Totoro in Southpark

Southpark, you love it or you hate it. Recently I watched a funny old episode of season 11
Imaginationland (2007), where the boys had to save imaginary creatures, such as my neighbour Totoro. Well, I laughed out loud when I saw the Southpark-version of Totoro! Imaginationland is a three-part story that actually won the 2008 Emmy for
"Outstanding Animated Program for One Hour or More". You have to see it, it's funny!


You can find old episodes on www.southpark.nl

Vegetable flute

When I was in junior high we had musiclessons. We had to learn how to play with the flute. And I was kind of good at it as a beginner *ahum*. But it's nothing compared to what this guy does. He flutes with vegetables! Watch his video here at Jumi!

Totoro house in new park (Tokyo)

In Suginami Ward (Tokyo) there used to be a house that was well-known as the "Totoro house", among Ghiblifans. A long time ago Hayao Miyazaki saw this house and imagined the creature Totoro living in this house. Afterwards he wrote a book and introduced the house in it. He labeled the house as a "treasure". Totorofans have been visiting this house ever since. Unfortunately the house burnt down on february 2009.

The Suginami Ward office already had plans to transform the property (with the burnt Totoro house) into a park. And yesterday was the grand opening of a new park!




The ward office built it, with the help of Miyazaki, who sketched and designed the park. With more than 100 different plants and a restroom facility modeled to look like the Totoro house (of the movie), "it has to create an atmosphere that would make visitors feel Totoro would live there". Yep, I definitely have to put this on my travelwishlist!

Source: The Japan Times online, Asahi

RADWIMPS

Ohh I instantly heart this song. So much diverse sounds in one song, luv the composition. It's the song おしゃかしゃま (Oshakashama) by the Japanese band RADWIMPS. I see much buzz in the comments about the lyrics, some say it's hurting religions, some say it's just the bands point of view. I'm nodding with the second. It's a song people, and it effin' rocks.



Click here for an English subbed version.

Le Petit Dragon with Bruce Lee

It's been a very very long time since I saw a golden oldie movie of Bruce Lee. Now he ressurected and has the leading role as a doll in Le Petit Dragon (2009).
Le Petit Dragon is an awardwining stopmotion of Bruno Collet. It is so funny!

Click HERE to watch the film.

Can I have a Fanta Coke please?

If you have visited Japan, you probably have tried Fanta Furufuru. It's Fanta with jellystuff. I tried the grapeversion, and it was a bit strange to eat/drink the jellypieces, but it's jummy. You have to shake it well, or else the jellystuff doesn't easily come out of your can.



Now Fanta introduced a new drink in Japan: Fanta FunMix! It's Fanta mixed with cola. Hm, I don't know what to think about this drink. I like my coke mixed with other drinks, but with Fanta...


In Germany, this fantacoke-mix is already well known as Mezzo Mix. This weekend i'm leaving to Germany, so I definitely going to buy a can of Mezzo Mix. And if I can't find it, well, then I'm going to make my own Fanta Fun Mezzo Mix.

Hellish horror attraction in Korea

Laughing and screaming out loud, because the plastic 'scary' dolls looks so funny and ugly, trying to pull all the woolish strings you feel in your face during the ride. Hm, well these haunted houses in amusementparks are for children, ofcourse. Even though it's not scary for children either. My little niece went to a haunted house, and the only thing she said, when she finished the ride, was: "It wasn't scary at all, those were all dolls!" Huh? She's 4! It's supposed to be scary for small children.

Finally, in Korea they have a new attraction in amusementpark 63City and Seoulland, that actually scares people. It's even not recommended for small children.

It's a 5D theater attraction, where viewers have to sit in a room with a wraparound, ceiling-length seamless screen, wearing special glasses. When the door shuts, the hellish experience begins: stools rotate, mosquitoes, dismembered bodyparts, blood, fangs and a little girl are coming at you. Well the girl looks already scary to me.
Finally a 'real' haunted house, where I might scream because it's scary, not because it's ridiculously funny.


63City
Seoulland

A trip through Japan by skateboard

A couple of days ago Takashi, a skateboarder from Japan, started his journey to travel through Japan (more than 1000 km). He started in Hokkaido and travels through the Touhoku area, Kantou area, Osaka, Shikoku and end his journey at the most southwestern tip in Kyushu, at Kagoshima. His 'small' backpack is the only thing that he takes with him, plus a ferryticket, a letter from his mom, wheels, a bell (?) and some other small stuff.
Well, I quite understand why he doesn't bring that much stuff, because he's not traveling by train or car, but by skateboard!

We wish him good luck on his journey!

Click here to go to Soundboarding Blogspot with updates about his journey.

For Love

Saw it a while ago, but it kept being on my mind so I just had to share this. This little cute animation "Crater Face" was made by Skyler Page, great job Skyler!
Please enjoy!!

International Toy show in Tokyo

Yesterday was the grand opening of the International Toy Show 2010 in Tokyo. This exhibition, at Tokyo Big Sight in Koto Ward, shows around 36,000 of the coolest and cutest toys from companies of Japan and overseas. Today businessvisitors can check out the show, but this weekend it's open for everyone else. So if you're in Tokyo now, you really need to check it out. Free entrance! I wish I was in Tokyo :(

Check the website for more info.

Source: The Japan Times online

Watch Japanese tv *live*

It's now possible for people living outside Japan, to watch Japanese tv or listen to Japanese radiochannels. Keyhole TV is a cool government project, a little program to receive some Japanese channels live on your computer. Quality isn't HD, but it's something! :)
Right now I'm listening FM Osaka♪

You can install Keyhole TV here.

I'm lovin' my whopper...thanks to the music

Fastfoodrestaurants...I still remember those restaurants sitting on uncomfortable hard plastic seats, with its ugly decorated eatingarea, listening to the worst popmusic, trying to eat as fast as I can my whopper and fries and get the hell out of there. Yep, that's ofcourse the concept of these type of restaurants. But while time is passing by, the whole concept slowly changes, providing the customer more and more comfort, quality: soft seats/couches, flatscreens everywhere, wifi-spots and more 'quality food' such as tempurashrimps or onionrings, jummy! Well, it even gets better with this new invention: Personal Music Showers! At a Burger King in Tokyo, they have boots from where you can plug in your iphone/ipod into your side of the wall. And then, your're music comes out from some sort of umbrella with speakers! Because of the design of the 'umbrella', other people won't be disturbed by your music and vice versa. Yes! I'm lovin' Personal Music Showers!

Zulu Nasty reel

Is it the name of the dancer? Zulu Nasty. This is one awesome reel she has. The images fits perfect with the music (XXXO by M.I.A.). Love the camerawork. And her dancingstyle is hypnotic. Hopefully it will get her a new job in dancing. Go Zulu Nasty!!

Banana vending machine

Last year I went to Japan and I was surprised by vending machines offering hot tea and coffee in cans, jellydrinks, beer and also icecream. But now you can also buy BANANAS at the vendingmachine! Last week the bananabrand Dole put the first banana vendingmachine in Shibuya. You can buy one banana for 130 Yen (1,18 euro) or 390 Yen (3,55 euro). Yes it's expensive, but in Shibuya people actually bought a vendingmachine-banana. More than 1000 pieces have been sold in almost 2 weeks!



The commercials of Dole are so funny. For example this one. Hmm bananas shot out from a hero's nose...jummy!

Subway's finally getting real fresh?

'Eat fresh everyday', that's one of the slogans of Subway's Fastfood restaurant..Hm, with the non-fresh smell of ham and cheese in big bowls which isn't cold enough, the slightly sticky cucumbers and lettuce (probably two days old) on my freshly baked bread...No doubt about it, the bread is really freshly baked, but I wish I could say the same about the other ingredients. So 'eating fresh everyday' definitely isn't applicable for the Subway in my city, unfortunately.

But now i've read that Subway will open a restaurant in Tokyo with a lettuce growing unit! Subway aims to set up two or three such restaurants that will use fresh, chemical-free lettuces grown there with a view to attracting health-conscious customers. The new restaurant in Tokyo will have a 6.6-square-meter glass case where lettuces actually will freshly grow under fluorescent lamps and without the use of any chemicals. "Visitors can have the lettuces fresh out of the case for their sandwiches", the company said.

Hopefully other countries will follow this method soon, hopefully also in my city. Until then, I just have to make my own 'Subway-wannabe-sandwiches', with Tunasalad and cheese of the Lidl (good and cheap supermarket in NL) and pre-baked french bread of the Euroshopper (good and cheap brand in NL)...Waiting patiently till the day that I can really eat and enjoy a fresh Subway sandwich.

Studio Ghibli into games

For about two years i'm trying to finish most of my Nintendo DS-games. Now I think it's time for me to 'buy' and play a new videogame. And i might know which one to buy...unfortunately I have to wait till autumn. It's the role playing videogame Ni no Kuni, developed by Level-5 and Studio Ghibli. A couple of days ago I've heard that they will also develop the game for PS3 (launched in 2011). The creators revealed that both versions are being developed separately from scratch, so the data, specifications etc. might be a bit different, except for the actual story.

It's about a boy, who's mom suddenly dies. He's crying and his tears are falling on a stuffed doll his mom gave him in the past. Then something happens and the doll comes alive! The doll tells him he can bring his mom back to life, or well, you, the gameplayer, need to help him. Check out the trailer, it's beautiful!