Just thought I would throw this in if the title didn’t catch your attention ^^.
I can’t believe that I actually went on a Lucky Star pilgrimage, partially anyways lol. This was even before episode 21 came out which had half of the episode focus on the san nensei’s (third year/senior for high school) field trip to Kyoto. For those who have seen my Japanese vacation posts, then you will notice that its the same pics as before and a few I never added. Lol, a Lucky Star Pigrimage that I actually undertook while in Japan that I didn’t even know of, what a coincidence. If I watch Onegai teacher then I might take a pilgrimage for that anime as well.
The girls are currently in a temple area around deer park in Nara
I’ll say this again, those deer at deer park are a bit dangerous, especially if you don’t reach the height of 5 feet. For those deer are big and they will bump up against you (Poor Tsukasa) and harass you for food. If you’re nice and feed them, that is if you have food in your hand otherwise they don’t even notice you lol, then no harm will come. Don’t try to run away from them if you attracted a group as they will chase you down, I saw this happen to a Japanese woman who got chased down for food, though they shouldn’t tackle you like Tsukasa. Be nice and friendly to the deer and they will be nice and friendly back to you.
Kinkakuji Temple was nice to visit and the first place I actually saw other gaijin (foreigners) lol. There’s some nice picture spots other than the temple itself that make very nice photos. There are also a few coin tossing areas around the park area surrounding the temple, got to get rid of a bunch of one yen coins I had that was bulging my wallet ^^.
This is Kyoto’s River Bank (?), great for couples. I practically saw couples for the whole stretch, also friends hanging out, and a few lonely guys. There are tons of shops and restaurants around the area. What’s interesting is if you want to eat at one of the restaurants along the river bank, the entrance is through a narrow passage that has a very old Kyoto feel to it. Take a chance to visit it if you can.
If you’re into shopping and I mean super shopping, go to Shinkyogoku-dori street which has tons and I mean tons of shopping to do that would probably take more than a day to explore everything. This place was full of people, mainly the younger crowd from 15-30, that go around shopping for clothes, shoes, accessories and much more. If you’re hungry, you can find fast food to traditional Japanese food. For you otaku out there, I found a Gamers while I was there and it was full of anime goodness wall to wall. Everything from magazines of all types, figures, ero games, dvds, and more. I also found a cool arcade with what looked like some of the latest games, though most of it is dedicated to pachinko which is only for the 18+ crowd. There’s also a nice food market thats connected to this “shopping district” called Nishiki Market (Note: I didn’t even know about Shinkyogoku and thought I was heading only to Nishiki Market as it was marked on my “tourist map”, shows you never know what kind of treasures you’ll find).
Now for some other interesting tidbits from episode 21. Kagami is starting to notice boys as she just received a note from one to meet her alone at night through a message left on her bag (OMG, No…No…Kagami-chans mine, lol j/k)
(Phew) False alarm, just some guy wanting a cute coin purse/pouch character Kagami bought as he’s too “manly” to buy it himself, leaving a rather shocked Kagami….
Into a slightly angered one we all love ^-^.
Can someone say septuplet? This woman is everywhere in Lucky Star, now we know why ^^.
This was hilarious and the best part of episode 21. couple episodes earlier, Akira sent Minoru out to Fuji-san’s (Mt. Fuji) to get her some Fuji water from the source which Minoru was forced to go through. Now we see him again, all scratched up, bruised, dirty, unshaven, and clothes torn though I believe his tan is excellent ^^. He actually comes back with the water and hands it off to Akira to drink, but she throws it back at him because its warm and Minoru finally snaps (I knew it was bound to happen).
This episode made me laugh to tears :’)
Konata is just awesome, and this Lucky Channel was perfect haha. Minori loosing self-control, wonderful
Great pilgrimage haha. That’s good to see all those references in anime for real. Would love to have the same trip
I also remember a bunch of pictures representing all the backgrounds used in Suzumiya Haruhi no Yuuutsu. Quite interresting.
Heh, Shiraishi’s rampage of death was definitely the highlight of the episode.
Great pictures, by the way! I like the side by side comparisons a lot. Only one thing, though…
You have a screenshot of the Lucky Star cast standing in front of Ginkakuji (The Temple of the Silver Pavilion), but your photo is of Kinkakuji (The Temple of the Golden Pavilion).
Like lu-k and Orion said before me, Shiraishi in mad Robinson Crusoe mode (He was so much in it, he didn’t even take the time to give a better appearance of himself when back on TV) was one of the most important parts of this episode.
Well, a life-threatening trip to Mt. Fuji for a simple bottle of water (even if it’s the purest) that gets thrown back at you like some vulgar trash in mere seconds… Seeing all the fruit of your efforts wasted for that effect and witnessing the arrival of some rival/replacement… I would have snapped big time too.
Frustration also comes to Kyo-Chan… *Erm* Kagami-Sama, when she falls in love (so cute) and realizes that the guy is only looking for her keychain… Somehow I felt relieved, I wonder why. Love is the best and the worst thing on Earth and this scene comforts me in this idea.
Like Konata said, female anime and game characters remain often single to keep the audience much present (You could be disappointed seeing your center of attention being taken away by a random guy, even if she is unreachable/oblivious to you or that it’s not for real *Insert “OMG of truth” here*. Ah, dreams…)
Another moment of cuteness comes from Tsukasa when she feeds the deers (I definitely prefer her going for random things like that rather than asking her sister for copying lessons).
Is it fine to feed them like that? My father one day screwed up big time by giving some tortillas to wild goats at Yellowstone Park *insert another “OMG” here*. I told him he was dearly wrong doing that (I’m never listened at, anyway) and drivers behind him began to horn (I felt them).
It’s all about animal dependence, with the risk of them turning into real beggars (same goes for Zoos and so on) that could chase you to death, or become literally fat, or even go for trash-hunting. Poor Tsukasa.
I love nature, but I prefer to keep some distance for it to remain genuine, untainted, etc. but also for neither me nor the animals to end up hurting each other (You never know!).
Other notes that I won’t develop here for not flooding: 1) I just love how backgrounds are made. Usually they are not noticed because the action sets up in the city, but look at the second picture of this post and look at the background. Almost looks like the real one copied-pasted in photoshop. Real art, I’d say. ^_^
2) This recurring woman (generic character?) is kinda freaky, but it’s her male-ish voice that is the strangest. And having clones doesn’t help. At all.
3) “This is the main and those must be… options!” Great moment there. Kona-Chan surely can’t give up her otaku side, even in a Buddhist Temple!
AS, you forgot the Haruhi soda commercial (Wow, bouncy! Just kidding, don’t look at me like that…!)! Definitely a moment to remember for all otakus there.
Lucky Star 21 is one of my favorites alongside the comiket episode because of reasons you mentioned above. I was actually hoping that Kagami’s story would actually end up with her having a serious interest, but just seeing the moments leading up to her meeting were great. I really don’t like most of the Lucky Channel segments, but this one was pretty funny, the look on Minoru’s face when Akira throws the water on him is priceless!!
Your pics from your Japan Series comparing them to the Lucky Star episodes are pretty cool! I’ll probably visit the ones you mention, but I’ll probably spend my whole time at Akihabara. ^_^;
Three more episodes to go.
@lu-k: Lol, I loved my pilgrimage that I didn’t even know I was undertaking. This was the best Lucky Channel so far in my opinion XD. I will have to look up the Haruhi pilgrimage, might take that one up one day.
@Orion: Well you caught me >o<. I never went to Ginkakuji but I had a Kinkakuji pic so I thought “Hmmm…let’s see if anyone notices” which you spotted ^-^, guess it was bound to happen lol.
@D_Blade: Maybe you felt relieved because Kagami’s someone who you would go for in real life, thats the situation for me anyways lol. It’s alright to feed the deer for its not like they’re caged in some zoo where they’re pampered and snacks are just a bonus. The deer live freely in the park and feed on the large amount of grassy field in the huge park. I guess you could say they are “caged” in the fact that they don’t go outside of the park, I saw a deer come out of the park only to jump back in for there is no real grassland outside of the park as its all residence/business. They sleep outside and in terms of being pampered I guess it would be getting nice treats from visitors and the park staff cleaning up their poo. The reoccurring womans voice could be a bit more woman like and I believe the same voice was used for the “women” vendors from the Comiket episode which freaked me out.
@Otaku Surf: The Comiket episode was pretty cool, hope I can go some day and be buried in the sweat clouds of other otaku lol. I too would spend time in Akiba but maybe no more than 1 1/2 days to 2 days as there is much more to Japan then otaku stuff. I suggest you go out and hit other cool places like Harajuku on Sunday’s to do some people watching for many people dress up in outfits, mainly gothic lolita, which are very elaborate and nice looking. Shinjuku is also a cool place to hang out for the younger crowd. You could also go for historical and check out the places I went to or other places like Fuji-san, Okinawa, Hokkaido, and many other places to get the feel of the culture.
Well, Kagami is my favorite character of the main cast. I especially like when she lets her hair free… *ahem*
Even if she is a tsundere, she never does react without a good reason (Konata’s antics would surprise me a lot too at times).
Otherwise, the odd woman was also present as a waitress in the all-you-can-eat pastries shop, which was also a hilarious moment. “You will have to pay for what remains in your plates”… Buffets can be torture sometimes, when you are too much on the avid side and don’t want to waste food after.
Those deer have an easy life. Eating good grass, getting treats from visitors and having their feces cleaned by the staff.
For the picture, I noticed that too (first things I noticed were the windows and the color) and I was wondering if the Lucky Star team had it wrong. But the mistake was from our dear AS. *laughs*
AS, Great comparison otherwise. I would go boast to everyone if I were you about visiting those places… or maybe not. But I’d be quite proud of myself for going there.
Yeah, I went to the same places last time in Japan
And it is okay to feed the deer, they sell food specially for the deer.
And as mentioned before, That is indeed Ginkakuji (with a G), the silver pavillion, and not Kinkakuji. I didn’t go to the silver pavillion as I was only 1 day in Kyoto and it’s not that beautiful as the golden one
I do would like to find that Kyoto Animation studios though ;p Been doing some research to find it, got train station and neighborhood, but to find the exact block is proving difficult ;p
Shiraishi Minoru was really awesome here, grabbing Akira-sama like that. Just wonderful! ;p
@D_Blade: I love to eat at buffets, but what you said happens all the time and makes me wonder when I should stop every time I go out and eat at a buffet. What I want to try is the desert buffet the girls went to, it’s more towards women but who says a man can’t enjoy his sweets too ^^. I have told my friends about going to Japan which they seemed to enjoy me telling them about, especially the ero parts lol.
@Peter: I wonder if you saw the same older woman selling the deer crackers for I believe 150 yen for a small stack. Hmmm…animation studio, might check it out next time if I can go inside, let alone find it lol. Finding a certain place in Japan can be quite difficult, even with maps.
I am not craving for buffets myself. To make your fee acceptable mentally, you literally have to stuff yourself up (”until you can walk no more”, one of my cousins quoted), meaning you should be starving to a certain point before proceeding. Quite the shock treatment for the digestive system.
Not only it is a bit painful to be completely empty then completely full, some buffets have food that can be a bit… lacking in freshness.
I still wonder how they make profit with all those losses.
Anyway, for the dessert buffet, it is more about calories and fat that you should watch out for. “Tasty, tasty~!!”, but when you look at the weighing scale after that, I guess it’s all about crying and weeping. Oh well.
A type of food is much tastier when you haven’t eaten it for a long while. With this fact and the idea that I rarely go outside to eat, stopped eating certain types food (bye bye ramen noodles, frozen food, red meat, sweets, pastries and ice cream) and that I carefully check the ingredients I will cook (especially trans fat)… You get the idea.
Sorry for straying from the main discussion there. ^_^;
*types of food.
Another point I missed to point out in the main discussion is that it is amusing to see the striking contrast between really traditional temples, rituals and customs and on the other hand (and coexisting with the former) the otaku culture and shops, not to mention gambling.
This is a side of Japan that always fascinated me, since the start.
@D_Blade: Your cousins quote used to be my slogan for buffets lol, but I have grown up and realized more about my health which really sucks since I have to watch what I eat. I wouldn’t mind trying it once so I’ll take on those calories, sucks for Kagami though for every time she eats sweets she seems to gain weight, poor girl. I like cooking actually, but I don’t like cleaning up after I cook though lol. It’s true that certain foods I stray from do taste so much better when I haven’t had it for a while. Costco pizza I tend to stray from because of the amount of oil they use, but when I tried it again after half a year I was amazed at what I missed out on.