Sunday Follies: The Truth About Otaku
The story about the defiled Lambo triggered a lively discussion about cars, hentai, anime, and otaku. Even about cosplay bars in Tokyo’s Akihabara (I’ve seen them all, boring.) Obviously, we had heretofore neglected a topic of high interest amongst our readership. In preparation for an even bigger role of Japanese transplants in the U.S., here some cross-cultural sensitivity training.
Bertel Schmitt comes back to journalism after taking a 35 year break in advertising and marketing. He ran and owned advertising agencies in Duesseldorf, Germany, and New York City. Volkswagen A.G. was Bertel's most important corporate account. Schmitt's advertising and marketing career touched many corners of the industry with a special focus on automotive products and services. Since 2004, he lives in Japan and China with his wife <a href="http://www.tomokoandbertel.com"> Tomoko </a>. Bertel Schmitt is a founding board member of the <a href="http://www.offshoresuperseries.com"> Offshore Super Series </a>, an American offshore powerboat racing organization. He is co-owner of the racing team Typhoon.
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Oh no! I feel like such a geek! I've actually seen all six episodes of this show, and then I find it on here of all places! How funny! When I was in Tokyo at the beginning of the year, I went to a maid cafe called @HomeCafe. It was amazing! Although I knew it was an odd thing to do, I also knew it was a rare opportunity, being that these cafes exist more or less only in Japan, and just a few of its major cites. They draw people because of the cuteness of the maids, and the food is not horrible either. I had a piece of cake shaped like a bear. Oishii! Next time I go, I'll be sure to ask what maids drive. (I'm sure it's something small and cute!)
@Mekira: They all take the subway. With a kawaii Suica card .... @Davey49: Where was that? Amongst Chinese females, Japanese men rank lowest on the desirability scale, or so I am told. @Nickatnyt: There is a STOP button on the video. Just say ie. I mean, no.
And besides, it was Sunday. Now if only they would open an FLCL cafe...
Bertel- It was at a semiconductor fab in NY. These guys were the engineers/maintenance for the tools I worked with. I was wondering the reverse of you, thinking that Japanese men must like Chinese women.