.