A little known Boston/Japan Connection: Anime Boston

If you found yourself strolling around Back Bay near the Hynes Convention Center this weekend, April 6 through 8, you might think it was an early Halloween. Not. Thousands of animation enthusiasts convene every year in Boston to celebrate and imitate the animated characters they've grown to love. This is the 10th year of Anime Boston. The convention presents popular events which include a masquerade, an anime music video contest, video programming rooms, an artists' alley and art show, karaoke, game shows, video games, manga library (manga is the Japanese word for "comics/cartoons"), and dances and balls and industry representatives. Here are some of the characters I saw walking around the city today.

Just looking at the couple at the right you would think that they came as a pair: Kei Kishimoto, left, and Kei Kurono. They hail from two different parts of the state and met at the conference.



Some other characters were G-Dragon and Scootaloo as well as two computer quasi human characters, Freya Chi and Chobits.

That's what I love about walking around Boston. I never know what convention is in town and what surprises my eye will take in, surprises and culture shocks that wake up my mind. Seeing so many people at play, honoring imaginary worlds, and characters with super powers put me in a very happy mood.