Elizabeth and I bring the maturity to this photo
Out of all of the things we were going to do in Toronto, I was most worried about finding a place to do purikura.
Before I go any further, lets clear up what purikura is. Purikura is like a photobooth on serious acid. You go into this machine, pose for photos, but then you get to pick backgrounds and draw all over them. Asia is severely addicted to these machines, and I could see why. They have this magical ability to get rid of any and all skin imperfections, make your eyes look amazing, and can also make you look thinner too. Some how. It’s amazing.
Anyways. So, I had dedicated all of Sunday to finding one of these damn machines. I had done my research, and heard that there were only two left in the city, and it was a dying art form. Which is a shame really, purikura is awesome.
Our first adventure out was to Chinatown. I was worried about having to go down to Chinatown for a few reasons. First and foremost: Toronto’s Chinatown is INSANE. It really did take a trip back there to remind myself though of that. I’m probably one of the strongest advocates for immigration in Canada that you can find. I love being surrounded by Asians (it kinda reminds me of being overseas!) and thought that Chinatown might be somewhat easier to navigate because I was use to being in Tokyo.
That day was the day where I was wonderfully reminded that not all Asians are alike.
Please note the bad background and fuzzy quality. That's not from my scanner.
It felt just as foreign being there as any other person who had never been to an Asian country in their life might have felt. That was a strange moment of culture shock. Anyways, we made our way over to the mall that had the purikura, and found the machine in seconds. I was… needless to say, really disappointed. The guy running the machine didn’t speak a lick of English, the machine was probably well over 20 years old, and reminded me of a photo booth I did with my sister when I was 5, where all you did was choose the frame. BUT THERE WERE A LOT OF FRAMES? 
It was expensive, and by the end of it, I was more frustrated. While Elizabeth seemed pleased, I was not, because THIS WAS NOT THE PURIKURA I WANTED HER TO EXPERIENCE. And so we went off to find the only other machine in the city, in Little Korea.
The second we found the machine, I knew I’d be content with this machine. Because the machine was pink and tacky looking. Sure fire way of knowing it’ll be shiny enough for you. If anyone is interested, the machine can be found in the Morning Glory stationary store on the corner of Yonge and Finch. Right next door to Puck’n Wings. Which I also highly recommend. You can actually see the machine when you look on Google Street View!
Anyways, we went in, and a very nice Korean lady helped us out. It was still kinda expensive, $10 a sheet, but we put in the coin, and it was all in English. We got to pick the backgrounds, and there were stamps and the ability to draw on them as well! The time limit was really short, and there was no pausing it like in Japan. But it was still really fun. We both were able to get a copy of the stickers too, which was super important.
Anyways, the third part of our Japan mission was accomplished. I highly recommend kicking about the Finch subway station area. Purikura is fun, the wings were delicious, and there’s fun bowling down the street!
