Shi-sa Park

We found this huge Shi-sa lion dog the other day. . right in the middle of a park! :) OK, it was the park. Maybe you've seen these as good-luck charms. Taken from my phone book - "The idea is said to have come from the blend of Chinese and Japanese religions. Shi-sas are placed at the entrance of homes, shrines, graves, and on rooftops. They are placed in pairs: the one with the mouth open represents the male getting rid of evil and the one with the mouth closed is a female holding the happiness." They are on many rooftops here - mostly made of unglazed ceramic. We even have a pair on our towers. They make a popular collectible it seems. 

I kept A. in the picture on the bottom left so you can see how large he is! She wanted to climb up to the top using those outside rungs, but I made her take the inside stairs. Once she was inside the mouth, she refused to go down either of the concrete slides. Concrete slides are surprisingly fast, by the way. :)