USJ- Film Fantasy Land

One of the biggest drawcards in Osaka is Universal Studios Japan. Theme parks are big business/super-popular here, and USJ is the biggest and best in the area. I've been bah-humbugging the idea of going for ages, but finally bit the bullet after concerted urging and promises of 'it's fun' from Mitsu. As usual, 'her indoors' was right. I was blown away by the detail of the place, they really did a proper job when they designed and built it. There are a number of specific areas like Amity (Jaws), Jurassic Park and so on, but the main park itself is more like 1930s New York- complete with realistic shop and restaurant windows. All that's missing are the crime, filth and traffic, hehe. Needless to say (but I'll say it anyway), the restaurants are fully working models. The Buildings are all mock-ups from famous films, and the result is seriously impressive. Remarkable place.

USJ has rides and shows- there are song-and-dance routines (including quite a decent Blues Brothers one), 3-D performances, a rollercoaster...all sorts. Not so many white-knuckle rides, for you hard-core thrill-seekers out there, but there's enough to tickle the adrenalin glands and interest levels of most. We started at Jurassic Park, a boat ride through a pretty realistic film-set, complete with a few surprises and a bit of getting wet. Waterworld is a stuntman show, with fire, smoke, slapstick and whatnot. Stand-outs were Spiderman and Terminator- both in 3-D. Spiderman involves sitting in a car and moving through a Ghost-train-like situation. Some of it is more a case of the world moving around you, but with the 3-D, shaking, lights and sounds, it's quite an experience. T-2 is a part theatre performance but also pretty groovy. The new rollercoaster goes in and out of the main street, which Mitsu says has spoilt some of the previous view. I can see why, but the ride itself was fun. I'm not ashamed (well, actually, a little) that I felt slightly queezy after that one. Old age getting to me...

Almost as good as the setting and attractions itself was the people-watching. The fashion and hair phenomenon that is Japan was in full flow, and (given that it was Friday) the profusion of youth and uniforms was greater than usual. Some school uniforms here date back to turn of the century Germany- girls in sailor outfits, boys in old-school military tunics. Factor in the casual brigade- big hair and teenagers/early twenty-somethings trying desperately hard to be cool. Groups of young Turks (metaphoric, not literal), posturing, posing and John Wayne swaggering about the place. Brilliant. As daft as so much of the fashion here is, I am sure that England will look a bit drab by comparison.

The day finishes off with a parade- the whole place goes dark and music blares out from every corner. The current parade is a psychedelic fairy-lights extravaganza. Mock-ups of Sesame Street, Hello Kitty et al, amazing the kids, blinding everyone and filling the mobile phone memory banks of all concerned. As the parade came round the corner, I think almost everybody was using their phone cameras... While I love having a wee camera on my phone for catching those opportune moments, it seems a shame that any time there's a show of any kind, people just watch and capture it through their phone screens rather than enjoying the spectacle itself. We finished the day off at Bubba Gump's, a prawn/shrimp place just outside the park. If you like massive portions but are uninterested in taste, you'd love it.

USJ is pretty cool, I have to admit. We'll definitely be bringing the kids here....

English teacher footnote: There is one thing about USJ which drives me dementedly crazy. For some inexplicable reason, the pronunciation of the middle word is 'Stajio' in Japanese. I have spent the last three years fighting hammer and tongs to reestablish something resembling the English word in students' minds. Swimming against the tide...

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