Graduating from being an Otaku

Today's post isn't about me being in Japan. Well, it partially has something to do about me being in Japan right now.

Yesterday I was cleaning up my hard disk because I was almost out of memory and I found this photo:

It was a birthday gift from my friends who lived in the same dorm as I did when I was in junior high. Or actually, secondary school, to be exact. It reminded me of how much of an otaku I was. Watching anime and reading manga every day was my routine, and I did like to be called with Japanese honorifics such as "-chan". My sole reason of learning Japanese was to watch anime, read manga and play games in Japanese because I didn't like English-dubbed stuffs and English-translated manga often get released too slow.

My favorite country was Japan for no valid reason, and when I grow up I want to work for Squaresoft (which is Square-Enix right now). I didn't mind being the security guard as long as I work there. After graduating from high school I wanted to study the arts and I wanted to work in the animation industry even though I had zero skills.

Back then, my mind was very narrow-minded. I didn't see any other possibilities.

Somehow after attending college, I gradually changed. For some reason, I picked a major that is totally unrelated to what I had been dreaming of. I knew I was strong in chemistry, and somehow events led me to choose food science. I learned a lot of awesome things, fell in love with my major, and my horizon expanded.

I started seeing more and more interesting things to explore. Things that I knew I love were somehow buried under the spell of anime and manga. Back in secondary school, I knew I like to cook. I knew I like to take pictures of nature, and I knew I like to write songs. I like thrilling stuffs like riding the roller coaster and sky diving. I like to read news about technology. Not so much on politics and stocks/shares. I find psychology interesting, and science amazing. But because I dedicated too much of time for anime and manga and games, I couldn't see that my life is much more than that.

Right now, I still read manga every day, but at a less worrying pace. I watch anime about once or twice in a month, and I could leave my PSP untouched for 3 months. The result? I feel that I used my time much more efficiently, and my life was more exciting and colorful.

I used to think that the world will end without manga or anime, and I had never thought of giving them up. But hey, guess what: I could! And it wasn't something that I decided to do; it happened naturally. Changes are gradual. 

Well, I wouldn't say I really regretted those times I was an otaku because thanks to that I could understand both otaku and non-otaku way of thinking. But hey, it was a good change for me, and I think it's worth celebrating. At least I think it is :)

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In Japan - Maid Cafe

I've been looking for people who want to accompany me to a maid cafe. Most people would say "oh yeah, let's go" but whenever I want to go they're not there or they just don't really have enough will to go and plan for the trip.

So I could say I was fortunate to randomly spurred "I want to go to a maid cafe" two days ago. They're the type of decisive people who would say yes and no almost immediately. A quick plan to Akihabara was made, and that's how we arrived at the maid cafe.

We're by no means hardcore otaku (although we do watch some anime and play Japanese games), and the price of the food offered in maid cafes are probably about double the usual. We've probably heard about maid cafe in stories or watched it on TV or YouTube. Or heard other people talking about their experience. But first hand experience is indeed different.

There are a lot of maid cafes in Akihabara (in short, Akiba), but since this was the first one that we saw and all the maids looks pretty, we decided to go for this one. The maid who was doing the advertising on the street very kindly took us to the cafe.

And we just realized, after entering the cafe, that according to the pamphlet Backstreet Boys visited this cafe once!

In maid cafes, male customers will be addressed as "goshuujin-sama" (my master equivalent) and female customers like me as "ojou-sama" (milady/princess equivalent).

The table was decorated with table mats of anime-style maids. A pretty bouquet on the table, frilly curtains and classical music in the background. And of course, pretty, 'moe' maids in maid uniforms. As advertised, the maids from this cafe can speak English pretty well. They speak in full sentences.

Who comes to this maid cafe? Well, I haven't seen anyone coming here alone. I've seen a middle aged couple, foreigners, a group of males, and a dad with his two young children (see picture below).

I think this cafe has a bright, relaxing atmosphere, and isn't as shady as other maid cafes. By shady, I mean dark and secluded. And skirts that are a little too short, perhaps.

If you pay an extra 500 yen, some maids will perform a Ketchup Dance for you, and that's when you get to choose a maid who will draw on your plate using ketchup. What is a Ketchup Dance, you ask? Well, try it out yourself. Describing using words is a little hard LOL.

She was the maid I chose because I think she's the cutest somehow. Now that I think about it again, I might want a twintail maid to do it for me instead but she's cute, so it's ok. She asked me what anime character I want on my plate, and since I was still blank from the Ketchup Dance, the only character I could think of is Nyanko-sensei from Natsume Yuujinchou. Well, at first I requested Nyanko-sensei WITH Natsume (from Natsume Yuujinchou) but she said it would be hard (in other words, she can't). So Nyanko-sensei it is :)

My friend who came along somehow requested his name to be written as "Bakuhatsu" (explosion) and I still don't get why. LOL.

Pretty, huh? These maids are no ordinary maids. They're very skillful with ketchup art! But is that it? NOPE. Before you eat the omurice you will still need to cast a "magic that will make the omurice taste better". I couldn't record the action because I have to do it, but here's what happened: the maid will first give you the instruction and then you'll have to follow it.

Maid: *draws a big heart using her index fingers* "Oishikuna~re~"
Maid + Customer: *forms a heart with fingers and points to the left* "Moe~"

Maid + Customer: *forms a heart with fingers and points to the right* "Moe~"

Maid + Customer: *forms a heart with fingers and points towards the omurice* "KYUUUU~N"

And then you can start eating your omurice.

I was told by the maid who guided us to the shop that omurice and coffee latte are the most famous menu because in the case of omurice the maids will do a special service by writing your name and drawing an anime character you like. And perform a "magic that will make the omurice taste better". And in the case of the coffee latte, the maid will also perform a similar magic, but instead of drawing, she will be stirring the creamer while saying "maze, maze" spell which means "mix, mix" or "stir, stir".

Was it worth the money? YES. Aside from the entertainment and the enjoyable atmosphere, and the special service, the omurice we ordered was very delicious. People call it fuwa fuwa omurice, which means fluffy omurice. The center of the omelet is half-cooked and omelet is very soft and fluffy. 1600 yen is probably about double to almost triple the price of omelet in restaurants it's definitely worth the money. Well, it's not like you will be going to a maid cafe every week (or worse, every day), right? Unless you're really rich :)

If you don't like omurice, there are also dessert set menus that cost 1400 yen. It comes with a soda drink. You'll get a cake and an anime character drawn using syrup. There are different types of cakes, so I'm assuming that the syrup changes with the type of dessert you ordered.

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