Izu Teddy Bear Museum is a little piece of heaven for teddy bear and “My Neighbor Totoro” lovers. It is home to the most expensive antique teddy bear ever sold, Teddy Girl. The second floor of the museum exhibits various scenes of My Neighbor Totoro with elaborate backgrounds and soft toys of the characters.

At the entrance, several giant teddy bears would welcome you at this reception. The actual reception for you to buy the entrance ticket is to the right upon entering.

The very first impression I had of the place was “I just stepped into a fairy tale.” The museum had a wonderful atmosphere that awakened my inner child. I too have a teddy bear that grew up with me, and I understood the importance of these childhood companions.

The exhibition starts from the right-hand side, with a text explanation of the history of teddy bear, and a display of teddy bears in order of year of production.

There were several antique teddy bears here more than a hundred years old. These were the earliest teddy bears ever made.

The main attraction of the entire museum was this “Teddy Girl”.

The owner of this museum, Sekiguchi Yoshihiro, bought the Teddy Girl for £110,000 in 1994. Teddy Girl was made in 1905, which makes her 111 years old this year. She originally belonged to Colonel Bob Henderson, a collector of teddy bears who founded the “Good Bears of the World” charity which distributes teddy bears to needy children.

The first floor had sections of an English-style home, such as bookshelf or fireplace, decorated with teddy bears.

And then there were teddy bears placed in various scenarios, such as a dinner party in a train, a teddy bear factory, or an amusement park in the forest. These were large scale displays. Each of these displays had plenty of details.

And here were some noteworthy individual bears.

The second floor featured mostly “My Neighbor Totoro”. Here were several scenes from the movie.

A big totoro in the middle.

And then there’s the cat bus. You need to queue to even take a photo here due to its popularity.

Lastly, cat bus with teddy bears!

I got to say this was a great museum with a clear theme and huge collection. A must-visit for teddy bear/My Neighbor Totoro fans. Even for non-fans I imagine it would be enjoyable nonetheless.

By Desheng.

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* This article was written by a trainee from overseas. Please note that there might be spelling and grammar mistakes.