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 — more precisely on the shores of Lake Miyazawa in Hanno, Saitama Prefecture, just outside Tokyo.
MoominValley Park — the first official Moomin theme park outside Finland — 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.