It¡¯s a bucolic scene of pure Finnish harmony: an expanse of still water, hillsides of cartoon-perfect forest trees and clean-lined clusters of wooden huts. Not to forget the distinct white hippo-esque members of Finland¡¯s most iconic family who happen to live here: the Moomins.
But this Finnish utopia is not in Scandinavia. Instead, it can be found almost 7,780 kilometers from Helsinki ¡ª more precisely on the shores of Lake Miyazawa in Hanno, Saitama Prefecture, just outside Tokyo.
MoominValley Park ¡ª the first official Moomin theme park outside Finland ¡ª opened its doors last month to the delight of countless Japanese diehard fans of the popular rotund fairy-tale characters, who first sprung to life in a children¡¯s book published in 1945 by author and artist Tove Jansson.
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