Matsuri

I went to the Arizona Matsuri this weekend. I had not been in a couple of years, so it was a good excuse to get out of the house and to somewhere warm for the weekend. Matsuri is a Japanese spring festival put on every year in Phoenix. There are always vendors, and martial arts demonstrations, and various Japanesey things. It has become much more crowded than in the past, and I fear the event is being dominated by social misfits who often neglect to bathe. There is less of the cultural flavor than in the past, but I imagine we will still go occasionally.

The Magistra and I picked up some prints from Through Each Other's Eyes, a non-profit photography group. We had purchased some nice prints in the past, so we were pleased to see them again. New Tokyo Market was not there this year, because they too felt that the event was straying from its roots. I remember you used to be able to order food in Japanese. Ah well.

We also saw The Crazies, which was decent for what it was, and enjoyed some beers at D'Arcy McGees, a chain Irish-themed pub. It had a nice atmosphere, and was a bit like a higher-class Tilted Kilt. The waitresses still wear short plaid skirts, but don't show so much skin. If there was a D'Arcy McGees in Flagstaff I would probably go there. I like to be able to drink good beer in a place where I can actually talk to people. Not that there are not good places in Flag, but nothing quite like that.