When I finally got to the museum, it was around 10:30am and already there was a queue at the ticket counter!! The admission was 1,400yen. No tertiary student discount.. :( When I got into the exhibition, it was packed!! :o Lots of people, old people mostly were already there viewing the exhibits...
Lots of the folks rented a audio tape player kinda thing with earphones at 500yen, which will explain specific important or interesting exhibits in details.. Too bad it was only in Japanese.. but I think this kind of audio explanation device is a norm at most special exhibitions in Japan.. this will definitely help visitors understand more in depth of the exhibitions instead of just browsing through (走马看花). There was a strict No Phone, No Food & Drinks and No Photography Allowed regulations in this exhibition..
First was the Maya civilization.. Things that I was most impressed were the Mayan script, their art pieces on human figures, especially being craved onto jades or stones and the wide usage of jade in almost everything they do. For the Aztec, I was most amazed by their calendar. Instead of using numbers, the Aztec used signs (jaguar, serpent, rabbit, deer, etc) to denote days.. Their calendar has only 260days. The Inca was the most interesting civilization, at least to me.. I was most fascinated by their majestic lost city, Machu Picchu. :o :o There was a large, detailed scale model of Machu Picchu, the famous "Lost City of the Incas" that was rediscovered in 1911 by archaeologist Hiram Bingham at the exhibition.. Other than that, I was mesmerized by the fact that the Inca were very rich with gold that they had their armor and costumes made of gold.. but unfortunately during the Spanish Conquest, almost all these gold were seized, melt and taken back to Spain.. :(
However, one common ritual among these 3 civilizations which I have problem accepting, but not understanding, is the practice of human sacrifices.. In the exhibition, there are plenty of artifacts that deals directly or indirectly with human sacrifices.. Lots of skulls on display, with many of them being deformed on purpose or being made holes at the sides to 'hang' them up nicely.. Lots of sacrificial knifes, containers (for hearts especially), pedestals, and paintings too.. Not even kids are being spared from this ritual... :o :o :o
I spent less than 90 minutes at this special exhibition.. Lots of reason for this.. Firstly, the crowd is too big. I cant even look at an exhibit without having to apologize or cut queue.. The crowd was almost 99% Japanese, so the basic courtesy was there, however, some of the old gentlemen were just too oblivious to the crowd around them.. They would just bump into you or stop suddenly in front of you or just start gesturing (pull their pants, stick their arms out, etc)... Luckily this is Japan, so the worst here is still not the worst that I've experienced.. :p Another thing is that most of the folks who were there were kinda on the short side, so I had no problem looking over their heads or their shoulders.. :p ;) :p Just one regret, my Japanese still sucks... All the exhibits were labeled and explained in Japanese, so my understanding of what were written was only about 30-40%.. :(
After the special exhibition, I went to the other usual exhibitions in the Museum.. The special exhibition was at the Global Gallery Building.. There are a total of 6 floors filled with exhibits in that building.. I started from 2F.. One thing I must mentioned is that cameras are allowed and photos can be taken of any exhibits!!
2F was about Exploration Space and Progress in Science and Technology (of Japan). Saw plenty of impressive 'old' made-in-Japan gadgets.. There was even a Zero bomber! That famous red dot plane seen in most World War II movies.. :p First Japan-made automobile, first Japanese vacuum tube computer, first Japanese calculator and many more Japanese firsts..
My feelings while walking around the 3F was mixed. I was amazed by the variety of specimens available in the Museum, but at the same time I just can't help feeling sad.. Why? Cos there was one huge area filled with stuffed animal specimens!!
I did not count how many animals are there in total, but I think it will not be a small number.. If I include the numbers of bird specimens, I think there could easily be more than 100 different types of animals.. The one thing that made me feel that way are the eyes of those specimens.. They really look real to me.. Some of them really looked like they might just be startled and run off any moment..
Among the 3 basement floors, I liked B2F the most, although there are dinosaur bones/skeletons in B1F. There are 8 different themes within B2F:
1. Stroll through 4.6 billion years of History;
2. Geological Samples from Planet Earth;
3. Biotic Response to Global Environment Change;
4. Explosive Evolution of life in the Sea;
5. Plants and Animals invade the Land;
6. The Age of Mammals;
7. Secondary adaptation of Tetrapods to life in water;
8. Flying Tetrapods.
When I was at the Dinosaurs section, a group of pre-schoolers came in with their teachers.. they were so adorable, especially when all of them were wearing a red cap with a little yellow ball on top of it.. so kawaii.. All the viciousness of T-Rex, Deinonychus or Saber-toothed Tiger just melt away.. :)
After finished seeing all exhibits within the Global Gallery Building, I moved on to the Japan Gallery Building.. over here, there are 3 floors to visit.. As the building's name has indicated, all the exhibitions here are regarding the nature and history of the Japanese Islands, the evolution of its endemic organisms, the process by which the modern Japanese population was formed, and the history of Japanese people's contact with nature..
Before visiting any of the floors, I stumbled upon an omni-theater like cinema, called the Theater 360. Instead of sitting down, viewers were lead into a ball-like cinema and remain standing. The movie is projected onto the 360 degree screen around us. It's like being inside a crystal ball looking out.. Instead of surround sound, you have surround view! Every angle you look, there is something fascinating to see... Two short movies were shown, The Whisper of Green and Deep Time into a Dinosaurian World. Both was impressive and very nicely done.. I like the 2nd one as it was about dinosaurs (Triceratops vs T-Rex).. :) The movies changes every two months, so in Oct and Nov, another 2 new short movies will be introduced..
Finally, I left the Museum around 3:30pm.. So this time, I spent almost 5 hours. Again, if I had been more prepared (as in bringing my lunch along) I would have stayed longer, maybe even till the closing time (of 5pm).. When I reached my room, my head felt very heavy, it seemed to have been cramped too much information within that 5 hours.. :p :p
During normal period, without any special exhibition, the admission fee to this museum is only about 600yen.. The knowledge gained is definitely worth more than that amount.. Definitely will go again when Sis is here next year..
More photos taken at the National Museum of Nature and Science.
No comments:
Post a Comment