Tokyo stuff part 2

AKB48
one of the most ubiquitous things in Tokyo is the mega girl group akb48 they are on everything. Advertisements for their own music their movies as well as them being in ads for almost everything else. They have their own stores and official cafes to sell their official merchandise. Despite the name there are actually more than 48 members in the band although only the top 8 actually feature on tv and in ads. The rest do the hard slog of daily performances and appearances, it's the only band in the world that could potentially be performing at 48 different venues on the same day. The top 8 members are chosen so Hana tells me via a huge idol type reality show where only the members of the band compete. I've since seen ads for it on tv here and it looks pretty full on. One girl was being taken to hospital I think!

Ad trucks.
Driving around the centre of Tokyo in shibuya harajuku and shinjuku are trucks which advertise a bands new single. The truck has the single jacket enlarged all over it and it blasts a 30 to 40 second sample of the song's chorus on repeat the entire time it's driving. Some suburbs in Tokyo also just play music out of loudspeakers in the street. In Ikebukuro it's top 40 j-pop and in koenji which is more out if the centre they were playing kind of light orchestral easy listening versions of moon river and other songs of it's ilk. Kind of nice, kind of annoying. Luckily its only on a few streets.

Tokyo is so amazing, I'm really sad to have to leave it. I feel both as though I've been here for a year and as though I've only been here for an hour. There is just do much to see and too explore and to do. It's such a visual city, such a friendly city, such a crazy city, such a clean city, such a futuristic city and such an ancient city. From a six story game arcade to an peaceful Shinto shrine in 100 meters.

Sayonara Tokyo, you definatley delivered.

Luci