it's not easy being green

marimo!

i've been algae-sitting for my former roommate lilian for quite a few years now. while she was living with me, she had a glass jar containing two spherical, mossy-looking balls of green algae from Hokkaido, Japan. they're called "marimo", and here's the wikipedia page for it. i liked to change its water and give it a few squeezes when she wasn't around. she used to joke that i better not let her come home to find them dead and replaced with two boba balls from a bubble tea drink (because that seemed like something i would do). when lilian moved back to california, she accidentally left them behind. like so:


as i am now the sole owner of the mysterious balls of algae and have become quite attached to them, i've decided to do some research as to exactly where they're from. turns out, they are found in the Lake Akan of Akan National Park in Hokkaido, a volcanic area known for crystal clear lakes. believe it or not, they are a national treasure in Japan, and the aborigines in the region worship it as a sacred life form. every year in october, there is a marimo festival , and you can take a boat tour along the lake and visit a marimo museum when you are there! apparently, they also exist in other areas of the world (the cold, northern parts or europe). i totally want to see it in its natural habitat, in its full size! the idea of swimming in a crystal clear lake with soft bed of fuzzy green balls is so heavenly, i'm obsessed with that thought right now! it'd be great to have a bathtub-ful of these yummy looking greeness.

posted by Minnie @ 10:53 PM