National Museum of Nature and Science 国立科学博物館

We completed Markus big "3" birthday weekend with a trip to the National Museum of Nature and Science 国立科学博物館 on Sunday, February 3. It snowed heavily that day and many of the roads driving into the city were slushed with wet snow - the perfect day to venture to an indoor museum. Along with the many reasons why I love Japan so much, it offers a plethora of museums. Literally, there are hundreds in Tokyo alone.

Museums are always a great learning experience, especially at The National Museum of Nature and Science. Markus thoroughly enjoyed many of the exhibits, as he generally does for most museums we visit. In 2007, the museum celebrated its 130Th anniversary. The museum consists of two main galleries: Global and Japan Gallery. In the Global Gallery the main focus is on the history of life on earth. Of course Markus' favourite part was the Animals of the Earth exhibit, which showcased many stuffed life-size animals. The Japanese Gallery describes the environment of the Japanese Islands and its history. For a small fee, I rented a PDA Audio Guidance of the museum. (Just in case you're wondering, it's the blue contraption I'm wearing around my neck.) Listening to the highly informative explanations from experts in the fields, made the experience more worthwhile.

GLOBAL GALLERY

Skeletal figures of terrestrial life

On the second floor, we had fun participating with hands-on experiments in the Science and Technology Exploration Space. Markus and Rodney enjoyed playing around with magnetism.

Markus powering the Light and Senses exhibit.

Here, Rodney and I experiment with moment of inertia while sitting on a swivel stool. Tilting the spinning wheel to one side forces you to turn in the same direction.

Rodney and Markus squirm at the many species of beetles. Nearly two years ago, I learned that having beetles for pets is a popular hobby for children in Japan. During a visit with our friends, the Wakayama family, I remember when Junki and Naoki first showed us their huge pet beetles, I nearly jumped on my seat in fear. But soon learned that these low maintenance creatures are very gentle and most importantly, they don't bite.

Strolling through the Marine Biodiversity section

Exploring the Woodlands Wonder ecosystem

Face-to-face with a Siberian Tiger

As mentioned, the Animals of the Earth exhibit was the highlight of Markus' day. He was so anxious to see all the animals and mammals. He walked around the room naming the animals in Japanese. Here, we learned about way of survival and animals on the brink of extinction. Just a note, all the animals on the display were once living creatures. They were preserved and stuffed true to size.

The dinosaur exhibit was most fascinating

Tyrannosaurus Rex

JAPANESE GALLERY

At the entry of the main hall in the Japanese Gallery, is this mounted skeleton of the dinosaur Allosaurus. This is one of the museum's most important exhibits in the museum's 130 year history, because it was the first dinosaur skeleton ever on display in a Japanese museum. Coincidentally, Allosaurus celebrated it's 130th anniversary last year since its scientific name was created in 1877, by paleontologist O.C. Marsh.

Just a glimpse of the many beautiful creatures found in and around the Japanese Islands

Holy "crab"!

This slimy looking blob is an octopus...eeks!

This photo above describes the Nature of the Japanese Islands from North to South. There are four zones: Subtropical Zone, Warm Temperate Zone, Cool Temperate Zone, and Subarctic Zone. Within the same exhibit we learned more about plate motion around Japan. Interestingly, the Japanese Islands belongs to four tectonic plates, which are: the North America, the Eurasia, the Pacific, and the Philippine Sea plates. There is of course, more scientific explanation involved, but this is the main reason for the frequent earthquakes and tremors in Japan.

Fossils of deep sea organisms found in the geological framework of the Japanese Islands.

Taking a much-needed break overlooking Ueno Station railways, prior to heading home.

We were very happy with our visit to the National Museum of Nature and Science. I thought maybe the several exhibits would be a bit overwhelming for Markus, but I'm proud to say that he showed such an interest and behaved extremely well. My sweet baby is growing too fast.