Friday 05.22.09Location: 201 S Market St - San Jose, California
Time: 0931
The next morning we went over to the Tech Museum to see if we could catch an IMAX show. We ended up having bad timing since there was a school field trip there and all the shows were sold out. I was able to pick up a few gifts for my friends as well as a keychain for myself. Since we had some extra time before the dealers' room at the convention opened, we decided to hit the mall!
Friday 05.22.09
Location: 2855 Stevens Creek Blvd - San Jose, California
Time: 1020
The mall . . . over 250 stores on two floors. We were only supposed to spend about three hours there, ha! That was not the case. The first place we hit was Macy's to look for some clothes for my mother. We were able to get about a dozen things for her. Some shirts, pants, and full outfits. Next was down to Sanrio, the home of Hello Kitty stuff. I've been collecting that stuff since I lived in Japan and I love to keep adding to my collection. We probably went a little over board there since we came out with two full bags of stuff! After that it was over to SonyStyle . . . my version of heaven on earth. I spent about an hour in there even though I knew exactly what I wanted. A new video MP3 player as well as the new AC Adaptor for the PS3 controller/mic. We ate lunch at the food court, a Japanese place that I forget the name of. This time it was the noise level mixed with a soft spoken cashier and a dash of accent that ended with me ordering something completely different than what I wanted. It was still good though, Teriyaki chicken with white rice and grilled veggies.
Friday 05.22.09
Location: 2855 Stevens Creek Blvd - San Jose, California
Time: 1302
With our time up, we decided to skip some of the other plans we had and continued our excursion through the mall. We found a Coldwater Creek for my mother and bought a few more shirts there. On to the GAP to pick up some jeans and socks for me. Next a doggie boutique to get a prize for Monty. He would have been very upset if I didn't get him something. I came out with a squeaky cow toy and some doggie beer - and a wallet $32 lighter. After that it was up to Hot Topic to pick up a Power Rangers shirt for me and some other stuff. By this time, we had around 8 shopping bags so we called it quits and went back to the hotel.
Friday 05.22.09Location: 150 W San Carlos St - San Jose, California
Time: 1629
After dropping off the goods from the mall at the hotel, we walked over to the convention center. By this time, the cosplayers were coming out in full force. With my trusty Sony Alpha-200 DSLR camera in hand, I sat my mother down at the dealers' room and headed to the cosplay gallery in front of the convention center. Having to dodge a few giant swords, guns, and a pair of demon wings - I made it in one piece, ready to take some crazy photos. Cosplayers from every Anime, video game, and movie you could think of were there. I saw at least 24 Narutos, 4 Solid Snakes, 2 Pikachus, 3 Spocks, 2 Jedi, and way too many people in chains. Also, the picture down below, the one with the purple hair is a guy . . . there were so many crossplayers, I wanted to scratch out my eyes towards the end of it! Not only that, I saw so many things I shouldn't have . . . people need to wear more clothes or at least test out if you can move around well enough without flashing people before hand.
Friday 05.22.09Location: 150 W San Carlos St - San Jose, California
Time: 1658
Once I felt that I had enough pictures, or at least enough scary images burned into my brain, I headed into the convention center to the dealers' room . . . my true destination. I enjoy watching Anime, it's fun to see all the cosplayers, but for me shopping is the true goal of coming to Fanime. With cash to burn and empty bags to fill, I set out to find those golden gems hidden in the jungle that is the dealers' room. It is truly a battle of prices, wills, and love for something that makes up the vicious vibe of the dealers' room. I'm not exaggerating either, it is pure war there! Where the weak will come out empty handed and the strong will get all the good stuff. I was careful not to waste money on the common goods but to focus on the specialty items that are hard to find. Gashapon, rare plushies, and a few pins was what I ended up buying the first day the dealers' room was open. I also picked up my missing volumes of Voltron.
Location: 150 W San Carlos St - San Jose, California
Time: 1754
Next was the Artists' Alley . . . which I shouldn't have gone to. Since it was only the first day, a lot of people hadn't shown up yet. Coupled with some very pathetic looking artists all alone, once you make eye contact, the guilt of walking away without buying something is too much. I ended up buying a Lucky Star drawing, Syaoran bookmark, and a bag completely out of guilt.
Location: 3380 El Camino Real - Santa Clara, California
Time: 1823
After checking in to see how the table top gaming was going and dropping off the goods at the hotel, we headed out to dinner at our favorite place - Mongolian BBQ! Driving out to Santa Clara only took about ten minutes and we soon saw the restaurant. From the outside it looks like a dive, but it's actually some of the best Mongolian you can get in the San Jose area. Filling up on some great BBQ, we went back to the hotel to call it a night and prepare for the biggest day at the con!
