The current best-selling game is Square-Enix's Dragon Quest IX: Protectors of the Starry Sky (that's my translation of the title) for the Nintendo DS. A common joke is that Dragon Quest launch days are unofficial national holidays in Japan, as so many people skip work to buy and play the game.

Here is a DQ wi-fi access point outside of the massive Yodobashi Camera electronics store in Akihabara. I think you could download special in-game items or something.

I've never played a Dragon Quest game in my life. Though, I have been happily playing Chrono Trigger, which I bought for $20 the other day.

Tons of people swarming around the wi-fi point. Gives you an idea for just how popular the Dragon Quest series is in Japan.

Spotted this cute sign near the police station. The Japanese says "Not even this guy is allowed! Carrying daggers and knives is prohibited." Guess ol' Wolverine is fresh out of luck.

Tokyo University (東京大学)

Established in 1877, Tokyo University (popularly nicknamed "Todai") is the nation's oldest and most prestigious house of learning. The school has gone through several name changes throughout its history.

For example, the place was named "Tokyo Imperial University" when famous novelist Natsume Soseki was a student. This name was understandably abolished after the war ended.

The university has five campuses scattered throughout the city, the biggest and most famous of which is the campus in Hongo. Since Hongo is only a few stops away on the subway, I took the opportunity to wander around the campus.

The campus architecture is a neat blend of traditional Japanese structures (like the "red gate") mixed with somewhat retro-looking western buildings. Also, most of the buildings have neat arched entryways reminiscent of the rabbit hole from Alice in Wonderland.

B.E.W.

Tokyo University's best known landmark is this, the "aka-mon" or "red gate". The main Hongo campus sits on land that once belonged to feudal lords during the Edo Period. This gate is a relic from that bygone era.

Main campus library with spire fountain in the foreground. The arched entryway actually reminded me quite a bit of Stanford's Green Library.

Just about 5 PM.

The complete postcard-style shot of Todai's famous clock tower atop Yasuda Auditorium.

Now for a completely unrelated picture. I passed this tank out front of an Asakusa restaurant. I don't think I've ever seen live squid before. They look so happy in their pre-sushi form.

Goodbye Ehime...(ハロ～巨大ガンダム！)

Guess what?

I no longer live in Ehime Prefecture! My contract with Ehime University has officially ended and the highway bus whisked me away last night. When I awoke and peeked through the curtains, I was in Tokyo.

I know this seems abrupt. This all still seems very surreal to me at this point too. Seems like just yesterday I was sitting in my apartment in Shikoku and visiting the local onsen...

...oh wait, that was yesterday!

Perhaps I'll try and write something to summarize my thoughts and feelings from this year spent in Shikoku. But, in the meantime, please check out the pictures from Odaiba below.

I went and saw a giant robot today! I couldn't help but wish that they had made it just a little bit bigger...and with the ability to fly into space...and wield a beam saber...

B.E.W

Prepare yourself for the most amazing two minutes and thirty eight seconds of your life!

Even though the robot is only 18 meters tall (~60 ft), from this angle, it looks like it dwarfs the skyscrapers.

The Gundam series celebrates its 30th anniversary this year. Despite having three decades worth of robot designs to choose from for the statue, the iconic RX-78-2 model from the 1979 anime Mobile Suit Gundam won hands down.

This giant statue is part of the Green Tokyo Gundam Project. The Project's goal is to dedicate souvenir proceeds towards expanding parks and public green spaces within the city.

However, another large reason for constructing the giant robot was to further bolster spirit for the city's bid at the 2016 Olympics. You can spot the city's Olympic logo on the robot's left shoulder.

Bravery pose! One of my students said that the Japanese military is tinkering around with building real-life mobile suits like this to use in battle someday. According to him, the current designs have only been "partially successful". I guess that means no flying just yet :(

Closeup of the head.

The final pose. All that was left was for the thing to take off and fly into orbit!

This image can be used for scale. Visitors can walk between the legs of the giant Gundam. I'm 5'4", and my head reached about the midpoint of the ankle joint.

Assembly instructions. I hope they didn't use any AN960-418 washers by mistake.

Free Red Bull outside the Gundam Plaza! Gundam and Red Bull seem like a perfect match. Then again, maybe it's the nerds who like Gundam and Red Bull that are the perfect match...

In any event, this photo commemorates the first time in my life that I have drank a Red Bull. "Not as bad as I was expecting" is the phrase that comes to mind.

After snapping enough giant Gundam pictures to last me the rest of my life, I wandered around the "United States of Odaiba" (yes that's the real name). The vibe was similar to a state fair, though the size was considerably smaller. There were several performance plazas as well as indoor and outdoor exhibition booths, food stalls, and souvenir shops. Most of the activity was centered around the famous Fuji TV building.

The new Nissan Skyline Crossover. I assume the "crossover" part is referring to the fact that it is a hatchback. I want one!

A clever advertisement inside the Sony Playstation booth. I guess even samurai needed entertainment!

The new PSP Go, set to launch this November in Japan. Unfortunately, the unit was not available for play-testing.

A cute toy display. This tiny soy bean character is nestled in natto.

Just to prove that I still love America!

This booth was run by people from Obama City in Fukui Prefecture. You may remember that this tiny city gained worldwide news attention during the election, after the mayor sent (then) candidate Obama a pair of chopsticks. Obama responded with a thank you letter of his own and the city went nuts! Word is that there are plans to erect a giant statue of Obama in front of the city hall. This is because his election was (to quote the city officials), "a great moment for the name Obama."

For this picture, the traditional "cheese" just simply wouldn't cut it. I had to scream "YES WE CAN!!!" on three.

Ehime Gourmet 3 (美食の第3巻)

Are you hungry yet?

This new volume of beautiful food - entitled, "Sebastian" - features a course menu from a Matsuyama crab restaurant named Kani Doraku.

Kani Doraku is actually a chain throughout Japan. The original store is in Osaka's famous Dotonbori eating district. The restaurants are easily identified by their giant mechanized crab signs.

I hope you enjoy the pictures as much as I enjoyed eating the food...oh wait, that's not possible!

B.E.W.

Crab ~
The first course was traditional boiled crab legs. Not pictured is the yuzu dipping sauce.

Sashimi ~
While it may be a bit difficult to tell from the picture, this is actually raw crab sashimi. The taste and texture of the meat was sweet and quite similar to amaebi.

Gratin ~
Melty...gooey...creamy...crab gratin!

Chawanmushi ~
For those who don't know, chawanmushi is a savory egg custard often eaten as an appetizer here in Japan. In this case, the main ingredient was crab.

Tempura ~
Crab leg tempura. Okra and squash were also present as well.

Soup ~
Crab dumpling and kelp in a crystal clear broth.

Kani Meshi ~
This crab rice was by far my favorite part of the meal. Simple yet incredibly delicious. The rice was cooked and served in an individual-sized iron pot. In Japanese, this cooking method is called "kama-meshi".

Dessert ~
Vanilla ice cream with a simple berry sauce.

Ehime Gourmet 2 (美食の第2巻)

Time for more pictures of beautiful food!

Tonight's volume - entitled, "Leon: The Professional Eater" - features dishes from a Matsuyama French restaurant named Assiette Blanc.

I hope you enjoy the pictures as much as I enjoyed eating the food...oh wait, that's not possible!

B.E.W.

Hors d'oeuvre ~
Meat pate on a crisped baguette slice.

Salad ~
Shrimp salad presented on a beautiful crystal glass plate.

Soup ~
Cold split pea soup with truffle oil.

Foie Gras ~
Here, the foie gras has been wrapped in a crispy pastry shell. The sauce underneath was a balsamic vinegar reduction.

A closeup of the meat.

Fish Course ~
Tai (red snapper), paired with a seared scallop and prosciutto.

Meat Course ~
Steak enclosed in a ring of vegetables. For some reason, the plate composition reminded me of Stonehenge.

Dessert ~
The top half of the cake was chocolate mousse and the bottom half was a crisp cookie. The resulting contrast in flavors and textures was quite nice.

A completely unrelated food pic. This shiso flavored pepsi was on-sale in the hospital convenience store, so I picked up a bottle to try. For those who don't know, shiso is a Japanese herb from the mint family. The leaf is often paired with sushi and sashimi.

Ever since my jaw operation, I've lost the ability to appreciate subtle flavors (at least this is what my family would have you believe). Thus, the drink simply tasted like every other Japanese soda to me. If you need a comparison, imagine 7-up without the lemon / lime flavor.

Grateful Bread (アンパンマン)

My last stop before leaving Kochi City was a visit to the Anpanman Museum.

In retrospect, I don't know exactly why I visited. I can't call myself a fan of Anpanman. I also can't call myself eight years old. Perhaps it was my love of popular culture that brought me there.

For those unfamiliar, Anpanman is a fictional children's superhero here in Japan. He is unique in that his head is made from "anpan", a baked roll filled with red bean jam. He has various friends and enemies, almost all of whom sport heads modeled after Japanese baked goods.

Here's a quick Japanese lesson. 90% of the characters are named using the following structure; ____ + pan ("bread") + man ("man"). Now you can create names of your own.

Like, "kabi+pan+man", which means Moldy Bread Man. HA!

Anpanman began as a comic, before being adapted into a cartoon for children. The television show is still immensely popular and has been broadcast continually for over 20 years now. In fact, Anpanman is reported to be the most popular fictional character in Japan with children aged 0 ~ 12.

In case you're wondering about the Shikoku connection, Anpanman's creator, Takashi Yanase, was born here in Kochi Prefecture. There is also a special Anpanman themed JR train that runs here in Matsuyama. I unintentionally rode it once. It was maddeningly cute.

We rode to the museum in a special Anpanman bus (why not?). Given the age demographic, the seats were understandably packed with googly eyed Japanese toddlers and their parents or legal guardians.

The grandmother to my left enjoyed repeating the word "Anpanman" ad nauseam. Since the interior of the bus was decorated head-to-toe with images of the hero, she had no shortage of things to point at and say, "looooook Anpanpan!" as her oblivious grandson dribbled spit on his shirt.

The museum itself was definitely geared towards the younger crowd. There was an Anpanman play place, as well as various computer terminals with games for children. Most of the exhibit space was dedicated to original art and wall hangings from Yanase.

I felt that the museum gift shop lacked one crucial item. They need to start baking actual edible anpan decorated like the character. I mean, what kid wouldn't love devouring the face of their hero?

B.E.W.

I wonder what's coming...?

As if to let the entire city know that the dorks were on parade, we were transported to the museum in this very "colorful" bus. I can safely say that I was the oldest non-parent on board.

This big robot greets you at the entrance to the Anpanman Museum in Kochi City.

A diorama showing Anpanman's world.

Baking new heads for Anpanman.

Anpanman is of course the hero and star of the series. His head is made of "anpan", which is a Japanese bread roll filled with sweet red bean. He can break off a portion of his head and give it to hungry people or creatures.

Baikinman is Anpanman's archnemisis. He is a villain from Germ World and leads his virus buddies in a quest to destroy Anpanman and take over the world.

Dokinchan is the evil henchwoman of Baikinman. She does not appear to be a bread byproduct.

Here is Currypanman. As even a child could easily surmise, his head is made from a a curry-filled roll. In real life, these rolls are quite popular in Japan. I happen to dislike them.

Here is Shokupanman. "Shoku-pan" is another name for sliced white bread in Japanese. This accounts for his head. I suppose the American equivalent would be Powdered Toast Man from Ren & Stimpy.