Posts Tagged ‘art’

Nazca Exhibition in Kumamoto

Thursday, January 10th, 2008

Last month we got a chance to go to the Nazca display at the Kumamoto Prefecture Museum of Art (one of my students reminded me about it; thanks Yoko!) I have to say that it was very interesting. The first section moved through a bit of the history and geography of the area, and there’s an illustrative timeline to give some perspective. This site has a good rundown on the details.

The artifacts on display were simply amazing. I guess because of the climate (the area looks awfully dry), many of the items were well preserved. Several items were more than 2,000 years old and were in excellent condition. There is a well-kept mummy that you have to see to believe.

The end of the display is dedicated to the huge line drawings in the desert floor. This area of Peru is a World Heritage site, so it’s on my list of places to visit. Unfortunately, people are doing great harm to the area with cars and motorcyles. I hope that kind of activity is stopped ASAP.

The Nazca display continues until January 27th. Get your tickets and go now!

Kumamoto Prefectural Art Museum

Sunday, March 20th, 2005

Today the family went to the Kumamoto Prefectural Art Museum for the first time. Thanks to my employment with the Prefecture, we were able to get in gratis. I didn’t have my note pad along, so I don’t have the names of the artists to add in (a future blogging?) I will say that there is a nice collection starting from feudal times up to the end of the 20th C. Oh, yeah, the photo is from the area of the museum facing Kumamoto Castle.

The Great Buddha in Nara

Wednesday, February 16th, 2005

I went to the JALT (Japan Association of Language Teachers) meeting in November to give a presentation. My presentation finished about 2 1/2 hours before my flight left from Osaka Itami airport, so things were a bit tight. I decided to pick up my bus tickets the day before to save me time. My good friend Myles joined me for a trip to get the ticket. We took the short walk from the station to the temple which houses a huge statue of the Buddha. Along the way there is a nice park with deer and lots of greenery. It should be a pleasant place to live, but, a few days before the conference, a young girl was brutally murdered on her way home from elementary school. I didn’t know any details about the news when I was there. Thinking back now, the whole town must have been on edge because of what had happened. May she rest in peace…