Just to show that we aren’t complete losers at our beloved Japanese crane games, here is our modest pile of loot from the past few days:
And this isn’t all! We also won a few very lame things (pencil bag, scary teddy bear) that we decided to leave in the game chute for the next lucky player.
Some details:
This is Yawaraka-sensha (“Soft Tank” in English). He’s a little wimpy tank that is scared of getting hurt in war, so he’s always rolling away from the action. He and Gun Shy should really get together one of these days. You can see some animations of Yawaraka-sensha here.
This little seal is wearing a fish windsock on his tail. Don’t ask why.
And the prize for Most Weirdest goes to the Tarako Kewpie in a bubble keychain. Tarako is nasty fish eggs sauce that people put on their pasta, and the Kewpie Doll is its unwitting mascot. More impressive wierdness in the below video (warning: extremely long for a video of 9-year-olds dancing to a repetitive song).
Oh my lord, I got halfway through the song and ended up watching my daughter’s Dora cartoon. Oy! That loot looks awesome by the way. I love the tank, he’s cute. :D
I am dying of cuteness overload. I want everything!!!
I cannot believe how absolutly cute everything is there! I love it!!! Hope your having a wonderful time, can’t wait to see what patterns this trip inspires :-)
Sociologically, can you tell where all this cuteness began in Japan? I would be interested in a thumbnail history according to your analysis. Is it a backlash against the Godzilla-fascinated part of the culture?
eee! the seal is so cute! I love it.
wow! you guys are the coolest! love all your loot…. :D
I actually sat through the whole song. I now have the tune stuck in my head. I’m so jealous, I want to go to Japan so bad, and as far as I’ve been able to tell, it’s too cute for it’s own good! XD