Expo Aichi 2005

I went to Expo 2005 in Aichi, which is a 2hr bullet train ride away - they don't tell you about the other 2rs of trains you need to take to get there though *sigh*.

the expo site is dominated by a ferris wheel

It was ok, but I'm glad I didn't pay admission since there was no real "vibe" to it. There just wasn't much happening and the lines were huge - like 90mins for stuff. I checked out a few things, and unfortunately the Robot Station was for kids and pretty much sucked.

the expo grounds, centered on the Canada pavillion

crowds wander near a round wooden building

a crowd of people head toward some pavillions

a building with a large robot station sign in the window

The Expo mascots sum up the bipolar nature of the experience nicely; "Let's eat some tiny slivers of pizza and half a can of coke"... "Grrr, that sucked and was $11".

inflatable mascot characters that look like tall and short green shrubs

the mascot characters on a map of restaurants

One thing that was (literally) cool was a -30° room you could hang out in for $4.

a foggy photo of a building decorated like an iceburg with a polar bear statue in front.

model penguins in a display of artificial ice and snow

Overall, it was good to help me realize how good Expo '86 actually was.