Why aren't fans going to LA?!
 

I've been wondering this for a while now, and we've discussed it on Twitter...

Why aren't Ayumi fans congregating in LA the way they did in London? She has been there for TWO weeks already and still says she doesn't know when she will leave. Has ANYONE gone to LA to see her?

Myself, I would die to go, but I simply have no way to afford it right now no matter what I would do. It tears me up knowing Ayu is so close, but so far away.

So why isn't anyone else going?!?! Maybe some fans SHOULD go! I don't want Ayu to think she doesn't have fans in the US. :(

I would if I could...but I'm ALL the way across the country :/

Same here. Like I said on twitter, it'd be difficult to find her without looking like a crazy/dangerous person, and also prohibitively expensive.

^^I don't think I'd look crazy/dangerous, but it would be a little expensive.
I don't think the fans in the UK looked crazy...I was just super jealous of them!

Yeah, I suppose it depends on coming with flowers and swag to get autographed.

id have to cross the continent :( seems like ayu doesnt have a lot of fans in that area..

I would totally be there if I had the money to go. But alas, I am unemployed at the moment and broke. I'm sure a lot of the fans that met her in London worked and had money saved.
And actually, according to this site alone, Ayu has quite a bit of fans in California.

http://i926.photobucket.com/albums/a...USvsEUROPE.png

i found this image comparing the size of the US to Europe (i tinkered with the color to make it easier to see). i can say that for most of us in the US, the plane trip would be much much farther than it was for those European fans.

i mean, Cali isn't even on the map, its off to the left, nor is my state on the map, i'm off to the right. the distance from London to most of Europe is not far at all, i mean, i've DRIVEN farther than that in a day.

i think this is a large part of what is going on.

and lets see, orbitz.com says plane tickets roundway for me would be between mostly between $600 and $800. Europebyair.com is showing me tickets from Madrid to London from about $200 to $400. from berlin to london i'm seeing $300 to $400.

i think this is the largest part of why people aren't going to LA. for the majority of us, i'm sure its more expensive.

i think the largest groups of fans in the US are either on the west coast in Cali or on the East Coast. as for the fans in Cali, i have no clue what's stopping them, but for those of us on the east coast, the cost is quite steep.

isnt california that has a mini japan town?

^Little Tokyo yes.

San Francisco does, but its 347 miles (558km) away.

They have Little Tokyo in LA.
And if Ayu is still in LA next weekend, I might try to see if my fiancee will drive down. We shall see. But we usually don't have much money left over after bills and groceries.

...How would we even find her?

^The Record Plant is where she is recording her album, so it wouldn't be hard to track her down there.

Yeah, we know her recording studio...that is enough to at least find her I think.

Although, European fans knew her hotel, and we do not. If we went to Record Planet, she may or may not even be recording that day, we don't know.

I kind of feel like when Ayumi goes to Europe, there is always so much more information leaked about it. We never get that in the US. She hasn't posted her hotel pictures for us to figure out where she is.

^Yep that's another point. I'd go all the way to LA, a 4-5 hour drive, spend money in gas and food. And maybe get to see Ayu for a minute, or maybe not even at all. I'd rather just save the money from that, save it and go to Japan to see a concert.

I'd rather just save up like $2,000 and go to Japan for her tour. I've always wanted to see Japan anyway.

me too. is $2,000 how much it costs? i've never really looked for an exact amount, i just knew it was a LOT.

@SEVEN~ Same here. Even though I do feel a bit frustrated that she's so close to me right now but I cannot do anything to go see her. >.<

Well... with all due respect: to see her for just a couple of minutes, from so close, get to talk to her, get to ask her for a picture with you, or an authograph, I think is what people who went to London the last time was looking for, no matter what. And that's something you can't do in a concert, don't you think?

Not to mention some of us live on our own, and the economy is pretty crappy. It would cost us 2 months of rent to fly to la. Then put hotel fees, gas/train/taxi and/or rental car, and food? We would probably be looking at 3 months of rent.

The thing is, the people who got to meet her in London were aware of her hotel. We don't get that here in the US. And there is a possibility of going to the studio she's at and she won't be there, so then I would spend time and money to go meet Ayu and not get the chance. I'd rather just save the money to see her in concert since I've never been able to.

yeah, same for me. my rent is $1,100 a month, but we split it, so it would probably be 2 or 3 months for me of my half of rent. :(

Yeah, you are right. The hotel factor made their challenge easier.
Although they froze their a$$ off :(

^ i would freeze every part of my body off to see Ayu for just a few seconds!

It would be so much easier if we knew what hotel she was staying at in LA, or even where Mannie lives! XD

yeah i'm in Northern California and LA is really far. it has to be a well out planned trip. usually when my friends and i go we planned it out and saved up... then we take a weekend to drive down. and i'm really the only hardcore ayu fan amongst my friends so if ayu tweets she's going to or is in LA it's really hard to get my friends together for a quick weekend.

and like what's been said, ayu goes here to record and doesn't publicize where she's staying and her schedule like she did with London so the information as to where she is that day is not so accessible. and i've always found that odd since she's gone here and to other parts of the US numerous times. although it's before twitter, i remember hearing about the fairyland video being in hawaii only after she was long gone. and then seeing the photobooks from (m)u and wishing i was there. and even surprised no one did anything about their favorite idol going dancing on a platform that was driving around New York... but again there wasn't much info leaked :/

AHA on a side note, my family and i used to go each summer to Hawaii to visit our family. After i saw she signed one of those Giovanni shrimp trucks in hawaii, i made sure to look for her signature on one of those trucks! but a year away means lots of rain to wash it away... and there are a bunch scattered around the main island (which is where she filmed it since the waterfall she was in was near this bridge we drove on... it's near the Polynesian Cultural Center if anyone knows it)... but yeah couldn't find it :/ if she had leaked that info BEFORE then maaybe...

Well about $1000 for airfare, $100 for ayu ticket, $500-700 for a hotel stay depending on the length of your visit, and the rest for food.

I guess you'd need more if you actually planned to do some shopping.

hahahaha! we can stand outside Mannie's place waiting for Ayu!



you must make a lot if you think you will get that much back from your taxes! lol!

whenever i finally have money to go to japan, i do honestly hope someone else will go with me! it would make the experience much less intimidating.

Unfortunately, some of us have the kind of jobs where its nearly impossible to drop everything and travel. I know that if I knew where she'd be going in advance I'd do it (I flew to LA just for JRR in 2007), but I don't have enough days off in a row and I'd be flying in from Canada.
I'm really surprised that no one from LA or California has gone ,though (but maybe we're all in the same shoes). Her last TA seemed almost like a cry for attention; its almost tragic.

SO damn, I'd have to save up about $5000 just for me and my fiancee to fly to Japan and see Ayu...guess I'll be at CDL 2012 lol
Oh you went to JRR also? I was there. It was the most awesome 2 day experience of my LIFE! :D

^^Assuming the world doesn't end.

i know. her last TA upset me a lot. i feel like a crazy fan to be upset about this, but i am. i'm sure ayu would smile so brightly if some fans showed up to see her! just imagine the kind of one on one time she would probably give you!

and it'll be WARM! lol!

i'm just shocked that no one from Cali has gone to try to find her. i mean, a lot of AHS members live in Cali.

and also, i think to myself...how would we ever expect Ayu to do any sort of world tour if when she comes to the US there aren't even any fans to see her???

ayu is more important than the end of the world! LOL!

i wonder if i can save enough by AT2012. I'd rather go to an arena tour than a CDL i think. if not, maybe i can go in 2013. :(

@SEVEN~ Meh I don't believe in that. :P As long as Ayu is here, the world is fine! hahaha
Damn, 0630, you are making me feel like a horrible fan right now. :weep

@ohsixthirty :laugh oh let's please not harass mannie


Yeah like I'm in florida too. I'm not even old enough for a liscense. My parent can't afford it unless they had some long period of time to do like for my birthday. I can't just up and go. I mean. Ayu could probably come to my city and because of parental restrictions and not leaving me alone in random places I probably still couldn't see her.
For fans who are adults? I imagine its incredibly expensive...I mean not everyone has the money or can spontaneously afford to go to place they weren't even conidering going to to possibly find ayu.
I would LOVE to see ayu more than anything but if I had other things to pay for then I'm not going to go. I'd rather not starve
Besides iim sure there are also fans who are in school. Like college. I don't think everyone can miss school that much
Same for jobs

Yep I think that may sum up some of the reasons.... It really I sad though :(

I kinda understand ur concern, ohsixthirty, cuz like...I want ayu to know how many loving american fans she has...like me lol.

Edit: lol a lot of posts were made when I wa writing this lol. Makes half of what I said redundant XD my bad.

Fixed. :P

don't feel bad!!! i know you can't afford to go! i'm talking about all those other Cali fans! lol!

EXACTLY. and i don't want her to feel like she doesn't have fans in the US. and i don't want fans in other places to think US fans don't love her as much as they do. :(

LOL I know, but I still feel bad. I just want to go bad, I even told my fiancee when I found out she was in LA...but of course...money is a huge factor. >.<

It was pretty darn awesome! 16 hours wait in line and all~

^Oh I didn't have to wait in line, me and my friends had Will-Call tickets. :)

labello and I want to fly to Japan for AT11 and we made a more detailed price list. It is about 2000€ at least, which is like 2732USD (according to xe . com). You need to save a lot for this!!

I was wondering why no one went to see her so far but I understand that it's harder for US fans. The USA is sooo big! And I honestly think it would be more worth it to save up the 800+ USD for a trip to Japan & a concert, since it is guaranteed that you will see her there!

and by the way, I know it would be totally awesome for fans to go and see her and I would totally be happy for everyone who could accomplish that but.. I think she is happy about the freedom she has in LA. Remember the TA diaries where she said she drives around alone in the city? And that she could behave totally normal in the spa, which was very relaxing to her? I think she knows she has fans in the US. 2010 was the year that showed her how much international support she really has.

hopefully the dollar to yen exchange rate will improve in our favor before 2011 or 2012. its terrible right now. :(

I wish I could go too but I'm in the midwest.
And I'm only a teenager so I got no money. >_<

:roflmao

Los Angeles is quite large with millions of people, and is one of the cities in the state of California with over 30 million people living in that state, and the land area is significantly large (slightly larger than Japan), so it might be hard to find Ayu compared to if you would visit to Europe, as European countries are significantly smaller than America, and some of the states in the US are larger than some European countries...

$1 = 82.42 yen as of now :P

^Thanks for bringing up that point.

I think it's lot of money and you guys even don't know where she is exactly. If i were you i would save the money for a Japan trip

The United States does not have the infrastructure, railways or transportation capability for us to travel easily even in our own cities, let alone the country. Apart from Europe's size, it has a far better transportation system. Not to mention the economical hardships we're facing in America today, traveling to see Ayu is not practical unless you're REAL close by.

Thats a good point too! God I wish I lived in Europe sometimes.

I'm sorry~ I'd go....but I'm in the same boat as ownsarai.

It'd cost me like...$200 just in gas...and then food, and everything, and maybe a hotel...though I suppose I could just drive back at 3 AM after having waited hours for her...

but then I dont drive myself, and I dont have my own munny, and I have school, and I just cant afford to miss it to go to LA just to see someone...

And there is no guarantee we'd see Ayu either...

And exactly what jbrat and ownsarai, and everyone else has said. It's just not as possible.

And California by itself is HUGE...like I said 4 hours to get down there, 4 hours back. And even if you fly into LAX, you still have to get out of there, and I'm sure that to get wherever Ayu is, you need a car...and we dont even know where she's at...that's a lot of driving, in LA, traffic, etc...LA is huge...gas would cost you more...just :no

Maybe if I lived there...but I dont.

Honestly, I'd rather use the munny on something I need, like clothes, or tuition, or something. :shrug

My friend just told me about the JYJ concert at USC, where the tickets are free, on Nov.19....but I dont even think I can go to that.

If it was an Ayu concert...I'd be lookin to sell some stuff lol

I guess it's still cheaper for us here in Cali, than other people in the US...but it's still a chunk of munny that I dont have saved up.

I really, really want to go, but it is all the way across the country and I just don't have the money :( If she was someone along the east coast where I am, I would drop everything to find her. I wish, I wish, I wish.

If I lived in California, I'd be there, but I'm all the way in Ohio. :(

Nobody has the money and time to drive around LA trying to hunt down a 4 foot something Japanese superstar....LA is huge....I mean its just not happening. We have no clue where the heck she is. The London people could tell where she was staying.

EDIT: Ok I didnt read the part about you people finding out where her studio is....but still...its like a 40 min drive from where I am....in good traffic....and what then? If a single person goes, they'll probably be treated as a stalker or something and be thrown out....she probably won't even be in the studio....so yeah.

must be so frustrating to know she's in the country, but you can't get to her... I would go crazy! xD

I guess we could go stalk out Universal :laugh

I think we all know where thats at...but yeah...cant get there...sorry :/

yeah, when outside people ask me about Los Angeles, they assume it's a city. i mean, it is one (City of Los Angeles), but there's also Los Angeles county, which itself is HUGE. she could really be ANYWHERE. she could be in Hollywood, Malibu, Burbank, etc.

...do i need to mention Los Angeles traffic? :laugh

Let's ask her, where she stay, crossing finger she will answer...

If had a lot of time kill, some money to throw away, and some sort of "Where's Ayu" tracking device then I probably would.

it's definitely the distance thing. it's much easier for europeans to travel around to different countries and probably cheaper. the united states is huge and it also doesn't have a very good public transit system, so it's either fly or drive.

With London people could take the train in from Spain or whatever. In America you have two options, walk or drive, or spend $500 for a plane ticket. Plus LA is like really like 6 cities that fused together.

I was saying on facebook...dont forget the rental car expenses for anyone who cant drive, or doesnt already live in LA...

cause in LA, you NEED a car. Unless you want to ride the bus and walk...um...yeah...be safe! lol


I do hope that some people in the city were able to go see her though :/

But I mean, Ayu knows she's got fans in the US. And I know she'd understand if people told her how much the rest of us would have liked to go, but couldnt make it.

wow... you all make it sound like the London thing was easy and cheap for the ppl who went there?

but I admit there was a lot more info on when she went to London than what her plans are now in LA.

Yep! Not to mention that America is HUUUGE! lol I wish we could take the train to LA... But that would take a day or two! :laugh

I haven't gone to see Ayu in LA because, well, I'm in Australia :P I want to see her in concert more than I want to fly to some random US state on the off chance I'll bump into her :(

I feel very sad to all of u who couldnt make it to see her. I know how'd it feels :weep

Dont worry, she always go to LA for recording. Next time, please save up, just in case if she'll go there again for weeks :P

I need to MOVE to LA (or somewhere near it) so when ayu comes, I'm there! lol

^yes! everyone move to california! :laugh

Seriously.

^I would if I could.. But money is the only issue here! :laugh

@Emiko - I know, same issue as Yurichan, rofl.

I can't, because I happen to be in a very penniless state lol

I could, but I'd wind up spending a couple hundred on the plane ticket and hotel and feel like a creepy stalker while doing it.

That plus like say I were to go to LA to see ayu, I would have to buy an airplane ticket (because if I did take the train I would get there next month), then I'd have to rent a car, and plus hotel fair. Just that it would cost $2200 (and that's using Orbitz discount deals), not to mention food and any other recreational money. So to maybe see ayu for 3 minutes I would have to spend about $3000. Now I'm pretty sure the London folks didn't spend that much money going to see her.

Or Hawaii, she goes there a lot too.

Yeah especially since you'd probably maybe get to see her for a total of 3 minutes tops.

i've been to the recording studio and at night its questionably safe. you definitely won't look like a stalker at night because there's a bunch of people sleeping nearby or just walking around so no worries there! during the day its normal.

if anyone knows where she's staying it would be much easier and safer because i'd def. go! was also thinking of going to the spa too haha!

From what I found on google maps, Record Plant is pretty much near downtown LA, and unless you are with a big group of people, you don't want to be hanging around downtown LA alone at night. Some crazy people around there.

^yeah...why are there people all sleeping nearby at night? :laugh

Because it's downtown LA, and that's how it is lol Dont get shanked by a hobo! ;P

I wouldn't want to be riding any public transport at like anytime past 10:00 pm either :laugh


I do want to figure out where she's staying...but god...with the crapload of luxury hotels in the LA area, she could be anywhere...but it seems like she's mostly been downtown.

Has she posted any pictures of the city like...from her window...cause that would be the best clue.

It kills me that Ayu is in the same state as me. If I knew where she was staying, you bet I would be there, just like the fans in London.
But we don't know anything about where in LA she is except for where she records, and even then she isn't there every single day. London was lucky because she showed us where she was staying. Plus LA is huge, driving around to find her would be impossible. If only she would reveal a little more about where she is staying, I'm sure me and the other West Coast fans would flock there in a heartbeat. I know I would <3

i was exactly wondering the same..although i'm aware of how long the distances are in the USA

Maybe someone can ask here where she's staying via Twitter sinc ethere are atleast 2 people who can go? Tell her they're trying to find her in LA. If she's as open as she seems to meeting fans, she would disclose that info.

I'm in 1000+ miles away from L.A.

I'm still 17 and I have no money except from my parents... :( :(

WELL, my point was... is there no fan who lives in the area (let's say 100 km's around) who likes Ayu?

Like there was no fan in Montreal, Tolousse, Munich, Valencia... all around the world... and so on!

Hm, yeah, not going to happen for me. Let's see, I have no money, we've basically had no food in the house for two weeks, but I will make it my top priority to fly cross-country to see someone I don't know. :P lol I honestly don't care. If she came to Chicago then maybe I would go to see her. I don't know~

Hm... maybe the people in LA don't care as much. They probably see celebrities more often than a lot of people. :shrug

I live near Toronto, but if Ayu was in New York... I would fly right away. (LA is very expensive and far) ♪（爆笑）Maybe, next time!

I flew to LA from Washington State
 

I was there a few days, over 100 tweets and 4 or more TA messages. But no one else in TA would help me message her. everyone had some silly question like are you with mannie or jaejung. No help at all. I'm in huge credit card debt now & no idea if she'll ever know i was there unless she gets to reading the TA messages i sent.

Mhm, I was wondering about this too. I just can't believe that there are NO Ayu-fans in LA or nearby!

If I could, I would be on the next plane to LA...but I live in Austria and I'm still a student, which means I have no money and time to go! It makes me VERY sad, because I also missed Ayu in London, but I hope she will come back to Europe soon (maybe she will come to Austria with her hubby :D; he's from Austria after all!) and I hope that I can meet her then!! :heart

If she came to Nashville (which would probably NEVER happen), I would go without a doubt! But since she's in LA, it ain't happening! :laugh I'm sorry, but no money! :weep

i m gonna try my best to meet her . i will be writting my report here http://www.ahsforum.com/forum/showthread.php?t=105356

Like xLitax, if Ayu came to Chicago, I'd drop everything and go meet her.

I live in Northern California, and I unfortunately only go to LA once year. I'd definitely go see her she I was in LA at the same time!

I was actually in LA until this afternoon for a job interview, and that took up every ounce of my time. (It was a super quite overnight trip.) There was no way I could've afforded transport from Torrance to BH. I oculd barely afford it from LAX and back =\

And yes, CA is HUUUUUGE. It's a 3 hour flight just to get back to southern Oregon. SOMEBODY (=D) was giving me crap on facebook last night that I should go see her since I was staying the night in LA, but that could've never happen unless she was staying in the same hotel as me. Oh well, I totally forgot until I was laid over in San Francisco anyway, haha.

^ HAHA WELL I WAS UNDER THE IMPRESSION THAT YOU WERE IN LA THE ENTIRE TIME SORRY BB. :heart