Tokyo National Museum

The Tokyo National Museum is a very good pick to spend an afternoon in Tokyo. It is right by the Ueno Park and easy to reach by public transport.

Actually is not one museum, but a collection of five galleries (and you get all for the price of one). However, since I am not so interested in archeology, I decided to explore the main gallery only – the Japanese Gallery or Honkan. Anyway, it took me 2 hours to explore the two floors, and it was really worth it. Sculptures from 10,000 B.C. to late 19th century, swords, modern art, board games from the samurai times, paintings, and much more …

Here is a little story turned into a painting.

A wise man retires from the world to a remote island. He vows never to cross the bridge again and to live the rest of his life in solitude. After many years he gets visited from 2 old friends. He is very happy to see them again and to hear news from the outside world. They discuss for hours, when he suddenly realizes that during their vivid discussions, he has crossed the bridge. The three of them laugh about his mistake

For more details about this museum, please have a look at the TNM website.

By the way, I was surprised: they were selling T-shirts of the famous “Great Wave” painting by Hokusai, but I did not spot this painting in the gallery. [It seems, it's not always on display - maybe next time]