We went to a wonderful museum that showed folk arts and traditional work methods. The lower picture shows how the Japanese used to collect seaweed for the wraps they use in much of their food.

The upper picture of the pagoda is a wood block print. This is a very traditional kind of Japanese art and is still continued today by specialized artists. The prints are made with approximately twenty-five wooden carved blocks of wood that are coated with one layer of colored ink. Of course, now that I understand the process and talent involved in making a print, I want one.



Japan is hoping to increase efficiency and the unobtrusiveness of industrial areas by encouraging small, specialized factories to collect into apartment buildings. This way the factories can work cooperatively to produce specialized, machined parts at a reduced cost. This camera plate (did you guess that that is what it was?) is an example of one type of metal they might fashion in these small factories.