06/23/2006: Final Presentations Mean it's Time to Say Goodbye...

     It is with great sadness that I find it's time to say goodbye to my summer program at Temple University! After hearing everyone's final presentations I was very happy to see that we really all did have fascinating projects! I took the time to reflect upon all the perspectives and theories everyone had presented throughout the trip, and realized just how much each person on the trip had shaped my journey through Tokyo. If I had gone by myself I never would have had as amazing a journey as I did with the Visual Anthropology summer group of 2006.
     Kristina gave a wonderful presentation on Anime complete with some manga she had drawn about her experiences in Tokyo. As a professional artist back home it was easy to see that her talents and hobbie added to the wonderful, personal expression within this presentation. My personal favorite comic strip involved her going into a store and being apologized to by an embarrassed store clerk just because they didn't have the CD she was looking for. She animated his expression of worry, and the differences in consumer culture between Japan and the United States perfectly!
     I then gave my video slide show presentation, which went over well, and I am looking forward to making it bigger to present at FPC when I return home. Normally I am not big for photo slide shows, but I did not have the facilities available to me at the time to edit all of my video footage. I really hope to have the time to edit this footage someday. The main goal of my presentation was to provide Americans back home with the context to understand cultural differences and similarities (and overlying context) of the Japanese people, with special focus between Tradition and Modernity. Visual anthropology provided the perfect lens to study and present my theories, and would later go on to form the majority of work in my senior thesis.
     Carol gave an excellent performance with her presentation on the various genres of Japanese television drama series, complete with videos to really immerse you in the medium. Max gave a presentation opening everyone's eyes to the art of graffiti cross-culturally from America to Tokyo. It was interesting to see graffiti through Japanese locations because the culture is very concerned with the appearance and cleanliness of its cities, yet some forms of graffiti are allowed to linger for artistic expression. It adds another dynamic to the medium that is fascinating.
     John gave us a view of why successful advertising is so difficult to achieve in Tokyo and other cities of Japan. It is hard to be noticed in the "urban jungle!" Matthew gave us a great perspective on Japanese Manga (comics) and the many genres and types of readers throughout Japan. He provided an excellent perspective on manga as an intellectual hobby.  Laura wrote her own version of a Japanese television drama script, and we all got to play parts in it that left us wanting more of the story by the end of the scene we go to re-enact!

     All in all, I have really loved this trip. I am sad to leave, and I will certainly never forget my experiences in Japan with this special group of people.

Signing out ,
Lady Lara Jones

Below: Photos of the Temple University Japan Campus building in Minami Azabu, Tokyo, Japan. 

6/22/2006: Window Kitty

     Oh, Kitty in the window, how cute you are among all that ugly machinery. Every morning I pass you when I'm about to enter the school, and every morning you look up at me with that, "I'm cute but too lazy to look at you for very long." Then you quickly return to your deep slumber and roll back fully onto your side. You remind me of a cat back home, one who sits in baskets and lounges around like Garfield himself. Interestingly enough, your owners have made this special blanket bed right in the front of their shop so that people can peek at you during the day.

     When it's sunny I know you must love curling up there in the radiant glow while people adore you from in front of the lined, smoggy glass. And yet around all the rust, dirt, and oil, there you are clean as a whistle on that less-than clean blanket of yours.

Funny, I am drawn to look at you as I miss my own kitty back home,
Signing out in poetic thought, Lady Laura Jones

6/21/2006: The Tsukiji Fishmarket

     Today we crawled out of the Karaoke place at five A.M. to walk down to the ocean and see the Tsukiji Fish Market, a one-of a kind experience that every traveler should see before the fish market is (unfortunately) set to be dismantled and computerized by 2008. Our professor encouraged us to go because of this fact, and I was very glad to have had the experience. Upon entering the fish market we saw huge varieties of fish that I've never seen in all my life (even on the internet). There were traditional wooden-plank carts and more updated, modern, four-wheeler-style motor-carts that had the traditional wooden planks put up onto the back wheels for carrying many boxes of fish at a time. The obvious advantage of these newer carts is that they require less of a physical workout, but in true cultural form of the Japanese tradition, there were still many young men who pulled the carts by the sweat of their brow every day.
     People rushed around like they were in some kind of complicated obstacle race around a sea of boxes, sinks, and equipment. There was some caution on our parts because we had to observe while avoiding getting in the way of everyday business. When the live auction started, people bought the choicest fish in the world for hundreds and thousands of yen. Apparently some of the biggest fish were worth more than a new car! I have to say that it was quite the adventure.

     Later that morning we went into a famed nearby sushi restaurant and I ordered the best Unagi (eel) maki roll that I had ever tasted. I also had what was called a crunchy lobster maki roll that tasted quite good but I am not sure what the other tasty ingredients in it were aside from the lobster meat. All I know is that it tasted good, and I'm okay with that!

Signing out because I definitely need some sleep!
Lady Laura Jones

Trying to be sneaky on the edge of the fishmarket so they don't make us go to the visitor's frozen fish auction rather than the live fish one...

Looking into the warehouse.

For some reason this Aladdin quote popped into my  head..."Fresh Fish! We catch 'em you buy 'em!" Mmmm media saturation. hehe. 
















The largest box of ice I have ever seen...

Sacred egg statue in the small, Shinto Shrine next to the Tsukiji Fish Market where many fisherman go to pray each morning before starting their work day. The small shrine is located down near the bicycle parking lot filled to the max every day with hundreds of bikes.

This is the little kitty I met that looked out at me with curious eyes.
He looked like he enjoyed sleeping under the giant dragon's head behind the purification fountain, as though he was a guardian spirit of this cute little temple.

One big fresh bowl of salmon sashimi. Mmmmm tasty!

Sushi that tasted as good as it looked!

My delicious crunchy lobster maki roll. Artfully arranged as sushi chef's will often display their talents of arrangement after their artful preparation of the ultra-fresh sushi.

6/20/2006: Back to Nakano, and a Karaoke All Nighter in Ginza!

     Today we decided that it would probably be the last full day we had to explore Nakano, where we had found the Nakano Broadway I previously mentioned a few weeks ago. If you haven't read my last post, Nakano is known for having a lot of shopping to suit many kinds of shoppers. There are clothing stores, grocery stores, restaurants and a wide variety of stores appealing to those who love anime, manga, video games, or collectibles in general. Any self-proclaimed J Fan or Otaku would go absolutely nuts here.
     I've never seen so many anime, manga and video game stores in one place in my entire life. I didn't even think malls like this existed! I spent three hours today going through all four floors looking for things that I had to get before leaving Japan. After the hours of searching I decided to purchase a figurine of Ryu Hiyabusa from Ninja Gaiden that was marked down from 7,000 yen to 2,000 yen (approx $20 USD). I was very impressed with the quality of the likeness!

     After that I found some beautiful printed writing boards (for writing on the train, usually designed with a color side and a black and white side) inspired by an anime/manga called "Air." I also found a movie collectors book that was released prior to the "Chobits" series (Only JPY 150 or approx. $1.50 USD). Since I was pretty obsessed with leg warmers at the time and wore them to dance class almost every day, I bought three pairs of really nice ones for only 1,000 JPY (10 USD).  I was excited because at most of the shops in Harajuku the same brands of leg warmers cost ten dollars each. It's nice because I feel as though I am finally getting the system of shopping for discounts in Japan down to a science.

     After that we met at the Wendy's in Azabu Juban around 10 PM (long after dark, which came at a seemingly-early-for-summer 7 PM). From the train station there, our whole class went out for Karaoke in Ginza at a pretty awesome place that was themed (though unfortunately the admission was kind of pricey for karaoke) We decided to order all you can drink for around 3,000 JPY a person which isn't so bad for a karaoke bar. After ingesting a few drinks everyone was a little braver and tried singing karaoke (some people for the first time!). I have to admit to you all now that I am not really vocally talented. At all... Just letting you all know! lol.
     Some of the songs sung that evening were from the Beatles, No Doubt, Aladdin, Led Zepplin, Britney Spears, Madonna, and Anime Theme Songs (which Matthew rocked out, by the way, and it sounded like he was fluent in Japanese when he was singing them). We had an absolute blast, and stayed up all night so that we could go to the Tsukiji fishmarket down the street at 5 AM to watch the fish auction and get the freshest sushi in the world, but more on that later...

Signing out to "Just a Girl"
Lady Lara Jones















Carol and John sing a duet that sounds really good!

















Matt belts out the Dragon Ball Z theme like a pro and we swear he's suddenly fluent in Japanese...
















Kristina sings another diva tune. And Laura browses some karaoke books.

06/16/06-06/18/06: Studying and Writing

     Sorry there are no interesting posts for a few days, but I'm working my butt off on projects and don't want to preview the drafts here on the site.

Gomen! (Sorry!)

Signing off deep in thought,
 Lady Lara Jones

6//15/2006: Kamakura

     Today we went to Kamakura and toured several of the Shinto Shrines and Buddhist Temples there. This was definitely among the most interesting trips while in Japan. I got to see the local giant Buddha known as the Daibutsu, and enjoy many walking paths that were lined with flowers and bamboo forests and smelled absolutely amazing! Kamakura is a very beautiful place, and it was nice to get into to the countryside of Japan for a little while. Tokyo doesn't have a whole lot of parks that are very big so it was really nice to see another kind of Japanese landscape.
     The hiking trail we took into part of the bamboo forest was probably my favorite part of the day because it was a low key, easy climb and had absolutely stunning views of the town and hills below and around us.  I also got to see my first Japanese beach! I stood in up to my knees for a while and marvelled as to how warm it is compared to back home. It's more like swimming in the ocean in Georgia than back home in New Hampshire or Maine where the ocean is freezing year-round!

Signing out in pictures,
 Lady Laura Jones
















The steps leading up to one of the first shrines we saw after departing the train station at Kamakura.




















Next to one of the whimsical, mossy trees that were growing beside a stream leading to a temple we visited that had a flower festival celebration going on. It was very crowded because of the celebration!




















The pretty blue flowers inside the temple complex.
















Even buddha was adorned with a pot full of the pretty flowers! I think my favorite part about this Buddha statue, though, is his earrings. I was told that they change with the seasons and keep this Buddha more "at-one" with his surroundings.
















Inside one of the temple buildings. Powell said that if one of us could get through there without anyone seeing us and without touching the tatami ninja-style he would give us a gift.
Of course none of us actually attempted it. We're not ninjas! lol.
















Heading up to one of the hiking trails in the hills on the way to the Daibutsu.

06/14/2006: The trip is winding down...

     I'm sad to say it but my time in Japan is winding down. I went to class today and realized that it's time to gather my notes and fieldwork to produce my final paper that will read alongside a photo-essay. I'm very prepared so I have no worries, but I'm sad to realize that this means the end of my class and that I will soon be leaving Japan! I definitely will have to return to this country in graduate college to do more research here after I learn more Japanese and Kanji. It is my goal to become fluent in Japanese one day, and when I return I hope to do some really in depth fieldwork. Tomorrow we are going to go to Kamakura to see bamboo forests, coastal beaches, Buddhist Temples, Shinto Shrines and the Daibutsu (large, outdoor Buddha in Kamakura). I've still got a week and a half left, and I need to make sure I appreciate every second!

Getting ready to read and write my butt off,

 Lady Lara Jones

These pictures are from my walk to school this morning so you can see the sights I see when I journey to school. It's about a 40 minute walk one-way.




















The  elevator I ride down every day that seems as though it's sort-of old, yet provides a surprisingly  smooth ride.
















The kitty I see outside our hotel every morning.
I call her Nekko Chan for lack of knowing her name, which in Japanese is an affectionate term for a kitty!




















Leaving the hotel in Akasaka and walking towards Roppongi.





















The pedestrian bridge that I climb carefully because there is a step is coming loose. A kind of dis-repair that is very rare in Tokyo and probably won't be around for very long until someone fixes it.
















Looking out under the highway overpass.
















A bar called Maijiri that has this figure of a horse's butt hanging out of the wall.
We have no idea why this is appealing...or what it means.




















This is right past where the school is, and I found it made an excellent photo opportunity because of the way it seems to be winding up a hill. I'm told it comprises an upper class part of Azabu Juban.

06/13/2006: Finding Takuya Angel

     Today we found the Takuya Angel (named after the cutting-edge designer) store from Fruits Magazine. I could not believe we actually found it, but there it was in Harajuku. I can admit that I had really wanted to see Takuya Angel due to my avid love of Japanese fashion movements. I found some Japanese-style leg gators (Very neat. Not many are brave enough to wear them in Japan due to their bright colors and the fact that they make you stand out!) with blue cranes and dark green flaps and ties on them. They were 50% off meaning only 3,000 JPY and that I had to get them.
     Kristina went all out and bought a whole outfit for about $199 USD, and it made me sad that I had already exhausted most of my fun-stuff spending money. To be fair, she got a pretty good deal with sales as well, but I was running out of extra spending cash and had to conserve for the last week. It was like being in a cutting edge store where someone chopped up all the kimono and traditional fashions to re-shape them into something new and yet using traditional style markers at the same time! (This, I came to find out, is exactly what Takuya is known for.) I wanted to wear these every day but decided I stood out enough already on a daily basis.

     On a side note, I finally splurged and picked out a lolita kimono outfit for myself. It is beautifully embroidered with white roses on black, satin fabric and is worn with black, knee high-tights and silvery heels. I've decided that I need to find every excuse I can get to wear it. Considering this stuff imported would be hundreds of dollars in the United States due to "Otaku Market Markup," I am really happy I had to opportunity to buy this beautiful outfit.

Signing out in J Fashion joy,
Lady Lara Jones

06/11/2006: Tokyo Disney Sea and a Fun Rainy Day

     Today I was thankful for pouring rain, and for the first time in my life I was happy to see it at an amusement park. We got to Tokyo Disney Sea an hour earlier this time in hopes of getting at least 2 really good rides in before the large crowds developed, but then it started raining and continued to pour all morning. Not only did it steer the crowds away, but it kept the lines down to a super-low 20 minute wait time. We didn't even need speed passes for most of the rides!

     My friend Miku later told me that because so many Japanese have season's passes, they see no point in going when it's pouring rain outside. We were so happy that we could hardly contain ourselves! It was a stark contrast from our experience at Disneyland and the crowding we had seen yesterday. Kristina and I ran from ride to ride, enjoying the coastal and underwater themes the park had to offer. The first area we went to made me really happy, because when I was a child The Little Mermaid was my favorite Disney movie. Mermaid Lagoon was themed inside a giant building made to look like King Triton's Castle, and was full of rides and beautiful scenery that made you feel truly immersed in the movie. The live show inside was one of the best I've seen at any Disney because the acrobats were incredible. (It also happened to be in English and so I could understand it better, but that's not the reason I enjoyed it.) Ariel flew around the room and looked like she was swimming since she was suspended from advanced cable rigging. It was really quite neat.

     The whole park was a ton of fun, and I thoroughly enjoyed "20,000 Leagues Under the Sea," "Stormrider," and of course, "Indiana Jones and the Search for the Crystal Skull." (This was written back before the movie made me not happy about the whole Crystal Skull thing. I just couldn't get behind the new movie.) As an anthropologist, how could I not love Indiana Jones for all his wonderfully exaggerated (albeit inaccurate) archaeology and his extraordinary adventures. The ride was so fun that I had to buy the photo afterward of us screaming when the giant boulder was coming at us. My conclusion, Tokyo DisneySea is well worth the Fifty bucks and you'll have a blast.

Signing out in Joy,
 Lady Laura Jones
















In the Arabian Coast-themed area braving the rain.
















The gigantic temple next to Indiana Jones and the Search for the Crystal Skull in the Lost River Delta themed area.
















King Triton in the beautiful Mermaid Lagoon.
















The submarine Nemos and the Transit Steamer in the Mysterious Island.

















The archaeological-dig-themed site rollercoaster in the Lost River Delta.
















A particularly good view of the New York part of the harbor.
The new Tower of Terror (like the one back in the US) is set to open in September.
















A view of the Mediterranean Harbor Area.






















Is it just me, or did Universal Studios have something like this back home?
Hm....
Well I guess it's not the same (or is it?) because this one explodes with water every two minutes and looks like a big watery globe.

06/10/2006: Tokyo Disneyland for my Birthday

     Today we woke up at 6AM to make sure we'd be early in line to get in at the opening of Tokyo Disneyland. At 7 we nudged ourselves on to the Metro and rode to Tokyo Station where we swapped over to the JR line and rode to Maihama Station (Disney's personal station with special train music and everything). We couldn't believe how many people on that train with us had the same early-bird idea we did, mostly because back in the US people at Disney never seemed to be as eager to get up early just to get to the park on time. The train was already packed with families, couples, and others donning shorts, shirts, bags, and keychains that spelled out Disney or had Disney characters designed on them. We would soon learn that Disney is very popular in Japan (perhaps in some ways more popular than in parts of the United States.) Disneyland is a fun vacation spot no matter how you look at it, really.

     An Australian we met at a cafe that day told us that the Japanese people "love to qeue" meaning they love to wait in line and they actually enjoy the anticipation of it rather than getting irritable and bored like the Americans in Disney back home. As the day went on we noticed people were talking in line and enjoying themselves as though the wait didn't even matter. This was incredible to me because the hot sun, massive crowds, lack of personal space, and of course the hour long waits for all the rides was actually wearing on me pretty quickly. I'm a pretty patient person, but this was a lot more crowded then I was used to in the Disney in the States. The only speedpass we managed to score was for space mountain at 7:45 PM (we got some of the last speed passes at 10AM).

     The first ride we did manage to get on was Pirates of the Caribbean, which was a carbon-copy of the ride in America minus the language was Japanese. The two most iconic parts of the ride were left in English - "Yo ho, Yo ho a Pirate's life for me!" and "Dead men tell no tales!" Everybody at this part of the ride giggled (just like people do back home) right before plummeting down the slope and splashing into the ride.
     Some rides (most actually) had no English except for the "keep your hands in the ride" warning. Disneyland was cool but it was pretty much the same as it is in the States. I will say that the "Tiki Tiki Room" was rather entertaining because we got to hear the little birdies sing "Fever" and "Feeing Hot, Hot, Hot" in Japanese. I am a little embarrassed to say we got stared at for laughing at probably inappropriate points during the day.

     The highlights of my day made me pretty happy I had bought my ticket even though the park was so crowded. First, I got to have a delicious rotisserie chicken, roasted vegetable, and Cesar salad dinner at the Queen of Hearts Buffet - appropriately named and themed after Alice in Wonderland with tables looking like giant playing cards and the lamps above them looking like enormous pink flowers. I even got a Happy Unbirthday cake that was vanilla with tasty frosting, fruit, and marshmallows on it. I like Japanese cakes a lot because the frosting isn't as overly-sweet as it is back home. Here I feel like there is more of a balance between sugar and taste.

     The second major highlight of my day was riding Space Mountain, because it has always been my favorite Disney ride. The whole coaster whips around turns and all the rigging around us was lit up with strobe lights which made everything look fantastic during the ride. Kristina and I took turns laughing and screaming because it was so much fun. I could ride that coaster over and over if I had the chance.

     The only negative experience of our day was trying to shop at a gift shop before we left. It was like trying to walk the wrong direction into a crowd of people fleeing a burning building. By the time we got to the stores around 8 PM, almost all the shelves were half emptied, and people looked really tired from a long day. It was all just a little too intense for me. A woman in front of me was not so polite, however, and had the nerve to curse at a poor older store clerk for being too slow. Had I known more Japanese I probably would have defended him, but it had been a really long day. After that we crawled back to the train and made our way home half-asleep in our seats. My feet were much more sore than they've been in a long, long time. It was such a relief to get a full night's sleep after all that!

Signing out,
 Lady Lara Jones




















Yarghhh, I would have gotten this hat if it wasn't so expensive.















The gateway to the Tokyo Disney Resort and to Tokyo Disneyland further down the way.
















This crowd was waiting for one of the seven parades held throughout the day. They have more parades in this Disney than any other in the world. The amount was double what they have in a day at the Orlando Disneyland.















A very, merry Unbirthday to me!

















Wonderland!
















Gadget's Go Coaster. I miss the Rescue Rangers!
















After all that searching during the "Find Stitch" festival, we finally found him.
He was hiding with the seven dwarves and snow white.
I've got you now you little blue demon!

06/09/2006: My Birthday!

     Today I slept in for my birthday. I got up and took a long, relaxing walk to the ATM, took the time to enjoy the cool rain showers, and watched people rushing off to their jobs as their lunch breaks came to their always-abrupt end. I decided it was time to treat myself to some good food since my student loan money had finally dispersed, so I went to Anne Marie's Restaurant across the street and ordered a huge teriyaki burger with a side of french fries. Here they give you entire ketchup and mustard bottles to use as much as you want! (a rarity in japan, where ketchup seems pretty scarce unless you buy your own at a supermarket). For eleven dollars I stuffed myself to the gills and for four more dollars I enjoyed a huge glass of ice cola. After lunch I returned to my room to do some laundry and clean my apartment room. I vacuumed the room with the small vacuum provided in the corner, and then organized and tightly packed away most of my clothing because I realized I only had two weeks left in my trip. I also realized I would have to mail some of my souvenirs home because I was running out of room in my suitcases!

     For dinner Kristina and I decided to head out to Harajuku and go to a fancy Italian/Spanish cuisine restaurant on the third floor of a building across from the JR Station. It was an excellent meal, in part due to our English-speaking waitress from Nova Scotia (a short jump from Maine and very near to where I'm from). In a way we were relieved to have a little break from all the translating we've been doing (which at times can be very tiring and frustrating when you can't seem to read all the kanji about. This was especially true for us because we were beginners at the time). I ended up ordering tapas (crispy bread kind with fresh tomato, basil and herb olive oil), a large plate of linguini covered in like 20 clams and white sauce, and a nice red wine they had on special that night. It was extremely good, and I complemented the chefs on their authentic Italian food. It wasn't altered for local tastes at all, which can be good but sometimes you long for the authentic varieties of your favorite foods.

     After that we went back to the hotel to sleep because we were going to get up the next day to go to Tokyo Disneyland at 6AM

Signing out, now 20 years old,
Lady Lara Jones

6/08/2006: The Ghibli Museum in Mitaka!

A Movie Poster for one of Miyazaki's films, Howl's Moving Castle.

     Today we got to go to the Ghibli Museum in Mitaka. It's slightly outside of Tokyo and well worth the trek outside the city, especially if you're at all a fan of Miyazaki films. It is a whimsical, wonderful museum that with gardens and vines growing up the sides of the building and fully immerses the attendees in the many worlds that Miyasaki created for all of his films over the years.

     The building itself is an eclectic combination of rounded green and yellow mounds with iron bird cages that can be climbed via vine-covered staircases. Beautiful wooden doors with stained glass designs from anime that Miyazaki has created mark all of the entrances into the museum. There was no photography allowed inside the museum so I will try my best to describe what I saw.

     First, to the right after you enter, you can experience a history of animation viewing technologies (such as nickelodeons and cyclorama) that have been re-created using characters from anime like My Neighbor Totoro and Kiki's Delivery Service. My favorite of them all was an exhibit that showed May jumping rope, Totoro jumping with an umbrella, and the little forest spirits crawling all around them. It was cute and very neat because they slowed it down to a stop periodically so that you could see how the machine worked.

     Next we got to go into a theater and view a short film by Miyazaki that was one of four shorts made only for the museum. The one we saw was called Hoshi o Katta Hi (星をかった日 "The Day I Harvested a Planet) The film is based on a story by Naohisa Inoue and it was almost like "Jack and the Beanstalk" in a way because it was about a boy on a farm who trades a bunch of melons for a diamond that grows into a planet that eventually turns into a potted planet (or mini-galaxy, depending on how you look at it).
 Wikipedia synopsis is as follows: "The film tells how a boy moves from the city to the country. He works on a farm and one day when going to sell vegetables on a market, his cart breaks down. A stranger offers him a strange seed in exchange for the vegetables. The boy accepts and finds that the seed grows into a miniature planet. It continues growing as he tends to it, forming an atmosphere, weather systems and life. After moving back to the city again, he meets the stranger who sold the seed to him, and they release the planet into a galaxy of similar planets, where it will grow for years until becoming a real planet."


 It was a very cute film and, as always, the Miyazaki studio animation was stunning. I believe the general theme, or moral, of the story was to accept that there are times when we must let things go for them to be on their own.

     Upstairs you could view a very special visiting exhibit dedicated to the animation company that produces Wallace and Gromit. The clay examples of all the characters from The Curse of the Were Rabbit were very cool. The film is a cute little story about a man and his dog who have to catch the gigantic rabbit tearing up vegetable gardens in a small village in England.

     Miyazaki's home studio was recreated in one part of the museum, and you could walk through and view animation cells and concept drawings from various anime and manga that Ghibli has produced. The office spaces were of a Victorian-England style, and I loved how detailed they were right down to some Dum Dum brand lollipops in a jar and the half-burnt cigarette butts in an ashtray on a desk.

     I took the time to explore thoroughly. Since my student loans had note yet cleared and I hadn't been dispersed extra spending money, Kristina bought me a stuffed Neko Basu (Cat-bus) from My Neighbor Totoro for my birthday. Thanks Kristina! It's so kawaii! (cute!)

Signing out,
 Lady Lara Jones















Totoro guards the main entrance to the museum. He was so big and lifelike!

Outside the Ghibli Museum. The designs were so intricate!





















A picture of me outside one of the doors with a stained glass characature of the forest/earth spririt from Princess Mononoke (Mononoke Hime).




















Me with one of the robots from Nausicaa of the Valley of the Wind. Nausicaa is my favorite anime film of all time for it's wonderfully written story, fantastic animation, and message concerning our environment and fighting to preserve our planet's fragile ecosystem.
















The Ghibli Museum courtyard. I was very surprised how European and Victorian England-inspired a lot of the architecture was in this museum. Apparently, Miyazaki's influences include including Ursula K. Le Guin, Lewis Carroll, and Diana Wynne Jones. Miyazaki confided to Le Guin that Earthsea was a particularly major influence in his works and that he kept copies of her books at his bedside.

Found this video on youtube and had to post it because pictures weren't allowed inside the museum. It's a Japanese documentary on the Ghibli Museum with English subtitles.