Civilized

We live in such a diverse world and yet one thing that strikes me over and over as we travel and interact with many different countries and cultures is.... people are people.

  Between the two of us Scott and I have been to 15 different and diverse countries at this point in time and our boys have experienced six of those with us. 

Each culture has different roots, there are many different religious beliefs and practices but all are people. Since all are people all have emotions the same as yours the expression or lack thereof of the emotion is what is different but in every country we have been in, teens like to have fun, people laugh, moms take their children to parks, families picnic and life and death are experienced by all.

We want to learn as much as we can about the Asian cultures while we are here living in Singapore.  It is a very unique island, Singapore, as there are many different Asian cultures living in one small area. 

The main people groups that settled in Singapore are, Chinese, Malaysian, and Indian.  Given that, there are many many countries represented on this tiny island, in our church alone there are over 52 different countries represented in our congregation.  Singapore is an international business hub.

The Asian Civilizations Museum has been on my list of things to do while in Singapore so this past Friday, Scott took off a couple of hours early and we went. 

Currently there is an exhibit for the Terracotta Warriors, the terracotta army was buried near the tomb of the First Emperor of China and remained buried until 1974 when it was discovered. 

Much has been learned about ancient Chinese civilization and burial practices from this archaeological discovery.

The pieces in the exhibit are really amazing, they are big, and most of them are in great shape!  These terracotta items were made during the 2nd century B.C. making it all the more interesting to us as they are so very old.

One of our favorite pieces was this coat of arms made from terracotta pieces and copper

There were over 100 artifacts at the exhibit.  We also of course went through the rest of the museum.  A large part was devoted to the religious artifacts for the different cultures, also the clothing, dishes and some tools of the trades.

This picture really intrigued me!  The accuracy of the anatomy was amazing, to think of all that was known about the human body long before modern medicine.

One floor of the museum was dedicated to the performing arts which of course is a big part of every culture.  Here is an entire early Asian orchestra it is a bit different from our modern day orchestra.

Shadow puppet shows have been a part of the Asian culture for centuries.

Then there is the daily life for all cultures this includes the gathering, making and eating of food.

As you enter the museum you are reminded that the past is what makes up who we are in the present.

As we left the museum we were reminded that our culture will leave a mark on future generations. 

If you have a chance to go to the Asian Civilization Museum take time to explore the grounds around the museum its self.  It is in the heart of downtown.

How will our civilization be represented in the future?