Waiting for a bus in America is not an ambient experience. If a bus shelter is present, it’s typically a scratched plexiglass box plastered with ads, graffiti or both…not the highlight of anyone’s day.

Japan, on the other hand, takes another approach. Imagine sheltering from the elements in a giant watermelon. This is possible in the Konagai area in Nagasaki prefecture. Sixteen bus stops along the Ariake Sea on Highway 207 feature gigantic fruity shelters. In addition to watermelons, supersize strawberries, cantaloupes, oranges and tomatoes (technically a fruit) welcome waiting bus riders. The road has been nicknamed, “Tokemeki Fruit-shaped Bus Stop Avenue.”

The bus shelters were originally part of a hugely successful expo in Osaka and were inspired by Cinderella’s pumpkin carriage. That exposition spawned a smaller fair in Konagai which included the fruit bus stops. When the fair ended, the shelters remained. For a quarter century, they have been carefully maintained, welcoming both bus riders and tourists. They are also a reminder that the area is a top producer of strawberries, oranges and other fruits.

After learning about these unique bus stops, I was curious about what others in Japan might look like. A search revealed many delightful ones. My favorite is the giant Totoro. It was hand built by two loving grandparents for their grandchildren. What a wonderful way to wait for the bus!

A becoming cat greets bus riders.

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A whimsical roadside attraction has appeared down the freeway from us in Cedar Grove…and it all began with a blizzard.

I should note that Cedar Grove originally was settled by Dutch immigrants in the late 1840s and still retains its Dutchness. Until now, the town’s main tourist attractions have been a small replica of a windmill and their annual summer Holland Fest featuring street scrubbing, Klompen Dansing and wooden shoe races.

The new star in town is Mr. Frosty, a colossal snowman towering over 18 feet tall. After this winter’s first major snowstorm, a local resident was helping his kids build a snowman in their front yard. A neighbor chided him to build a bigger one, the dad took up the challenge and enlisted two friends to help him.

The team began by making a gigantic base for their creation. Rebar was used for stability. A second ball was added and the team sprayed the snow so “it’s solid as a rock.”

Fortuitously, one of the guys owns a building company so he was able to bring in a lift to raise Mr. Frosty’s massive head.

The Village of Cedar Grove got into the act by donating the perfect snowman nose, a giant orange traffic cone. A large garbage can serves as the snowman’s hat and branches are his arms.

Mr. Frosty’s builders have enlisted their super-sized snowman to raise funds for Children’s Wisconsin hospital. For a ten dollar donation, donors can guess when the last of Mr. Frosty melts into oblivion. The entry states, “The snowman will be checked every day at 6:00 p.m. When the snowman is completely melted at that 6:00 p.m. time, that date will be the winning day.” Sponsors have donated generous cash prizes for the winning entries.

I’m betting that Mr. Frosty will be around until the crocuses poke their heads up in spring.

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This week’s blog is a riddle. Here are twelve clues. The beautiful answer is revealed in the short video that follows.

• They can be eaten.
• They can be worn.
• They can be collected at the beach.
• They grow in gardens and forests
• Some animals sport them.
• Some animals turn themselves into them.
• Artists love to draw and paint them.
• Mathematicians are fond of them as well.
• They can be walked up and down on.
• They are popular toys.
• They are the physical structure of DNA.
• We all live in a gigantic one.

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Many things in life start small. Sometimes on a whim. And then they get a wee bit out of hand. Here is a delightful example of this phenomenon.

Avery and Doris Sisk of Collettsville, North Carolina, own a small summer cabin at the end of an unpaved rural road. One day, 17 years ago, they visited a flea market and bought a box containing 15 collectible mugs. They took their purchase home, got out some nails and hung the mugs up. Deciding that the mugs added to their decor, they bought a few more…and then a few more. At last count, they have 30,000 mugs.

Every square inch of their cabin walls both inside and outside is sheathed in mugs. Fences, an entrance arch and an outbuilding are also mugged. These collectors have created a top-notch roadside attraction.

Visitors are welcome and admission is free. Many tourists bring a mug to add to the display. If no nail is found, visitors have started to hang mugs from the trees. The “House of Mugs” is an ongoing project.

I am fond of mugs and have a small collection in my upper cupboard. But I best keep my eye on them: I don’t want to get overly mugged.

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Pandas are high on the list of charismatic animals. My husband, however, is resistant to their furry charms. For decades, he’s staged a one man panda vendetta. So it’s good news to him that China is recalling their pandas.

His loathing of pandas started in 1972. Richard Nixon and his wife Patricia visited China, and Mrs. Nixon blurted out “I love them” to the Chinese premier. Two months later, a panda couple, Ling-Ling and Hsing-Hsing, arrived at the National Zoo in Washington D.C. and America went panda crazy.

Prior to the arrival of the pandas, my husband and I had planned a visit to D.C. We wanted our young children to experience all the wonderful monuments and museums in our nation’s capital. A trip to the zoo had not been on our itinerary. But how could we deny our two young children a visit to those black and white fur balls?

While viewing the pandas, my spouse was only seeing United States tax dollars flying out the window. Our nation paid one million dollars per year to China for the privilege of hosting the bears. That fee was just the start of the money flow. A bamboo grove was planted for them, specialized vets were hired to tend them and zookeepers kept a round-the-clock watch over them. “Cute” came at a high cost.

Those first bears were our guests for ten years, and replacements were sent when the original bears went home to enjoy their golden years. Three other zoos in Atlanta, San Diego and Memphis have subsequently hosted panda visitors. But with rising tensions between the United States and China, the remaining pandas are being recalled. The era of panda diplomacy is ending. The only remaining pandas are in the Atlanta Zoo, and they are scheduled to return next year.

The National Zoo pandas recently got a police escort to their plane, the Panda Express. A veterinarian, two zookeepers and 220 pounds of bamboo accompanied them on their trip home. The dollars keep flying.

Ever since that first encounter, my husband scowls at the sight or mention of pandas. In his opinion, if we wanted cute, we could have bought a carload of koalas, free and clear, from Australia and had money left over to bank.

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