The first rough patch started as soon as we got to the airport. We decided to fly instead of taking the Megabus, it was pretty brutal last time so we got round trip flights. For some reason there were a lot of complications trying to check in and get our boarding passes, it took almost a hour because the airline staff were really disorganized. Long story short, we were very close to missing our plane. We were both very sleep deprived because it was a 6am flight, so stress + lack of sleep was not a good combination to start off our journey. It basically set the tone for this entire trip.
We arrived at Newark NJ airport and got the shuttle bus to downtown NY for $16. Finding the bus stop and catching the next bus was pretty easy so no complaints there. Before heading to my aunts where we stayed last time, we decided to look around and do some shopping since the bus dropped us off in the Rockefeller area. We checked out the Nintendo store aka Nintendo World once more.
So much Kirby!
So cute! They rotate the museum section of the shop with different displays 
Saw a cool Jeff Koons art piece across from the NBC studios, looked like it was just being unwrapped.
We were pretty worn out by the time we got to my aunts place. Before that we had to wait awhile at a bagel shop because my aunt had to go out and we were waiting for her to get back so we could get into the apartment. We were so tired by then, but forced ourselves to go out and hang around Times Square. We attempted to go to the "Hold Your Hand" Meet up dinner but we were really late. By the time we got there everyone had left, probably to go Karaoke. I really wanted to be involved this time but when we got back from shopping we took a long nap, then took too long getting ready to go out again. Plus I left my Metro Card behind and had to walk all the way back from the station to go get it! One of my main regrets from this trip was that I didn't make any new friends within the fandom and go to any gatherings...
After realizing that the meet-up was basically over, I decided to be a little tourist go up the Empire State Building. Sharon thought it was overpriced so she stayed behind and waited for me at McDonald’s. I took a bunch of photos, but boy was it freezing up there. I also felt a bit dizzy and nervous standing near the edge so I didn't spend too much time outside.
We later met up with our friends who also flew in from Toronto to see Perfume and stayed at their hotel for the night. In the morning We decided to do some shopping before getting in line and checked out Book-Off and Kinokuniya. I think we got in line maybe around noonish, and the wait went by pretty quickly oddly enough. We saw some great cosplay, which I wish I had made the effort to do myself
We were planning on making "Cling-Cling" costumes but never made the time to get together and work on them There were also Fans from Japan and I presume staff of Perfume filming the line up and having everyone shout "We Love Perfume!" Some fans were also dancing to "Spending all My Time" and had it memorized really well which was pretty impressive. A Japanese fan was also handing out pieces of colourful paper for fans to write messages on to the girls. Here is what I wrote, on the back we had to put the name of our favorite song: 
The venue started to open their doors around 10 minutes after it's original scheduled time at 7pm, which I think made everyone more anxious. The staff started pulling the gates further apart so that the line could get wider. Here is where things started to freak me out, as soon as they pulled back the gates people were rushing and pushing frantically, and I started to get crushed between people. Soon we were standing next to people who we had never seen before in the past 4 hours, so people from the back were obviously pushing through the line to get to the front. I started to get a bad feeling, knowing that this was going to be a stressful night having to be around these aggressive people. Once they started letting people in, all hell broke loose. The venue was really disorganized in this department, and were letting people stampede and run through whilst trying to check their bags and scan tickets. Once we got inside everyone was rushing through this one door. It was a double door but no one thought it would make sense to have both doors propped open for an easier flow. I was getting crushed while trying not to get separated from my friends.
Security had to yell at everyone to back up because people were crushing one another. It was so insane and so out of control, and honestly I was not expecting this kind of behavior from people who call themselves fans of Perfume.. It was nothing like entering the Morning Musume'14 concert. We decided to skip getting merch and make getting a good spot our main priority. I knew that you could buy official merch online here anyway so no huge loss for me. 
We were pretty close to the stage, so we all thought we were going to get an amazing view. As we were waiting for the show to start, I noticed there was a large transparent screen covering the main stage as well as big screen behind it. I knew they were going to do some really cool 3d projections and I started to get really excited! There was an announcement made by the concert staff saying that no cameras or photos were allowed, and if I can remember correctly, to be considerate in the crowed (no pushing shoving etc.).....how ironic. Anyway... Finally the 3d projection opening started with 'Enter the Sphere' and I was SO EXCITED and thrilled.
I was so happy and living in the moment those first few minutes. Then the curtain projection came down and I could see their silhouettes, EEEK! They started to dance, but the only member I could really see was A~Chan. I remember thinking WOW there she is in the flesh a few feet way from me, in her zone doing one of their many complex dance routines.I know this is going to sound really strange, but here is where everything went downhill for me
How could we be so close to the stage and not see anything you ask? Well we were behind this taller guy who constantly had his arm up throughout the concert, blocking most of our view. To top it off, a really tall girl, quite possibly one of the tallest girls near the front, eventually shifted herself right in front of me so all I could see was her back 0__0 I mean, I could see Perfume, but only through the spaces between peoples heads, and that’s on my tipy-toes leaning back and fourth, side to side. It was uncomfortable, is was frustrating, it was disappointing.
During "Spring of Life" which is one of my favourite songs, a guy from behind me got a button from his sleeve caught in my hair. I spent most of the song trying to untangle myself and he wasn't really making an effort to help me. I was being yanked around while he was waving his arms. NOT FUN. 
The only time I saw the group dancing together was when they were further back on the stage which was pretty rare. The rest of the time I could only see one member at a time, so I couldn't get the full experience of the dance routines, which is like...what seeing Perfume live is all about. I felt pretty gutted during most of the show, I tried very very hard to let it go and just enjoy the moment, but it was so frustrating not being able to see anything yet being so close to the stage. This is just my personal opinion, but I found the crowd to be very selfish and inconsiderate, basically people were willing to step all over each other to get the front row center. Before the show started there was a girl behind me asking me to take off my backpack, and I did it for her, but I guess I was the only one who cared about the well being of others during this concert it seemed...
During the MC some people were shouting and interrupting them while they were talking, they had no self control and it ruined the experience for a lot of other people. I was supposed to be crying tears of happiness, not tears of disappointment and frustration. I was heartbroken. 
What I can take away from this experience is that, I am never going to a concert in the GA standing section again. When I saw Kyary Pamyu Pamyu I couldn't see shit, and even though we were practically in the front, we couldn't see shit for Perfume either. It's just too much of a risk of getting stuck behind someone taller, or having some selfish ass-hole push their way in front of you. I know when you are in an audience like this, it's more of dancing and going wild type of situation. But with Perfume, it's not just about enjoying the music, the visual performance is why I traveled all the way from Toronto to see them. The projection display the amazingly timed dancing, the costumes, the girls and their personalities. If you can't see anything properly then honestly, whats the point?!? Also the music is not live, neither is the singing, so if I all I can see is the back of some girl and hear the music and the screaming fans, then the experience is just not the same. Again, I tried my best to make the most of it, but I was too disappointed. From now on, only balcony/assigned seating. That's it! Unless for some reason I am guaranteed a good spot! In comparison, the Best Buy Theater (Which was where I saw Morning Musume'14) was a much better venue and I wish that they had held Perfume's concert there. You had the option of going into the standing area or you could go back and sit in the seating area. You had more of a chance to pick a spot with a good view. The Hammerstein Ballroom was basically either you stand on the GA section or be high up in a balcony, it's a very pretty and historical venue but it wasn't the most practical for this sort of event.
I ended up snapping a few photos because by that point I had nothing to lose and I wanted to get some sort of perspective of what was going on!
Despite all that, the show itself was fantastic
The girls were so amazing and sweet, and I thought it was so ironic that they were so genuine and caring, yet the audience I was in was the completely the opposite. During the MC they were very funny talking about eating cup cakes (which A~Chan thought were too sweet) She also talked about eating a cream cheese bagel with smoked salmon which was funny because we also went to a bagel place by my aunt's apartment and ate a bagel with cream cheese and smoked salmon! A~Chan is a very good MC! Then they got the crowd to have on side chant cup cake, and the other side to chant bagel. It was pretty cute, I was too distraught from my awful experience to really get into it Even when they performed "Dream Fighter" my favorite Perfume song of all time, I was too sad to let it sink in and enjoy it...My biggest regret is that I didn't try to make the most of it and just be in the moment, I got so caught up with being disappointed and frustrated that I should of just "let it go" no pun intended. Even during that part where they sang a verse from the song, I couldn't get into it, I can't really explain why, and now that I look back, it was pretty stupid of me.
Even if the experience was ruined I am still very grateful that I was apart of that audience, and that they performed so close to me. I'm so grateful that I was there in the first place, and I wish I had that frame of mind during the actual concert.
After the show I said hi to a fan I chat to on twitter, who was at the front row and Perfume talked to him! So glad someone had an amazing experince and it made me happy
I lost my friends when I introduced myself to him and had to go find them afterwards, so I didn't get a chance to talk to him more. I'm also really shy and not very good at approaching people, so ya..... ^o^;;;
Now that I've gotten that out of my system, here are some bits of the show that I actually was able to enjoy somewhat; I was happy that they performed "GAME" and did the iconic dance with the glow rods lighting up in unison. I feel this is what Perfume is becoming known for; incorporating technology and lights with music and creating an amazing show with these elements. Seeing the lights go up with the beat was very epic. I also loved being able to see their costumes up close. The fabrics were gorgeous and glossy and luxurious. I got excited every time they had an outfit change, and I liked how they had different dresses under their black "Laser Beam" outfits. I also really loved the turquoise costumes they wore at the end. The fabric and cut of the dresses were so flowy and ethereal, they looked liked princesses, and radiated a magical glow. My last view of them was walking off the stage in the those outfits and it will always stay in my memory.
Again, I really regret not being in the moment and appreciating what I had at that moment. The show was pretty similar to my experience seeing Kyary Pamyu Pamyu, but it was understandable that we had a bad view that time because we didn't wait in line and were far in the back. With Perfume we made the effort and were so close to them, so I was even more disappointed and I my expectations were just crushed, which is why I felt more devastated. Nonetheless, I feel like this concert was a huge learning lesson in terms of what sort of attitude to have in certain situations. If I ever have the opportunity of seeing them again, I'm going to dance sing and have fun, and just let loose! and also cosplay
On another positive note, the day after the concert my aunt took us out to the Metropolitan Museum of Art, were we looked some really cool vintage Japanese kimono's and prints:
We then walked around Greenwich Village, where there were a lot of vinyl record shops that I wanted to check out. I was flipping through a bunch of random records and lo and behold:
What are the odds
I bought it then and there no questions asked. Since we skipped on buying merch at the venue since we were so sick of the crowds, it was a nice little thing to happen after all the crappyness before. I believe this is out of print and hard to find so I felt pretty lucky!
Our final day was a drag because it was raining the entire day!
I wasn't wearing a waterproof jacket so the water was leaking through! I couldn't really enjoy the day, but we checked out some shops in Soho again, and hung out in China Town. Then we were running behind schedule and had to rush to catch a bus that took us to JFK airport MORE STRESS!Well, rushing there turned out the be a waste of time because the plane was delayed, then it was CANCELED! I had work the next morning so that meant I was going to be late for my shift
The airline re-booked our flight for the next morning (6am ) and shuttled us to a nearby hotel. The cab driver took our hotel voucher with him when he dropped us off, so we had to wait for the hotel to track him down and have him bring it back before we could check in! ARGH! By the time we were settled into the hotel it was already 1am, leaving us with barely any time to sleep before going back to the airport. See what I was saying how this trip was sour from start to finish? Had to go straight to work as soon as I got off the plane *SOB*
Well... to end this on a positive note...I am still determined to see Perfume again and make it the best experience of my life! Thank you A-Chan, Nocchi, and Kashiyuka for all of your hard work and dedication, and putting on an amazing show
I wish I could experience it all over again! New York is still an amazing city in my eyes and I hope to come back soon