Japanese Food You Should Try

I'm going to mention Japanese food that's good, bad, and even weird that I think you should try. Japanese food is so unique and different from any other kind of food. It's worth trying even if you may not like it or it doesn't look appealing to you. There are tons of Japanese foods I'm proud to say I've tried, even if they weren't good to me.

Let's start with the good!

Teriyaki Burger

One of my favorite things to eat in Japan. My favorite places to get a teriyaki burger at is Mos Burger (a Japanese fast food chain) and McDonald's. They are sweet and delicious.

Ramen

Ramen can be described as a noodle soup. It's most common broth flavors are pork and chicken. This dish is especially good on a cold night. This soup can be slurped for two reasons. The first is that when you slurp the noodles you are cooling them off as they go into your mouth. The second reason is to show you are enjoying the ramen.

Okonomiyaki

This picture shows the raw ingredients that is in okonomiyaki. It contains cabbage, egg, and pork (in this version it's pork but it can be replaced by shrimp or squid). This food is very famous and can be obtained easily in Osaka, Japan, the food capital of Japan. I have nicknamed it "cabbage pancakes."

Now for the bad, sadly.

Squid

I'm not a big squid fan. I don't like the rubber texture it has. You can grill it, fry it, dry it out, or eat it raw. I've tried the fried squid before in Japan and wasn't a big fan of it. I've tried squid once and that's good enough for me.

Takoyaki

Looks good right? I thought so too, at first. I've seen this dish in anime and dramas. I always imagined it like a crab cake, soft texture in the middle. When I finally got the chance to taste it in Osaka I was surprised. I took a bite to find that there's a piece of the octopus inside the fried batter, not soft like a crab cake at all. I was disturbed by how difficult it was to chew. It wasn't pleasant.

Finally, the weird!

Udon

Udon is another noodle soup but it's different in one way from Ramen. Udon is a thicker noodle that has a slimy consistency. I felt like I was eating worms. I wasn't a big fan of the texture of this noodle, so I kind of avoid udon when possible. It's just a weird food.

There's definitely more food to talk about but these are the ones I brought up for now. I hope you all get to try these one day. I have no regrets with any of these foods because it's all about the experience.

Until next time!

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I Like Anime so I Must Like Japan

I’m talking about this in length because I feel it’s very important for people to understand. Let’s be realistic, it doesn’t work that way.

If you decide to go visit Japan only for the reason of liking anime you will most likely be very disappoint. It's okay to like anime, I love anime, but it can't be the only thing. The reason for this is because your expectations are on a different level. Your journey to Japan won’t be like an anime. Anime is a work of fiction set in Japan. These characters you watch from your favorite anime have lives in Japan. You don’t. You live in your home country and you want to go visit Japan. Some of you may not even have Japanese friends to visit. You will either be traveling alone, traveling with a friend or spouse, or you will be meeting up with a friend who moved to Japan. It will be more comforting to travel with someone or to meet up with someone but some people aren’t that fortunate.

Your mind set will be a big factor for whether you enjoy Japan or not. Japan has a lot to other. It’s a country filled with history and a unique culture. Liking anime will not be enough for you to fully enjoy Japan.

Now, this doesn’t apply to everyone but I’ve seen it happen before.

Story time!

I made a friend in my Japanese 1001 class. She really liked anime, and still does. We became really good friends and we both had the desire to travel to Japan. I was fortunate enough to be able to study abroad in Japan. I had a great time and I’m positive that it was due to my interest in the Japanese culture.

My friend swore that she’d go to Japan one day, and she made it happen before she graduated from college. She planned a two week trip to Japan as her graduation present to herself. She worked all the details out knowing where she was going to go, what she was going to visit, and who she was going to stay with. She thought she’d have a great time in Japan because she would be staying with a friend of ours and that he would be able to take her around. She was terribly wrong! Our friend was an English teacher in Japan and had already started a life in Japan with his new friends. He had no time for her, and I don’t blame him. There are a lot of expectations when you're working in Japan (I'll discuss this in a later post).

She luckily got to see a few of the sights but came home a week early from her trip. She claims it was because she missed her boyfriend at the time. That sounded really suspicious to me and my friends because we all knew she never had an attachment to him. I felt her trip was cut short because Japan wasn’t what she expected. Her hopes were probably too high of it being like an anime. I think I even heard her complain once that Japan didn’t have nachos.

My friend wasn’t mentally prepared to go to Japan. Now that I look back on our friendship I never did hear her mention anything about Japan except for anime. That was probably the flaw in her trip. Now she ruined her whole image of Japan and will most likely have no interest to go back. It’s sad to see that happen to her because I know she has dreamed of going to Japan since high school. I don’t want to see that happen to anyone else. It’s sad to see someone’s dream just crumble like that. That’s why I’m advising anyone who is an anime fan to please give the Japanese culture a try if you haven't already. Research Japanese culture from books or going on YouTube, both are great resource. If you need any recommendations I recommend: Rachel and Jun, Sharla in Japan, Tomoko Tomoko, Micaela, and Texan in Tokyo.

I hope this helped you out and made you think a little bit more about Japan as a whole.

Until next time!

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Plane Ride to Japan

I've been to Japan twice before, and plan to keep going frequently in the future. One of the most difficult things about going to Japan over and over again is the plane flight.

Tokyo airport.

Cost

The cost of the flight is probably going to be the most expensive thing about traveling to Japan. The reason for this is because you can control how much you pay for a hotel room and how much you spend on food, but you can't control the cost of your plane flight. A plane flight to Japan and back to America will range from $1200-$1700. I've been to Japan during the spring and summer seasons. In the summer I spent about $1400 on my plane ticket while when I went in the spring I spent about $1500. I also bought my plane tickets at least 5 months in advance. I've heard that the best way to get a cheaper plane ticket to Japan is to book a flight during the off season. Off season means going to Japan between seasons, so instead of going during cherry blossom season you go after cherry blossom season has ended and before summer officially starts. This will mean you will not be able to see or participate in seasonal events but your plane ticket will be a bit cheaper for those of you on a budget.

For those of you who are responsible adults and have great credit, consider getting a credit card that helps you get points that can go towards a plane flight. My husband and I have a credit card we use to help us rack up points with United Airlines. I've used United Airlines for both of the flights to Japan. This is a great way to decrease the ticket expense.

Length of Flight

This part is one of the hardest things to deal with about the flight to Japan. On average a flight to Japan, including between flight delays, will take about 19-21 hours. Both my trips were about 19 hours. The plane flight back home will be the same length of time. If 19 hours doesn't sound like your cup of tea you can always get a flight that let's you stay in a city overnight before boarding another plane to go to Japan. I rather not waste my time with this because it takes a day out of your Japan trip. The 19 hour flight really isn't that bad, especially when going to Japan. The ride coming back is the hardest just because you know you're going back home so the flight seems like it takes longer even though it doesn't.

There are a few tips I can give to make your flight to Japan easier:

1. Get a good night sleep the night before the flight. If you are tired during your flight you will have to try to sleep on the plane which in my experience is really hard to do and is not comfortable at all.

2. Keep yourself entertained. I know for a fact United Airlines has a screen in front of your seat that can let you watch movies, TV shows, and play games. If none of that interests you I suggest bringing something from home such as a book, magazine, or a portable game system. If you are picky about earphones bring your own because you will most likely not like the ones the airline will supply.

3. Dress in layers. It might not seems so the first half of your flight, but it can get really cold on the plane. Bring a jacket with you on the plane. If you're not a fan of jacket, bring a blanket. The blanket provided by the airline will be a bit small and not as effective as a blanket from home.

I hope these tips make your flight go faster for you.

Food

Since you will be crossing a significant amount of time zones the airline will be providing you with two meals to help you get adjusted to the new time you will be on. The food is average (and this is coming from a picky eater). I suggest for those of you who are picky about their food to bring filling snacks on the plane flight. You will get hungry in those 19 hours and the plane's meals and drinks are the only things you'll get from them.

Please don't let something like a long plane flight stop you from going to Japan, or even another country you've dreamed of going to. I hope this has prepared you for your trip to Japan. Have a safe flight!

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My Favorite Anime

I get asked, "What's your favorite anime?" a lot. It's probably the worst question someone could ask an anime fan. It's just way too hard to pick one to be the best anime. It may be easy to some people, but for me it's just not possible because I love a lot of different anime for different reasons. It's just not a fair question for me. I usually answer by either naming an anime I grew up with like Inuyasha or just say I can't answer. If I were to answer their question it would be really long. They would pretty much get a lecture, it's that long. But it's easy to answer with a blog than talking about it in person.

So here it is, my favorite anime! I'll be naming all my favorite anime from each genre, excluding movie with Studio Ghibli as an exception. Yes, that's how it has to be. Like I said previously I can't name one anime because all my favorites has something to offer that the others just don't have. This list does not have any reflection on the manga. There will be no spoilers in this.
Let's get started!

Action

Kaze no Stigma

The action completes the series as a whole. Fights usually involve elemental powers which is a plus for me. It has other great qualities as an anime that blends in well with the action, nothing seemed forced.

More info: http://myanimelist.net/anime/1691/Kaze_no_Stigma

Adventure

Inuyasha

Inuyasha is a great adventure series. The anime is long, with a total of 193 episodes (not including the movies). Many people complain about the number of episodes but I find it enjoyable because an adventure is supposed to be long. You can see the characters develop and grow throughout the journey. 

More info: http://myanimelist.net/anime/249/InuYasha

Drama

Full Moon wo Sagashite (Full Moon)

Full Moon is an emotional roller-coaster. At times you're happy, then sad. It's like a light switch. I would find myself smiling proudly when the main character got on stage to sing, and then I would cry when circumstances just didn't go her way. You get invested in the main character and hope for the best for her.

More info: http://myanimelist.net/anime/122/Full_Moon_wo_Sagashite

Economical

Spice and Wolf

I had to make up this genre because a lot of anime have been following pursuit of this series, so it deserves its own genre. This anime makes you think in a way that you're trying to predict what the characters are going to do. The two main characters are basically trying to play the trading market. It's almost like they're playing a game. It's very entertaining and a breath of fresh air due to its uniqueness.

More info: http://myanimelist.net/anime/2966/Ookami_to_Koushinryou

Fantasy

Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood

Fullmetal Alchemist had two series. This is the second one, the one that follows the author's original intent. The first one was rushed, making it feel flawed in my opinion. But no matter which series of Fullmetal Alchemist you watch the fantasy is the same. It's a world of science and magic. Things begin to happen that are way beyond one's imagination. It's a fun series with a dark side.

More info: http://myanimelist.net/anime/5114/Fullmetal_Alchemist:_Brotherhood

Historical

Rose of Versailles

This classic shoujo series brings the French Revolution to life. I was never a history buff and history was one of my worst subjects in school, yet I got to enjoy history through anime even though it was stretched out.

More info: http://myanimelist.net/anime/338/Rose_of_Versailles

Horror

Another

I have a weird sense of humor. I find anime horror to be hilarious and cool. Another has a bunch of deaths in it but leaves you wondering the real cause of it all. The deaths are very creative too. For those of you who are reading this but don't like anime there's a novel for Another, so you should check it out.

More info: http://myanimelist.net/anime/11111/Another

Inspirational

Kaleido Star

I made up another genre. It needs to happen though because so many anime have made me wish that I stuck through some clubs/activities in childhood. Kaleido Star is my favorite of them all (even though Glass Mask is right behind this one). Watching the main character try her hardest to get what she wants and works at it leaves me feeling very inspired.

More info: http://myanimelist.net/anime/427/Kaleido_Star

Magical Girl

Tokyo Mew Mew

My reason for giving Tokyo Mew Mew this spot is because it's a magical girl series that would make sense. Every other magical girl series has some magical, fictional creature that bestows girls with powers. In Tokyo Mew Mew the power are given to the girls due to science. I like that difference and it brings a refreshing concept to the magical genre.

More info: http://myanimelist.net/anime/687/Tokyo_Mew_Mew

Mech

Mobile Suit Gundam Seed

Out of all the gundam series I have to choose Mobile Suit Gundam Seed. It's not over kill like the other series. It has a bunch of action, mech fights, and really cool gundams (shout out to Strike Freedom), but it also focuses a lot on the government struggle and the drama between the characters. I haven't seen Mobile Suit Gundam Seed Destiny yet, so what I said is only based on the first one.

And to those who say there are more mech anime than just gundam, you are correct. But I don't find any of those appealing besides Gurren Lagann, but it still has some problems for me. And not only that, but the gundam series made what the mech genre is today.

More info: http://myanimelist.net/anime/93/Mobile_Suit_Gundam_Seed

Psychological

Jigoku Shoujo (Hell Girl)

Psychological can make me think, but it shouldn't leave me hanging without some kind of resolution. That's what most psychological anime do to me, but not this one. Hell Girl is very psychological and doesn't need to use the excuse of being artistic to justify its meaning like some anime do. This anime really makes you think about the good and the bad in people. And I only suggest season one of the anime. The others kind of take a nose dive.

More info: http://myanimelist.net/anime/228/Jigoku_Shoujo

Romance

Fushigi Yugi

This anime gets my heart beating so fast, it's crazy! It's not a typical high school love because it takes place in ancient China. So time-travel plus romance equals amazing! This anime will make you happy, sad, and angry (this can happen all at the same time). It's great to watch and you won't miss out on anything from it's manga counterpart because it follows the exact story.

More info: http://myanimelist.net/anime/123/Fushigi_Yuugi

Samurai

Rurouni Kenshin

There's nothing like a great samurai story. It's historical, it's fun, and you can learn a lot about Japan from it. Rurouni Kenshin is the ideal samurai story. Not only is it a classic anime but it has even inspired Japanese film. 

More info: http://myanimelist.net/anime/45/Rurouni_Kenshin:_Meiji_Kenkaku_Romantan

Slice of Life

Nana

The title Nana comes from the names of the two main characters. They have the same name yet are total opposites. If you're looking for a slice of life anime this is it. These two girls live in an apartment together, so you get to see how they interact with one another and how they have changed each other's lives. 

More info: http://myanimelist.net/anime/877/Nana

Studio Ghibli

Howl's Moving Castle

Studio Ghibli films have become a genre for many anime fans. They bring concepts to their stories that no one anime can bring. My favorite is Howl's Moving Castle (with Spirited Away as a close second, too close). I feel this movie is very under appreciated. This movie keeps my attention and has me on my toes. You'll appreciate Howl's Moving Castle more with each watch. 

More info: http://myanimelist.net/anime/431/Howl_no_Ugoku_Shiro

Supernatural

Chrno Crusade

This anime brings a lot to the table, not just supernatural. But the supernatural parts are what brings this anime to the front of the list. It deals with demons, powers, magical contracts, spirits, religion, and a lot more. This anime excites me and has me on the edge. It's a must watch.

More info: http://myanimelist.net/anime/60/Chrno_Crusade

I hope you enjoyed my list. I totally stretched this list out but there's just way too many anime I like. Sorry if your favorite anime wasn't on here, but that's why it's called "My Favorite Anime." If you'd like to take a look at other anime that I've seen you can go to my profile from myanimelist here: http://myanimelist.net/profile/goddess05991

Also follow me on instagram: https://instagram.com/japantherapy/

Thanks for reading. See you next time!

Tokyopop is Coming Back!

I remember going into my second year of college when Tokyopop stopped publishing manga and closed their website. It was a very sad day for me and many other people. A lot of people gave up on Tokyopop and thought they'd never come back. I didn't give up, but I wasn't very hopeful either. Then I went to Anime Expo last week and found out Tokyopop was hosting a panel. I didn't know what to expect from this panel, what news they could possibly tell me, but to my surprise it was wonderful mews. They're coming back! They have a plan for getting themselves back into the industry and I think it's all a great idea.

Let me start from the beginning.

For those of you who don't know, Tokyopop was, and now is, a manga publishing company. You can only find their books online or at used book stores for now, but back when I first got into manga which was about 10-11 years ago their manga took up a lot of shelf space at book stores. I have some titles from them and still look for more online to collect. They licensed some of my favorite series such as Peach Girl, Girl Got Game, Vampire Game, and Wild Act. What happened to Tokyopop was that they got bankrupt. According to Stu, the CEO of Tokyopop, the bankruptcy happened because he moved too fast with the company. Stu started Tokyopop back in 1997. During that time manga was not as popular in the United States as it is today. Stu had a lot going on with publishing manga, mailing out magazines to loyal customers, managing a forum based website, and publishing original work that was not from Japan. With all that he did and the manga market not being that great at the time you can kind of see how they got into trouble with the business. So Stu had to close down. He sent out a mass letter to all the users of the website (I got the letter). To sum it up the letter said that the company was going bankrupt and that he was moving to Japan. A lot of people took this as him giving up on the company so he could go live in Japan or just him escaping to Japan. This made him very unpopular with people and he is well aware of this, as he as said this at the panel.

But that's all in the past. Now, they're looking to the future and they're going to take it slow this time. The first thing they're doing is creating a mobile app called Pop Comics. Stu got the idea from Japan. In Japan there's a trend going on with mobile publishing. It's a place for people to publish their stories on a phone app for people to read. It's very popular in Japan, and Stu is bringing this concept to America. Pop Comics is going to be in its beta testing phase soon. The people that can use this are people who make their own manga and people who want to read manga. For people interested in using this app it will be free to use for both Android and iPhones. For manga creators, you will have the rights to your work. Tokyopop will not own your work, you own your work. Be on the lookout for more details on Pop Comics if it seems like something you're interested in.

The other news I got from the Tokyopop panel is that they'll start publishing manga in 2016. The reason for it not being sooner is because they need time to obtain titles from Japanese companies. Think about it. When they stopped publishing years ago they couldn't pay the companies they were getting manga titles from. Now they have to build relationships back up with these companies. It's going to be hard because there are other manga publishing companies who have soared in the manga business such as Viz Media, Yen Press, and Kodansha Comics USA. Tokyopop has a lot of catching up to do. They know that too, but they are also aware that they need to take it slow. The manga they'll be publishing are Japanese licensed titles, Hollywood brands, and original stories. For the Japanese licensed titles they'll be obtaining the more obscure and undiscovered gems. If you have any manga suggestions that you know of in Japan that hasn't made in to America yet you can send your suggestions to info@tokyopop.com or communicate with them through their Facebook.

My favorite Tokyopop title.

The last bit of news is they want to go further with their YouTube page. It's not as active as they'd like right now, but they want to change that. One of the guys that works at Tokyopop manages the YouTube account and plans to start doing anime reviews. It's a good idea because reviews are becoming a popular thing in anime. He doesn't have any detailed plans for the review yet but he's taking suggestions for anime.

So look forward to Tokyopop's future. I'm super excited that they're coming back into the industry. I've been missing the manga they brought to the US and can't wait to see what kind of manga they'll be bringing to us. I'll be making suggestions once the time gets closer. I hope Tokyopop gets a lot of support and that they succeed as a business this time.

My AnimeExpo Experience

Going to Anime Expo for 2015 was my first Anime Expo ever. I've been to other anime conventions before such as my small hometown conventions of Mechacon and Louisianime and a big Texas convention called Akon. Akon is the biggest anime convention I've been to before going to Anime Expo. Anime Expo is held in the Los Angeles Convention Center in California, and is known to be the biggest anime convention in North America. It's highly appraised and is compared to San Diego Comic Con in the anime world.

So what was my opinion on Anime Expo? It was okay.

It was extremely crowded. I felt like I was cattle being herded. I had no choice but to go in the direction of the crowd. Not only that but the crowd effected my perception of where I had to be. There were people everywhere! Especially against the walls of the inside of the convention center. They had me thinking they were waiting for a panel since they were by panel rooms, but apparently they were just resting. Yep, if people weren't walking around they made a nice spot for themselves on the floor. Not just the anime convention, but the city itself. Los Angeles is just too crowded with too many cars and too many people. I felt suffocated. My husband was complaining about his bubble being invaded. We were definitely ready to go home by the second to last day of the convention.

I got to meet the industry. I'm really into anime and manga and I follow the company's news all the time to find out what series they're licensing. The big names that were at Anime Expo 2015 were Funimation, Viz, Aniplex, and even Tokyopop made an appearance. This was probably my favorite part of the convention. I got to hear the first of any news and got to see sneak peeks of clips before anyone else. And their booths! Oh those booths. They were more like presentation stands. They were showing clips from their popular anime and had their merchandise in glass cases for everyone to see. If you found something you liked you could buy it then and there. If you weren't interested in buying anything you could always obtain a free poster from them. I think I got more free stuff than actual bought items from the convention.

It had a rough start. On day 1 they didn't open the doors at the scheduled time, or at least that was being said in line. Once I got in the convention my husband and I knew what we wanted to do. We were there to see panels. We probably spent our first hour of the convention trying to find the stupid line for one panel. None of the convention center staff members knew what we were talking about and then the volunteers were always telling us to ask someone else. From crowd chatter we found out panel lines were outside the convention center due to code. The lines were color coded by tape but volunteers still didn't know about what line was for what. My husband and I figured out on our own that one side of the convention center were lines for main events while the other side was for live programming which is what we were looking for. As the next day rolled around the volunteer workers finally got the hang of the line situation but by that time we already figured it out ourselves.

So my overall experience was fine, nothing amazing. As you can tell my favorite part was the industry. I do recommend people go to Anime Expo if you've never went just to get that experience. I don't regret going. But personally I don't think I'll be going back to Anime Expo again. I rather stay at smaller conventions like Mechacon and Akon. I plan to go to more conventions in my life, so I'll be dipping my feet into new conventions all over the country.

Thanks for reading!

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Thanks for the support! Until next time!