Anne K. in L.A.: October 2009

Disclaimer: This is a post with photo overload. It may take a moment to load all of the photos. Most of the photos were taken with my point-and-shoot Casio Exilim. I left the Nikon SLR at home.

When I read about The Hello Kitty: Three Apples Exhibit on the Hello Kitty Junkie blog , I was ecstatic. And when I found out that it was in my neck of the woods, I was thrilled.

I know I am a gal in my 30s, but I will always have a special place in my heart for Hello Kitty. I was born in Japan and frequently visited the Philippines while growing up. As a result, I had quite a bit of Hello Kitty toys and trinkets. Hello Kitty stationery contributed to my love of paper.

My partner-in-crime Pamela joined me for the opening day of the exhibit. My BFF Cicely was there in spirit via Facebook. {She's a bigger fanatic than me}. The exhibit was divided up into sections.

photo by Pamela Masters

The first part was a Hello Kitty retrospective. There were Hello Kitty merchandise from the last 35 years on display.

They designed a Hello Kitty apartment. I loved it, but I don't think I'd ever go that far.

As I was looking at the throwback items, I was giddy recollecting which pieces I once owned and which ones that I still have.

There was a gift shop that had a line out the door just to view the merchandise. We bypassed that, but I now regret it. There was also a cafe serving Hello Kitty high tea, which also had a very long wait. From other blogs, I've seen cute little Hello Kitty tea sandwiches and cakes.

My favorite part of the exhibit was the art show. Japan L.A. did a spectacular job curating the show. The variety and quality of the pieces on display was phenomenal.

Click here for an online gallery of the Hello Kitty Artwork

Our day was not complete without a photo op with the Birthday Girl.

photo by Pamela Masters

After traipsing around the Three Apples Exhibit, it seemed appropriate to head to Little Tokyo for a late lunch. It must have been my lucky day. I finally got to eat at Daikokuya. It sounds crazy, but I have been trying to eat at this place since I moved to L.A. in 2003. There is always a line. On this day, there wasn't.