CONTRIBUTED BY STACI HAWLEY

It's always a good thing to learn about the beauty that surrounds you. When you have a four year old son, you often get asked questions...that well are just insightful and usually start with WHY. Not pretending to be a Koi-expert, I swam around the internet to find some fun facts about our large scaled friends.

1. Koi are omnivorous, and will even eat peas, lettuce and watermelon. They have even been know to eat the scrappings found in the bottom of my stroller (only when the koi food machine is out of pellets).

2. The oldest koi was named "Hanako" and reportedely lived to 226 years (they removed her scales to determine her lifespan). Read about her here.

3. Koi will produce thousands of "unacceptable" and genetically deficient offspring in one single spawning.

4. Koi actually means "carp" in Japanese, and the homophone "koi" means love and affection.

5. You can breed a goldfish and a carp, but their offspring are sterile. Why you would try that is simply put, akward.

6. Koi were first bred in Japan in the 1720's.

7. Koi have interesting barbel on their lips.

8. There are no Koi fish in Antartica. Lucky for Koi, no Koi-sicles.

9. Good places for Koi feeding frenzies are the Okinawa Zoo, Fukushu-en garden ,and the Comprehensive Park .

10. Buying pirated Koi is a criminal act.

And above those captivating koi are the floating flowers called lotus.

Lotus flowers or "water lilies" are simple put, lovely. My travels throughout Japan, as well as Southeast Asia has solidified my love for this floating flower. They can turn any common pond into a floral mecca. Wouldn't that look nice in a patch of lawn back home.

1. The lotus is the national flower of India and Vietnam.

2. It's often seen as a symbol of purity.

3. The logo for Vietnam Airlines is a golden lotus.

4. The lotus root (with hamburger cooked in the center holes) is a tasty dish. See some cool recipes here. Although I beleive the lotus root and the flower are two different things. Still has the word lotus, though.

5. You can also use the lotus as the makings of a craft- (see below):

6. Our Hindu goddess statue (bought in Korea) rests upon a Lotus. Which rests upon a Koi. Now that's ironic.

7. Beware of becoming a lotus-eater. You may never want to leave Okinawa.

8. If you want to know the makings of a good Lotus pond, read a testimony here.

9. If you're visiting Bloomington, Indiana check out the Lotus festival.

It's a silly post- but I have been thinking a lot lately about how I can adapt some cultural treasures into American life. So dear readers, what aspects of Japanese culture do you hope to bring stateside when your tour is complete? Do share.