Ozine Fest 2009: a 3-day otaku festival
This week was a great one for cosplayers, anime fans, and gamers here in Manila, with Otaku Anime Magazine's Ozine Fest 2009 topping off the week's events.
Aside of course from the usual cosplay events spread out during the three days of the Ozine Fest, the organizers prepared a slew of activities including art contests, console game demos, a maid cafe, battle of the bands and more. They even had a 'matsuri' or festival area where visitors can sample japanese dishes and play games, and of course shop for anime and manga-themed toys and merchandise.
e-Games’ Domination 3 draws out the geeks and gamers
I love it when a large group of geeks get together under one roof. Despite being crowded and noisy, they tend to follow the rules and stay organized (in almost all the gaming and cosplay events I've been to, at least).
Alodia Gosiengfiao, at eGames' Domination 3
e-Games' Domination 3 event held at the SMX Convention center is one of the biggest gaming events I've attended thus far. According to a friend of mine who's one the eGames' staff, they were expecting to receive about 20,000 attendees. Judging the crowd inside the actual venue and the long line of people waiting to get in even by 6 pm, they most likely hit that mark and more.
Philippine Cosplay Convention 2009
Manila's normally a bit out of the way for the wife and I, but we decided to take a look at the 2nd Philippine Cosplay Convention at the Robinsons' Place Ermita.
CC, from Code Geass
Surprisingly, the event was held in the open area, which pretty much guaranteed a large audience. But then it felt a lot more chaotic compared to the other cosplay events we've been to that required entrance fees or registration. We didn't stay long enough to hear the winners of the cosplay events, but there were a lot of excellent entries, especially the mecha/game cosplays.
Makati New Year – 2009
Father and child watching the fireworks in Makati
I hate to admit it, but I miss the New Year's eve celebrations of my childhood when the season meant playing with ridiculously explosive firecrackers and narrowly miss having my fingers blown off by defective "triangulo" (those triangle-shaped firecrackers sold by vendors during the holiday season here in Manila).
This year, the wife and I decided to watch the fireworks display during the annual New Year's eve street party in Makati City. It was rather crowded despite the rain with the partygoers and street market folk filling up the streets around Makati and Ayala Ave.
