Too girly?

When I saw they were selling pink Slimes at the Parco as part of a push to get Dragon Quest more popular with girls, I had to go and buy one. I mean, limited edition pink sparkle Slime? Despite the fact I've only played the first two DQ games (as Dragon Warrior, on the NES), it's just one of those geeky things you got to have. Besides, I think it goes nicely with the Peep I got at AX a few years ago.
I've been trying to hit up various summer festivals this past month. Two weeks ago I went to the
Hachimangu Shrine in Kamakura to try to see the Bonbori festival, but it was raining off and on, and paper lanterns and rain don't really mix. The sight of the lotus that so thoroughly took over the ponds was pretty amazing though. This photo from
May and this one from
August show sharp contrast. I also tried to hit the beach, but it was super crowded and not that interesting. I did get some nice bread from Kibiya bakery. They use a local yeast and whole wheat flour blend so their breads always have great texture and flavor.
Last weekend I went to a different Hachimangu Shrine in
Tomioka to see their matsuri. I got there in time to watch them hoist two
mikoshi through the streets. The particular feature of Tomioka Hachimangu Shrine's matsuri is the liberal dousing of the
mikoshi and its bearers with buckets of water. As I was walking down some of the back streets I noticed many places had several buckets on standby for whenever the
mikoshi were due to pass. I also got a few videos. They're all in
Picasa.
I am going to try to catch the Jingu Gaien Hanabi Taikai on Thursday. I think I'll have a decent view from my apartment.