catch&release

I don't think Teramachi has a Gamers. I think Lonely Planet lied to me.

Anyway, today marked the big Nintendo event of the year: the release of Pokemon HeartGold and SoulSilver, and I was there near the front of the queue to grab my copy. It was also a great opportunity to check out the shopping district of Kyoto, having resigned myself to the fact that shopping in Shimogamo is passable but not the bright, glittery image of Japanese commercialism I had come to expect.

Teramachi was that image.

I am beginning to appreciate phones alot these days, now that I don't have one. That is to say that the arranged meeting between Mark and myself did not go ahead. Station T12 at 8.30; it was more complicated than it sounds. Anyway, alone in the slowly awakening south-eastern section of Kyoto city, I began to wander the streets. I swear, had I not had a specific goal in mind I would have spent all day there. The place needs days to explore to the full.

As I have already mentioned, I couldn't find Gamers, that paragon of anime merchandising, and so had to find a different game shop. I eventually put myself in line in front of a 10-storey electronics shop called SofMap, which was the best Pokemon event I was going to get. My sources tell me that the real event takes place on the weekend of the 20th... in Roppongi. It's a bit like Edinburgh all over again; always second place to Glasgow.

Anyway, this shop was simply heavenly. Macs and Mac accessories in the basement, phones on the first floor, cameras on the second floor... video games on ALL the others. 8 floors of gaming goodness. It was truly breathtaking. I quickly got my copy of HeartGold and looked about. Did you know the Persona 3 and 4 soundtracks got their own live show? I didn't. It's a good thing I don't have a bank account, I was seriously tempted by too much in that shop. Far too much. Games that good cannot be lessened by a mere language barrier.

Other shops in the Karasuma district I came across included a manga shop in which I had to avert my eyes from half the stock, a small modelling museum with some sweet plastic Gundam models, and a sweet plastic Gundam model shop. Lunch at McD's and off home where I spent the rest of the day training Pjotr the Totodile and translating Japanese attack names.

Tomorrow I hope to get to the church in Doshisha Women's College. Now, I know what you're thinking, but I assure you that it's a mixed-gender church service! I think...

...I hope.

Anyway, thanks for reading. Here's some Japanese.

Oh, and for those who asked, the exchange rate is about 0.5p to the yen, so 2600 yen is about £13, which is okay. I'm still trying to judge for myself what is expensive and what isn't.

***

寺町は必ずゲーマーゼがないと思います。LONELYPLANETはうそつきだと思います。

じゃ、今日は「ポケットモンスターハートゴルド・ソールシルバ」の発売させた大切な日で、僕はコピーを買うために列で待てていました。それも、京都のショッピングを調べることのいいチャンスでした。下鴨のショッピングはそこそこですが、僕の日本のショッピングのイメージじゃありません。

寺町は完璧です。

僕は今ぐらい携帯電話に正しく理解を始まります。それは今日マークに会われませんでした。「８時半にT12で」はもちろん難しすぎます。とにがく、一人で京都のゆっくり起きている烏丸を歩き回りました。ゴールがないたら、一日中歩き回って、一日は必要、全部を見るために。

だから、アニメショップの鑑のゲーマーズを見つけられなかって、ほかのゲームショップを見つけなくてはいけませんでした。結局は電気器の店のSOFMAPの前に列をみつけまして、それは京都のほかのポケモンのイベントより大いですかな。最高のポケモンイベントは２０日の週末に…六本木ヒルズであるらしい。エジンバラのようなで、いつもよりグラスゴーです。

とにがく、この店は僕の天国でした。マックとアクセサリーはB1で、１Fで携帯電話、２Fでカメラ、そのほかでゲームがあります！８回ものゲームがありました！素敵でした。早く「ハートゴルド」を買って、店を歩き回りました。パーソナー３＆４はライブショーがありまして知っていますか？僕は知っていませんでした。銀行預金口座がないことはよかったで、多分多すぎて買いました！多すぎます！そのゲームのために言語障壁は無理です！

そのほかの店は多い恥ずかしい物があるマンガ屋やすごくて小さいガンダムモデルがある博物館やすごいガンダムモデルの店を見つけました。マクドナルドズで昼ごはんを食べて、うちに帰って、ワニノコのピョッターを教育したり、日本語のアッタクの名前を訳したりしました。

明日、同志社女大学の教会に行くつもりです。しかし、もちろん男女両用礼拝です！頼む…

そう望んでいます…

じゃ、お呼んでありがとうございます。