Japan Trip April 4th: Ghibli Museum, B:lily-rose and Cherry Festival

This will be a short entry on which I will expand tomorrow as we have several hours on the train. I got to sleep at 3:00 a.m. and woke up with a fever at 6:30 a.m. but drank lots of water and finally awoke very weak but fever free at 11:00 a.m. Now you may remember that this was the ONE day we could go to Ghibli Museum, so I figured to do that with Linda and see what else was possible after that.

So, a couple days ago it was “Get to Ghibli by 9:30”, then “Get to Ghibli by 10:00.” When I went to sleep it was “Get to Ghibli by 11:00” While this morning, trying to hold up a hairbrush with my trembling arm at 11:30 a.m. it became “Try to GET to Ghibli!” Ghibli studios did Spirited Away, Howl’s Moving Castle, Kiki’s Delivery Service and many other classic (Porco Rosso).

We did the train out there and then took a taxi to the entrance and got our “passes” which were a strip of three frames of original film in a frame. This let us see a presentation in the Saturn Theatre ONCE only. We were also told not to take ANY pictures inside AT all (Haha, how little they know Linda), and had people stationed every few feet to ensure this. Why? Because the Museum is class all the way, it is a wonderland that makes Disney look cheap with rare hard woods everywhere, murals, the original working artists desks with achingly beautiful full drawings covering every wall. And SOME of that is available for a price at the store. But we have seen many replica’s versus originals in art including the Mona Lisa and I say, that nothing could replicate some of the art here.

We choose the Saturn Theatre first because it was in Japanese and I figured to give it a go while I was strong. What we got was an original Studio Ghibli short film, about a puppy (called Polo?) who ran after it’s owner, a small girl and got lost overnight. The little language used was no barrier. There are three original shorts which is why the restriction. It is a small intimate theatre using an OLD projector for effect and here is the roof of this 100 people seating theatre. Cool!
Anyway, seeing an original Ghibli was way cool. I will try to go into detail on the visit tomorrow but for those who have become obsessed with toilets; first Ghibli, built just as the disability legislation went in, is fully accessible. And so, here is the Ghibli Studio wheelchair toilet (and many scary buttons on the wall I did not push!)
From there Linda pushed me back along a stream and the cherry trees to the JR line where we took a train to the Otome Road section to have lunch at B:Lili-Rose. We are not allowed to have pictures inside and have to pay to have a picture with a server (Which we did – it is signed and al). There were three loli and goth-loli at our table and a cosplayer who talked with us and told us where to get Purikuna (photo stickers) and showed us hers. I will go into FAR more detail on B:lily-rose tomorrow but it is a real combo between a sort of “love café” with the “male” attendants patting the head or hugging the regulars and the androgynous/slightly butch scene – it seemed like cosplay as people went in either as “fragile dependant females”, like loli’s or as hip, smoking androgynous females. Of course to us, who came out as lesbo’s in Wales, we weren’t really the “pat on the head” type and when I started, well, being me and making suggestions (like one “waiter” might like to sit on my lap – well that wasn’t the B:lily-rose WAY – oops!)

So after lunch we followed directions from our table mate and find these booths to take pictures and who shows up but the three goth-loli’s (from B:lily-rose) who ask, “Do you want to take pictures with us” and later we are thinking “YES!!!!” but at the time we were trying to figure out where our money went and where are the pictures (So they helped us out)? We were focused and got the pics for the postcards but now are thinking. Which is better a) Beth and Linda or b) Beth or Linda with friendly and dressed to kill goth and loli girls (complete with stuffed bunny carried in front)? Sigh! So we DO have pics of us – but the likelihood of seeing those girls again is slim to none. Sigh!!!!!

Oh well, we went from there to the Cherry Festival at Ueno Park in Tokyo as we were told that this was the LAST day of the festival and to go after dark. Well, there were cherry blossoms, there were lots of lanterns and crossed dressed business men and LOTS of drunk men. And that’s it. Have still to figure out the mystery of the cherry blossom obsession except maybe as bonding experience and time when people can get drunk all together in public. Dunno. We came home and going to bed early and either off tomorrow to find Naughty manga or to get gifts for people.

As for me, is there really ENOUGH dirty manga in my life yet? No, I think not. While we, on day 3.5 in Japan have an entire BAG of stuff for people (Y’all better appreciate this people!). So I am pushing for a little return to Otome Road to actually see the shops, and Linda wants more pictures from the photo booth machines where all instructions are in Japanese and we haven’t the slightest what we are doing and the “photo sets” are called things like “Spunky Girls” or “Mint and Chip” (?????) – wait for the postcard to see.

Off to bed early, a really nice day and not anything particularly cultural but a sense of Japan AND an original Ghibli film. Not too bad after all.