Florida

The Sporking Life

Morikami Museum and Japanese Gardens





Morikami Museum and Japanese Gardens






4000 Morikami Park Rd.
Delray Beach, FL 33446
561-495-0233








AT A GLANCE:  Morikami Museum and Japanese Gardens

Date of Visit:
Saturday, May 6,2017

Parking
Plentiful, onsite parking

Amount of time needed to peruse exhibits:
90 – 120 minutes

Amount of time needed for gift shop
45 – 60 minutes

The “must have” souvenir
For children:  Carp bag or windsock
For adults:  chopstick holders

Online shopping

Kid friendly shopping
Yes

Kid friendly
Yes

Dress code
Casual, but not tacky. 

Be sure to…..
Buy fish food and feed the Koi (fancy carp)

Nearby/other establishments to visit
Nothing

Walkability, general downtown area / amount of traffic
Morikami Museum and Japanese Gardens are walkable.  The path around the Gardens is wheelchair accessible.

Safety, in terms of type and number of crimes committed in general area
Generally safe, but keep in mind that it’s up to you to protect your possessions.  Stow valuables out of sight and lock your car.






A long time ago in the early 1900s, Florida was experiencing a time of attempted prosperity because it seemed as if everybody wanted a piece of the action.  The wealthy founder of Standard Oil wanted to build a railroad from the Northeastern U.S. to sunny Florida with a dream to build hotels near the tracks to house well-to-do northerners who came south for some warmth and sunshine.  We’ve heard of Henry Flagler before; even a brief review of Florida’s history mentions his name.  How does this tie in with this week’s blog?  Because Flagler greatly influenced the subject of this week’s blog:  Morikami Museum and Japanese Gardens.





Henry Flagler realized that he needed an infrastructure if he were to accomplish his dream.  People were needed to run hotels and restaurants and to supply the food that was needed to do both.  Around 1908, Flagler’s land holding company encouraged farmers to come to Florida to supply food.  Yamato, Japan was the home base of some of these farmers who moved from Japan to Florida.  The Yamato Colony was one of the groups, named after the birthplace of these men.  They began a pineapple farm, and were on their way to becoming wealthy from its proceeds.  Except, it didn’t happen that way.  A nasty disease, pineapple blight, attacked their crops in those early years, which then wiped out any hopes of profit.  As if that wasn’t enough of a stumbling block, Cuba had recently started pineapple farming and was able to sell their fruit at lower rates than the Yamato Colony.  The Colony threw in the towel, and either returned to Japan or relocated elsewhere in the U.S.


Garden photos:   https://goo.gl/OEcMnx

Gift shop photos: https://goo.gl/yK5SPt


A few decades later brought the U.S’s entrance into World War II.  Since Japan was one of the enemies, Japanese-Americans were herded into containment centers.  All, that is, except for the lone Japanese farmer who still held land where the Yamato Colony had once been.  He was allowed to stay, since he still raised crops needed by the armed forces.  However, the land was seized by the government and turned into an Army Air Corps training station.  This story has a happy ending, though.  After the war, the U.S. government compensated the land owners whose properties were seized, and George Morikami, that lone Japanese holdout, was able to purchase his original farm.  At his death, Morikami donated the land that houses the Morikami Museum and Japanese Gardens to Palm Beach County, Florida to preserve and honor the memory of the original Yamato Colony.  The beautiful land that we visit today is the result of hard work and dedication of Palm Beach County. 





A walk through the Morikami Japanese Gardens does wonders for calming one’s soul.  Bridges and paths are created in true Japanese style with the intent to slow one down to contemplate nature.  This is not a garden to rush through, since the experience of moving through the lush greenery makes up part of the overall encounter.  I experienced this myself, and found it interesting that my pace at the end of the garden path was so much slower than my pace going in.  The garden allowed me to see everything, yet nothing in great detail.  This is the difference between a Japanese garden and a botanical garden.  A botanical garden strives to have perfect specimens representing individual species.  A Japanese garden is more of a consumptive experience.  A stroll through this Japanese garden created an almost perfect harmony of smell, sound, and shadow.  To be in the Morikami Gardens was to be one with nature.  




Now that we have the backstory of Morikami Museum and Japanese Gardens, let take a look at how this unique place could be branded.  Branding is the personality, or vibe, of a place and consists of many layers of history and personality.  One way I like to get things started is to spout out three words that describe the area in need of branding.  We did this exercise after our visit and came up with two versions:
Pineapples                               Zen
Prosperity                                Educational
Peaceful                                  Tranquil
One of us appears more pragmatic than the other, but neither of the two lists is incorrect.  Sometimes the same thing appears differently to each in their own way.  Your list may resemble one of ours, or may be unique.  


Feed the koi


In relation to gift shops, the branding list and the shop’s merchandise need to be in harmony with each other.  A trip to the gift shop should enhance the visitor’s experience in the garden.  The Morikami gift shop provides an excellent example of this synchronization.  Reenter the main building after a calm meander through the gardens, and that same vibe follows and flows through the gift shop.  Exquisite and colorful kimonos are designed to catch the eye, yet radiate stillness of self.  Intricately woven jackets are displayed next to the kimonos followed by plain-featured and functional purses.  It wouldn’t be difficult to imagine wearing such a handsome ensemble.


I would like to wear one of these as I stroll my flower gardens.

Like the gardens, the gift shop allows one to see everything all at once.  It’s by slowing down that you begin to see the wondrous pieces that make up the whole of the shop.  Here’s what I mean:  enter the gift shop with unfocused eyes and you run the risk of being overwhelmed (“Snappled”).  Think of the Morikami gift shop as a series of small shops, rather than one large shop.   Focus on the display that is directly in front of you to feel the quiet connection to the gardens.  Rain chains hang from the ceiling in tranquil stillness.  Wind chimes hang from the ceiling a bit further on, so as to not mix the quietness with the music of the wind.  Of course if the wind has a lot to say, consider the wind chimes that contain a gong.   



Garden photos:  https://goo.gl/OEcMnx

Gift shop photos: https://goo.gl/OEcMnx


 

Enter the actual gift shop from the lobby and stop at one of the prominent merchandise displays presenting rice bowls, similar to those that are used in Japanese tea ceremonies.  Chopsticks and chopstick holders are next to the rice bowl.  Turn around for books with titles on the intricacies of the tea ceremony and ikebana (Japanese flower arranging).  Move along to the dozen or so types of tea leaves.  See the interesting display of tea pots next to the tea display.  A bonsai section follows, with instruction books and tools.  My favorite part is next:  the jewelry behind the locked glass.  Even the necklaces and bracelets are grouped by style and color:  big and chunky statement necklaces share a space with other modern and chunky black pieces.  I marvel at the care that went into setting up the merchandise displays so it has an organic flow from one display to the next, much like the structure of the gardens.  Once again, slow down and look at the different sections of the gift shop as if they were their own shop.  Study the differences between the modern and traditional jewelry.  Appreciate the colorful, yet simple, handbags displayed with them.  If these statement pieces are too much, move along to the pedestrian jewelry displayed out in the open on the counter with the cash register.  

 
Functional and kicky handbags


The Morikami gift shop is great for small children, but keep them within arm’s reach.  The gift shop carries a great deal of items for sale in a small place, and children may get stepped on.  There were four people shopping when I visited, and the shop felt small.  That’s why it’s important to slow down and appreciate things as separate shops.  At first, see everything but see nothing, just like the gardens.

In reference back to the list of branding words, the second list (Zen, educational, tranquil) fits both the gardens and the gift shop like a glove.  Thank goodness they didn’t go with pineapples, prosperity, and peaceful.  I really don’t think I would like a shop full of gold coins and fruit.


The line outside of the Cornell Cafe

Lunch should sound appealing by this time, and fortunately you won’t have to go far.  I recommend the Cornell Café, which is located in the back half of the main building.  Note that the Café is only open for four hours, 11 am – 3 pm.  There will always be a line waiting to get in, so eat as soon as you arrive at Morikami Museum and Japanese Gardens, or tour the gardens and gift shop first, and then have lunch.  Noon and 1:00 pm are the Café’s busiest times, so do what you can to avoid this time.  If this is your first time at a Japanese restaurant, I recommend the box lunch.  I imagined a lunch pail with a bologna sandwich and an apple.  Not so, here.  The “box” refers to a rectangular tray with eight or nine compartments.  Each compartment contains a sample of some of the dishes on the menu:  sushi, eggplant, salmon, etcetera.  The food may look strange, or different, but the taste is superb.  Were you considering buying a set of chopsticks and chopstick holders?  I’ve got good news for you.  The place setting contains chopsticks.  Go ahead and try.  Don’t worry about looking awkward or foolish, because everyone else is doing the same thing.  Live on the edge, you wild thing.


The Cornell Cafe is on the other side of this wall

I felt a sense of sadness when it came time for us to leave Morikami Museum and Japanese Gardens.  I had achieved a feeling of oneness with myself, and a calm, gentle vibe and didn’t want to lose it.  I silently thanked Henry Flagler, the Yamato Colony, and George Morikami for their part in bringing this Japanese garden to the public.

Garden photos:   https://goo.gl/OEcMnx

Gift shop photoshttps://goo.gl/yK5SPt

******************************************************************************

May 11, 2017

Dear Gentle Blog Followers,

Next week's blog is my last before I take a summer sabbatical.  I'm taking the time to redesign my blog and add some functionality to it, such as interactive maps and suggestions for a day trip.

 I'll start posting again in mid-September.

In the meantime, I hope you re-visit some of my earlier blogs.  Keep in touch and feel free to send your thoughts and comments to me:  bfirman.mcmanus@gmail.com.

I appreciate you.

B

******************************************************************************
 

No comments:

Post a Comment

Comments