Long Beach City College students are now eligible for free rides with LA Metro and Long Beach Transit after the school announced a new partnership with the transportation systems, the Viking News will be posting a different location every week that students can go to using the Metro Go Pass.
The large glass structure sits quietly near the heart of Little Tokyo, granite stairs leading up to its entrance. Its unique shape, and the oversized, spinning Rubik’s cube with faces made of faces at the front make it difficult to miss. This is the Japanese American National Museum (JAMN).
The JANM, as the name suggests, focuses on Japanese American culture, both past and present. Not only does it host exhibits, it also regularly puts on events which include concerts, film screenings, workshops, and panels with a variety of focuses, not strictly historical.
“We focus on getting our mission to be seen and heard by different communities, not just Japanese people but other groups as well,” said Nicky Woo, a staff member of the museum.
Admission for the museum can be bought online on their website, JANM.org, prior to your visit or at the door. Student admission is $9, just bring your student ID.
If $9 still seems a bit pricey, you’re in luck, because JANM offers free admission every Thursday.
Getting there is pretty simple. First, make your way to your closest Metro A line station, from there, ride the metro for 19 stops, which should take about an hour, all the way to the 7th St Metro Center.
Once off, you have two options: ride the bus, or continue on the metro.
If continuing on the Metro, board the B or D line, ride for two stops, get off at Grand Park Station, and walk downhill on 1st Street for 12 minutes, past City Hall until you arrive at South Central Ave. The museum will be right there!
If you continue on the bus, there is still a small walk ahead of you. Head to street level and walk left in the direction of Jollibee, past UNIQLO, towards the corner of 7th St. and Figueroa St., then cross the street to your righ. This is where the bus stop should come into view. Board the A bus Eastbound (Not F) for ten stops until you reach 1st Street/Central Ave. The museum will be across the street.
Apart from getting a free ride, using the GoPass to visit the Japanese American National Museum saves you the hassle of LA traffic.
Traffic in the Little Tokyo area has gotten especially bad recently due to the construction of a new Metro Station closing many streets down, so now is as good a time as any to take advantage of LA Metro’s GoPass and go sightseeing.
Once entering the building, a set of stairs comes into view. As you ascend the stairs, a curious display greets you: a giant wall of suitcases, carefully stacked to a looming height. It is the “Wall of Suitcases and Trunks”, a reconstruction of an art piece by Hirokazu Kosaka. A placard notes:
“The importance of Hirokazu’s work
Is that it recognizes that the most important things
Are sometimes the simplest.
The space between the heartbeats
And the suitcases that carries
More that people’s belongings”
Just to the right, large glass cases displaying photos, signs, and other objects signal the beginning of the museum’s first exhibit.
Common Ground: The Heart of Community is the museum’s permanent exhibition, detailing the history and life of Japanese Americans all across the U.S prior to and after the mass evacuation and internment that occurred in 1942.
The majority of exhibits in JANM are upstairs, including their 2nd, limited run exhibit.
1942: Be Here showcases photographs taken by photographers Dorothea Lang and Russell Lee throughout the events of 1942. The exhibit will only be on display from now until January of 2023.
Towards the end of the exhibit, a large, empty room appears. The floors and walls are almost bare, save for a black and white mural of a train dock covering the entire expanse of one wall.
Using an augmented reality camera provided by the museum, this empty room became an entirely 3D rendered replica of many of the photographs featured in the exhibit.
Walking around the room uncovered different scenarios, and using the camera became interactive as guests were encouraged to walk around and snap pictures, stepping in the shoes of Lang and Lee.
“People are really only used to seeing augmented reality used for video games,” said Warren Schorr, the museum staff handing out cameras. He explained how Masaki Fujihata, the artist behind the exhibit, hoped to use the technology in a museum setting, wanting to create a new experience for people to truly immerse themselves in history. “It’s a transportive reality that helps people engage with the period in a more real way.”
When exiting the AR room, the only way to go is back downstairs, leading you to two other exhibits on display.
Sutra and Bible; an exhibit recounting how faith helped many Japanese Americans survive their experiences in interment. It includes photos and actual, real inked stone tablets unearthed from an internment camp’s cemetery after Japanese Americans were liberated, and a handwritten bible found.
The Interactive StoryFile of Lawson Iichiro Sakai: This is another interactive exhibit. Featuring a virtual rendering of the titular man and Nisei WWII veteran, guests are encouraged to interact by asking questions. Using the video technology StoryFile, Sakai recorded over a thousand responses to questions in his lifetime, with the ultimate goal to leave a legacy that future generations could interact with and directly ask questions about.
Post-museum, one is sure to want a spot to sit down, thankfully, across the street lies the perfect place.
Just across from the Japanese American National Museum is Japanese Village Plaza, a bustling place filled with many shops, sit down restaurants, quick-service options, and even bakeries to find a bite to eat. You’ll find plenty of public seating, and maybe even discover an appetizing restaurant or interesting shop along the way.
One shining star is Yamazaki Bakery, right in the center of the plaza. The bakery sells an array of sweet and savory items, most notably their steamed buns. At $3.25 each, they are the perfect bite for a student on a budget. The Anman is a great sweet bun, and the Curryman, a chicken and curry stuffed bun, is awesome for the savory lovers out there.
Now all that’s left is figuring out how to get home.
