Free 2nd Sunday visit May 10

[Anonymous]

Thank you for posting this. There are many gems in our backyard that we are not aware of. It's always great to discover them or hear from someone who has. I was not familiar with this museum, but it sounds like a great way to spend a Sunday afternoon. I have already saved it on my calendar for the 2nd Sunday of June. Once again, thanks for sharing.

[Anonymous]

Thanks for sharing- I may also come visit second Sunday in June. The US army collected a lot of samurai swords from Japan at the end of World War Two. This was all in the name of disarmament. There are some swords of great historical significance that to this day remain unaccounted for,

[Anonymous]

Thanks for sharing. I also live in Pasadena and have been wanting to go to the museum as well. Now that I know it is free every 2nd Sunday of the month I will definitely use that as an excuse to go. Also really interesting write up from the museum and thanks for including the pictures.

[Anonymous]

Yea! Go my fellow students go!
Can't beat an afternoon in Old Town Pasadena...museum visit and a fantastic lunch from a variety of amazing restaurants
To complete your Asian Studies experience I would highly recommend lunch at Tibet Nepal House Himalayan Cuisine, it is small, authentic and tasty.

"Serving authentic Himalayan cuisine since 2001, Tibet Nepal House uses only the finest fresh herbs and spices to prepare delicious and healthy food for our guests. A sampling of herbs and spices common to Himalayan cooking are black and white cardamom, jimbu, garlic, ginger, cumin, coriander, nutmeg, cinnamon, ajwain, star anis, timboor, chili, turmeric, saffron, sesame seed, and mustard seed. Each of these contribute to the distinctive tastes and flavors of our traditional homeland foods, carefully prepared here."

http://www.oldpasadena.org/gc_merchantlisting.asp?merchant_id=63
edited by hhardwick on 5/12/2015
edited by hhardwick on 5/12/2015
edited by hhardwick on 5/13/2015

[Rob_Hugo@PortNW]

Today I visited the USC Pacific Asia Museum in Pasadena on their Free 2nd Sunday Event....and my impression is...what a gem in my own backyard! I will be returning bringing my daughter and mother among others. Today's 2nd Sunday was focused on "Martial Arts", each 2nd Sunday has a theme I understand.

The museum recently acquired a beautiful Samurai sword and carved bone sheath...(stated to be made for western export in the 1800's but nevertheless exquisite), tours were spotlighting this part of Japanese martial arts history within the main gallery. As well there were martial arts demonstrations and an arts and crafts table where children could make warrior puppets.

My favorite part of the museum is its amazing collection of Buddhas and Bodhisattvas...and today I learned how to tell the difference between the two in an art piece. A Buddha has no adornment and plain robes, while a Bodhisattva will have ornate jewelry and often a crown. In my mind this sounded reasonable given that Buddha is enlightened and able to surpass the continuum of re incarnation while the Bodhisattva has given up the opportunity to end reincarnation and dedicates himself to humans and their suffering and teaching...so why should he not wear a crown and jewels for his dedication? As well he would become a visually attractive teacher when adorned.

The most astonishing piece was the skinny, multi-armed Buddha which looked very much like Shiva a Hindu deity. I challenged myself to guess which country this particular Buddha might be from without looking at the information plaque...I guessed China due to it's gold and red paint but I was wrong. The skinny Buddha is from Viet Nam.

Two other artifacts exhibited which I loved were from China...a boy emperor's robe and a brilliant blue-feathered hair ornament which was important clue pointing to trade with Cambodia. Both of these from the Qing Dynasty.
edited by hhardwick on 5/11/2015
edited by hhardwick on 5/11/2015

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[Anonymous]

I have never been to this museum and though I have heard of it is it is barely on my radar. I have put a note on my calendar to visit next month when school is out.

I use to live in San Francisco, which has one of the largest collections of Asian Art outside of Asia. If you find your self in Northern CA, the museum is definitely worth a visit. It is located across from city hall in the old library building at civic center. It is a far more edifying way of spending an afternoon than walking around the tourist traps and trinket shops in Fisherman's Wharf and Chinatown.

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