A GUIDE TO A GOOD FANIME STAY
Well, last year went fairly well for me and my friends, especially on the food end. Here's my plan this year. NOTE, I'm getting help this year and a birthday present from the FPU (Female Parental Unit), seeing as Fanime is only 1 week before my birthday, (June 1st btw...I'm thinking of inviting people to out hotel room for a little mini-party) And this is more of a "What I'd do if I were you" guide.
Oh yes, I should mention that most of this would only work if you're staying in a hotel room.
FOODI was lucky enough to be a frequent visitor to Dave & Busters in Milpitas, CA, and saved up enough prize tickets to win a Rice Cooker. This turned out as a real godsend for me at Fanime, DEEPLY cutting down on the food budget, making dining out a luxury and a treat instead of a requirement.
We would splurge at night and order a pizza from Round Table. Buying one meal a day is pretty good. If you get the chance, I HIGHLY recommend buying one. Then we buy a big sack of rice to last us the duration of the con, possibly more than one sack (just in case), and multiple bottles of soy sauce, or 1-2 big jugs of it. And if you plan on food as being not so high on your priority list, this is DEFINATELY the best way to go. BUT! Make sure you bring measuring cups and a cup or scooper for your rice. You can also use the water from the tap in your hotel bathroom. The water will boil in your rice cooker, and remove most if not all of any possible "funny" aftertaste for those that are really picky. Another recommendation for this is to bring your OWN flatware. This is mainly to avoid inconveniencing Room Service and asking them just to bring up a bunch of forks and spoons to your room, as well as bowls. BUY A LOT OF BOWLS! I recommend Target, and buy a lot of those disposable paper bowls, and plastic utensils while you're at it. It will cut down on tableware that needs to be washed. Another good thing about bringing your own forks, spoons, and bowls...you don't need to worry about the cleaning lady taking them away so you have to call to have more brought up.
This is of course, assuming that they can get in at the right time when you're away and not sleeping, partying, gaming, or watching more anime.All in all...I'm planning to pitch in about $25-$50 for a Food Fund at our hotel room. Just in case we wanna order another pizza, or go out to eat.
FINANCESThis year, my tax refund check was worth $300. All that went straight to my Fanime Fund Money, where I would not touch it, only add to it. Considering I have 1-2 more pay periods, I plan to add $100-$300 more to it, bringing the total up to about $400-$600. I don't plan on going to anything on Thursday, I'm budgeting for Fri-Monday. I'm planning to divide the money up evenly and spend about $100 a day, leaving me some possible elbow room if I plan to make a BIG purchase in the Dealer's Room, or something REALLY nice in Artist's Alley, such as a commissioned art piece.
DAVID WONG FTW! "Can't go WRONG with David Wong!" And as far as putting in for MY share of the hotel room, for my birthday, my FPU (Female Parental Unit) has graciously offered to pay $200 towards my part of the hotel room. That's the only reason I'm not taking the hotel room finances into account here.
HOTELThis one should be short and easy. Depending on the size of the room you're getting, (we're staying at the Marriot right AT the con) however many nights you plan to stay, my recommendation is to get minimum, one person for every day. If you're staying from Thurs-Monday, then get at least 3 other people so there's 4 of you. Then each of you pays for one night's stay. And if someone wants to add INTERNET ACCESS, then THEY have to pony up the extra dough! (It's a good idea to get it though, that way you can look up titles listed in the Video Room schedule to see if you'd be interested in seeing it). Now I only say MINIMUM, because if you get more people to crash and chip in...then the cost is divided further, so less each person has to pay. Of course, the Hotel will only allow so many people to the room OFFICIALLY. So keep in mind, you're only going to get a certain amount of room keys. If you don't have one, then you're just going to have to hope someone is in the hotel room, or you're buddy-ing up with a roommate. As far as sleeping arrangements, I recommend double beds instead of one large bed. A large bed SOUNDS like a good idea, but here's why I advise AGAINST it. My friend who's putting the money on his card...is nice almost to a fault. If he meets someone that desperately needs a place to sleep, he'll let them crash for one night...then the next...and so on. I don't mind, I like making new friends.
But I digress...
Let's say you get a...somewhat larger sized room with two beds. If you don't mind being mildly cramped, you can fit at least, 8 people. 2 on each bed, 1 in between the beds, 1 possibly in that space between the bed and the wall with the window, 1 at the foot of one bed (at both beds it's stretching it, because there HAS to be a way to get up for the bathroom), and for someone wanting to be by themselves, 1 person can sleep in the closet, as long as you take your suitcases and/or travel bags out first.
Seriously, no joke...the closet. One night two years ago, I went to sleep when nobody else was there. I woke up...and there was a Ranma-chan cosplayer sleeping under the desk, and I could see a pair of feet belonging to someone sleeping in the closet. Both girls...so color me
AWKWARD PINK!HOTEL ROOM GAMINGNow this issue has been subject to many questions (including one thread on this board as far as I know). Are the TVs able to be plugged into for gaming? I'm not sure currently, or about the Hilton, having never stayed there. But we were able to hook up my Playstation 3 to the flat screen TV they had. Although this was after much confusion, and having to ask the Marriott to send up a handyman to help us out.
HERE WAS THE END RESULT!
We were able to get connectivity, but only by using the component cables (YRB). Even though the TVs had an HDMI input jack, we were unable to figure out how to use it, and I believe the handyman told us we were unable to use it because of the way the hotel had it set up. It might take some playing around with...but it CAN be done. Although, if you want to avoid the hassle...and are a complete jackass...you can bring your own flat screen from home. I HIGHLY advise against this, even IF you have a lot of protection for transporting it. There are so many variables that can happen to damage the TV from your home all the way to your hotel room. Think about it...
Room in your house--->Vehicle--->Hotel (trolly maybe)--->Hotel Room--->TV stand
And this is assuming that the room you're staying at has ROOM to put the TV in! So unless you're bring a normal boxy tube TV, leave it at home. The hotel won't pay for it even if their bellhops accidentally let it fall from the trolley.
Ok...now that all THAT is out of the way...I can recommend stuff to do while at Fanime.
WHAT TO DOAs I said before, chip in for the High Speed Internet access to your hotel room. I'm doing it this year. That way I'll be able to gather information on what's going to be shown in the Video Rooms. Otherwise, I'm limited to watching what I've already seen, parodies, or being lucky enough to have something catch my eye as I'm walking past an open door. But don't spend ALL your time in video rooms. Myself, I only spend a limited amount of time there.
Probably one of the main reasons I come to Fanime is to shop. be honest...that's what most of us like to do. As for what to buy...here's my RULE OF THUMB. If you see something you REALLY want and fall in love with at first sight...and you have the money to get it...BUY IT. Treat yourself to something nice if it doesn't put you over budget. But I'd try to limit that practice to things like figurines, clothing, weapons...mainly import stuff. Probably the only thing I wouldn't practice that with is DVDs. You can buy anime anytime online, so what I'd advise is to hold off on buying anime till maybe last 2 days of the con. But then again...it's a suggestion. You might find something you haven't seen in years.
Also, visit Artist's Alley! You will find some unbelievable treasures here. There are so many awesome artists that come to Fanime every year to display and show off their work. And it's not all just pictures and drawings. A lot of them sell their published mangas, or little knick-knacks with their art on it. And if you HAPPEN to have money to burn, you might find an artist there that does commissions. If you pay them enough, they might finish it before the con is over too!
Cosplaying is probably one of the biggest parts of Fanime. everywhere you go you're going to see cosplayers, hell, you might even be one yourself! Bring a camera, preferably a digital so you can take many pictures. A side note...Some of the Guests of Honor may be seen walking the floor outside of their Panels, but these tend to be the REAL geeks. You may want to bring a sharpie pen just in case you get a chance to ask for their autograph.
BRING A COMPUTER...but leave it in your hotel room. Yes there is free internet access in the hallways...but why do you want to lug your laptop around wherever you go?
WHO TO SEEThis is the section where I "advertise" for people I like.
A gaming store near my house, Play N' Trade, will be manning a booth in the Dealer's Room. I go there mainly because they have so many retro games in their store from PS2 and XBOX, all the way to NES and Sega Genesis. The ones I met at the store are ULTIMATE geeks and one in particular loves to talk shop and knows MASSIVE knowledge about old school gaming. Check them out, and give'm a holla!
David Wong...the man...the myth...the legend. I met this guy at the very FIRST Fanime that I attended in 2001. My dad found an article in the paper about Fanime and asked if I wanted to check it out. I went for a day, and was amazed. I went to Artist's Alley (which at the time was in a hallway, so the name was appropriate. I saw David Wong's stuff and was fascinated. Ever since then I had to visit his booth every year, and every year I leave with more than one piece that he's done. And hell, he doesn't mind chatting it up with you if he's got the time. This guy is a total class act, he can talk vulgar and obscene, and has a heart of gold. He's funny as hell, and is about guaranteed to make you laugh. He also does great commissions, and is almost always willing to negotiate the price. I overheard him say once to a customer, "If we sign a contract saying you have to bring a doughnut to my house every morning for two weeks, then that's what the price will be." And just like the sign at his booth says..."Will draw anything...YES, EVEN THAT!"
Well, that about covers everything I can think of now. If you have any questions or things to add, post! Please post! I want to hear your reactions. Anyways...so long, and SEE YOU AT FANIMECON 2009!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!