Cebu Cosplay | Cosplay Harajuku District (HD)

The 2^nd event for this day and one of the few events that was being held at night. Cosplay Harajuku District (HD) was held last October 29, 2011 at the Linear Park, Ayala Business Park, Cebu. It was supposed to imitate Japan's Harajuku Bridge where cosplayers and fashionistas would meet.

The place was decorated with lanterns and food stalls can be found on the sides. I didn't bother taking pictures of the cosplayers I was passing by since I do not like the outcome of the pictures using the built in flash of the camera.

So Cosplay HD started with the live bands. One of my friends was there to play, she sang an acoustic version of 1/3 from Rurouni Kenshin. Never Ending Weekend also graced the event and in honor of tonights theme, their last song was a cover of Rolling Star by Yui. They sounded good but pronounced the lyrics wrong. I can let it pass since I know that they are not Japanese and maybe didn't have enough time to practice. But at least the vocalist memorized the song and the band played real well.

Tuxedo Team

Then there was this actor who was also invited to Cosplay HD and performed a song(I forgot his name). Many didn't care since most were waiting for the Tuxedo Team to show up. And the Tux Team were also the reason why I stayed for this event. I braved the ocean of professional photographers just to get a decent shot of the Tux Team.XD Of course I was a little bit intimidated by them since they got all flashes, lenses and assistants. Hahaha. But never the less, I got some pretty good shots for this cosplay event.

To formally start the event, the emcees were introduced: Chloe and Melo a.k.a Maid Macho. They were a really great combination. They never gave way to silence. Melo is part of the Tux Team. I knew he was a good emcee but I never thought that he was THAT good. He was so funny and he wore a school girls outfit matched with a strawberry knee-high socks and his Japonista foot wear. I can still remember him saying that his friends saw that pair of socks one day and instantly thought of him so they bought it. What great friends! Hahaha.

a not so nice shot of the judges.XD

The Tuxedo Team were then introduced. Dom was cosplaying as Lee from Tekken; Bok was a masked man; Jayem was donning his Black Rock Shooter outfit; Charmie as Sheryl Nome (she is really awesome! She made her own costume); then there was Miguel as Captain Jack Sparrow (he was so in character!); Kat was cosplaying as Juria from Fairy Tail and lastly, Jin as Angela Teach from Pirates of the Caribbean. A loud cheer erupted from the audience(more than the cheer of that actor). Then the judges were introduced. They were   Anne; a very talented photographer, Arvee; a known cosplayer/propsmaker, then Kat and Jin from the Tux Team.

First up were the kiddo cosplayers. There was a Xiayou and Bob from Tekken. That small boy really got Bob's looks! Hahaha. A mini Naruto and a twirling fairy. Then on to the Male cosplay competiton. There were only five of them and the female cosplay competitors were only two. I was just curious why there were only a few contestants.

The group cosplay has three participants. 2 out of 3 performed at ARCHCON. I wonder what stuffs run in judges minds as they witness the same performance in one day. hehe

Comments

-they should not have invited a guest not related to the event like that actor.

-why put a kiddie cosplay at this event. It was held at night and the winner was announced past 11pm(that is past the children's bedtime.XD)
-the organizers handled the event perfectly. They really planned this event well, I can tell by the event flow.
-i just wished that the cosplayers should have worn japanese fashion instead of dressing up as anime character. hehe

Thank you to iluvcebu.com for the complimentary passes.=]

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

I was really happy to see the Tuxedo Team personally that my inspiration went up and as a result, I got really great shots for this event!=D I badly want an external flash.

Cebu Cosplay | ARCHCON 2011

got this here

Animation, Role-playing, Comics and Hobbies Convention (ARCHCON)  is an event organized annually by Sacred Heart and it was held at the old Sacred Heart Campus Gymnasium  last October 29, 2011. This year's theme was post apocalyptic.

This event was already scheduled in my calendar of activities as well as the Cosplay HD to be held on the same day. I always look forward to ARCHCON because my senses say that I will witness some nice cosplays. And so I did. hahaha

Hope and Gama

I was accompanied by my partner in crime(Hope) and we arrived in the venue by 1pm. When we entered the gym, we were greeted by lots of PC's. Turns out, it was a Star Craft 2 Tournament (I think Gama was the one who organized this). It's good to see that there are actual video games being played in the event. There was a Marvel vs Capcom 3 on the opposite side of the SC2 players. There was even a Dance Central thing beside the MVC3.

                                                               Gundam Display                                             Epyon

The first thing you will notice will be the overflowing cosplayers. We visited the Gundams being displayed there. Epyon and Wing were there! Well, I didn't expect them to be there since I thought collectors nowadays only collected the new Gundam series. I also saw a few Nendoroids and I think there was also a figma there. HHmm... maybe I'll ask them to display my figmas next time. I always find it nice to see figmas of the same series on one table.=3 I was also expecting a Ball Jointed Doll (BJD) to be there but I was not able to find it.

flavors for the snow cones

we had blueberry and raspberry

Food stalls were also present. I saw the old dude that was selling Takuyaki along Sanciangko there!=D My favorite food stall was definitely the snow cones! Lots of flavors to choose from and the perfect weapon to combat the heat. There was also a stall selling anime figures(that are authentic), DC and Marvel toys and Gundams. I'm really glad that they decided to  join the event. It made some people aware that you can find authentic anime figures in Cebu. I recognize Paolo, the one who sold me the BRS figma. But I was too shy to approach him. hahaha. Then there were also stalls selling anime merchandises(the fake ones.XD).

the artists' table

There was an artists' alley(or long table) situated in the center(well, not really. but it was close to the center. haha) of the gym. In this part, you can see a line of artists doing there stuff: drawing. I find it really awesome that they can draw in spite of people hovering on their backs and watching them draw. Because I, myself can't stand it. hahaha.

On to the cosplayers. I see some zombies here and there. Many decent cosplayers were around. My favorite was definitely the Corpse Bride. She was sooo blue! I also like the group cosplaying Final Fantasy characters, what made me like them because they were females cosplaying as male characters and they did a nice job.

Corpse Bride=3

I was not able to take lots of pictures because the heat was killing me. The weather was really warm and the place was packed with a LOT of people. It was so hot that it drained my energy every time I roam around. Our snow cones melted in the span of 5 min!

It's a good thing that there were lots of chairs so we decided to just sit and watch the competition. I was not really interested in the Solo competition. For the group competition, I think there were only 3. The Final Fantasy Group and the Devil May Cry Group (I really forgot what was the other group=(. it's the result of writing this blog entry very late). The Group cosplay competition is always more entertaining for me. 

I would like to stay in the venue to take more pictures but the heat was killing us. So we decided to go to Ayala, by foot(because there were no signs of jeepneys). While walking there, my partner in crime saw someone worthy of stalking. We stalked that person but you need to walk in the same pace as your victim. And Hope failed at that. hahaha. 

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

I don't have a perfect vision and was still shooting in manual focus. It's a good thing some of the pictures came out clear.XD Why does it take so long for the Canon service center to call us?

Cebu Cosplay | Cosmosis - A Cosplay Shock Masquerade

This event was held at Robinson's Cybergate last October 22, 2011. The theme was supposedly masks but as expected only a few followed it. It would have been nice attending a themed cosplay event.

At first , I was hesitant to attend this event because I had a feeling that not many will come. But when they announced that AC and Zhel (ToRCH 2011 Champions) would be gracing the event, all my hesitations went away! I had been a fan ever since I witnessed AC's Abaddon cosplay last year. I discovered Zhel since they are of the same circle with AC and Ces. Looking through their photos, you can say that they are awesome!

The event was supposed to start by 1:00 pm. I don't know what happened but it started past 2:00 pm. I really don't like waiting.=/ While waiting, I was scouting for cosplayers to shoot but it seems like they were still not ready. Many were still putting make-up and fixing their costumes. So I just decided to look for a place close enough to the stage.

Kpop Dancers

  Arvee                                                AC   

 

    Zhel                                               Rayland

The event was started by a performance of Kpop dancers. I have seen them a lot of times performing the same moves so I was getting a bit bored. Then the emcees introduced the 4 judges; AC, Zhel, Arvee and Rayland. Later on they announced a special judge: Maki. Then followed by a performance of One Piece cosplayers. I can say that the stage was not properly built. I can't explain very well but as the One Piece performers were doing their thing, the floor of the stage keeps on separating creating a gap in between the stage floor. It's a good thing no one fell in the gap. That would really hurt!

 

GoTenks                                          Spidey

The cosplay competition started with GoTenks. His skit was really entertaining if you can understand Bisaya else it will be very boring. Followed by Spiderman (I forgot the explanation why he was wearing that.). The action moves were really cool especially when he was beating up the bad guy. Then there was the Green Man from the sitcom It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia. All I can say is that he has guts! Next was the Vizard Lisa and a partner (i forgot the character being cosplayed).  

Kpop Singers

After their skit, the judges took a break and a performance of Kpop singers followed. They can really sing well and choreographed there moves perfectly. There was also a confusion in events, right after the intermission, the cosplay competition continued but the judges were still not around. Pppffftt... The event continued with a Romeo and Juliet performance followed by a Deatheater and lastly Ciel dancing by herself.

 

a Deatheater                                            Ciel      

Each time a contestant finishes their skit, they are interviewed by each of the judges which I thought was a little time consuming but later found out that there were only a few contestants for this event and a lot backed out without saying a word to the organizers.  In the end, Gotenks won the competition .

It is nice to know that cosplay events in Cebu are now getting sponsors. There were a lot of mini games like a name that tune and trivia questions about Japan. But I am too lazy to participate.XD I was not able to talk to AC and Zhel since there were busy judging and I was afraid to be a nuisance. But seeing them personally is already enough for me=]

      

 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------

Last August, while watching the ToRCH event in SM. I noticed that the auto focus in my camera was reacting so slow. So I decided to shoot in manual that time. 

And for this event, I switched from AF to MF since I noticed that I was having a lot of blurry shots while using AF. This was one of the worst event shots in my life(not!XD). And to think ZeroThreeTwo asked for my shots to be featured in their website. That was really embarrassing! And they really posted it in their blog.XD

My brother examined the camera and concluded that the auto focus was busted. I was not really worried since it is still covered in the warranty.

Lola's 75th Birthday

My grandmother celebrated her 75th birthday last October 25, 2011 at the Coco Palms Beach Resort, Danao.

Our plan (actually, it was my aunt's) was to surprise her with the place, print out a huge tarpaulin,  her youngest daughter coming to Cebu from Manila and fly her sister from Kidapawan to Cebu. The grandchildren were tasked to make a video presentation for her (it will be headed by An2x and me). I don't actually like tarpaulins printed for a birthday, it looks so common and commercial (it's like you are advertising or something). So An2x decided to just make an image with Lola's face + date and place (it was showed in a projector). What's unique about it is that Lola's image was painted (through Photoshop) by An2x.

I was really excited in making the video, it was supposed to be so awesome but we were not given much time and almost all our schedules conflicted. I was only able to finish the 1st part of the shoot (out of 12 parts). I'm planning to finish this for Lolo's birthday next year. hahahaha. So, we just decided to make a video greeting from each family. For my family, we are all camera shy, so we decided to let our dogs make the video presentation.>=] The video was shot and edited in about 7hrs+ (hours before the celebration.XD)

Morning came and I got only a few hours of sleep (and a freaking soar throat because of the cake I ate the night before). So each of us had to come up with a reason for leaving the house. It is customary for us to pass by our grandparent's house and "amin" and tell them where we are going. Here are some of the reasons:
-my uncle, his wife and their baby son told them that they were going to Bogo
-cousin1 said he was going to look for a dog
-cousin2 said she was going to stroll in the mall
-cousin3 said she was going to enroll (she even wore her school ID to make it believable)
-cousin4 said he was going to apply
-aunt said she was going to Danao (well, it was true)
-An2x said she was going to work
-I did my usual thing when I was going to be late: run towards the gate and said I was going to work.(ppppffffttt!! i left the house past 10am. my work starts at 9am. hahaha)

All that was left at home were my grandparents, mom, brother, cousin5 and aunt2. Aunt2 is known to treat my grandparents or her parents to some fancy restaurant every time there is a special occasion. So she told them she will treat them somewhere together with the people left at home. So off they go in an hours ride to Danao.

We waited for our Lola to arrive at the conference hall so that we can say SURPRISE!!! hahahaha. Well she did look surprised when she saw us. Too bad I was not able to capture it in video because I pushed the button a couple of times(that is what lack of sleep does to you).

We then proceeded with the events :
-video presentation
-another surprise (her sister giving her a bouquet of flowers.) Lola shed tears for this one=]
-lunch. FOOD!!
-song number by cousin6
-blowing of cake (it was actually 75 cupcakes with a candle each)
-opening of gifts
-then they strolled around the resort

The last thing I remembered was waiting to take our family picture. Then the world turned black because I was hungry for sleep.

I somehow regretted sleeping for the entire afternoon. I was so eager to take pictures but my energy was drained because of the soar throat, lack of sleep, slight fever and the burning rays of the sun. >.<

To make myself feel better, I'll share the 1 minute video presentation of Zero and Aki. Hope you'll enjoy ;]

/*pictures will be posted later or never.XD*/

October Cookout at Karissa's Place

To make Karissa's month a bit more special, we decided to hold a cookout at their house since most of the people in her residence would be out for a while >=]   We were looking forward to this event since September.

The planned menu:
Carbonara
Chicken Cordon Bleu Lollipop
Lava Cake
some juice with fresh fruits (ala Moon Cafe)

We bought stuffs the day before the event and I promised myself not to be late. But I was.XD
We also decided to wear costumes and aprons but not everyone did that. Lazy as I am, I decided to just watch them and take pictures and eat afterwards. hahaha.

So we started cooking past 10am. 1st to be cooked was the Carbonara. We were supposed to use An2x's recipe but decided to add some other stuffs (butter, mushroom soup, olive oil) and lots and lots of cheese! We also had help from our little chef Katrina, Karissa's little sister. I really loved their kitchen, so bright and clean, perfect for photo sessions (for the food). We were supposed to cook only 1.5kg of pasta but there were some miscommunication that led to cooking 2kg of pasta.XD

Up next was the Chicken Lollipop. Judy was supposed to be the one in charge but she had some issues and was not yet present at that time.(wink wink) We checked the time and it was almost 12nn, so they decided to just fry the whole chicken wings. No more Chicken Lollipop for us. Nah, who cares! It's still chicken and spicy!!=D

Our drink was the Nestea 4 Seasons. Mixed it in a pitcher and added fresh fruits. It was really nice to look at. There was also a left over Rasberry juice in the other pitcher so we just decided to mix it all and behold!!! a 5 season flavored drink! "LOL"

ITADAKIMASU!!!

The Carbonara was simply delicious but a bit too heavy. Maybe because of the butter and cheese. You can't go more than 2 servings in 1 sitting. The chicken was not that spicy anymore maybe because Katrina squeezed the spiciness off them. hahaha.

After out meal, we just stayed in the dining hall and chat. We were so full that we can't move and I became sleepy.XD

We started making the Lava Cake past 2pm and really had a lot of fun. I think Drix learned a lot of baking stuffs/terms that day. The cake was really yummy but I think there was too much cocoa on in the cup. But I still didn't care because overall, it was really delicious. Hot lava cake paired with vanilla ice cream toped with caramel syrup. So heavenly. hahaha

Just when we finished baking, Judy arrived. hahahaha. We were still in the dining hall till An2x arrived from work. We just stayed there and chat... A LOT. We then transferred to the sala then to the office. And that is where the craziness started.

We started with charades (everyone should see the videos: so hilarious) and then that game where post it is placed in your forehead. It may sound a bit boring when reading it but we really had a lot of fun. And I couldn't forget about that cafe we all wanted to run. *sigh* If only we had a lot of cash.

We didn't notice the time running so fast. By the time we ended, it was already past 12mn. To think some of us have to work the next day. hahaha. The things we do for friends=]

I think this blog entry has only a little bit of life. That is what I get for writing an event that happened a month ago(Oct 16). hahaha. I want to remember the emotions I felt that time that's why I decided to write this entry before everything slips away.XD I should write more often. I still have 3 pending event to write.

/*pictures will be posted later or never! >=] */

Black Rock Shooter the Game White Premium Box

Black Rock Shooter White Premium Box top cover

.... and the horrors I've been through to get this item.XD

The wait is over after almost half a year of waiting for this item to be released.

I bought the Black Rock Shooter the Game White Premium Box at Amiami and was glad that I chose express mail service (EMS) coz it's so fast!XD The bundle was shipped last Aug 26 and arrived in Manila on Aug 28 (why does it have to be a Sunday??!!) and coincidentally, we had the long weekend at that time so all government offices were closed that Monday and Tuesday(the agony of waiting).

When August 31 came, my parcel status changed to "retention" and it's location to PHZONE from Manila. What does retention mean? and where exactly is the PHZONE?? So I did my research and found out that it is already held by the customs and subjected for tariff. That is one of my worst nightmares: customs sharks getting hold of my parcels and charging me with an unbelievable sum of money. And I still don't know where PHZONE is, is it still in Manila or is it already in Cebu...

Days passed and the more I read about Philippine customs and horror stories about the post office in Pasay, the more paranoid I got. I even delve about the Free Trade Agreement in the Philippines and recently found out that Japan is one of the latest countries to participate in ASEAN Free Trade Agreement. So that means the customs can only charge 0-5 percent tax. That is somewhat a relief. Since I already researched on how to compute my possible payment,  I told myself that the maximum amount I will pay for the tariff is 2000php(that is already a big amount).

Paranoia never left me so I did another research and stumbled upon my all time favorite forum : Istorya.net. There, I discovered that retention means that the parcel is already in the local post office and ready for pick-up. I'm just confused why the location is PHZONE not PHZONE7(means region 7).  So that means my package has been sitting there for 5 days! Being paranoid, I imagined that people at the post office are already making ukay my parcel and that some contents are probably missing or damaged. The post office is supposed to deliver a claiming stub to my address notifying me of the package but it did not arrive and I was already excited/worried about my item so I decided to claim them ASAP.

I was already planning to bring 2000 worth of 1 peso coins just in case they ask me to pay 2000php for the tariff. Just to let them know that  I have been saving for this item for a long time and it's not fair to ask for that amount. Nah! I just want to piss them off by paying that way!XD

I was supposed to claim the package last Monday but the weather did not cooperate and it was raining heavily in downtown. So I asked my sister to claim it for me with my mom. I made an authorization letter together with my ID and the printed tracking details.

Tuesday came and my sister texted me that she already claimed the package and there was no other payment aside from the 40php(2-3 years ago, it was only 35php) postal fee. I was so relieved !!=D ( I really don't trust people at the post office)

Now that I'm finished telling my semi-horror story at the post office. Here's what I think about the White Premium Box :

Black Rock Shooter White Premium Box front cover

The artwork of the White Premium Box is really magnificent~ (I'm just a huge fan of Huke's artworks. hehe)

Here's a closer look of BRS and WRS on the front cover  

The White premium Box contains
-Black Rock Shooter the Game for PSP(japanese)
-White Rock Shooter figma
-Black Rock Shooter the Game art book
-Black Rock Shooter the Game limited soundtrack

I only bought this bundle(even though it drilled a hole in my pockets) because of the WRS figma. hahaha. So I'm probably gonna sell the psp game and the artbook + ost.

White Rock Shooter figma

 the art book and soundtrack (front and back covers)

the art book and limited soundtrack

It's already a month since my other parcel was shipped through SAL and still there is no update.=( figma Strength, where are you? =( )


It's about time I publish this entry. I have written this 3 weeks ago and I am just too lazy to post/edit the pictures.XD

maybe my next post will be a review of figmas White Rock Shooter and Strength

P.S. the post office did deliver a claiming stub, 2 days after my parcel was claimed! duh!