The new Takenaka Carpentry Museum
竹中大工道具館 I had never visited the former Takenaka Dougu Kan (Carpentry Tools Museum) but I just spent a couple hours at the brand new one in Shinkobe, Japan. The museum has also updated their English webpage ( http://www.dougukan.jp/ ) to reflect the new facility, exhibits, and events. I did not interview any officials there, so these are purely my observations. I will readily say this is a first rate facility designed for a broad audience and worth a trip if you are ever nearby. Getting there was relatively easy - take the Sanyo Shinkansen line. The museum property is within several hundred yards of the Shin-kobe Station. You walk out the main entrance doors of the station and take a left. See the website for a map. Admission is 500 yen for adults, less for students and seniors, free for children.