Source: MNDaily.com

On a gray and rainy spring day in St. Paul, the streets were barren of most signs of life as usual. A slow trickle of cars rolled down the quiet streets when suddenly a giant, 6-foot-4-inch robot marched out of Subway with a girl in a bright red kimono following closely behind. They were headed to the Anime Detour, at the Crowne Plaza-Riverfront in downtown St. Paul , where whatever kind of dreariness there may be outside IRL (in real life) completely disappears just inside the lobby.

The whole place was packed with costumed convention goers abuzz with activity. The weekend-long convention, more commonly called a “con,” featured guest panels , costume contests (cosplay ), an “artist alley “ where people can show off their work, lots and lots of anime merchandise , fan fiction contests and all of the other fantastical things to be expected when you put this many creative geeks in a room together.

“You’ll feel out of place here if you are not in costume,” explained a kindly bespectacled catwoman.

The registration for Anime Detour this year was capped at 3,500, up 500 from last year according to officials, but even with this increase, the convention sold out almost a month in advance. The Anime Detour grew out of its previous home in the Thunderbird Convention Centre at the Ramada Inn near the airport , a decision many convention-goers said was for the better. There is no doubt that the Anime Detour is growing rapidly, making some speculate about what the future of the con holds.

“Five-thousand is the best number for a convention,” said Alli “Vice Mage” Cassel, a vendor from the Twin Cities. “Over 5,000 and the thing just turns into a cluster----.”