last weekend was the first time i had the opportunity to witness what the cosplay scene in japan is all about. "cosplay," for people out there that dont know, is short for "costume play." it usually entails people dressing up like their favorite video game and/or anime characters and sometimes even acting the parts. on saturday, some friends and i heard about a world cosplay parade in nagoya and we were curious enough to go check it out.

since my friends had press badges, we mainly hung out near the press boxes which were great places for people watching. i saw hundreds of anime and video game fans from around the world wear interesting makeup and sport awesome handmade costumes and props. aside from a few uncomfortable moments dealing with the occasional weirdos, as cosplay events have a way of attracting, the parade was pretty fun. and even with my very limited knowledge of japanese anime and video games, i was able to recognize a couple of characters myself.

a character from "one piece" named sengoku, at the nagoya cosplay parade

after the cosplay parade, we came back to okazaki to check out a 2 hour fireworks festival at okazaki castle. ill say it now: no one does fireworks quite like japan can. since more than 70% of japans fireworks are designed and manufactured here in okazaki, the annual fireworks festival here is used as a showcase of the latest models and arrangements. it was pretty awesome to sit next to hundreds of people on grassy castle grounds and enjoy our picnics, drinks, friends, and the explosions in the sky together.