NYC 2012, little by little
@_@ While I can still remember and keep steam going, I'm flagging but I gotta keep trying!
Saturday~
Started out with Catherine showing up early, and sacking out for a bit. X3; To keep costs down, airlines just aren't offering as many flights as before, though there are still plenty. Means that a cost-effective flight coast to coast can take all day, or overnight o_o;
Today was the day that Laura was meeting up with her brother, and sister-in-law. (Cousin couldn't make it because of school.) But that was still okay, because it was a day to meet up with the crowd at El's. X3 Definitely on the itinerary: Nintendo World. Beyond that, sorta open XD;
I met up with them, with Catherine, a bit later than originally planned, for brunch at Cafe Orlin downtown. Very crowded, but good! Also not that expensive :3 I kinda wish I'd gotten the pancakes the some of the others got, the yogurty sauce was great on them! X3 But my feta & spinach omelet was good, and I got a nice cool glass of apple cider :d
After brunch, we took off down St Mark's, just peeking in stores here and there, and it was late enough we could meet up with El after she got off work, so we were waiting for her. Lola and I ended up ducking into a sock shop, as we have a mutual obsession, and plan was to all head out to Tokyo Rebel to pick up an order of Lola's once we were all together. After sock madness, we also ducked into a used game shop, where Picc had a lucky find :3
(Side note: walking through a park on the way to Tokyo Rebel, we saw black squirrels! wth?! I didn't know squirrels could be black?! o_o But it wasn't dark brown or anything, they were black! Picc says he's seen them before, but some of the others weren't aware squirrels came in more than one color at all! Granted, squirrels have a pretty wide territory area, so you never see two colors in the same place, but still o_o; I told Akane how surprised I was, and she claims to have never seen any DX; I'm not crazy, woman! Your home turf is infested with black squirrels!)
Tokyo Rebel is a hole in the wall, but it has a pretty display window, which had the latest AatP birdcage series on a mannequin :3 That was also the same series that Lola had ordered X3 I bought some neat brown IW socks to support the business, and also a Maxicimam shirt on sale. Argh, but at home I notice that there's a smudge on the back! Is that why it was on sale??? DX I hope it comes out without trouble with some stain remover in the wash. Anyway, it's not bad, just like it got rubbed by something dusty. Actually my hair should hide it. Central design is a treasure map with the MAM series of kitties X3 Very cute, even if it is in pink.
Ugh, they also had a totally great Putumayo trump design tote bag, but no way was I paying that much for a glaring tote that didn't come from a concert n_n;
We peeked in a local library to see about bathrooms, but no go :/ This led us on a bit of an epic trek in search of clean acceptable bathrooms. On the way, we passed Big Gay Ice Cream. Naturally we had to go in, and naturally there was a big sparkly rainbow mural of a unicorn wearing a Bea Arthur cameo. Actually, it's great marketing. Nobody involved even has to be gay, just the gimmick means they'll get tons of business from curiosity and support alone. I shared a Mermaid with Colin, which was vanilla ice cream with key lime curd and graham cracker crumbles X3 Very potent, quite delish. I also snatched one of their free gourmet wet wipes 9_9; Verbena and orange scented!
But we still needed a clean bathroom, and El was zeroed in on the ones at Crate & Barrel, which turned out to be blocks and blocks away n_n; I'm pretty blase about comfortable shoes. Most real cities eat souls/soles, so there's really no fighting it. I like my cute shoes. But ugh, I was ready to sit by the time we got there DX; I just plopped on a couch.
At least we really did get to see all the weird sites the city offers on a daily basis. All sorts of odd architecture and exterior design. We passed by one shoe store with each pair in it's own wall mounted backlit cube, very striking. (But I think any place where the shoes are given their own little rooms is probably too expensive to browse XD; ) It was also nice to see all the old neighborhoods downtown, with the interesting different colored fronts and ubiquitous fire escapes.
It's hard to remember all we did, and of course for me it's hard to remember in what order. My memory is so terrible at chronology! But part of it is also how travel took up a lot of the day, period. I know we headed uptown to see if we could find the L'arc billboard in Times Square. Someone said that it would be the side of Times Square that wasn't with the Red Lobster, but that turned out to be all turned round - the billboards we were looking for were above the Red Lobster, on the opposite side of the Square as us, and it's a long way! Still, we got to see the crowded crowded crowded iconic image of Times Square, where they drop the ball on New Years, with tons of splashy displays everywhere you looked. In front of a big Toys'R'Us there were lots of people in big-head costumes milling about for picture opportunities. XD; But I think they weren't actually part of Toys'R'Us, because they were also asking for tips. And some of their costumes were pretty off model. Still, ended up with my picture next to a tiny Hello Kitty (that person must've been about my mom's size! or at least not much bigger!). Apparently they took down the billboard the night after the concert, so we missed the window entirely, but I wasn't disappointed. I was going to see something a lot better than a billboard, after all X3 (It turned out that Laura got to see the billboard though - her brother made a point to take her to it.)
Already uptown, it wasn't all that hard to find our way near Rockefeller Center, which is the general area where Nintendo World is located. X3 But after all this, my mid-day sleepies were setting in, and I was noticing more how much we had walked @_@; I actually ended up losing my balance on some cobbles at one point, and I just sat there for a moment before getting up. Once I realized I wasn't hurt, it was just a good opportunity to rest, and also to make sure my stuff didn't spill out all over the ground. When we finally did get to Nintendo World, first thing I noticed in the door was a round table set up with DS consoles, and one seat was open T-T I don't even care about playing the new Kid Icarus game (which is terribly named, really! a terrible example of a pilot!), I just wanted that seat~~~ X3; All the consoles were different colors though, which always catches my eye. I wondered what editions they were, from where, but was too tired to ask anyone. (Picc pointed out later that those were store consoles; I had thought they were personal ones of the people playing X3; And of those playing, it seemed half were kids and half were their moms.) The ground floor is games and Pokemon. The second floor was part museum, part gaming ports, and some merchandise. Only one flight of stairs, but I took the glass elevator, which had 8-bit Mario decals on all sides. I was a little disappointed that there weren't more goods, and just not more variety in general. I found a neat shirt I liked, but they only had XL left and I don't need to pay $20 for another shirt to sleep in :/ I did end up getting a cute one-up shirt, and some ridic one-up knee socks XD; Grabbed a small gift for a friend, but that was really it. I don't need to buy more games right now, and didn't want to stuff breakable stuff into my suitcase. A lot of the stuff was for little kids too. Made me a bit nostalgic for Akiba, with cute goods of all kinds. It was interesting to see all the old goods in glass cases in their museum corner X3 I'd still want some of that stuff XD;;; And may still have some of those console things o_o; Actually, it's surprising how much gaming I do and game paraphernalia I have considering that I'm not really a gamer at all o_o;;; I'm so casual.
After that, we made a stab at Sushiden, another place Akane recommended to me, but they were reservation only on weekends. Sho ga nai. Kind of exhausted, and with the main objective for the day over, we sacked out on some stone seats near Rockefeller and tried to decide what to do next. I mean, what, were we just gonna go back? o_o; I had thought going up to the top of Rockefeller Center might be neat, since I hear the view up there is one of the best in the city, but we were just OUT of inertia. Not that enthused about doing things that cost money either. I had mentioned the Met before, since I thought it a shame to be in the city and not go at all, but I had read that it cost $25, and it closed at 9p so we would have only 3 hours at most. El broke in that it wasn't that much to get in - the Met is by donation, and the $25 is merely suggested. You can get in with a dollar if you choose. That being the case, I didn't see why we couldn't spend a couple of hours derping around the Met, but it's hard to get enthused about anything when you ache ^^; Picc decided us on giving a rousing call for us to be ADULTS and go to the Met X3 Which is all the more rousing coming from a man carrying a Nintendo World bag. So we followed El like ducklings to a bus stop, me ducking into a Bouchon on the way, and us goggling at St Patrick's Cathedral and Saks Fifth Ave. Luckily, those of us with metro cards had them loaded up already, so we were able to just use that for the bus X3
At the Met, it was surprising seeing in person how big it is! I know those steps are sorta iconic, but they really do take up a ton of room, I can see how they're a popular meeting spot! (AAAUUUUGGGHHHH, and after the fact I saw from someone else's photodump a pic of two girls with TETSU on the steps of the Met! I mean, we all know now that ken went to the Natural History museum, but I guess tetsu went to the Met! I really feel I narrowly avoided disaster now. I mean, I love this band, but it's a love mixed up with lots of other more ragey feelings about how much time and money they suck out of me. I knew odds were slim, but I was honestly a bit afraid of encountering the band in any way just out in the city. I could see it leading to flipping tables, and something being thrown, and lots of yelling, things like Do you realize how much I love you jerks?! Do you know how much of my money you've eaten?!?!? I could've bought a new car by now, you assholes!, except it would be in a language they barely understand at best, and all ken would understand would likely be the I love you, so he'd just respond with :D THANKS! and whachagonnado)
*cough*
I waffled a bit on how much to give them, but decided on $10 since I was certain their museum store would get more out of me. I had set aside 25 for the museum anyway, just in case, so it wasn't terribly out of budget. You're given a folding metal badge to show you've paid admission, and I had to double back a couple times to get maps, etc. That place is huuuuuuuuuuugggeeee! It would probably take a week to really do the Met properly! And we only had a couple of hours! We all entered the wing of Egyptian art at first, and took advantage of bathrooms. Picc asked an attendant if pictures were okay, and they said yes as long as there was no flash, and also some special exhibits had signs up asking you not to. The Egyptian wing is amazing, and I didn't even see all of it! I'm very sorry that I didn't realize that the temple wasn't just a front, it was transported block by block and rebuilt there! Inside was really quite awesome - I saw it from a second floor window later. I wish I'd gone in there to really look at the walls! I got almost instantly distracted by a side hallway with a sign saying CLEARANCE SHOP and an arrow down stairs 6_6 But because of that I got a cool shirt with a gold design mimicking a Calder necklace from his jewelry work around the 40s, Jealous Husband. X3 It's pretty cool, and geez, looking at how much it was originally, if that's how they price things in their museum shop, maybe it's a blessing in disguise that I didn't make it to the actual one D: Though a magnet would've been nice.
While I was entranced by deals, the others had noticed we were sort of breaking off. I got a text once I came out of the shop, and also met up with Catherine, finding out plans were for us to amble our own ways and meet up at the info desk in the lobby at closing. I got lost almost immediately @_@; I went into the European sculpture and painting, and tried to make sense of what was in what rooms, but I got rather turned around. I saw some very nice Christian iconography, some transition Byzantine stuff too, but I knew I could get totally bogged down in all the Byzantine had to offer, so I ditched it and barreled into early painting masters. There were several rooms with studies of light and balance, some very famous still lifes that you see reproductions of in books, and three Vermeer paintings, including the famous woman with pitcher. It was striking to look at in person. There's light and color you don't see in the reproductions! It really comes across what a master of light he was, and how he really controlled his use of space. While I was looking at those, I got a call from Laura. She was in the hotel room, her day with her brother done, and wanted to know where we were, and was very surprised to hear we were in the Met. She had ironically just been up in the same area, was probably up at the top of Rockefeller Center one of the times we were passing it X3; Since she had just come from there, she didn't really feel like taking another trip back, but the more I talked about the Met the more she rolled in some angst before giving up and jumping in a cab, which really raced her over. She paid a small donation and really booked it through a few wings to try and see a couple of modern pieces which were real priorities to her. In the meantime, I continued through European art until I saw a connecting door to the American wing. That led me to a balcony area; the outsides had cases of glass and pewter handicraft, which were so interesting to look at! I wish I'd had time to go to the other side where I could see some Tiffany and art glass, but I really wanted to see a few more sections~ The entire middle was an overlook onto a sculpture plaza, adjacent to the museum cafe. I wish I'd had time to go down and look at that up close too! But after a quick picture, I was racing forward again. I ran straight into a special exhibit of storytelling in Japanese art (which did have a sign asking for no photos). There were some pieces, but mostly large scrolls that were telling stories. I tend to look at a scroll as a panoramic landscape, not a serial, so I often don't see the story ^^; There were also some very nice kimonos :3 Ugh, but by that time there were only 10 minutes left DX; So every time I even tried to ask a question about something, I'd get directed on how to leave~ I did my best to try and see more, but they were gently but firmly urging us toward the door. I wasn't able to go back in the Egyptian wing to take a quick look in the temple, they weren't letting people IN the different wings anymore, only waiting for everyone to get OUT, ditto to the museum store. I saw Laura and Colin right away near the info desk, and the others met up with us quickly. X3; After that though, we were a bit lost as to what to do next. There was some debate about going somewhere to eat, but some of us needed to eat NOW, so we talked about whether we should stop and snack. In the end, I misunderstood and thought we were just snacking and would eat more later, so when we stopped at a burger place I wish I'd gotten more than cheese fries @_@; And it started to drizzle a little, getting cooler and cooler as the evening progressed. Made me wish I'd brought my hoodie, but it would've been a pain to carry all day X3; I believe we all called a ceasefire until the next day, which would be L'armageddon. I think this is the night that Laura, Catherine, and I went to a convenience store near the station to pick up snacks and drinks before going back to the room. Laura also needed a notepad for the concert X3
Distressingly, we all started to feel the cold and the seasons, developing a smidge of a cough D: More from congestion than anything else, I'm sure, but it didn't help us going into the next night.
Saturday~
Started out with Catherine showing up early, and sacking out for a bit. X3; To keep costs down, airlines just aren't offering as many flights as before, though there are still plenty. Means that a cost-effective flight coast to coast can take all day, or overnight o_o;
Today was the day that Laura was meeting up with her brother, and sister-in-law. (Cousin couldn't make it because of school.) But that was still okay, because it was a day to meet up with the crowd at El's. X3 Definitely on the itinerary: Nintendo World. Beyond that, sorta open XD;
I met up with them, with Catherine, a bit later than originally planned, for brunch at Cafe Orlin downtown. Very crowded, but good! Also not that expensive :3 I kinda wish I'd gotten the pancakes the some of the others got, the yogurty sauce was great on them! X3 But my feta & spinach omelet was good, and I got a nice cool glass of apple cider :d
After brunch, we took off down St Mark's, just peeking in stores here and there, and it was late enough we could meet up with El after she got off work, so we were waiting for her. Lola and I ended up ducking into a sock shop, as we have a mutual obsession, and plan was to all head out to Tokyo Rebel to pick up an order of Lola's once we were all together. After sock madness, we also ducked into a used game shop, where Picc had a lucky find :3
(Side note: walking through a park on the way to Tokyo Rebel, we saw black squirrels! wth?! I didn't know squirrels could be black?! o_o But it wasn't dark brown or anything, they were black! Picc says he's seen them before, but some of the others weren't aware squirrels came in more than one color at all! Granted, squirrels have a pretty wide territory area, so you never see two colors in the same place, but still o_o; I told Akane how surprised I was, and she claims to have never seen any DX; I'm not crazy, woman! Your home turf is infested with black squirrels!)
Tokyo Rebel is a hole in the wall, but it has a pretty display window, which had the latest AatP birdcage series on a mannequin :3 That was also the same series that Lola had ordered X3 I bought some neat brown IW socks to support the business, and also a Maxicimam shirt on sale. Argh, but at home I notice that there's a smudge on the back! Is that why it was on sale??? DX I hope it comes out without trouble with some stain remover in the wash. Anyway, it's not bad, just like it got rubbed by something dusty. Actually my hair should hide it. Central design is a treasure map with the MAM series of kitties X3 Very cute, even if it is in pink.
Ugh, they also had a totally great Putumayo trump design tote bag, but no way was I paying that much for a glaring tote that didn't come from a concert n_n;
We peeked in a local library to see about bathrooms, but no go :/ This led us on a bit of an epic trek in search of clean acceptable bathrooms. On the way, we passed Big Gay Ice Cream. Naturally we had to go in, and naturally there was a big sparkly rainbow mural of a unicorn wearing a Bea Arthur cameo. Actually, it's great marketing. Nobody involved even has to be gay, just the gimmick means they'll get tons of business from curiosity and support alone. I shared a Mermaid with Colin, which was vanilla ice cream with key lime curd and graham cracker crumbles X3 Very potent, quite delish. I also snatched one of their free gourmet wet wipes 9_9; Verbena and orange scented!
But we still needed a clean bathroom, and El was zeroed in on the ones at Crate & Barrel, which turned out to be blocks and blocks away n_n; I'm pretty blase about comfortable shoes. Most real cities eat souls/soles, so there's really no fighting it. I like my cute shoes. But ugh, I was ready to sit by the time we got there DX; I just plopped on a couch.
At least we really did get to see all the weird sites the city offers on a daily basis. All sorts of odd architecture and exterior design. We passed by one shoe store with each pair in it's own wall mounted backlit cube, very striking. (But I think any place where the shoes are given their own little rooms is probably too expensive to browse XD; ) It was also nice to see all the old neighborhoods downtown, with the interesting different colored fronts and ubiquitous fire escapes.
It's hard to remember all we did, and of course for me it's hard to remember in what order. My memory is so terrible at chronology! But part of it is also how travel took up a lot of the day, period. I know we headed uptown to see if we could find the L'arc billboard in Times Square. Someone said that it would be the side of Times Square that wasn't with the Red Lobster, but that turned out to be all turned round - the billboards we were looking for were above the Red Lobster, on the opposite side of the Square as us, and it's a long way! Still, we got to see the crowded crowded crowded iconic image of Times Square, where they drop the ball on New Years, with tons of splashy displays everywhere you looked. In front of a big Toys'R'Us there were lots of people in big-head costumes milling about for picture opportunities. XD; But I think they weren't actually part of Toys'R'Us, because they were also asking for tips. And some of their costumes were pretty off model. Still, ended up with my picture next to a tiny Hello Kitty (that person must've been about my mom's size! or at least not much bigger!). Apparently they took down the billboard the night after the concert, so we missed the window entirely, but I wasn't disappointed. I was going to see something a lot better than a billboard, after all X3 (It turned out that Laura got to see the billboard though - her brother made a point to take her to it.)
Already uptown, it wasn't all that hard to find our way near Rockefeller Center, which is the general area where Nintendo World is located. X3 But after all this, my mid-day sleepies were setting in, and I was noticing more how much we had walked @_@; I actually ended up losing my balance on some cobbles at one point, and I just sat there for a moment before getting up. Once I realized I wasn't hurt, it was just a good opportunity to rest, and also to make sure my stuff didn't spill out all over the ground. When we finally did get to Nintendo World, first thing I noticed in the door was a round table set up with DS consoles, and one seat was open T-T I don't even care about playing the new Kid Icarus game (which is terribly named, really! a terrible example of a pilot!), I just wanted that seat~~~ X3; All the consoles were different colors though, which always catches my eye. I wondered what editions they were, from where, but was too tired to ask anyone. (Picc pointed out later that those were store consoles; I had thought they were personal ones of the people playing X3; And of those playing, it seemed half were kids and half were their moms.) The ground floor is games and Pokemon. The second floor was part museum, part gaming ports, and some merchandise. Only one flight of stairs, but I took the glass elevator, which had 8-bit Mario decals on all sides. I was a little disappointed that there weren't more goods, and just not more variety in general. I found a neat shirt I liked, but they only had XL left and I don't need to pay $20 for another shirt to sleep in :/ I did end up getting a cute one-up shirt, and some ridic one-up knee socks XD; Grabbed a small gift for a friend, but that was really it. I don't need to buy more games right now, and didn't want to stuff breakable stuff into my suitcase. A lot of the stuff was for little kids too. Made me a bit nostalgic for Akiba, with cute goods of all kinds. It was interesting to see all the old goods in glass cases in their museum corner X3 I'd still want some of that stuff XD;;; And may still have some of those console things o_o; Actually, it's surprising how much gaming I do and game paraphernalia I have considering that I'm not really a gamer at all o_o;;; I'm so casual.
After that, we made a stab at Sushiden, another place Akane recommended to me, but they were reservation only on weekends. Sho ga nai. Kind of exhausted, and with the main objective for the day over, we sacked out on some stone seats near Rockefeller and tried to decide what to do next. I mean, what, were we just gonna go back? o_o; I had thought going up to the top of Rockefeller Center might be neat, since I hear the view up there is one of the best in the city, but we were just OUT of inertia. Not that enthused about doing things that cost money either. I had mentioned the Met before, since I thought it a shame to be in the city and not go at all, but I had read that it cost $25, and it closed at 9p so we would have only 3 hours at most. El broke in that it wasn't that much to get in - the Met is by donation, and the $25 is merely suggested. You can get in with a dollar if you choose. That being the case, I didn't see why we couldn't spend a couple of hours derping around the Met, but it's hard to get enthused about anything when you ache ^^; Picc decided us on giving a rousing call for us to be ADULTS and go to the Met X3 Which is all the more rousing coming from a man carrying a Nintendo World bag. So we followed El like ducklings to a bus stop, me ducking into a Bouchon on the way, and us goggling at St Patrick's Cathedral and Saks Fifth Ave. Luckily, those of us with metro cards had them loaded up already, so we were able to just use that for the bus X3
At the Met, it was surprising seeing in person how big it is! I know those steps are sorta iconic, but they really do take up a ton of room, I can see how they're a popular meeting spot! (AAAUUUUGGGHHHH, and after the fact I saw from someone else's photodump a pic of two girls with TETSU on the steps of the Met! I mean, we all know now that ken went to the Natural History museum, but I guess tetsu went to the Met! I really feel I narrowly avoided disaster now. I mean, I love this band, but it's a love mixed up with lots of other more ragey feelings about how much time and money they suck out of me. I knew odds were slim, but I was honestly a bit afraid of encountering the band in any way just out in the city. I could see it leading to flipping tables, and something being thrown, and lots of yelling, things like Do you realize how much I love you jerks?! Do you know how much of my money you've eaten?!?!? I could've bought a new car by now, you assholes!, except it would be in a language they barely understand at best, and all ken would understand would likely be the I love you, so he'd just respond with :D THANKS! and whachagonnado)
*cough*
I waffled a bit on how much to give them, but decided on $10 since I was certain their museum store would get more out of me. I had set aside 25 for the museum anyway, just in case, so it wasn't terribly out of budget. You're given a folding metal badge to show you've paid admission, and I had to double back a couple times to get maps, etc. That place is huuuuuuuuuuugggeeee! It would probably take a week to really do the Met properly! And we only had a couple of hours! We all entered the wing of Egyptian art at first, and took advantage of bathrooms. Picc asked an attendant if pictures were okay, and they said yes as long as there was no flash, and also some special exhibits had signs up asking you not to. The Egyptian wing is amazing, and I didn't even see all of it! I'm very sorry that I didn't realize that the temple wasn't just a front, it was transported block by block and rebuilt there! Inside was really quite awesome - I saw it from a second floor window later. I wish I'd gone in there to really look at the walls! I got almost instantly distracted by a side hallway with a sign saying CLEARANCE SHOP and an arrow down stairs 6_6 But because of that I got a cool shirt with a gold design mimicking a Calder necklace from his jewelry work around the 40s, Jealous Husband. X3 It's pretty cool, and geez, looking at how much it was originally, if that's how they price things in their museum shop, maybe it's a blessing in disguise that I didn't make it to the actual one D: Though a magnet would've been nice.
While I was entranced by deals, the others had noticed we were sort of breaking off. I got a text once I came out of the shop, and also met up with Catherine, finding out plans were for us to amble our own ways and meet up at the info desk in the lobby at closing. I got lost almost immediately @_@; I went into the European sculpture and painting, and tried to make sense of what was in what rooms, but I got rather turned around. I saw some very nice Christian iconography, some transition Byzantine stuff too, but I knew I could get totally bogged down in all the Byzantine had to offer, so I ditched it and barreled into early painting masters. There were several rooms with studies of light and balance, some very famous still lifes that you see reproductions of in books, and three Vermeer paintings, including the famous woman with pitcher. It was striking to look at in person. There's light and color you don't see in the reproductions! It really comes across what a master of light he was, and how he really controlled his use of space. While I was looking at those, I got a call from Laura. She was in the hotel room, her day with her brother done, and wanted to know where we were, and was very surprised to hear we were in the Met. She had ironically just been up in the same area, was probably up at the top of Rockefeller Center one of the times we were passing it X3; Since she had just come from there, she didn't really feel like taking another trip back, but the more I talked about the Met the more she rolled in some angst before giving up and jumping in a cab, which really raced her over. She paid a small donation and really booked it through a few wings to try and see a couple of modern pieces which were real priorities to her. In the meantime, I continued through European art until I saw a connecting door to the American wing. That led me to a balcony area; the outsides had cases of glass and pewter handicraft, which were so interesting to look at! I wish I'd had time to go to the other side where I could see some Tiffany and art glass, but I really wanted to see a few more sections~ The entire middle was an overlook onto a sculpture plaza, adjacent to the museum cafe. I wish I'd had time to go down and look at that up close too! But after a quick picture, I was racing forward again. I ran straight into a special exhibit of storytelling in Japanese art (which did have a sign asking for no photos). There were some pieces, but mostly large scrolls that were telling stories. I tend to look at a scroll as a panoramic landscape, not a serial, so I often don't see the story ^^; There were also some very nice kimonos :3 Ugh, but by that time there were only 10 minutes left DX; So every time I even tried to ask a question about something, I'd get directed on how to leave~ I did my best to try and see more, but they were gently but firmly urging us toward the door. I wasn't able to go back in the Egyptian wing to take a quick look in the temple, they weren't letting people IN the different wings anymore, only waiting for everyone to get OUT, ditto to the museum store. I saw Laura and Colin right away near the info desk, and the others met up with us quickly. X3; After that though, we were a bit lost as to what to do next. There was some debate about going somewhere to eat, but some of us needed to eat NOW, so we talked about whether we should stop and snack. In the end, I misunderstood and thought we were just snacking and would eat more later, so when we stopped at a burger place I wish I'd gotten more than cheese fries @_@; And it started to drizzle a little, getting cooler and cooler as the evening progressed. Made me wish I'd brought my hoodie, but it would've been a pain to carry all day X3; I believe we all called a ceasefire until the next day, which would be L'armageddon. I think this is the night that Laura, Catherine, and I went to a convenience store near the station to pick up snacks and drinks before going back to the room. Laura also needed a notepad for the concert X3
Distressingly, we all started to feel the cold and the seasons, developing a smidge of a cough D: More from congestion than anything else, I'm sure, but it didn't help us going into the next night.