Japan trip 2013 : Entry 01 : Idoling!!! Recording

So I arrived in Japan on the 18th and coincidentally there is an Idoling!!! recording on the 20th so I applied on the official website to gain entry as an audience. At first I thought that it would be pretty impossible to get and I idiotically just applied for the 1st recording session only. On the 19th of December an e-mail came when I was in Akihabara shopping for 2nd hand idol goods in TRIO saying that I can go into the recording on the next day and man was I excited! Since my friend Tokosilent and Hatix wasn't in Japan yet and I was a bit too excited, I just tried to follow the instruction given on the e-mail.

So on the 20th I went to FujiTV in Odaiba and the instruction said to go to gate number 8. I had no idea where it was but since I stopped at the Daiba station of Yurikamome, I saw gate #1 almost immediately. Thinking that I had the most brilliant idea ever, knowing that the Japanese are always systematic so I just tried to find the gate according to the number. So I went to the back of FujiTV following gate #2, #3 and so on. Only to realize that gate #8 is exactly at the FujiTV entrance. I felt really dumb. lol.

There was quite a number of people queuing up already so I asked the guy in front of me whether this is the line for the recording and he said yes. After a while the staff called us in and we lined up near the cargo entrance. Everyone had to present a proof of identification, if you are a foreigner then a passport would do just fine. I guess the fan-sama had better numbers, I was number 164 to go in. So we all lined up and then walked into the front door of FujiTV and into the studio area. Went up some really familiar stairs and then into another familiar scenery!

The props warehouse is right before the studio

As I saw the warehouse, I was basically trying to control from laughing too loud because suddenly the zombie audition episodes just pops into my head. I must have looked like an idiot at that time. But a happy idiot is not so bad lol. So we lined up again in front of the studio entrance which is basically this:

After a while we got into the all so familiar studio. With my number, I was seated on the 4th row. There was another empty row behind me, I guess since it was friday so a lot of people couldn't come to watch. A lot of idoling song was playing in the background and after a while Takase AD came and gave a short briefing and we practised clapping before the show starts. So he mentioned that it was the last recording session of the year and he hoped that we all can get a real good laugh out of the segment today. So after that Idoling and the MCs came in and the recording started. I am pretty short so I had a hard time seeing the girls on stage so most of the time I had to look at the nearby monitor to see clearly what is happening. Still, before the show started and in between recording the girls are really playing around and looked like they were having a lot of fun together. Especially the younger members. After the 2nd episode recording was over, there was this short break to prepare for the next episode. So one of the new AD (a girl) came to talk to the audience to buy time until everything was ready. After introducing herself, she asked who came from the furthest place. So without any hesitation I just raised my hand lol. When I said I was from Malaysia, everyone was like "oooooh~!!!" Then she said that she has been to Malaysia as well and then changed the question to "who came from the furthest place within Japan?" lol.

After everything was ready the 3rd episode recording started and I had a good time watching them all because of certain really adorable moment with the Hashimoto Sisters. Once the recording is over, we were dismissed according our number, and we have the chance to wave at the members because they all waited for all of us to leave first. Umeko was a bit too busy talking to Yurippe/Ruka so she didn't realized at me waving at her I guess. But man, looking at NEO live... They are just so small! Seriously cute as well.

Then, I went back to my hostel extremely satisfied and happy. I didn't really bank much home in getting the entry but I guess, a fool's luck is unexpected. So I retire for the day pretty early, because tomorrow is Babymetal's Live in Makuhari Messe.