Checking in at Honolulu Hawaii

Tokyo was March so Hawaii was April. Still cold really early in the morning, but thankfully no ice. Since I post photos of train stations in Japan, here is one early morning in Oregon. It's worth the savings to take the train to the airport, if I get up early. 

Back on Hawaiian Airlines and they had Honolulu Cookie Company shortbread cookies. I wanted to try these so I was glad they offered them. Hawaiian Airlines has decent service on their flights. And it was great how the pilot gave us an air tour of Oahu on the descent into the airport. Over Diamond Head, Pearl Harbor and a few more places. I was so busy looking I forgot to take photos. 

Fast forward through a taxi ride from the airport to my hotel in Honolulu. I brought my Tokidoki LeSportsac Spiaggia purse back to the place it came from. I remember actually calling the local LeSportsac store back when to get this and a couple other pieces. And yes I did visit the store during my trip and bought a little something that wasn't Tokidoki. The person running the store was really nice, even opened the store up so I could look around. He recognized my purse. Thanks LeSportsac Honolulu!

After checking in I decided to visit the Hawai'i Convention Center where the Kawaii Kon convention was being held. One of the first things I noticed was that Hawaiians drive a lot of interesting cars.

 Lots of glass used for the Hawai'i Convention Center.

Inside there were palm trees. Not real palm trees though. The venue had a nice open feeling to all the floors and was decently laid out so it wasn't too difficult to find where the various rooms were. I previously wrote about the convention so I won't go into it here. Links to the three posts are here:

2019 Kawaii Kon Moi-même-Moitié Fashion Show http://blukats.blogspot.com/2019/04/2019-moi-meme-moitie-kawaii-kon-fashion.html

2019 Kawaii Kon Mana-sama Question and Answer Panel http://blukats.blogspot.com/2019/04/2019-mana-questions-and-answers-at.html 

2019 Kawaii Kon Moi-même-Moitié Tea Party http://blukats.blogspot.com/2019/04/2019-moi-meme-moitie-tea-party-with.html

I did spend some time walking around the convention when it was going on and seeing more than I wrote about. There were a lot of enthusiastic attendees, fun cosplays and interesting vendors. I do think for an anime convention it was a lot more relaxed than others I've been to, which was good.

Back to my hotel room. Even though I was in the back wing, there was still a view of the ocean and lots of green.

And a park along the ocean. Very tempting, I headed out to take a look.

It is Ala Moana Regional Park and it was hot and humid. And that sun...yeah there was sun.

It was nice to be able to see so much ocean.

And trees.

And Myna birds. 

And Red-crested Cardinals. So many birds in these trees.

I'm not sure how effective that orange fence is. I did notice in Honolulu people tend to do whatever they want. It was an interesting place.

An inviting bench. It was a good place to sit and think.

With a view of the Ala Wai Canal. The hills just beyond all the concrete buildings were very tempting.

 Not much further away was Diamond Head, just beyond Waikiki.

I'm not going to talk about the expensive awful dinner I had that first night. The food was okay but overpriced, the service was not very good. Part of the problem is that restaurants in the area are mostly expensive and I did not have a car. I did walk a lot but it was hot and humid so I had to make sure not to over do it. So my options were limited to what was around the hotel.

It was nice that in the hotel the Starbucks also served beer. While it was not open late, sitting down to enjoy a Longboard Island lager from Kona Brewing after that dinner and the heat outside was pleasant. Considering that I had a very strange encounter in the lobby right after this, I'm glad there was this nice moment prior. I'm also glad there was a nice video online to watch once I reached my room. And I had something to look forward to the next day.

2019 Moi-même-Moitié Tea Party with Mana at Kawaii Kon in Hawaii

Just a little more about Moi-même-Moitié and Mana at Kawaii Kon in Hawaii. Moi-même-Moitié had items for sale during the convention and were located in the Fake Star booth. I stopped there on Saturday and Sunday. They did have a nice selection of items, some which sold out quickly. 

For some reason my photos in the building did not turn out well but here is a photo of part of the Moitié section of the booth. There were a number of accessories including the new Le foulard de M chiffon stole, along with the Nocturnal Romance over the knee socks. The blue bag was for submitting questions for the Questions and Answers session.

What was exciting is after the fashion show they had a few new items including the Gardenia dress and apron. I missed seeing the apron. They also had samples of the re-release Silent Moon one-piece, but since it was only shown in the fashion show and not presented as something they wanted photographed, I do not have a photo of it. I am sure we will see it soon. 

I did get a look at the Gardenia dress. The fabric is really nice, not too heavy and the lace is pretty. 

On Sunday, there was a tea party put on by Moi-même-Moitié. The theme was "A Kingdom by the Sea", taken from Edgar Allen Poe's poem "Annabel Lee". The tables were decorated with lighthouses, little lights, blue rose petals and sparkly Moitié candelabra confetti. There was a table with scones, fruit and bread, spreads, coffee and tea for the attendees. I'm sorry I don't have more photos of the room but since none have been released by Moitié yet, along with the fact that my photos have attendees in them. So to describe it, there was a table at the front for the MC, Andrea of Moitié, and the guest of honor. To the side of this was a white backdrop with an image from the Silent Moon print, along with blue rose petals scattered on the floor. The attendees sat at round tables. Most wore elegant gothic lolita. I wore mostly vintage Moi-même-Moitié, skirt, jacket, and accessories.

(photo from M_d_M_official Twitter)

Not long after the party started, the guest of honor Mana arrived. Wearing the new black and off white Bat Blouse, black pants and his black hat that he wore during this trip, he was greeted warmly by the attendees. After or before taking a selfie (sorry I can't remember which happened first), Mana sat at the table where he shared some information with everyone.

First, Mana's hat, which he decorated for the tea party, was inspired by Hawaiian culture. Mana said that he has enjoyed the food there, eating loco moco, hamburgers and drinking bubble tea which I think it was said it had taro in it. Mana mentioned new music again. He has written on Twitter that there are four new songs inspired by the seasons. Being in Hawaii, the scenery, the sea, helped with making one of those songs, it gave him ideas so now he has all the songs for a new album. He will be working on them and if recording goes well there may be a new album next year. Following this, Mana presented a rose to each attendee. Leaving the room he walked slowly, looking at each table and nodding. At the door he moved his arms as if he was blowing a kiss to everyone.

Following this, they gave out door prizes and had a number of contests. The contests included how did your outfit reflect the theme, best representative of Moitié style, and also everyone voted for their favorite coordinate of people who wanted to participate in that. Some of the prizes were little cheki signed photos of Mana, including one in his vampire outfit and one of him holding a box of Hawaiian macadamia nuts. Then attendees spent some time taking photos in front of the backdrop and chatting. I will say that it did feel a little more relaxed than the Seattle Sakura Con tea party but unlike there, they did not ask people to spend time talking with Mana. 

Besides a rose, the attendees were each given a Moi-même-Moitié hand towel which was a nice gift. There was also a paper ticket as a souvenir. That reminded me of the paper tickets we received at Deep Sanctuary VI. I did end up buying a few things at the booth, including another candelabra necklace that has a blue bead just for Kawaii Kon. Along with the chiffon stole (which is really pretty and the fabric is very nice) and one of the Candelabra Charm Lace Barrettes. I tried to get one of the black lace with blue roses before on WunderWelt Fleur's website, but they sold out quickly. This time I was lucky because they had a few that were used in the fashion show that they put for sale afterwards. 

And this time I did go to one of the autograph sessions after the tea party and did get my Moi-même-Moitié sample Bat Bag signed. Oddly, all of the photos of it after the signing look something like this. 

So that was the convention part of my trip to Hawaii. I did go to a couple places while there, and once I finish posts about March in Tokyo, I will try to do one or two about Hawaii.

2019 Mana Questions and Answers at Kawaii Kon in Hawaii

Later on Saturday, April 6th, there was a Questions and Answers panel scheduled for Mana with Moi-même-Moitié. I spent a little time looking around the Honolulu Convention Center and also ate lunch. Finally I went up to wait by the panel room where I ran into someone I met last year in Seattle at Sakura Con.

It was the fabulous Michi! She had flown to Hawaii from back east to support her friends and see Mana and Moi-même-Moitié. We waited together and then a few more people showed up.

Just call them the Goth Squad. Really nice ladies who I ended up being adopted by. They had a lot of fun waiting for the panel to start. The doors finally opened and we ended up in the front row. I was a bit nervous being there but they were very sweet.

First in were Andrea of Moi-même-Moitié and the MC from Fake Star US. They had just started talking when Mana walked out from back stage. I think they were just as surprised as we were since they hadn't even introduced him. Mana was wearing the same outfit that he wore in the fashion show. The MC proceeded to ask a question of Mana and then read from questions people submitted at the Moi-même-Moitié booth earlier. Andrea translated for Mana, who held a fan up in front of his face when talking to her. So here are the questions and answers from my notes that I took.

The first question asked was what was Mana doing for fun in Hawaii? He replied that he was enjoying Hawaii, going to Wakiki and eating lots of Hawaiian food.

The next question was mine. I was a little surprised it was asked right away. The MC does go through them. What is an average day in Mana's life like? Mana said something similar to what he has said before. That he goes for walks, sees the sakura blossoms, and enjoys the four seasons. 

What is Mana's favorite Moi-même-Moitié print? It is Harpsichord Trio.

I had a little trouble hearing this question, I thought it was something like what is Mana's favorite kawaii character? Mana said that lately he has gotten into Moomins, and they went to the store in Finland.

Mana was asked what his favorite make-up was, but unfortunately the name was said so fast I did not catch all of it. He then mentioned that in Seattle when he said that he uses an all-in-one cleanser that people were shocked by that, and since then he has been receiving products to try from people. There are different ones that he likes so far. He didn't name names.

Will there be any upcoming collaborations? There are no plans right now but in the interview Mana did with Hirooka Naoto of h.NAOTO, they talked about a possible Wa themed item. He also mentioned the new yukata.

My other question that I submitted was asked. Has Mana ever wanted to create a perfume and what would the fragrance notes be? Yes and it would be sweet, fruity and dangerous. He leaves it up to our imaginations what that would be.

What music and fashion inspired him in the 90's? He wore elegant gothic lolita when he was in MALICE MIZER and  found inspiration in shojo manga. He didn't remember right off hand which manga.

What is Mana's favorite type of dog? He is not good with animals so he doesn't know the different breeds of dogs. (I believe Mana was trying to say that he doesn't know a lot about animals. I also want to say something here because Mana gets asked a lot about pets and sometimes his answers are misinterpreted. Pets are not always easy to take care of. Along with anyone who owns black clothing knows how it is with pet fur. There is nothing wrong with not having a pet and not being good with animals or not knowing what a lot of different animals are. Everyone has their different preferences.)

How is elegant gothic aristocrat going? Will there be more? Some of the questions about Moitié Andrea answered and this may have been one of them. For now there is the bat cape, and the bat collar shirt but nothing else at this time.

At this point Mana got up and modeled the cape for us, which was perfect.

What inspirations does Mana use for his fashion? Old buildings, cemeteries, and European buildings.

The MC then asked attendees for places to check out in Hawaii. At one point Mana mentioned that he likes hiking. I think at this point she started asking for questions from the attendees.

Will there be a butterfly print some day? There was one previously (it was 2001).

I wanted to find out a little more about the yukata so I asked if it would come with the black obi they used in the fashion show. They will come with blue obi.

Will they re-release the coffin bag? Not at this time, but Mana wants to.

Will there be more older jewelry re-releases? No, it is difficult to have them come out right.

I missed hearing a little of this question. It was something about Visual Kei inspiration for his fashion. Mana replied that Moi-même-Moitié is Moi dix Mois music in fashion form.

Will new music be released soon? He's been spending his time working on the MALICE MIZER dvd. (there is a little more about this question that was answered the next day at the Tea Party which I will write up very soon. So this is only part of the answer.)

How did Mana enjoy working with the models? He thanked them and said they were wonderful

Will there be more items like the cup and saucer, non-clothing? In the future but they can't say. (it's a definite yes on this one)

I had to ask if there would be a night gown or pajamas again? They are talking about it, Mana wants to.

Will there be shoes? The problem is with sizing.

Does Mana like anime? He mentioned he likes Neon Genesis Evangelion

What is Mana's favorite food? He likes cooking and eating, steak right now (asked what is the perfect steak later said he likes it pretty rare).

Does Mana do any drawing or painting, illustrating? He doodles.

Will there be more older prints? No comment (which is most likely yes)

Will there be custom sizing? No, it is difficult to do this.

How does Mana push himself beyond hard times? There was something said about fashion, that with gothic lolita, letting the world know about wonderful items helped push him through hard times.

What is Mana's inspiration with fashion? That he created his own style combining lolita with gothic.

Does Mana see himself as successful? That the world knows about elegant gothic lolita and his bands, that is success.

Any advice on how to be successful? Pursue the things you love without worrying about what people say.

What is Mana's favorite place in Paris? Montparnasse Cemetery.

With Mana's traveling internationally, what cultural differences does he see from Japanese fans and international fans? International fans are more open, they talk about their thoughts and feelings more.

Is there anything that Mana wants to do that he hasn't done before? He dreams about mountain climbing, big mountains like Mount Everest.

Will there be red and green colors released again? Mana likes green a lot, like the new shirt, so there will be more green items.

I missed this question but Mana said that he gets nervous meeting new people, he is quite shy and still gets nervous even now. This was the last question.

I have to say, while Mana may have been nervous at the start of the session, he did appear more relaxed as it went on. The audience was smaller than the one at Sakura-con and the feeling was a little more personal. I noticed Mana was using his fan less and looking out at the different people in the audience while they were asking questions. I enjoyed this session and other people I talked to said the same. 

2019 Moi-même-Moitié Kawaii Kon Fashion Show in Hawaii

Even though I am in the middle of posting photos from my last trip to Tokyo, I have decided to go ahead and write up a few things that happened in...Hawaii. Because I did go for a few days to Kawaii-Kon in Honolulu. Since I had wanted to go back and because Moi-même-Moitié and Mana were special guests of the convention, it didn't take long for me to decide I wanted to go. So here is the Moi-même-Moitié Fashion Show held on Saturday, April 6th.

This was a little exciting because there were hints that that new fashion items would be worn during the fashion show. The fashion show was held in a Ballroom of the Honolulu Convention Center. I'm borrowing a photo from Kawaii-Kon's Twitter because we couldn't take photos in the room. This was not the fashion show but you can see how the state was set up with screens on the side. There was a runway that came out from the stage.

There was a decent line to get in but even so, I ended up next to some of the photographers in the front. This was nice because I was able to chat with them a little. It also was nice because I was able to have a decent view of the new Moi-même-Moitié fashions.

The show started with the same video that was used at Sakura-Con along with music from Moi dix Mois. Right off we were treated to new fashion with two models showing the Gardenia dress and apron. Here is a photo of the outfit from Moi-même-Moitié.

Following this was the Lace Cross jumperskirt in black and white. We then got a treat as a model came out wearing the brand new Bat blouse in white paired with older Moi-même-Moitié pants for a great elegant gothic aristocrat look. The guy next to me said it was a beautiful outfit. 

The next dress may have been the Cross One-piece in black with a white Rose Flare Sleeve Cutsew underneat. It was followed by the newer Catherine one piece and then by the new version of Sleeping Garden lace-up jumperskirt paired with the La Belle Rose bolero. With each model walking to the end of the runway, we were given a good look at each outfit and the crowd really loved seeing each one.

The new Nocturnal Romance dress and stockings were shown and then a real treat happened. Moi-même-Moitié premiered their new yukata! It is white with stripes and blue roses. They are working to get this produced so hopefully we will see photos of it in the near future. It was a definite crowd pleaser and the guy next to me loved it.

There were a few more surprises left. Following what I thought was the Juliet dress in black, worn with a corset, we got another surprise. There will be a new version of the popular Silent Moon print! These were one piece dresses in white with black, black with white, and black with blue, if I remember correctly. They were very nice.

At this point they had reached the last model of the show. Wearing the new Bat Cape in black with blue lining, Mana strode out in his tall boots to the cheers of the audience. His outfit was the same as in the new promotional photos for the cape except his hair was in the visual kei style he favors for shows. For the fashion show he wore an over-skirt and pants.

All of the models came out for the finale and that was it for the show.

And I am now updating with a photo Mana shared on Twitter of everyone who modeled at the fashion show

Next I have something from another event on Saturday. The Mana Question and Answer session.