A Day at World Market

Konnichiwa!

If you are an American you know yesterday was the infamous... Black Friday. Getting up extremely early and heading out for good deals is what I was all about. As part of my "holiday" experience, I took a trip to a store called World Market. They have products from around the globe: Italy, Sweden, Germany, Indian, Chinese, Thai, Japanese- you name it. While I enjoyed browsing all of these cultures I mainly, of course, enjoyed the Japan sections. Here are pictures of some goodies I spotted while shopping.

 Hello Panda & other treats

 mochi & other treats

 ramune drinks (I spy a Hello Kitty ramune)

 traditional Japanese teapots with steepers inside (i find their extremely flat and round shape rather intriguing)

 the picture says it all

 teacups with lids

 a kokeshi Christmas ornament- bringing something Japanese into an American tradition. And its adorable!

 and my personal favorite... SUSHI ERASERS. Definitely want for school

 sushi stapler

sushi rolling mat with chopsticks and a rice paddle- perfect dining packer

So if you're looking for a gateway to the rest of the planet, check out World Market. Clearly it has captured other cultures with class! (props for alliteration there hmm?)

Keep it kawaii folks!

-Ainsley

Century II Asian Festival

Konnichiwa!

I'm so excited to tell you all about my asian festival adventures. Wichita KS held a big asian event at the Cenury II building on October 26 that I went to with my boyfriend. Upon arrival we saw a big stage with various dancing acts from the different cultures of Asian countries. This was pretty cool, granted, but what we wanted to see was... FOOD.

Adjacent to the performance hall was a giant room filled completely with different food and gadget stands. It was so amazing!!! I've been to the festival once before, but that was in middle school, and i didn't remember it being this awesome.

Anyway, here are some pictures.

My itouch camera is crap, so unfortuntely you can't really see the dancers.

 A kokeshi iphone case, how can you beat that!

 traditional kimono

 hello kitty lanyards

sticky rice spoons

Unfortunately these were the only Japanese things available- o Japanese food, what a bummer :(- but don't leave yet because the other food was still incredibly delicious

 Can't remember what country this is. Can anybody tell me?

 Hey gyoza! That actually is Japanese right?

 This young woman competed in the Miss Asia Festival Contest. Wish I had been able to see who won :/

 Where is this one from..? More importantly, what is it!? I love all of these new foods :)

And that was just a FEW examples of what they had to offer. I was totally, completely in heaven. I tried some delicious Indian food. Not sure what it was, but it was like these huge triangular-ish fried things filed with this mushy orange stuff (I'm making it sound gross but it was amazing) sitting in some curried chickpeas. Then I also tried some banh bao (which was not my favoite...), shared some kimchi with my boyfriend, and got some thai iced tea for a dollar (drool). I really enjoyed attending and sharing my experiences with you, I hope you liked the pictures! I'd love to hear about any asian festivals you might have attended recently as well.

Keep it kawaii folks!

-Ainsley