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Can “Moe” Catgirl Make Our Lives So Cheerful?

Xtone's Logo

Wake up in the morning, commute, work, have a lunch, work again, come back home, take a bath and go asleep – for everyday, for ever. Aren’t you bored with monotonous daily routines? A Tokyo-based company, which states creating stimulus things as its corporate mission, will probably make it happen.

Xtone[J] (pronounced as “eks-tone”), a tech start-up based near Shibuya and co-developer of Nico Nico Douga[J], introduced last week a moe-taste iPhone/iPod touch app called “Amamiya Momo“, which allows you to enjoy communicating with a virtual tsundere catgirl.

According to Japanese Otaku Lingo, “tsundere” is a term used to describe girls that are cold and strict at first or in public, but becomes all lovey-dovey when they are alone together.

Amamiya Momo Screenshot

By tapping the catgirl on screen or shaking your iPhone/iPod touch, she gives you back a selected response from 200 different patterns in accordance with time and your location. If your iPhone is GPS-enabled, her behavior depends on which you’re home or not, since she is a sort of Tsundere.

The app speeches Japanese, and English subtitle captioning is also available for English-speaking Akihabaran moe-culture lovers. Her official website says, her blood-type is AB, and she is a daddy’s girl and was born the middle of three girls.

It costs JPY350 or USD2.99 and is available at any country edition of the Apple AppStore.

Author’s Note: Be careful not to mistype Amamiya as Amemiya when you make a retrieval. “Amemiya Momo” has nothing to do with the app introduced above, and she is a popular adult video actress in Japan, no doubt, especially among men.

All Earphone Bon-Dance Party Held For Noise Abatement

According to an Aichi regional newspaper Chunichi Shimbun [J], there was an interesting new attempt on Bon-Odori, traditional summer dance festival around Japan, to avoid future noise problem bothering neighbors.

15-20 minutes in their regular festival, 50 FM radio are lent to bon dancers, who are attending locals, and they dance with music from their earphones. The festival space keeps silent.

typical Bon Odori (not silent one)

The festival space is planned to move to other in 2015, where hospital locates near by. And this trial is to see if this radio-driven silent bon festival can be an answer for noise issue, as the organizer said.

The city, Tokai-shi, Aichi prefecture is suburb of Nagoya, Japan’s 4th biggest city. I do not know if there are many such people getting mad at bon festival music, but in the crowded country, some people are sensitive not to generate noise. Like talking over cellphone is banned at many train lines, which encouraged mobile web growth. (Though daily urban life in Japan is surrounded a lot of public announcements)

Have Sushi At Fish Market, Then Check Pins Out

In commemoration of announcing “Favorite Places[J]” as a promotion campaign of Google Map, on Monday Google Japan[J] placed “real” red pins at several locations, which imitate mark-up symbols used on Google Map, including JR Shibuya Station and a Buddhist temple next to Tokyo’s fish market that foreign visitors never forget to drop by.

Tsukiji Honganji Temple with Google Map Pins

Google Map Pins at JR Shibuya Station

The pin statue is 4 meters (=13.1 feet) high, and a specially designed pin has a hole in the heart of its body, where a small monitor shows you the video of hot spots selected by celebrities as their favorites. The pin statues are exhibited at the following locations for the dates given.

  • Honganji Temple in Tsukiji: from August 3rd to 9th
  • West Exit, JR Ebisu Station: from August 3rd to 9th
  • Center Exit, JR Shibuya Station: from August 3rd to 9th
  • New South Exit, JR Shinjuku Station: from August 4th to 5th
  • Central Exit, JR Ikebukuro Station: from August 8th to 9th
  • Exit for Showa St., Akihabara Station: from August 8th to 9th

The videos being played at the pin with a hole are available on YouTube as well. The following is prepared by Google Japan and introduces “Favorite Places” in Tokyo. (4 mins. 20 secs.)

In Kyoto, Japanese-style paper lanterns are decorated at the Favorite Places.
Paper Lantern with Google Map Icon

Via Google Japan Blog[J] and CNET Japan[J]

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