savaster

Dive Master Mitsuki

A master priestess (巫女正) of her Shrine, credited with excellent performance under water…

******************************************************

(SAVER) It's been so long since I've done this work, so I accidentally typed the wrong tag and corrected it. :-/

Anya Vendor

It might be getting a bit out of hand when even a roadside market stand starts to bank on the fame of a young anime telepath, selling not just her favorite peanuts but all sorts of dried fruit. 

(Oh and no worries about the quality of the produce....I believe they are perfectly OK, even if the last name of the promoter might suggest otherwise.)

- Sadowara Town, Miyazaki

(Photo by Aster)

The Hideout

(…Saki, you’re late!)

(Sorry, the cloud of fish was watching me.)

(Well, let’s hang out. We have plenty of time here.)

[End]

Duck Boat

I may have taken one in Charles River, Boston before and recall it being more like an amphibious vehicle storming the shores of Normandy - rugged and fairly turbulent. Actually there has been a handful of deadly incidents in the U.S. with the so-called “stretch ducks” in the past (like one in a Missouri lake), where the stakes of loss of life versus revenue opportunity were grossly miscalculated. Luckily for me, the waters of Osaka’s Yodogawa River were very calm, and the 75 min mini vo...

Bankrupt Aya

"Chihaya...you could have been here and stopped me.....(Sob)”

Nitenmon Gate

Senso-ji Temple, Asakusa, Tokyo

I noted some people who came walking around the gate and then going back into the gate. I hope that they eventually made it back home safely.

(Photo by Aster)

Aya & iPad Mini (Gif Drawing Process)

Hi:-)

Minus One

(以下、軽いネタバレあり）

前評判通り素晴らしかったです。前作『シン・ゴジラ』は、怪獣来襲をサカナにして現代政治を語るような表現がやや肌に合わなかったのですが、-1.0は、ちっちゃな漁船改造船で立ち向かうがごとく、個としてそれぞれのキャラクターが敵に向き合っているためすんなり移入していけます。戦争映画としても考証もなされ昔の作品のよ�...

Sardines 2

(Ah the fish has found the crabs nest…is it going to claim it as its own?)

2020

…Actually this is the former Athletes’ Village in Harumi, Tokyo, which hosted the contestants from many countries in the world for the 2020 summer Olympic Games. Unfortunately, the guests were in something very close to forced home custody and saw very little rapport and camaraderie with the host community that they had expected.

The year 2020 has come and gone, and the same district is now seeing a renewed influx of visitors from afar.

Gosh how the time flies.

(Photo ...

Rock Crabs

(It’s the girl fish! Whoaaa!!!)

(It’s making itself flat! Now headin’ to the shaft!!)

River Center Pier

(両国リバーセンター)

隅田川や東京スカイツリーと言えばリコリスのイメージありますね。ちな東京水辺ラインには第5話で乗船。

Can’t be denied that Sumida River and Tokyo Skytree remind us of Lycoris Recoil…Chisato/Takina duo took the Tokyo Mizuno Cruising Line in ep 5.

(Photo by Aster)

Sardines

(Look brothers! There’s that fish again that’s shaped like a human girl!)

IJN Mikasa

Vickers, Sons & Maxim shipyards , 1902

With the enormous bow ram and the 40 nine-inch guns protruding from its sides, this pre-dreadnaught almost has the feel of a Napoleonic era warship.

(Photo by Aster)

Slack Time Eri

“No way, they’re never going to make money on that wreck of a car…”

…And how Eri is able to keep herself in perfect shape with all the beer guzzling is everyone’s mystery. :-)

Hardly Yokohama?

As an ardent fan of Yokohama Kaidashi Kiko and a creator of a doujin literature (below), I have always been amused that the story’s reference to Yokohama is actually minimal. Literally translated into “Yokohama Shopping Log,” yes the protagonist Alpha does take her scooter to that city to buy beans for her coffee shop, but that is only the first episode and she never goes back there for a refill. She and her neighbors actually live in today’s Miura peninsula down south, which...

Burger Time Aya

Aya happily spending her hard earned cash. But better watch out for those carbs and fat if she wants to keep on modeling….:-)

Dual Module Vehicle (DMV)

Asa Coast Railway

…Half train, half bus…

All bumpy. :-)

(Photo by Aster)

Chihaya’s Sanctuary

“Listen to the voices of the Water-Fairy…”

Little Step of Horrors

At a surfing lodge in Shishikui, Tokushima Pref., Japan…

Is it the small widths, or the uneven heights, or the inconspicuous curve to the left?

Anyways, it was a horrifying experience to need to come down from the bedroom loft to the kitchen and the restroom after the lights went out. :-)

(Photo by Aster)

Mami Tomoe (2013)

An old pixiv pic...(now gone)

What saves her famed decapitation scene in Ep 3 from utter trauma is her obvious detachment from real life feel from the beginning of the series. For example, we know that when very young Mami lost all her family in a car crush but how gained her current mental resilience or how she makes her living alone in a fancy apartment unit as a 15 year old orphan is never told.

The one time she appeared “real” and alive was when in an alternate timeline ...

Aya & iPad Mini 5

Aya: (Eri, so that you know…you’re not letting me breathe.)

Hanuman

The Ape God, Son of wind-god Vayu, A hero of Thai people.

Hanuman is one of Hindu/Buddhist deities that never made their way into Japanese Buddhism, so his first introduction in Japan was probably the 1974 Thai/Japanese co-produced cult classic Hanuman vs 7 Ultramen (หนุมานพบ 7 ยอดมนุษย์). This Thai movie title is a bit deceiving because there are only six Ultramen (in Thailand, six is an unlucky number) and they are more or less relegated to ...

Saki & iPad Mini 5

Saki: (I am…beginning to like this.)

Bangkok Style

Ok…so I can attest that Japanesque “moe” style have not yet come ashore in Thailand. And the girls on the top at saying (according to Google translate) “Please pay before paying” and the one below says “You can check price before you pay.” Fairly uneventful, heh?

(Photo by Aster)

iPad Mini 5

Faint underwater dreams....

Top 20 Countries in the World: Readers' Choice Awards 2023

Japan is somehow #1 in the 2023 list of best countries to travel....thank you :-)

(By Aster)

Breath Stopper Aya

Five minutes into a photoshoot…

Aya: (Ok…I guess Eri has forgot to give me resurfacing time…but whatever.)

Centralworld Mall, Bangkok

RX-78 Gundam and MS-06S Zaku II (Char’s)

“Let’s see what that Thai mobile suit can do!”

「見せてもらおうか タイ王国のモビルスーツの性能とやらを!」 /＜二＞＜二＞\

(Photo by Aster)

Pool Exercise

Chihaya staying in shape and maintaining her cardiovascular powers while back home in Tokyo.

There are a lot that she needs to do to keep up with her younger cousin, who is a natural when it comes to diving and breath holding…