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Japan was my first time “one-bagging it.” I was overly concerned with buying something that I wouldn’t be able to bring home. So anytime I saw a really cool Gashapon, a fancy vending machine toy, I just took picture instead of purchasing it. 

I shouldn’t have worried, gashapon (also known as gasha or gacha) are cheap, around 3 bucks, available practically everywhere. Crazy ones are available like staircases, chibi Chthulhu, animals peeing at urinals. 

Gasha do have licensed properties, too. Amine, video game characters, and even western properties are available as gasha. I saw a Gwenpool at Haneda Airport not too long after her debut in Spider-Gwen. 

Gasha machines are all over the place. Akihabara has stores with walls and walls of machines, there’d be a row or two in front of a seemingly unrelated store, or there would be a random lone machine somewhere. The joy was in the chase, I could not find a Ranma 1/2 machine the first time I was in Tokyo, so I made sure to find one in my second trip. 

But the best thing about them is that they are tiny. Unless I had spent over a $100 on gasha (in which case I would have entirely different problem) I could have easily fit 10 in my bag. Worse case scenario, if I was absolutely running out of room, I could have left behind the gasha that I was less than in love with. After all, they are only three bucks. 

The moral is, if you see a gasha that makes you smile, whether it’s because it’s a character you love or because it’s flipping bizarre, makes sure to grab it. Otherwise you will be stuck looking over the pics on your phone with regret. 

My Hero Academia has been one of the most popular anime of the past few years. A feature of the show is quick character bios in the bumpers, the quick segments before and after the commercial break. These quick bios include the character’s favorite things, often favorite foods but sometime favorite experiences. While it might not be worth it to specifically seek out these “favorites,” it could be fun seeing if, in the course of your trip, how many of these favorite characters’ “favorites” you have experienced or tried.

Below is a list of the more popular characters and their favorite things from the My Hero Academia wiki at myheroacademia.fandom.com. 

Deku: katsudon (pork cutlet bowl)

Bakugo: spicy food, mountain climbing

Uravity: Japanese food, mochi, and starry skies.

Shoto: Zaru (cold) soba

Froppy: jelly

Ingenium: beef stew

Red Riot: meat

Creati: reading

Chargebolt: hamburgers

Earphone Jack: rock

Tsukuyomi: apples

Invisible Girl: caramels

Pinky: Okra, natto

Cellophane: oranges, soy products, or anything healthy.

Anima: nature

Sugarman: cake

Tentacole: takoyaki, squid ink pasta

Tailman: martial arts

Can’t Stop Twinkling: himself

 Lemillion: ramen, comedy

Nejire Chan: lilies and jasmine

Suneater: butterflies

Mei Hatsume: chocolate

Allmight: movies, the cedars of Yakushima 

Best Jeanist: wolves

Endeavor: kuzumochi

Eraserhead: cats

Midnight: thrills

Principal Nezu: tea

Present Mic: radio, television, fried chicken

Gran Torino: taiyaki

Fat Gum: takoyaki

Thirteen: museums, documentaries

Himiko: blood, pomegranates

Obviously, this is just for fun, and it is up to you what counts for checked off. Some of these are super easy to complete like Deku, Uravity, and Principal Neku, since these are things that you’d most likely do in the course of a regular Tokyo vacation. Here a few of my suggestions for things that could count for some of the more harder to accomplish “favorites.” While the cedars of a particular island far from Tokyo may not be easy if you want to check off Allmight, Hollywood movies are foreign films in Japan and can be experienced in English with Japanese subtitles. While it does not make sense to travel halfway around the world to see the newest Marvel Movie, but if the weather is not cooperating, an American Blockbuster might be a nice way to kill a few hours.  If spicy food is not your jam, mountain climbing is not an unreasonable option in Japan, if you absolutely need to check off Kacchan. Bouldering/rock climbing gyms are also an option if the weather is bad. Rock and Roll is popular in Japan and catching a live band at a bar some evening would be a nice way to check off Earphone Jack. Airbnb is branching out with a service called Airbnb Experiences which matches travelers with locals who are fans of certain fields. For example, I shown around Akihabara by a local through an experience I found on Airbnb. If you search the Tokyo Experiences, you will find people offering an hour or two of traditional Japanese Martial Arts, if you want to check off Tailman. Visiting a Cat Cafe would work for Eraserhead. It is kind of implied that Midnight’s favorite is more of an adult “thrills” you could count rollercoasters or other thrill rides but you don’t let that stop you and a consenting adults from enjoying an evening in Tokyo. While listening to the radio or watching tv in your hotel room is pretty easy, combini fried chicken is a bit more fun to sample Present Mic’s favorite. If you see a wolf in a zoo or wildlife trip, you could check off Best Jeanist, but in Shibuya there is another opportunity, the Mitake Shrine which is devoted to wolves and not too far from Harajuku. Can’t Stop Twinkling’s favorite thing is himself and I think any of his merch would count. Himiko is the only villain on this list and while pomegranates proper maybe hard to find, Japan likes to make creative ice cream flavors and you might be able to check off her favorite that way.  

And do not feel bad about using Chargebolt as an excuse to try the teriyaki burger at McDonald’s.

I was not looking for nerd stuff during my trip to Prague, but nerd stuff found me.

I was wondering around the Charles Bridge when the Museum of Special Effects popped up on Google Maps. I could not resist and purchased a ticket.

Properly called the Karel Zeman Museum, the museum is devoted to the practical special effects devised by Karel Zeman for films he worked on between the 1940s and the 1980s. 

If you’re not familiar with him, and I was not when I ventured in, many great animators consider Zeman influential, including Terry Gilliam, Tim Burton, and even the King of Stop Motion Monsters, Ray Harryhousen. 

His films have a fantastical element to them and the museum has plenty of examples of his work throughout. Moreover, guests are encouraged to recreate these effects with the exhibits designed to be posed on or used. This makes the museum a great place for any nerdlings of travel party. And way more appropriate than the Sex Machines Museum or the Museum of Torture and Torture Devices. 

Like many people, I get anxious the first time I do something. Especially when that something is waaaayyyy outside my realm of experiences. 

For my first two trips, I deeply explored one city. But for my trip to Prague, I wanted to take a day trip to Kutna Hora and see the the Bone Church. And that would involve taking a train.

Mass transit is not really a thing in Texas and city to city mass transit is practically non-existent.  In order to see the Sedlec Ossuary, I would need to learn how to take a train, in an unfamiliar country, while not knowing the Czech language.

My entire walk to the train station, my anxiety was telling me to skip it. “You’re in Prague, one of the most gorgeous cities in the world. Go find something easier, less stress-inducing to do.” It said. Even after buying my ticket, experiencing confusion about my ticket and then having that confusion mostly mitigated by the helpful customer service desk, my inner monologue saying, “Just bail. The ticket was only like twelve bucks. Ditch and find some cute neighborhood to get lost in.”

But I ignored it and when the time finally came, I went down to the platform. And the platform looked nothing like I expected. And that threw me off. I was worried that I would get on the wrong train. The little voice inside my heard took the opportunity to say “Go back up stairs, leave the station, go find a beer.

I almost did. But luckily, I heard someone speaking English. IT was an Australian family, a couple and an adult son. I asked them if them if this was the platform for Kutna Hora. They said yes and they were heading that way too.  I told them this was my first train trip and I was nervous. They invited me to tag along.

If you consume enough travel content, you learn that if you meet some Australians while on a trip, you are going to have a good time. And this family was no exception. While we did not have a bonkers adventure like finding Jan Zizka’s lost treasure, it was a really, really pleasant day. I had a great time at lunch with them, a great time exploring the churches with them, and a great drink back in Prague. All in all, probably one of the Top 5 days in my life. Admittedly, getting on a train and site seeing is a small step but I created a treasured memory because I ignored the nagging voice of anxiety. 

Full disclosure, the event in this post doesn’t actually cause embarrassment but is in a contributing factor to embarrassing moments, including the the first post in the series.That’s why its a #0.

The Cardinal Rule of International Travel is, that when crossing many time zones, no matter how tired you are, you cannot go to sleep until your normal bedtime in your home timezone. Doing so makes it easier for your body to adjust to the new time zone. 

So, if you normally are in bed at 10, stay awake until ten, even if you’re like me and cannot sleep on planes and you’ve been up for close to 36 hours. Even if you’re super-tired, go do something. Go explore the neighborhood around your hotel and plot out adventures for your first full day in a new place. Go find a breakfast place so you don’t have to think about it in the morning. (Bonus tip: try to eat breakfast [or lunch] at the same place the entire trip, Locals will get friendlier once they’re seen you a few times).  Just do not think “I’m a bit warn out from travel, let me got straight to my hotel room and watch Netflix for a bit.” Because you will fall asleep at 7 and wake up a 3 a.m. and spend 4 hours or so playing Civ 6 as Babylon until places start opening up and you can get something to eat and get in a situation where this happens. Hypothetically speaking.