Collections in Japan, take 2 (or is 3? or 4?)

I am always fascinated by what makes for a "collectible". People all over the world collect all kinds of thing of course: stamps, coins, baseball cards, etc. In Japan, my awareness of what is considered to be collectible has greatly expanded. My latest introduction to a "collection" was at the Cruise Lodge where I spent a wonderful night during my last bicycle tour.

The lodge is a unique blend of Western/Japanese tastes:

And the owner, as it turned out, is a collector of a wide range of fascinating things. He spent the evening sharing whiskey with me and explaining his collections. Because of my interest he reached into his cabinets and showed me how each of these items worked. 

One of his big collections is of toys made in Japan right after the end of WW2. Note the box that says "Made in Occupied Japan"

The toys are fascinating because all of the characters have blue eyes and are designed for the American market (back when Japanese items were considered "cheap junk")

They all twirled, banged and whistled when wound up. 

I was fascinated but some of the gross characterization of different races. 

Check out the toy aircraft carrier, the site of so much carnage during the Kamikaze campaigns. 

Then there were the earliest sacred cat statues...

The special tea cup collection including a cup that shows the picture of a geisha through the china on the bottom of the cup. 

There was the type-writer collection as well as the CD collection. 

There was the Wedgewood collection (including plates as well) 

Ah yes, there was the teddy bear collection and... the cork screw collection:

What a fascinating window into what is "important" in this world.