Indoor activities with air conditioning are ideal for keeping busy during the summer! Our friends invited us to join them to check out the teamLab Planets exhibition/museum on Odaiba this past weekend. There is an online reservation system with specific time slots for entry (exit times are not restricted), so we pre-ordered our admission tickets about 5 days in advance. During this time, it doesn't seem like it's very crowded even on the weekends, so it wasn't difficult to get the date/time we wanted.
Since there was 6 of us going and Odaiba is a bit far, my friends opted to drive over and offered us a ride which we gladly accepted. The recommended parking area for teamLab Planets is at Lalaport Toyosu, about a 10 minute walk away depending exactly which parking structure you end up in. We were told that the mall can "validate" your parking with teamLab admission on weekdays only. For weekends, the first hour is free and then if you spend 3000yen at the mall, you can get 2 additional hours for free. You should visit the customer service/general information booth for your parking voucher.
We arrived just at the beginning of our 11:00 - 11:30 time slot, and there weren't many other people there.
Immediately upon entering, remove your shoes before walking onto the carpeted area. Then, find an available locker (no cost) and put in your shoes, any socks and your bags/everything except your phone or camera. The locker key is on a coiled bracelet. We were also told that at times the water level would be at the height of (an adult's) knee and to roll up pants. This is also where the only restroom in the facility is, so consider that before moving on to the exhibits! (There are slippers provided.)
In the Water Area, most of the exhibits incorporate darkness in some way. The hallways are all lined in black with only a bit of light near the floor to help guide you. The first artwork we encountered was "Waterfall of Light Particles at the Top of an Incline" where there is a downstream of running water as you make a short climb towards a waterfall. 
This one is definitely better experienced in person than captured by camera still photos. It's really interesting to start a museum with an wet walk uphill lol.
At the end of each water exhibit, towels and benches are available to dry off your legs/feet before moving on.
Next, we almost literally (gently) fell into "Soft black hole". There was a small warning from the staff at the entrance, but it's honestly more cushy than you'd expect even with the advanced notice haha. Thankfully the surface is really quite forgiving. This room is completely covered in black with just the light from the entrance and exit and it's another one where it's much better experienced than photographed! 
The black hole room is followed up by an iconic teamLab exhibit The Infinite Crystal Universe with the vertical strands of glittering lights. I think there might be some sort of smartphone interactive component to this, but we didn't bother trying it ourselves and just enjoyed the changing lights and the photo op.
The next exhibit is "Drawing on the Water Surface Created by the Dance of Koi and People - Infinity" where there is a pool of water is about the height of an adult's knee. You're warned a little bit ahead of time about any of the water ones so people with long pants knew when to roll them up. In the hazy water, there are tons of lighted koi and flowers that react to your movement. It's impossible to catch one!
There is a room off of the main pool of water where you can find "Universe of Fire Particles on the Water's Surface". There's still water in here but it's more enclosed. It doesn't seem like you can closely approach the "flame" but there is a bench area and the entire floor (up to a few inches below the bench surface) is filled with water. I believe this flame can be controlled with a smartphone as well.
Another familiar exhibit was next (after drying off your feet) - "Expanding Three-Dimensional Existence in Transforming Space - Flattening 3 colors and 9 Blurred Colors, Free Floating". Large "floating" or movable orbs with changing colored lighting. This room seemed somewhat small to me compared to the others.
"Floating in the Falling Universe of Flowers" is a dome-like room with floral projections all over. You're recommended to lie on the mirrored floor and observe the constantly moving projections from that vantage point. NGL this one was a little dizzying lol.
That was the last exhibit of the Water Area. You then return to the locker room (getting another chance at the bathroom if you need it) and continue through, making a left turn towards the Garden Area.
Since you're still barefoot, slippers are available for going outside to "Moss Garden of Resonating Microcosms - Solidified Light Color, Sunrise and Sunset". It was a bright sunny day for us and quite hot in this exposed room. Supposedly this one is quite a bit more interesting at night! The reflective silver orbs were still curious-looking in the day, but the humidity made staying in this space less encouraging.
You're next guided towards the second Garen Area exhibit - "Floating Flower Garden: Flower and I are of the Same Root, the Garden and I are One". These are real flowers, hanging vertically, and you are instructed not to touch them. There was a small a line/wait for this one as there's a time limit for how long you can stay and just one entrance/exit point. We were near the end of the line but everyone who was in the room when the previous group's time was up was allowed to go through at the same time.
You start by carefully crouching under the first few layers of flowers which move up and down before there are a few more open areas where you can sit or lie down. We went towards the extreme left and it opens to a large mirrored area where you can stand as well (I think this is also the accessible area for those who can't crawl).
This was one of our favorite areas and we definitely could have stayed a long time if not for the time limit.
Our first run through with lots of time for photos took about 65 minutes. The expedited second round took no more than 15 (just depended on how the group stayed together.) I think this space is interesting but Borderless would still be my first choice if someone hasn't experienced any teamLab museums before. This one is an interesting concept with the entire thing barefoot and all the different interactions and textures including the water, but I know that's definitely not for everyone.
Also of note, there are "rental shorts" available if your pants are too tightfitting to be rolled above the knee. Additionally, most of the flooring is mirrored so may also consider renting shorts if wearing a dress. I believe these are free of charge and should be returned prior to leaving the museum.
Overall, we had a good time and was surprised at some of the different exhibits/artworks. It was also nice to see some of the familiar pieces as well since I haven't been to Borderless in 4 years or so. The entire thing seems really well maintained and staff are always available and paying attention. If you're looking for an indoor activity and have some time to kill in the Odaiba area, this is definitely worth checking out!
No comments:
Post a Comment