Your AKB48 Experiences

Brilliant report Cristafari, always a pleasure to read.

 

Wow, that is quite a lot, what are you going to do with your extra CDs? Lugging them back on your luggage might excess your weight....

I'm always curious how foreigners do to their extra CDs during events.
Last year I bought like almost 40 copies of Labrador single, and gave away half of them to the hotel staff, free promo for the girls, throwing away will be a waste so I rather give them away. The cleaning lady was very happy when I gave her 4 copies, one of each type, she was like'' are you serious, are you really giving me 4 CDs? Don't you wanna keep them?' I replied her that I bought many of it, and I can't carry them back to Singapore, so I would rather be the lovely Santa.

Mine was the regular versions, mainly bought them for the insert photos and voting tickets, still not that bad, considering one voting ticket could costs around 900 yen(bulk price) or up to 1200yen(from separate auctions/sellers), I treat it as paying an extra 500yen for photo.

 

Well, I guess I'll chip in with my first ever 2-shot event.

I attended the Rhodes 2-shot event in Intex Osaka on Sunday. Flew over from Nagasaki the day before, met up with friends, marvelled at the view from the 60th floor observatory of the Harukas 300, had Italian, checked into my hotel in Tennoji some time after my intended bedtime. Still, I was able to make a plan at some point that night.

Next day, I headed out towards an unknown future on a small Subway breakfast. Nakafuto Station is the closest station to Intex Osaka, and the trip only took just under 40 minutes from Tennoji. Rain was predicted, but rain did not happen, thankfully, until much later when I was safely under a roof. Intex Osaka is just a few minutes stroll from Nakafuto. The security check at the entrance was painless and I was soon among a sea of people.



I had an appointment from HKT Team H's lovely captain first. Her line wasn't so long. The time spent wasn't so long either - greet, pose, photo, handshake and some quick parting words (I kind of forgot what I'd prepared anyway). She was so darn adorable and I look so darn smug.



Next up was Airin and Tsugupon. Except they'd already graduated. Still, I looked for their names on the big screen, hoping for a miracle, just in case they'd decided on one last one for the road. Nope. With my free block, I wandered around outside in the nearby vicinity and ended up in the Sakishima Building, taking a ride to the 55th floor observatory and admiring more sky-high views of Osaka city.



When I got back, it was nearly time for the next block. All the Intex restaurants had conveniently closed early, so I was stuck with getting a spicy taco dog (basically a sausage with some salsa sauce wrapped in a crepe and a ￥510 price tag) from one of the numerous food stands. Oh, and I would not recommend Intex toilets on a big event day like AKB - whoever cleans up afterwards, I salute you.

Next up were Wasamin and Maachun. I paid a visit to Wasamin first - her line wasn't so long either. Again, there's an ID check just before the line proper. I tried a "hello" in English, Wasamin asked me where I'm from in Japanese. After the photo (where I seem to be smiling awkwardly), she thanked me in English, again I forgot what I had thought of saying, and I thought I heard "I love you!" as I was being ushered out. I forgot to tell her how much I liked her new single or say お疲れ for her tough schedule at the weekend. I'll have to plan better and stay cooler next time.



Next was Maachun, and her line longer. She was wearing a cute bow in her hair. I asked her if a rock pose would be okay, she gave the cutest frown while doing the gesture before answering, "Rock.....okay." Cue awkward rock pose 2-shot.



Last block was Tanochan for me. Still lots of people around. I debated grabbing another taco dog and thought better of it - I would reward myself with some epicurean delight somewhere in the Osaka night later. So I joined Tanochan's line for the final 2-shot. Nearing the front, I noticed the girl for the neighbouring lane - it was Paruru. The poor girl looked like I sometimes look in the middle of a crap day at work: head pretty much propped on her hands, leaning on her counter, her hands only moving to do peace or poke-cheeks poses, struggling to smile. At some point she glanced at me, or it might have been a clock behind me. Someone walking past was laughing that Paruru hadn't even looked at them during their meet. Ah well.

Finally, Tanochan in person. No photo could ever do justice to just how beautiful this girl is, and she was still genki at 8:30 pm and gave the warmest feelings out of all my encounters, Wasamin a close second. I was tongue-tied and just kind of moved my hand to do the heart pose after a "good evening". Seriously stunning young lady. And I forgot to congratulate her on her Wiz run.



And that was it. Hopefully, there'll be a next time.

Of course, it was raining, people were crowding on the trains and the smell of rancid sweat hung in the enclosed air like a taco dog gone down wrong.
In the end, I treated myself to curry. Lots of it.

Many thanks if you've managed to bear with me to this point. Hope I have more stories to share in the future.

 

The scenery that you took pictures of was so beautiful (the girls were more though )

 

Tano looks really skinny in that pic. Girl eat more food xD

 

Is it your own version of green flash?

glad to hear that tano chan made you a good impression.

 

Thank you. I'm a big scenery person.
Those photos don't fully do the girls justice, particularly Cap and Tanochan.

She seems a slim girl. Then again, I'm a head taller than her, I've always thought I could put on a few extra kilos, yet, apparently, my BMI is normal.

That was actually taken the day before the event. I'd barely eaten anything up until then, so the flash might have looked green.
It was kind of fun to alternate between watching her enthusiastically greet, have her pic taken and wave off, and Paruru next door - reminds of that Mechaike special where they're comparing Paruru and Milky handshakes. Then again, I'd probably struggle to maintain genki if I'd been there all day doing 2-shots.

 

May 5th 2 Shots

Shimazaki Haruka
I had slot 6 and 7 with her. Had talked to a few people that had seen her in previous slots and heard it wasn't much of a experience. And they were right. She is my oshi and I think she is the most beautiful thing on this earth but it was very disappointing. The whole thing was a bit of a blur they run you through so fast. I felt like I was being swarmed by a swat team while I was in the booth with her. She is behind the tall counter they take your phone twist you into the spot marked on the floor all while they are setting up the next person behind you. And the whole time she does not look at you or acknowledge your presence. She stares blankly straight ahead. And its not like you get any time to even look at her. I saw her last year a week before the slashing incidents and her incident this year and she was very sweet and polite. Honestly I don't see how this doesn't cost her fans or at the least people buying tickets to see her. I have 3 tickets to see her today and I am seriously thinking of only using 1 just to get a picture in a different outfit. I love her to death but I hope she gets over this issue soon for her fans sake.
Megu Tanuguchi
She is my number 2 girl. Had her in slot 8. I don't think she had a full allotment of slots but the ones I saw looked busy when I was there. She invited me to sit down when I came in. Asked what pose I wanted. Im so bad at taking pictures or coming up with interesting poses I just said heart. We did that. She stood up and did a 2 hand shake with me as I told her it was nice to meet her. She was very attentive and seemed glad to see me. Very beautiful and sweet young lady. Wish I had more tickets with her.
Mariya Nagao
Sexy Yagi. Great time with her also. Nice and sweet. Probably my best picture of the day was with her since my eyes were closed I noticed later with Megu. Doh.

After the event went drinking and eating with Sakuraism and drazaar from the forum here. We drank to much but our party of 5 had a good time out.

 

May 5/6 2015 Rhodes 2Shot @ Pacifico Yokohama


Alright..what to say about the venue..
A lot of people. Although I had a friend who was also at the Osaka one and told me Osaka had more at the venue.
A lot of Foreign fans. Like I tell people 2shots are like the only events all foreign fans zerg to Japan for. While 2shots are nice I still think handshakes are where the gold lies.
During the Osaka one the girls and staffs were quite loose about the whole "touching" rule in photos. Obviously the girls all got a little scolding and they were extra careful now with the no touching rule, other than the haato pose. Unfortunately.

Oh and yeah I met a lot of new foreign fans too, ones on here and ones not. They will all be posting a report or something soooon i guess.

There's not a lot of write about particularly on the conversation as it's all really rushed. Go in, say Hi, or you can say w/e u want, and chances are you will be prompt to do your pose. snap. handshake, say good bye. Therefore I will only write conversations those I thought was actually a little bit interesting.

Day 1:

Okada Nana

Right off the bat I meet Naachan. Interaction, as usual "ah hey Andy!" etc etc. The face she gives me now when seeing me are more or less like "I expected you to come" lol.



Getting high from injecting a little of Okada.




Cops came and we got busted. I swear It was just her!




Shiroma Miru

This was probably like my 4th or 5th day I saw her in the past 2 weeks? Quite a lot. I put on my douchebag glasses trying to throw her off a little.

Miru: Ah! I remember you!
Me: Hrm?
*snaps*
Me: It was my first time.
Miru: You're definitely lying! LOL

lol I think it did throw her off a little, I'm still not sure if she actually recognized me as the same guy who she saw so many times before.





neee neee~~ Give me your attention



Tashima Meru

This was my first time ever seeing Meru. I wanted to tell her I used to have sweaty hand complexes too, but everything was so rushed I just didn't get my chance.





Oh no! Sweaty armpits!

Matsui Jurina

Also first time. I don't even like Jurina, kinda got it to troll a friend back home. I told her to give me a real sexy pose. Well....she certainly pulled that off with that ass shot lol...
Oh also she tried to fish me so hard with this weird hand squeeze...



Hrm? You can't fish me.


Yamamoto Sayaka

My last ticket of the day, and my most cherished ticket. I only won 2 tickets with her the whole album so every ticket to me was like the golden ticket to Charlie's Factory. I had a lot of fun ideas I could do with her but I just couldn't bring myself to do them afraid I may end up getting a real crappy photo. Soooo of course I played something semi- safe, but it appears a decent amount of people liked it.




nee~ nee~ wake up~

Interesting enough, we didn't just pose for the picture. Sayanee actually acted it out with dialogue and all and I think that's why it looked so natural.


Day 2


Okada Nana

Yesterday @drazaar asked me what he should say to Naachan for his 2shot. I told him he could always throw in he's a friend of Andy's. That's exactly what he did and according to him he got a reaction out of it.

Me: Hey! An American fan came yesterday eh?
Naachan: Ah! Yeah!!! He did come! He told me he was your friend!
*snaps*
Naachan: Are you guys good friends?
Me: Er...ya...... ( LOL I obviously didn't want to tell her we JUST met yesterday for the first time)




She's unhappy I put the blame on her when we got busted.



Me: I told a lot of foreign fans/friends (I don't remember which I used exactly) about Naachan!
Naachan: ehhh! Really!? Thankyouuuuuuu~ :'(
Naachan: Your shirt is really kakkoii!



Showing off our matching outfit. Since she liked my newly bought shirt so much.



Yagura Fuuko

I used to see her here and there at HS and since back then I knew she could "recognize" me. I then stopped seeing her at events intentionally cuz I wanted to narrow down the members I see. This 2shot was like the first event I intentionally got her for the last 7 months? I thought she probably should have forgotten me by now.

Me: Hey! I'm from...
Fuu: AH! It's been awhile!
Me: Huh? Me? You remember me?
Fuu: Yeah! You were just at the M theater show right? (I won a M theater show last Tuesday which I wrote on the NMB thread and I was pretty much only looked at Miru)
Me: Ah, Yeah I was.
Fuu: I saw you! I was looking at you the whole time. BUT YOU WEREN'T LOOKING AT ME! >=( *gives me a pout*
Me: omggg *covers my face in shame* I'm soooo sorryyyyyyyyy

My worst nightmare, getting guilt tripped by the members.






Ah! Found money!!


Shibuya Nagisa

I love this girl. Always had. She's like the bubbliest of all bubbles.
@drazaar told me he have never seen anyone getting their photo retaken. The first person he saw having their photo retaken just happened to be me even though he was in another lane lol.



Nagisa maede machi awaseyade! WITH the drawing loll.



Shimazaki Haruka

Okay, so originally I got her to troll another friend, looks like I got reverse trolled. For people who didn't know because some crazy guy at a HS recently didn't want to leave Paruru's lane, they now gave her "special priviledges" to do her 2shot in a different format.

Spoiler: Paruru Rant.

I usually just kinda let it go with her whole salty character at HS and what not. However, I think she really crossed the line this time. Yes, the 2 shot wasn't that bad. She's a very pretty girl but the experience itself was just horrible. You are literally shoved into a position hardly being able to even look at her properly because she doesn't even look at you. You're lucky if she even shifts her eye balls to the corner of her eyes just to look at you. Did I mention there's no handshakes and on top of that she doesn't really talk to you ether? It's one thing to do this for safety measures which is understandable, but since when does looking at your fan and talking to them became a problem? It clearly shows she just doesn't give a fuck. Not only it's rude to her fans but in general it's just lacking common social manners. I'm not her fan so i took it kinda just like oh whatever although I do truly feel bad for her fans needing to experience this kinda ordeal from their kami oshi. While I lined up for her, there was not one happy person walking out from the 2shot. I really don't think this should be tolerate-able. Part of me hopes it comes back and bite her in the ass.

Praying to a statue of Paruru. I'm unworthy god.



Shiroma Miru

No more screwing around with her, it was my last ticket and I was getting tired.

Me: I was at the theater show last week.
Miru: Yeah! I saw you! (ofc u fricken saw me lol otherwise how did we pull off so many interactions)
Me: Alright, do a sexy pose Miru!
Miru: Okay! Sexy!
Me: Wha? That was a sexy pose..? lol
Miru: Yep! It was sexy!



Miru's Sexy Appeal? and an uninterested Cameraman? lol


lol my eyes looked so doped. I probably blinked for the shot.


In Conclusion:
The 2 days concluded my Golden Week here in Japan.
2 shots are fun as usual, but like I said HS are the much better kami event. It's way more than just a "handshaking" event like most people thinks. It was also nice to meet so many new foreign fans. I have a few more for the one at the end of the month, stay-tuned I guess? lol

 

Well i guess it seals the deal with paruru. Jesus.

 

@Cristafari I think the fans who "lamented about not being able to develop a relationship with their oshimen" in that thread, are fans who never met their oshi and they know they will most likely never meet them. So I don't think they're the same ones as those who decide to go for a 2-shot. Also, for a foreign fan who never goes to Japan and can only go once, a picture is better because it's something you can keep forever, meanwhile handshake might be more intimate, but it's only enjoyable if you can go to handshake in a regular way, rather than just once for 5 seconds. and since lots of foreign fans can't speak japanese either, I don't think it's surprising that they choose 2-shot XD But I don't know why it's a problem if some fans want to look good on their 2-shot o__o; After all, they're taking that picture for themselves, like their own "souvenir" with their oshimen, they pay for it... As long as they don't disrespect the member, it's all good. I know some fans share their 2-shot online and we (other fans) look at it to see the 48 girls (it's not like we'd look at it to see the fan XD) but I guess, for the fan, it probably does matter how (s)he looks on his own picture with his oshimen.

Btw I really enjoy reading the experiences here. Sayanee is definitely the member who seems the best when it comes to interacting with fans...

 

IMHO... Handshake, you create and build a relationship. 2shots are just souvenirs.

Handshakes... I guess most foreign fans are scared to stand in front of their Oshimen and don't know what to say or are afraid they know little to zero Japanese to communicate. So not many go.

2shots... Are just easier to deal with, in and out. Not much conversation, or interaction but a nice parting gift. So more go to that instead.

Tho, I will admit... I wil be "one of those foreigners" going to a 2shot event at the end of the month. My choice in going to a 2shot event is more logistics. The time I take my Vacation from work (on my bday), a 2shot events gets announced. So I'm stuck with it.

But I know for sure... I wil not cry about "why can't I meet my Oshi"... Boo hoo hoo.

 

That Paruru statue pic is killing me.

 

@Cristafari OUCH, i swear I felt a knife go into my back for a sec there. TOO BLUNT lol. I can understand what you're saying and I know for some that's probably what they think in the back of their heads when seeing other ppl's 2shot. Although I also don't think it's so hard or outrageous to understand why fans want to look "good" in their pic with their oshimen. As @Mana said, I think she pretty on spot what I think about this matter. Let's take away the whole whether I look like a complete nerd or not for a moment here. Do I want to look good in my pic with my oshimen? Yeah. Do I want to look good in these photo to let people see? Yes and No. I wouldn't want people to see a photo of me as if I just finished giving birth, but if I was so concerned about appealing looking good to other people in these photos y'all probably will only see a couple of 2shots shared by me lol. At the end of the day, it's your photo with your oshimen and down the next 3 months let's be honest only you will still be looking at it. Just take a picture that you can live with lol.

Now as for the whole why foreign fans come for 2shot. Again, understandable. Not hating, not judging. I'm simply sharing my experiences from attending so many events that HS events can really be more than what people expect. I never claim I know a lot about the members or w/e or the fandom but I think it's safe to say I know a thing or 2 about event related matters lol. Soooo, definitely try it out if you ever get a chance! Thanks for reading and you will all probably be seeing me a lot in this thread this coming month. My next write up will prolli be on the sport fest if it actually turns out worth writing about.

 

I don't really understand the rant about looking 'cool', @Cristafari
If I were to get a 2shot with Jurina, you better believe my hair will be done nice, I'd probably have a fresh manicure, I'd choose a really nice outfit, and I'd check my teeth nineteen times before my turn came. I don't see why it's a bad thing to want to look good in a photograph that's essentially a memento/souvenir. If I'm spending thousands of dollars to get to that point, I'm not rolling into the event in a ratty t-shirt and shorts. I also think it would be nicer for my oshimen to have fans who seem to give a damn.

 

I agree. Of course you'd try to look as good as possible when taking a photo of yourself. It's something you will be looking at after all, even if you're not going to show it off online.

it's alright Sakuraism we all secretly hate you for interacting with our NMB oshis. It's still fun to read, no worries!

 

My report from the photo event of May 5/6, including the photos. Miichan, Mogi, Hikari, Yuihan! I had a really amazing time, as always!
http://www.akblogs.net/en/blog_posts/40-akb48-photo-event-2015

EDIT: @Sakuraism great photos! The one of Sayanee is so fun. I want to try and to some more interesting poses like that next time ^^

 

Great report! Those 700 yen onigiri.... lol.

Wait a minute, how many foreign fans went to the 2 shots event?? It count more than 10 !! Was this 2shot THE place to be??

so jelly

 

Paruru really crossed the line, I get that she had an unfortunate incident but to not even look at your fans is just rude. I'd say stop doing handshakes and 2shots would cost her less fans and continue being like this. Her old salty handshakes might be amusing to some but there is definitely a line between saltiness and rude and it seems like she crossed the line.

I'd say 2shots are better for those who cant really communicate in Japanese, you get a personalised momento instead as you cant really talk to them. Concert is a concert they are entertainers afterall so for foreigners who dont go that often, its obvious that they want to see the concert