Karaoke!

A couple of weeks back I experienced a this very Japanese form of entertainment. For Chihiro's youngest sister's birthday, her family took us to a very nice karaoke restaurant. Actually, it was kind of a cross between a bar, a hotel, and a restaurant. The lobby looked like a very expensive hotel, and after checking in we went to a private room with seating for about 6, a phone to order food and drinks, a state-of-the-art karaoke jukebox, and VERY good soundproofing. We had two hours there, and everybody got a chance to sing a few different songs ranging from classic Japanese songs to the latest superstar pop. Everyone except me had surprisingly good voices (maybe not so surprising since karaoke is quite common here). There was a massive range of songs to choose from (including western songs) and they even had a handheld touch-screen to search for songs on. It was difficult to decide on a good song to with which to display the full range of vocal incapabilities, but eventually I chose to impress everyone with a hearty rendition of "Bohemian Rhapsody" by Queen. I had a great time, and although several members of the audience burst out laughing, at least I was entertaining!