meemalee

It's time for Hyper Japan 2012 - the UK's biggest celebration of J-Culture from Friday till Sunday at Earl's Court, London. Kakkoii is the Japanese word for "cool", and it's fair to say that the line-up of food, events, entertainment, books and other goods on sale veers towards the kakkoii, and also the more familiar kawaii (meaning "cute"). The traditional side of Japan isn't neglected though, with stands of pottery, calligraphy, artwork and origami taking part. Exhibitors I'll be taking a look at include Nintendo (who'll have exclusive 3DS downloadable content), Manga Entertainment, CyberCandy, Namco, Artbox and my beloved Doki Tableware . Food and groceries will be available from the likes of the Japan Centre, Natural Natural, Minamato Kitchoan, So restaurant and Bento Ramen. The 2012 Sake Awards and Sushi Awards will also be taking place at Hyper Japan. For those Harajuku wannabes amongst you, there'll be showcases of the lates

Click the photo to embiggen I just found out that I am mentioned in the latest edition of Lonely Planet Myanmar (Burma). How exciting is that? I'm a national treasure, me. And rather appropriately, tonight I am off to visit family in Burma - see you in a while ...

[This follows on from Specs ] Just before Christmas, my dad, the ophthalmologist, says to me, " I think it's time you had laser surgery ". I do a double-take (actually, it feels like a blood vessel explodes in my head), but I get over my shock quickly and I bounce to a phone to book a consultation. He's recommended a particular surgeon, and a fortnight later, I find myself waiting to speak to the man in question. A cheerful girl takes me to a room and she does a full eye test to check if my vision is stable. I don't have much of a bridge on my nose, so the clunky trial frames keep sliding down, and I end up having to prop them up with a finger. I hand her a list of all my prescriptions since time began, and she looks scared (" Oh god, a looney ") till I explain that my dad compiled them out of professional interest. She then scans me with a machine to measure the thickness of my corneas - the laser will be slicing into them, so the thic