By Andrea Romano, Travel + Leisure
Some cats never get to have any fun.
For the last two years, a couple of cats — one black and one orange tabby — have been desperately trying to enter an art museum in Japan, to no avail. According to The Evening Standard, the black cat started showing up in June 2016 when the museum held a cat exhibition. The orange cat started showing up soon after.
Both kitties clearly wanted tickets. And apparently still do.
A guard at the Hiroshima Onomichi City Museum actually spend most of his day shooing the cats away from the automatic doors. Video footage from a museum staff-run Twitter page that is dedicated to every movement that the cats make show the patient guard gently blocking the cats’ entry.
Sometimes he has to pick them up and move them away, but he usually does it with a nice pat on the head after. Luckily, this guard is clearly a cat person.
People have been showing their love for the cats on Twitter, many of whom say the little felines should be let in — you know, so they can get a little culture.
Has someone tried just giving them a fake museum next to the real museum so they'll just enter that? @megthesmith @jrbowes
— Ming Zhou (@its__ming) November 14, 2018
@ramenmcnoodles my god
— Eli's Musk (@Elijah_Gk) November 14, 2018
this is discrimination https://t.co/jlaBijmXeg
— el gato montés (@elgatomontes_) November 14, 2018
there’s a whole twitter page dedicated to these cats in japan trying to enter an art museum
— el gato montés (@elgatomontes_) November 14, 2018
there’s a whole twitter page dedicated to these cats in japan trying to enter an art museum
— el gato montés (@elgatomontes_) November 14, 2018
there’s a whole twitter page dedicated to these cats in japan trying to enter an art museum
— el gato montés (@elgatomontes_) November 14, 2018
Even more people have been sharing the adorable pictures and videos from the dedicated Twitter page, including one involving the black cat immediately (and delightfully) rolling on its back as soon as the guard comes over to shoo it away.
映像『入られんよ。can’t come in. 』（H301109）スタッフ撮影の美術館周辺の猫スナップをご紹介。（spin off 2018、不定期配信） #尾道 #千光寺公園 #尾道市立美術館 #猫 #黒猫 #cat #onomichi pic.twitter.com/DweFZTC8nF
— 尾道市立美術館 (@bijutsu1) November 9, 2018
The cats are presumably strays, since no one seems to have claimed them even through their viral fame.
But the museum has taken the liberty to name the cats themselves, according to MSN. The black cat is named Ken-Chan and the tabby is named Gosaku. Now that the cats seem to be a permanent staple, merchandise and souvenirs are available in the museum lobby, according to the Evening Standard.
A museum in Japan spends most of its day refusing entry to 2 cats trying to get in @bijutsu1 pic.twitter.com/WK4M3Y51hc
— Rajiv (@jiffington) November 13, 2018
Considering that these cultured kitties have brought a bit of revenue to the museum, it seems only fair that they could get admission – at least for one day.
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