My Trip to Jak-Japan Matsuri

Hello and welcome to another post, this time i'm going to do something a little bit different, i'm going to tell you guys about my recent trip to the Jak-Japan Matsuri that was held in Jakarta from the 8th-9th of September 2018. small info, this year Jak-Japan Matsuri mark the 60th anniversary of the Indonesia-Japan diplomatic relation and its also the first time that the Jak-Japan matsuri held a Indonesia-Japan music festival. the festival features quite a few high profile artist from both Indonesia and Japan, there's Sukima Switch, Kiroro and of course AKB48 from Japan. and from Indonesia there's JKT48, Raisa, Isyana Sarasvati, and Andien. and there are also a couple of Indonesian and Japanese underground idol also participating.

Anyway, i set off to Jakarta on Friday September 7th. i went straight from my campus to the bus terminal where 5 of my friend were waiting. at midday after we did our prayer, we got on the bus heading for the town of Bekasi which is at the edge of Jakarta. we set of at around 2 pm, it was a pretty long bus ride thanks to some traffic. we arrived at Bekasi at around 5, go straight to our friends house where we will spend the weekend. we arrived at the house at about 6, then we did our thing (bath, pray, whatever). then we went for dinner at around 7. after dinner, we just lay around, talk to each other for literally hours about idols and other random stuff.

The next day, we got up early so we can avoid traffic on our way to the festival. we went to Jakarta using public transport, mainly the TransJakarta bus network, it was my first time riding it and its surprisingly comfortable. we arrived at the venue (Plaza Tenggara Senayan, Jakarta) at around 10, and the gate hasn't been open yet, so we decided to go and see the JKT48 theater which is only across the road from the venue at the FX Sudirman Mall. to be honest, we just went there to get some cool air since it was really hot outside and also one of my friend wanted to meet his friend there. but i thought "while we're here, why not check out the theater." and this is where the first great moment of the trip happen. so we went to the theater which is on the 4th floor. we went there, took some picture, talk to other fans, and do other random stuff like that, you know, killing time. but then, it happen, while we were just standing around, all of a sudden, every single AKB48 member that was due to perform that day (all 12 of them) came out of the back door of the theater. i was the first one to notice the members, and i was literally only about 2 meter away from them when they walk by. i got eye contact with Yuihan for a good 5 second, i waved at her, and she waved back. the stupid thing is, i was literally holding a camera on my hand at that time, but i didn't took a picture, i just stood there like a statue. i mean, when you have Yokoyama Yui staring you in the eye like that, there's not much you can do, i can only waved at her (and say ganbatte) and she waved back. i also got a wave from Nakano Ikumi, and i have to say, she's really pretty in person. i can't actually talk to them since they were in a hurry, they were rushing to the elevator, which is fine. and my friend actually manages to took a picture of Oda Erina on the elevator waving at him. and i think after the that, we all just went crazy, i was screaming on the inside, and almost loose my mind. but one thing to notice is that the JKT48 fans that were in the area, doesn't seem to care about the members, they were just minding they're own business. i don't know if they didn't know that is was the AKB members or that they're just don't care, because when the JKT members came out a few minutes later, they're all went crazy calling their name. one thing i notice from seeing AKB members up close and in regular clothing is that, they're taller that what it seems on TV and they were really skinny. but its healthy skinny, it looks like they have the ideal weight for female of their size.

Anyway we stay there for a few more minutes before going to the event, we got in to the venue at around 12, and we were greeted by some Taiko drum performance, its pretty cool. there were 3 stages at the event, there's the main music festival stage, a mini live stage, and another stage where they did all kinds of fun Japan-Indonesia related stuff. because the actual concert starts at 5 pm, we just hang around the venue, looking at a couple of cool stall. there were a lot of stall that sell Japanese food that come straight from Japan, and there are also a lot stall that sells traditional Indonesian cuisine, all very lovely. i try some authentic Takoyaki and Okonomiyaki, it was really good. there are also a lot of people, Japanese people doing charity for the victim of the recent earthquake that happen in Lombok, which is great to see.

Then finally, the live music festival has started, it was open by the MC who are Ayana from JKT48 and Hiroaki Kato, a Japanese entertainer that lived in Jakarta. the first performer was Sukima Switch, it was a pretty fun, they did a lot of they're popular song such as Kanade, and i have to say, most of the people that were watching the Sukima Switch preformance were Japanese. after a 1 hour set from Sukima Switch, we go to a break so that the muslim people can do their prayer. this is very admirable from the organizer, it means that the Japanese people actually understand the culture in Indonesia and respected the muslim people who is the majority of the population. the concert resume at 6.30 with a performance by Andien, an Indonesian female artist. after that, we go to another break while they're preparing for the main event. at about 7.30, the show resume with Nakagawa Haruka (Harugon) replacing Ayana as the MC. at 8 pm the AKB48 live started, the senbatsu consist of 12 members, Oguri Yui as the center, Yokoyama Yui, Kawamoto Saya, Oda Erina, Okabe Rin, Omori Miyu, Gyouten Yurina, Nagano Serika, Nakano Ikumi, Nozawa Rena, Komiyama Haruka and Yumoto Ami. for the first day they perform 10 songs, Aitakatta, Heavy Rotation, Flying Get, Ponytail to Shushu, #Sukinanda, Iiwake Maybe, Oogoe Diamond, 365 Nichi no Kamihikouki, and AKB Festival. a pretty nice setlist if you ask me, very good for a live show. after AKB48 perform, it was Kiroro's turn to take the stage. and that was the first day. really fun, really exhausting, and really hot as well, we went home looking forward to the second day.

the second day we arrived at the venue much later than before, we arrived at around 2.30 pm. it happened because we overslept the night before. on the second day, JKT48 did a 2 shot event at the venue, a couple of my friends actually participate, i didn't do it. as usual, i was wandering around the venue looking at booth and stall that were there.

The live started at 5, same as last time, and it was opened by a collaboration performance by JKT48 and AKB48. first JKT48 perform Everyday Kachuusha, UZA and Saikou Kayo by JKT48 team T, KIII, and J respectively, and then after that AKB48 perform River. then we have an MV session by AKB48. next AKB48 and JKT48 perform together, performing Kibouteki Refrain and First Rabbit with mixed lyrics, Indonesian and Japanese. then after a long MC session, they perform Koisuru Fortune Cookie, again with mixed lyrics. after Fortune Cookie we got the announcement that Kawamoto Saya (Sayaya) and Stephanie Pricilla Indarto Putri (Stefi) will be transferred to Indonesia and Japan respectively for one month to celebrate 60th year Japan-Indonesia diplomatic relation. they said that both Sayaya and Stefi will participate in Theater shows and also event that celebrate the Indonesia-Japan relation. the live was closed with Hikoukigumo. after AKB48 X JKT48 we have performance by popular Indonesian singer Isyana and Raisa, also Kiroro performed one more time, and the live was closed with a performance of the song Laskar Pelangi by all of the performer that day, and also fireworks.

one other great moment of the trip came from the my friend during the JKTXAKB live. at the first day of the festival, he watches the live while carrying a Keyakizaka46 towel with Watanabe Miho written on it. he got notice by a Oda Erina and a few other, and they were shock by it, and didn't even look at that bit of the crowd for the rest of the live. my friend, who feel sorry for the member, decided to make an Uchiwa that has OdaEri written on it for the 2nd day. the Uchiwa was made in 5 minutes using nothing but duck tape. he took up spot near the front of the stage and during the live he show that Uchiwa to Oda Erina. not only he got notice by OdaEri, he freaking have a conversation during one of the MC with OdaEri. after that, that Uchiwa that was made using nothing but duck tape is now known as the "Kipas Ajaib" or "The Magic Fan".

after that, we all went back to our friends home in Bekasi, take a bath, eat, do a recap of the show for the vlog, and also record a podcast. the next morning, we went back to Bandung, and here i am now, in front of my laptop, writing this post.

overall i think its a really good event, really fun, the venue was nice, the atmosphere was great, the shows were really good, props to the Indonesian government who make this event happen. also thank you very much to AKB48 who came to the event, its because of them that pretty much every major AKB48 fanbase in Indonesia get together and have a good time. there will be a Vlog on the Sakamichi Squad Bandung youtube channel documenting the event, there will also be a podcast talking about it soon, so look out for that. but until then......

This is Delta from Sakamichi Squad Bandung
Over and Out

Some documentation of the event