Japan is a fantabulous place to be for cat lovers. After all, this is the nation that invented cat cafes, a revolutionary concept popular among locals and travellers alike. Since Japanese people love their feline counterparts and shower a lot of attention on them, investing some time to engage in cat-related activities will be a great way to bond with the locals and mark your trip by. Here are five amazing cat-related activities to absorb yourself in during your travels to the Land of the Rising Sun:
1. Visit Cat Museums
Offering visitors a much-needed respite from the hustle and bustle of city life, cat cafes can be readily found in Japan, particularly in Tokyo. However, due to space constraints, cat cafes only allow you to play with a limited number of breeds. Here, cat museums like the Cat Museum in Shizuoka come to the rescue. The Cat Museum has an impressive 50 cats that hail from 30 species, including Siamese, Russian Blue and Egyptian Mau. Not only that, you can immerse yourself in over 2000 items of cat-related memorabilia, which is sure to put a grin on your face! Cat lovers who are interested in something just a tad more mythical can turn to Maneki-neko Museum in Onomichi City, Hiroshima. First, get yourself pumped up by walking on a path leading to this museum that is littered with adorable kittens. Then, you will arrive at this museum, where you can see myriad kinds of Maneki-neko to your heart's content. Maneki-neko is said to bring businessmen good luck and fortune in business, so who knows? Your luck may just improve tremendously after your visit!
2. Flaunt Your Cat-Themed Fashion
In Japan, the ladies are not afraid to wear their feelings on their sleeves...literally. Here, the sky is the limit as they showcase their love for cats in the most innovative ways ever, some of which are bordering on the outrageous. For instance, many ladies like to style their hair to look like pointy cat ears whereas others put on sweeping eyeliner that wings up and down from the corner of the eyes, thus looking like they have cats' eyes. Yet some others go the route of nail art, investing in colourful and eye-catching nails with cat faces or paw prints. It is really ingenious of Japanede ladies to flaunt their love for cats in such kawaii ways!
3. Celebrate "Neko no Hi" (Cat Day)
Japan certainly celebrates its adulation for cats with a flourish because the pronunciation of February 22 in Japanese is close to "nyan nyan nyan", the sound a cat makes in Japan. On this day, shops demonstrate their creativity by introducing limited-edition cat-themed products to commemorate this day. From cat-shaped doughnuts and onigiri (rice balls) to fashion accessories, consumers sure have a wide spread of items to choose from to brighten up their day! Also, the online world is equally buzzing with activity as bloggers post photos and videos of their beloved cats online. As Japan becomes inundated with cat-themed products and postings on this day, this adds a great air of festivity to your trip!
4. Meet Cat Celebrities
Cats are so integrated into the lives of Japanese people that cat celebrities have become a phenomenon. In Kinokawa, Wakayama Prefecture, a five-year-old calico called Nitama has been the proud station master of Kishi Station since August 2015. Nitama (Tama the Second) is actually the successor of Tama, the first station master that has passed on. Tama singlehandedly boosted the economy of the train line as locals and foreigners alike flocked to Kishi station - an effect that Nitama is expected to perpetuate. However, if you can't make it to Japan any time soon, fret not. Surfing Cat Street View - a website that features the substantial cat population in Onomichi, Hiroshima - will give you the feels as you get a 360-degree street view of the city through the eyes of a furry cat! Doesn't seeing things from a cat's perspective sound like a great way to relax and learn about daily life in Japan at the same time?
Apart from these four things, you can also visit cat islands like Aoshima where you can witness the breathtaking sight of tons of cats prowling the land. So be sure to include these unusual cat-related activities in your itinerary to make your getaway that much more interesting!
