The Anime Expo experienced started with a dilemma - a dilemma of rooms! Originally, I had a room booked in the Hilton, but being under too much financial stress (as well as not winning the internship) I didn't want to foot the bill. I was offered several other rooms, but they really didn't seem worth the cost. One of my friends had to bail out of the Hilton in favor of commuting. Not that I blame her. Eventually, my friend Andy got us a spot at the Portofino. Thanks to Kenny and Jarod for helping us find a room. *high fives*

Only one new costume would debut at Anime Expo - Maki from Geobreeders. I would have Tom as my Taba. Several other cosplays were planned, but they were mainly repeats of the days gone by. I paid for Tom's registration as well as for the cosplay.com photo shoot for an anniversary present. Yes, 4th of July is our anniversary date. With travel plans in gear and all set to go, AX seemed like a smooth go.

The night before Tom's arrival to SoCal, I had a dream that Anime Expo would be sharing the con / arena area with a Canadian Hockey Convention. Man Faye was singing the national anthem in Faye's My Funny Valentine gown (good thing he was covered). That started a riot between the hockey players and the cosplayers. Thankfully, it was only a dream.

Picked up Tom from the airport. It was time to head back to my place. Before heading to the theatres to catch 9/11, had a light dinner at the house. Took my care (he drove) to Torrance AMC 20. 9/11 was sold out. Our other option was Spidey 2. Funny that it was opening weekend for the summer's most anticipated film and 9/11 after two weeks in release was still sold out. We settled for the next Spidey showing. Before then, we went out for ice cream nearby. Spidey 2 was pretty cool. Much different than most spandex super hero movies that I grew up with. ^^v

Went home and called it a night. The next morning, Tom and I got changed into Sakura Taisen. Before then, I made him breakfast omelettes as he was watching the supercilious morning show, Good Day LA. Then my mom gave me "the talk." Eh...she was rather vague...I'll leave it at that. Took some pictures inside the house before leaving for Anaheim.

We reached the Portofino at 10 AM. Left our stuff at the concierge and headed straight towards the con. To make sure we got our badges on time, we ran over to the Hilton. Ran into Ziggy and he pointed out registration was going on at the convention center. We rushed to get over there to get our badges quickly as possible. Well...well...traffic jam when you're already late. The place was packed!

Yet, despite the boredom in line, we managed to make the most of it. Tom and I alternated in line to take pictures of other cosplayers at the line. We met some Sorceror Hunter cosplayers behind us and they helped pass the time smoothly with a game of ten fingers. Tom started to draw stick figure fan art. AX staffers gave us surveys and free candy. After four hours of endless toil and waiting, we got our badges.

On with the con!

Pictures are copyright by Victoria Erica (Scarlet Rhapsody). If I took your picture, feel free to use it on your site or cosplay gallery. If you want me to remove something, kindly email me. While you're here, do sign the guestbook. This report was brought to you by the font Starry Sky.