The construction of Japan’s first Moomin-themed amusement park is set to begin following a ground-breaking ceremony held on Friday.
The Moomins are the creation of Finnish author and illustrator, Tove Jansson. The quirky characters first caught the attention of the Japanese public in 1969 with the launch of an animated TV series.
The park, in Saitama, is to be called Metsä which is the Finnish for ‘forest’.
The ceremony was attended by the Finnish Ambassador to Japan, Jukka Siukosaari.
Investment company, FinTech Global Inc., is a major stakeholder in the project which was originally scheduled to open in 2015.
FinTech blames the delay on difficulties in finding a suitable site and the scale of infrastructure required. The park is now slated to open in the spring of 2019.
https://japantoday.com/category/national/ground-breaking-ceremony-held-at-moomin-theme-park-site
