Hanami (Sakura festival) in Tokyo.
Kyoto is considered the cultural capital of Japan and is home to numerous Buddhist temples, Shinto shrines, palaces and gardens a few of which are UNESCO World Heritage Sites. We stayed in Gion, which is one of the most exclusive and well-known geiko (geisha) districts in Japan.
Our day trip to Arashiyama, Kyoto. Lunch at Itsuki Chaya Arashiyama Honten by the Katsura River where the Togetsu-kyo Bridge is located.
The bridge is the site of an important initiation for local children. Young boys and girls (the latter clad in kimono) first receive a blessing from a local temple and then make their way across the bridge under orders to do so without looking back. otherwise it is bad luck.
The name Togetsu, meaning moon crossing, stems from a tale involving the Kamakura period Emperor Kameyama. During a boating party under a full moon, the emperor thought the moon looked like it was crossing the bridge.
The bridge was first built in 836, while the current one was finished in 1934. Although the bridge appears to be made of wood, its columns and beams are reinforced concrete, and only the parapets are made from cypress.
A day trip in Osaka out of Kyoto. Visited Osaka Castle and its surrounding parks. Kaiseki lunch at Ajikitcho Bunbu-an at St. Regis. Capped the day off with a tour of the Dotonbori's shopping district.
Buddhist breakfast at the ryokan in Gion. Shinkansen from Kyoto to Tokyo with views of the Japanese countryside in the fall.
A sampling of culinary establishments we visited in Tokyo from our first visit. We can't wait to come back!
Rainy Tokyo Nights. I shot less footage in Tokyo as it was periodically drizzling. Instead I brought the smaller camera and shot mostly photographs. These were taken in Shinjuku and Shibuya. Trying street photography in a country that is home to my favorite photography manufacturers (Sony, Fujifilm, Mamiya, Epson, and Canon) was a dream come true, more so in the part of Tokyo which has character. The added bonus was that Tokyo is one of the most sufficiently lit cities in the world, which made it ideal for night photography. What an adventure.