Facing one of the biggest snowstorm’s in New England’s history, it is always a risk flying in from Boston to DC during February. We have all heard stories of KatSNOWCon years ago wherein the con was snowed in on the last day and people were figuring out how to kill time before the plows can drive away the snow. Thankfully, with some pre-planning, we flew down on Day -1. Flying out on Wednesday evening gave us some leeway just in case of a weather emergency. For Day -1, we stayed with our San Francisco buddies, BrainAgeGuy and EurobeatKing. We took an Uber from DCA to Oxon Hill; it amounted to about $15 for the one way ride. However, getting safe to the Gaylord Resort was all that mattered.

Photoshoot Locations by Eri Kagami
Day Zero is the best time to have a photoshoot at the Gaylord. No one is thirsty for a particular area. The main gazebo level is the most coveted among cosplayers and photographers. During the con, it can be oftentimes hard to get around. However, the Gaylord offers a variety of different places to shoot. There’s the village on the bottom level; this is great for JRPG types of shoots. The fountains in the evening were my favorite location for shooting due to lighting and how clear the area was. The benefit of having the con in the winter is you don’t get harsh lighting from the sun; most of the time it was overcast. The wind wasn’t so bad this year; you can actually have a few photos outside by the sea.

What’s Around by Eri Kagami
In addition to photoshoot locations, there were quite a few things to check out in Oxon Hill. For example, I had a makeup emergency on Day Zero. I realized I ran out of my Urban Decay foundation. The CVS across the street saved that SNAFU. I was able to grab some foundation just in time. Also, CVS provides a nice supply of snacks and drinks for the convention weekend. At times, you can get two boxes of Poptarts for the price of one box. Also, I would recommend checking out which restaurants have happy hour deals. While conventioneers-on-a-budget may turn a blind eye to sit down restaurants, a few in Oxon Hill had a nice selection of happy hours options; definitely healthier and heartier than the McDonald’s down the way.

Snorlax’s Leftovers: Harrington’s Pub by Jared
One of the best parts of going to an out of town convention is trying out new places to eat. This year we returned to Harrington’s and had the opportunity to introduce a friend to this really good tavern. The happy hour goes until late and it offers reduced prices on drinks and appetizers, more than that they offer a ten dollar burger and beer special. That platter features a large burger, tons of fries, and a nice pint of beer. There are plenty of choices and good prices plus nice atmosphere. At only a block away from the convention center it’s a great stop during your stay at Katsucon.

By the evening of Day Zero, attendees were already waiting in line to grab their badge and Katsucon swag. Katsucon also had some Day Zero evening programming for early birds. Such programming included video game speedrunning, vocaloid discussion, and more. By the evening, the Scarlet Rhapsody team was already wiped. We turned in for the night in our patio view room at the Gaylord and called it a night.

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