_valerian

Yesterday I went to Kawasaki with Beth to swing by Senshu University, and then on over to the Nihon Minka-en; Japan Open-Air Folk House Museum that is a next to the campus. The last time I was there was NINE years ago (!) on a group tour with other Senshu Univ. exchange students, and all I can remember is that it rained the whole time and the Irish lady students employed Physical Humor to their jokes about the outside old-stlye hole in the ground toilets (straddling the aforementioned holes) and also not being all that interested in the old houses, like everyone else in the group.
It was high time that I headed back and yesterday was that day.

After an ice cream sandwich break in the shade of the Senshu #2 building, Beth and I totally jumped a fence and scaled down a (4 foot tall) wall like ninjas. The kind that are all like “here don’t drop my camera” as they hand it to the first one over the fence (which was Beth). We walked past the parking lot in the map you will see in the google map picture link coming up, paying out entrance fee in the gret roofed building you can see here. This was the rear entrance, and my Suggested Point of Park Entry. It starts all low key, with older buildings and you walk downhill the entire time instead of UP and then back down. This way the final house at the front gate from the 1800s sums up all the others, serving as a reference to understanding to what the homes you saw came from, as opposed to the other way around.

Signs are posted saying that photography is allowed but not with a tripod or for commercial purposes. More information on the museum can be found on the Offical Page, or on More Informative Sites.

Anyways, the Nihon Minka-en is really worth a visit if you are in Tokyo. You can straight up chill at the proclaimed rest-spots on a wooden bench with a bottled green tea from the vending machines painted solid dark brown. Go get a good understanding of Japanese aestheticism just by looking up at the roof beams in the homes. Listen to, and agree, with young Japanese women saying “I really should be here in a Kimono” as they walk around with their boyfriends.

has begun from today (!) I don’t have to be back to school (offically) until late August.
I’ll be back in the office on Monday, but that is beside the point.

Plans include:

1. Exhibition Prep. This includes Press-Release writing (in Japanese) and Printing the 34 photos for the show on Fuji Rembrandt V G2 14×17 paper.

2. Photography Gallery visiting (to be a later post).

3. Nagoya?

4. Other things.

There were some pictures on a color roll I wanted to hurry up and see the other day, and on my way to the one hour photo shop I wasted off the last 5 frames. The Bon Odori dance photos I was looking forward to were crap, but this one above (second to the last of the wasted 5) is something I like.