By Karen Bloom
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Celebrate the arrival of spring in Fukuoka, the largest city on the island of Kyushu. Then picnic under bright pink cherry blossoms, raise carp windsocks and try on a kimono.
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Visit a school classroom and practice calligraphy.
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Take a virtual summer vacation at Lake Biwa, Japan's largest lake. At the campsite, go on a bug hunt and collect Japanese children's buggy favorites. Try fishing and capture it all with a family portrait.
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Learn about the Shinto teachings of respect for nature, in the mountainside city of Kyoto. Create a fall collage of leaves and nuts to take home. Dance in the harvest rice festival and scan the horizon for the special Harvest Moon.
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In winter, slip out of your shoes and step into the comforting warmth of a home in Sapporo, a city on Japan's northernmost island. Inside the cozy living room, help a family prepare for the chilly weeks ahead by decorating the home for the season, preparing special winter foods, making a New Year's card, and playing a traditional New Year's game."The exhibition allows visitors to investigate the dynamic relationship between the Japanese people and their natural environment," commented Brooklyn Children's Museum president Carol Enseki. "In addition, it allows us to excite and educate kids about world culture and natural science."The Brooklyn Botanic Garden is the first site of the 900 square foot exhibit, which will be traveling across the country, after it leaves the New York area in June. "Brooklyn Botanic Garden's long-standing connection to Japanese culture began in 1914 with the creation of our Japanese Hill-and-Pond Garden, the first of its kind in the U.S., and has continued over the years with the development of our Bonsai Collection, and our annual Cherry Blossom Festival, Sakura Matsuri," said Judith Zuk, president of Brooklyn Botanic Garden. "Our strong cultural ties to Japan make BBG the perfect location for Japan and Nature: Spirits of the Seasons, and we're thrilled to be its first location."The exhibit opened with a Shinto blessing performed by Rev. Inui, of the Internattional Shinto Foundation. The blessing will bring the exhibit and all involved, including those who visit, good fortune!
Japan and Nature: Spirits of the Seasons
Open now through June 6. Begin the experience by picking up timed exhibit tickets, free with garden admission at the Visitors Center. Hours: Saturday and Sunday, 10 a.m.-4:30 p.m.; Tuesday through Thursday, 8 a.m.-4:30 p.m. Admission: $5 adults; $3 seniors; children under 16 free. 1000 Washington Ave., Brooklyn. (718) 623-7200 or www.bbg.org.
