Hyper Japan 2017 Review

Hello Everybody!
Hyper Japan 2017 has already been and gone, I can't quite believe it! This trip to Hyper Japan was my third trip and I thought I would share some thoughts for anybody deciding whether or not to go for Christmas or for the July Convention in the many years to come!

THE LOCATION:
Tobacco Dock is beautiful but it definitely doesn't feel like a convention centre. It's pokey, slightly awkward and often confusing. It felt like there was a lack of toilets for the sheer volume of people. The queues were large. It was also incredibly hot and slightly dark. It could have done with a lot more light in some of the more hidden rooms. I wouldn't say I didn't enjoy the convention being here, I just found it difficult to find my way around. Everything was in little rooms and often I felt like that I might be going the wrong way. The staff that actually worked for the convention centre didn't feel particularly helpful and if I did lose my way a bit, they'd just shoo me away and point to a map as I tried to find my way around. Most of the time though, it just felt wrong and it wasn't actually wrong.

Sorry for such negative notes there. I'm just trying to give the full experience. Tobacco Dock itself is full of character, is easy to find from either Shadwell or Wapping station (and about equidistant from each) and once you do manage to find your way around is a lot of fun!




THE STALLS:
As somebody that goes to Hyper Japan almost solely for all the kawaii fashion stuff, I was truly in my element. The stalls were absolutely amazing for this. There was so much beautiful art, cute clothes and genuinely amazing stuff to look at. It was like a dreamworld for someone like me! No matter what your J-Fashion style is you will find something for yourself at Hyper Japan. You will find too much, you will not be able to afford everything you want to buy!

As always, TofuCute, Cakes With Faces, Artbox and Dreamy Bows really did make the convention this year. They had amazing displays, cute photo areas, an absolutely incredible amount of stock and really made the place pop!

There were apparently less anime stalls than usual, I can't comment as it's never been something I've really looked at too much but my sister was far more interested in them. To me, it felt like a lot of the anime stalls were overpriced tat. A lot of rip-off posters that had been reprinted and slightly unfortunate looking pokemon plushes! Personally I wouldn't spend my money on it but I can see the appeal to an 11 year old anime fan! There were also some bargains so it's not all a rip-off. My sister also loves the idea that she has super cool anime bags and posters that her friends will find hard to find so that's cool too! I honestly don't think it's a complete waste of money as long as you go into it knowing that you might not be buying the genuine stuff!

HOW BUSY WAS IT?
I went for Friday and Sunday so I can't comment for Saturday (notoriously the busiest day) but Friday was the quietest. Friday was still busy but it felt manageable, nowhere got to crowded, I managed to see everything I wanted to see and didn't feel too claustrophobic.
Fast forward to Sunday and it was packed, it felt like almost double the people. Trying to get into the TofuCute, Artbox and Dreamy Bows stalls was almost impossible, my sister had to wait outside while I got her Ramune as she was too anxious to even attempt to enter. Honestly it was not an enjoyable experience on the Sunday with the levels of people. Queues for food and toilets made it feel like it wasn't worth eating or drinking. (not something I say lightly!)


THE FOOD:If you could bring yourself to try and wait in a disorganised queue, the food was a really interesting and varied selection of Japanese goodies. It was expensive, which goes without saying at all conventions and I don't think it's fair to give the food a bad wrap on this alone. I wish I could have tried it all but the thing that caught me and my sister's eyes the most was the bubble wrap waffles. Honestly, those things were heaven. Sent from above. It was a bubble wrap waffle, some ice cream, cream, chocolate, melted nutella and oreos. A dream come true when you're crashing from a lack of sugar in a hot convention haul. I couldn't recommend these enough. They are seven pounds a pop which is on the expensive side but truly worth every penny!

The other food I didn't get to try but it sure smelled good!

THE PERFORMANCES:
Honestly, this is a part of Hyper Japan I often miss and forget about, which is a shame really because it's probably mostly what I pay for! I made sure to see a few this year, I really wanted to see the fashion show but I only managed to watch it on YouTube as my sister was not interested. I watched a few performances, Shin was a favourite, completely crazy J-Rock, not my usual style at all but I really enjoyed his crazy bouncing around the stage and screaming!

MY VLOG OF THE CONVENTION:

Mostly a vlog of the 'kawaii stalls' and amazing artists I met!

OVERALL:

Would I go again? Yes, I love Hyper Japan and will continue to go and support the convention and the amazing artists. 

Do I think it's worth the money? Mostly yes, priority entry was too expensive and hardly anybody except my sister used it (but it did mean we cut all of the queue inside - you still had to wait outside like everybody else though!)
I do think the Friday and Sunday tickets were fairly priced. Just make sure you see everything and get your moneys worth. I won't be buying a weekend ticket again. At £45 this was too expensive as I missed a lot of stuff due to not being able to attend on the Saturday. 

What would I improve?

A lot of stuff. I'd probably change the venue back to The Olympia if I could (haha, obviously I don't have that level of power!), there needs to be more lighting definitely and more toilets. The food stalls could also have done with a better queueing system, the lines were so long and honestly it was hit and miss as to what you were lining up for! The First Aid room also felt pretty hidden and needed better signage from a safety point of view. 

Do I have any tips?  

Take cash! It makes your life and everybody else's lives so much easier!
If you are taking children or anybody that might need a little bit of extra help, you definitely need to arrange a meeting place in case they get lost. It would be far too easy to get lost in tobacco dock! (I am a grown woman and I got lost, many times!) - I'd recommend the fountain as a good place to have as a meeting point.

Watch performances. This is one of the things that makes Hyper Japan so interesting and full of culture. These are things that you can't buy on the internet later so definitely make the most of them!
Have fun! Dress cute and how ever you want! I was absolutely showered with compliments both days I attended for my outfits and it made me feel amazing!

I hope I have given you a realistic and informative review of Hyper Japan!
Zono xxx

Dealing With Social Anxiety at Conventions

It’s the summer (in my part of the world!) and it’s definitely well and truly convention season! I love conventions and I’m so glad I’ve got into going to them, I’ve met so many cool people with similar interests to me that I wouldn’t have met otherwise.

... But it hasn’t always been that way. In 2014, I admired conventions, I desperately wanted to go but there was this massive barrier. I had crazy social anxiety. When I thought about going to Comic Con or Hyper Japan, I felt sick. ‘What if I didn’t fit in?’, ‘What if I people think I’m dressed stupid?’ 

Obviously, anybody who’s been to conventions will know that it was a silly way to think and that conventions are most often filled with lovely people who love seeing all sorts of people dressed in all sorts of ways! But in 2014 I didn’t know that and I was definitely too scared to find out! 

Just know, if you have anxiety and you want to go to a convention, it’ll probably be really, really hard but I believe in you! You will be able to have an awesome time! 

Load video

So I made this video which is all about my anxiety at conventions and how it’s taken time (2-3 years!) but I’ve slowly managed to go from somebody not even able to go to conventions to somebody who managed to go all by myself! Which for some of you might probably seem completely impossible!

So for those who don’t want to watch the video, here are some of the main tips:

1) Give yourself a Goal. Something you’ll be proud of if you managed to achieve, for example I set my goal in 2015 as being able to tell an artist I liked their work. That’s it. I managed to do it and it left me beaming with happiness (and hopefully them too!) - Just make sure you don’t set yourself to high a goal, especially if your anxiety is really bad, going from not even being able to step foot in a convention to being in a fashion show is probably unattainable and will leave you feeling sad if you try!

2) Don’t be afraid to recollect. Cons are notoriously busy and for a lot of people just being around that many people for a long length of time is going to make you feel on edge. So definitely don’t be afraid to take a break, go outside and come back in when you are feeling more refreshed.

3) Have a back-up plan. My Social anxiety CBT therapist said this wasn’t always a good thing if you are trying to recover but if you are suffering very badly from social anxiety I do believe it can possibly help you. (Also remember I’m not a therapist though lol) Make sure you know what you’d do if you couldn’t cope and you had to leave to convention early. Maybe you know there’s a starbucks or a park near the convention that you could go to. Make sure your friends/ parents/ who you are going with are aware this is where you’d want to go.

Final Note...

Conventions are such a happy place and it’s a shame Social Anxiety prevented me from going for SO long. I’m sure there must be others out there. Just know that everytime I’ve been to a con I’ve left feeling so glowing and happy, whether I’ve managed to talk to a lot of people or not. I don’t think social anxiety will have a massively negative impact on your experience. A lot of the convention community will understand shyness and you will not feel pushed or pressured to talk to anyone if you don’t want to!!

I hope you have an amazing time at conventions in the future! They are honestly some of the highlights of my year! 

Don’t forget to pick up a giant alpaca toy lol!

Zono xxx

5 Tips for Hyper Japan 2017!

Hello again!
Here is my little viddy about 5 things I definitely recommend you check out/ remember to bring to Hyper Japan festival in London! Have a great time if you are coming along!
Zono xxx

P.S Definitely check out Cakes With Faces stall... her stuff is SO cute and not to be missed!