I've been to Korea several times to see family and such, and it was the same as usual: fun and relaxing, and got spoiled by the relatives XD

Japan though, was a first, and I only got to stay for 4 days, but man it was amazing :D

I did most of the things that I had wanted to do, so I'm totally satisfied.

Just, I wish I could have stayed longer, or maybe even have been there for Arashi's lives! Too bad school starts on the 31st *cries*

Anyway, since everything I did in Japan had something to do with Arashi, I figured anyone who still reads my VOX would be interested XD

Arrival. We landed around 6 PM, and went straight to Keio Plaza Hotel.

Keio is a pretty good hotel- the rooms are small compared to hotels in Korea & America, but it makes up for it with the cleanliness and practicality. I just adored our room to bits.

Situated in the middle of Shinjuku, my mom and I decided to just walk around the hotel to get the atmosphere of Japan XD Well, the atmosphere is hot, humid, and crowded. Nevertheless, I was all :DDD while looking around.

Our cute little hotel room and the awesome view!

We ended up just stopping by the nearby Lumine department store, eye shopping, eating dinner (my mom got curry and I got omurice :D The restaurant was so modern and chic too, but I didn't want to take a picture, because we were seated very close to other people, and I didn't want them to get the wrong idea :P) and getting a couple of magazines of course XD And thus, tired from the flight, we retired to our hotel very quickly.

But that's not all! I realized that it was a Thursday, meaning: HIMITSU NO ARASHI-CHAN!! I was soo excited to watch my very first Arashi TV show on a LIVE TV XDDD

It was such a good episode too :D I woke my poor mom up in a frenzy, pointing at the TV, just repeating ARASHI! ARASHI! IT'S ARASHI! I ended up squeeing and watching alone in the end though :P

I had set my heart out to go to Harajuku and visit the Johnny's Shop for today. Although I knew that it was a short distance if we just took a train from the Shinjuku station to the Harajuku station, but I'm really spoiled and hate riding trains/metros XDD So we left around 9:30 and took a taxi, and the cabbie dropped us off right in front of Takeshita street. Of course, I was all :O at all the bustling people and music and idol shops. But, knowing that it's like war getting into the Johnny's shop on a summer morning, we walked straight to the queuing area. Grabbed a ticket, and whoopdee, it said that I would be able to get in at 11:00

The view while queuing, and my ticket to heaven!

So in the end, we only had to wait about an hour, since we got in at around 11:05, amazingly. But still, it was H-O-T. So it actually felt like an eternity. But we waited and waited and waited, and when they called up the people with 11:00 tickets, I was one of the first in line :D When we got into the shop, I made a b-line towards the Arashi wall and just started writing like a mad man on my little sheet. And I swear to you, the Arashi space was the most crowded and ridiculous area of the store @_@ And as I was trying to take a look at the available Beautiful Days photos, some girl was just standing there for ages and blocking the view. But somehow, once I got in line, I got to the cashier rather quickly. I bought a set of Nino's Strangers on a Train postcards in case they were sold out at the theater, and ended up with this many photos:

Lol, let's just say that people aren't kidding when they say you'll be killing your wallet when you go to the Johnny's shop. I got a couple of Nagase pictures too~ 

Afterwards, we ate lunch at a nearby italian-ish buffet, though it was annoying because the pasta kept running out each time I would try to get some :/ So basically, thus far, we haven't really eaten any Japanese food haha.

Anyway, after lunch, we went to Takeshita to look around and shop some. 

I read several fan accounts of their trips to Japan, so I was already on the lookout for a couple of honorable mention idol shops (Like the one that's on the second floor in the building with the sign that says something about the West Coast, with fire XD And the one above the LOVELEX (sp?) lingerie shop- that one is total win) I managed to pick up Arashi's 2000 - 2001 Calendar for a decent price, and Matsujun's individual Pikanchi post card<3 I wanted to cry when I saw the prices for their DVDs though (75000 yen for 5x5? *dies*) I really wanted to get the AAA 2006 Limited DVD, All or Nothing DVD, or the 5x5 Limited, but they were all outrageously priced. So in the end, we just walked around a bit more on Takeshita. I was looking for BookOFF which is apparently right at the end of the street, but as we were looking, a really strong squall came down, so we just went back to the hotel. I got to take a shot of the AU building right across the street though!

The big window part of the building was promotion for 24 Hour TV though, not the usual huge Arashi pictures D:

So in the end, after all the waiting and struggling at the Johnny's shop, and running around Takeshita, my mom was understandably tired, so we went back to the hotel and picked up some instant noodles for dinner. All in all a successful day nonetheless~

Today was decided as the day to completely set aside to visit the infamous Keikarou! After waking up that morning, I wanted to watch VS Arashi so we decided to leave right after the program. I was all "Omg its Yankumi's first crush!" at the guest XD The older guest looked totally familiar but I can't quite place which drama I've seen him from :/ Anyway, so we ended up leaving the hotel at around 1:45 pm. After arriving at Shinjuku station, we somehow managed to buy our ticket to go to Makuharihongo, the stop where Keikarou is located at in Chiba. 

Why hello Nagase! XD Nagase accompanied us all the way to our stop, which really did take about an hour.

Using the awesome directions from this wonderful post, and following some other girl with her mom that I suspected was also going to Keikarou, we made it!

But alas, God wouldn't let me see Aiba momma so easily. I realized that Keikarou closes from 3 to 5 pm for the transition between lunch and dinner, and that's basically right when we got there. We ended up going to some small take-out restaurant across the street to kill time. Around 4:40 we made our way over to the restaurant and lo and behold, I see like 2406734784 million fangirls standing outside T_T We quickly got in line and sat outside for about 10 minutes when a tall skinny woman walked outside and shouted some greetings and instructions. All I could think was "OMG AIBA MOMMA" so I had no idea what we were supposed to do. Luckily, I caught on, and she was going down the line, taking peoples names and how many people in their party. When she got to me, she smiled this 1000 watt smile, waiting for me to give my name, and so I just blurted out "Shin!" using my last name. Since that's not really a last name in Japan, she kind of got confused and asked "S-shin san desu ka?" And I just went "H-hai...". She just nodded her head, jotted us down, and smiled again before she walked back into the restaurant. As I was excitedly explaining to my mom that that was Aiba's mom, she walks outside again and says something along the lines of "There's only enough seats at the moment to take in the people up to [someone's name]. So from Shin-san and back, you're screwed until these people finish eating." Something like that XDD I was sad since we were waiting since 3 pm but we resumed waiting. A couple of minutes later, Aiba mommy reappears and shouts someone's name, probably someone who had made reservations. There was no answer- so she turns to me, and lets me in :DDD Thanks, whoever you are, that didn't show up for your reservation! We got to eat within the first batch of people after all~

The restaurant was actually bigger than I had imagined but at the same time very cozy and cute. There was pictures of wild animals everywhere, lol, and all sorts of Arashi stuffs. As I was looking around and taking pictures, we were handed menus. I remembered that outside the door into the restaurant, there was a sign in korean that said a korean menu could be provided if desired. So we called over Aiba mommy and I asked in broken Japanese for a korean menu. She gasped and asked "Ah! Kankoku-jin desu ka? Annyeong haseyo! Matte kudasai~" Basically meaning that she was surprised that we were Korean, and she said hello to us in korean :DDDDD I was just dying in happiness. It was like Aiba saying annyeong haseyo to me, for reals. So after she gave us the menus, she disappeared for the rest of the night into the kitchen. Instead, I got to stare at Aiba baby brother! XD He's basically the splitting image of Aiba if Aiba were chubbier. So cute!~ He has a really high voice though :P If I remember correctly, Aiba said that his baby brother was planning on taking over, so it made sense that he was active throughout the night serving people. Anyway, we ordered the 5000 yen dinner set which included a whole bunch of food that I don't remember. It was so much food. And my mom was so surprised that it was only 5000 yen for both of us, because there was so much. And it all tasted really good! Seriously, no bias XD My mom was very happy about the food and price, so I was even happier :P It was like Aiba was getting approval from my mom or something. Anyway, by the time we were leaving, it was a little after 6, and the line outside was ridiculously long. And it was 95% girls who were obviously there for Aiba. We couldn't finish all the food so we got a box, and I was happy to get a Keikarou plastic bag with it XD I even kept the receipt, and the business cards they gave us when we were leaving :D Pretty much awesome.

Last day in Japan. My mom said to make it count, so I decided the game plan would be to stop by the Tokyo Globe, go to the TBS Building & Akasaka Sacas, and shop on Takeshita one last time.

The day was already starting out excellent with my excellent breakfast:

You're welcome Nino & Jun XDD

I needed to stop by the Tokyo Globe to buy pamphlets for some people. I was already bummed out that I couldn't get tickets, so actually going to the theater and seeing those lucky girls walking in was even more discouraging. But I did get to take some pictures of the huge Nino!

Nino was somewhere in there at that time guys! It killed me thinking about that T_T We bought the pamphlets, I cried inside a little more, and then we made our way back to the station. 

We almost got lost, but we made it! I really wanted to check out the TBS Store for leftover Smile goods or something, but they were all gone D: Just a whole bunch of Crows Zero 2 and Rookies the Movie goods. Oh, and some overly priced Hana Yori Dango Final keychains :P Then we went into Akasaka Sacas to go to Tsutaya. There was a whole bunch of Arashi CDs I needed in the Rental section, so I was disappointed. Instead, I only got to get the Time Regular Album. Yes, it took me this long to buy it. I had a Korean edition, but I collect Japanese editions, and I didn't want to pay for shipping XD We made our way back outside and looked around at the random attractions & displays.

We went inside the TBS building, and as I quickly scanned the area for anything Arashi related, I found these displays all the way on the side around a corner:

Hehehe, a jersey that Nino wore for Himitsu! You have no idea how much I wanted to steal that. And the belt. And the Maou box set. And the Ryuusei no Kizuna curry :P

After leaving Akasaka, we took a train back to Harajuku to do some last minute shopping. I had been really careful up till now to not spend my money, and seeing as it was my last day, I decided to splurge. We went back to the idol shop on top of the lingerie store, and I bought the How's It Going Limited CD and the completely packaged Pika*nchi Life is Hard dakedo Happy First Press DVD set. That thing cost a pretty penny. Let's just say I had 1000 yen to my name afterwards. I was kind of bummed about the HIG CD I bought because I only realized when I had gotten home that it was missing it's obi, which is important to me. I'll probably keep this one until I find one with it's obi, and then resell it.

Also because it was our last day, and we had been eating pretty cheaply, my mom decided that we should eat something Japanese authentic, and expensive. So we settled on a shabu shabu restaurant in the hotel.

It was pretty good, but I'd pick Keikarou over it any day XD

And thus, with a flight back to the States the next morning, my wonderful trip to Japan ended.

Definitely going again when I have the chance. And next time I will get that 5x5 Limited Boxset *shakes fists*

Also, as an added bonus, my mom is finally convinced that Arashi is actually popular XD Before we came to Japan, she just thought that I was overly obsessed with them and completely biased into thinking that Arashi is huge. Now that she's seen the Arashi crowd at the Johnny's shop, the girls at the Tokyo Globe and the girls at Keikarou, my mom has decided that it's just not me that's insane XD Which is always a good thing.

Plus, I think I drank like at least 10 bottles of Pepsi Nex while I was in Japan. You're welcome Jun<3

My upcoming trip to Korea/Japan really motivated me to do this, but I'm thinking about just making it a regular thing ^_^ So if anyone's interested, since I'm pretty sure there'll definitely be at least a couple pictures of Arashi-related things while I'm in Japan, please feel free to take a look~

I...kind of abandoned my vox huh.

I guess blogging just kind of got boring to me. BUT!

Some happenings have been, happening, that makes me want to share to the world!

Too freaking bad Arashi won't be having a concert or something 

Happy happy birthday Keio-kun! Had nothing better to contribute, and I received this recently, so since it was Sho-chan's Honey and Clover theme song, I figured I should scan the pretty pretty pictures inside<3 Aozora Pedal 1st Press Regular Edition CD. Enjoy!

Only scanned the Arashi parts.

Please don't repost as your own.

<3

And a new year calls for new things, so look what I worked really hard for 2 hours to do!:

Purple hair! *squee* I've done purple highlight extensions before, but not dyed, so it's new. *adds to list* I'm trying to dye my hair every color possible, you know, just for funsies~ I've got down black (natural hair color), red, brown, yellow, orange, blue, and now purple~ Next challenge: green?!

Anyway, even though it's super purple under a good bright light, it's super-plain in normal lighting, meaning it just looks black to me. Although, my mom claims it still looks crazy purple, she's even worried that my manager might have a fit about it XD I'm thinking of doing a new cut as well. I love changing my hair, and it feels a great way to start 09!

I've also scanned this:

:DDD I bought this original VHS of Shinjuku Boy Detectives from someone at je_sales for like $20 USD~ Although, it says 4800 yen on the spine :O I love me some super-chibi-Junba! Even though the movie itself is kind of a laugh :P You guys should check it out if you haven't yet, when you're feeling down. It'll make you lol in no time from the ridiculous ^_^ It's been subbed and is floating around on the web as usual~

Okay, enough blabbering. See you guys in the new year!

I'm truly sorry to Riidaa for just completely not even leaving a message on his birthday, but these days its been hectic for me *facepalms* And I just missed Masaki's birthday in Japan anyway, although it's the 24th still here in the US.

I meant to post this by the 24th of Japan, but yeah, missed it by a couple of hours huh?

Anyway, so this is both Satoshi and Masaki's birthday gifts and my christmas gift to you all~

Thanks to those who haven't deleted me XD

AnS, I love you, forever and ever<3

My Junba-loving heart was totally not prepared for this, I literally yelped out, you know, at 11 PM, in a quiet house.

The whole freaking episode is love.

Aiba's really really really bad test to see if each person was awake (aka- jabbing people with a painbrush), Sho's reaction to said jab in the face, Ohno just being a cute little 28 year old who looks 5 years old trying to sleep, Nino's amazing magic trick (he IS getting really good!) and constant abuse of Aiba, and of course, Jun's nerdy manga-loving self XDD <333 I love it when AnS runs out of money for shows~

Scanned it just for you lovely people!~

My favorite out of them all :DD So cute, I just wanna pinch those cheeks! XD

More Junior goodness, with a side of Yoko, Tsubasa, Tackey, and someone that I don't recognize!

I love all the shop photos from this set, I want to collect them all~ I don't know how many there are, but I definitely want the one of Jun actually taking a bite of whatever he's eating.

And lastly some random assorted Matsujun photos (looks terribly skinny in the middle huh)~

And I took this quizzie, stolen from aatash@LJ, and I was pretty surprised at the accuracy.

Tell me your result!

I'll be scanning the LEs of truth / Kaze no muko e in a couple of minutes for another request if anyone is interested ^_^ Done! Find them here!