Sakura

Kyoto - Nanzen-ji

Nanzen-ji (南禅寺), the head temple for the Rinzai Zen sect, down the Philosopher's Path from Ginkaku-ji (Silver Pavilion): http://nanzenji.com/index.html. Pictures of, inter alia, the imposing Sanmon gate, aqueduct, and Hojo.

Fushimi - Gekkeikan Okura Sake Museum

After a little hike at the Fushimi Inari Shrine, we made it to Fushimi and visited the Gekkeikan Okura Sake Museum where there were various displays showing the traditional process for making sake and, most importantly, samples.

Big barrel . . .

The end result . . .

Choken-ji Temple? Not sure, but there were a couple of sake barrels at this gate, as well as sakura blooming in the courtyard.

Fushimi Inari Taisha

Fushimi Inari Taisha (伏見稲荷大社). A little side trip on the way to the sake brewery was more than we bargained for.

One of many foxes (kitsune) at the Shrine.

Think: "Memoirs of a Geisha"

Nothing like an unknown bird on a stick after a long hike . . .

Kyoto - Kiyomizu Temple

Kiyomizu-dera (清水寺) - a little early for sakura.

Kyoto - Kitano Tenman-gu and Kinkaku-ji

Kitano Tenman-gu Shrine (北野天満宮) and Kinkaku-ji (金閣寺) in Kyoto.



The main hall, hidden behind tourists.

Plum blossoms (I believe). Apparently Sugawara no Michizane, to whom the shrine is dedicated, was fond of plum trees:

http://www.kitanotenmangu.or.jp/eigo/index.html

Wedding couple at Kitano Tenman-gu:

The Golden Pavilion under dark skies. You can read the book by Mishima.

Nara

Some pix from Nara - Todai-ji (東大寺) and Kasuga Taisha (春日大社), both in the Nara Park (aka "Deer Park").

Kyoto - Hanami

Some pix from Kyoto - Higashiyama, Nanzen-ji, Kiyamachi and Gion.

Himeji Castle

Himeji-jo (姫路城) with blooming sakura.

The sakura were blooming nicely at Himeji-jo. A couple of lunatics were locked away in the castle's donjon.

Hawaiian Great Wall

While Al was off in China, his co-workers decided to construct their own "Great Wall" consisting of soon-to-be recycled telephone directories. The result, as you can see, is that Al's workspace was completely walled off.

Beijing Rush Hour

Rush hour in Beijing appears in many ways to be similar to rush hour in the U.S. or Japan - lots and lots of buses, trucks, taxis and passenger cars jamming the expressways. On the city streets, though, there also are mopeds, bicycles and pedestrians. Plus a horse drawn cart or two! I didn't see any joggers - probably too dangerous given the chaotic traffic conditions.