Tenjin Festival

The Tenjin Festival in Osaka is one of Japan's major festivals.  One of the features of this festival is a boat parade in the evening along with fireworks.

Gion Festival, the second parade.

I got a chance to see the second parade in it's entirety from a shady spot before heading off to Osaka.

The following day

Due to the amount of run-off from yesterday's storms, the main river that runs through Kyoto was flowing much faster than usual.

Thunderstorms

Was taking a break from the heat before heading off to another festival when a major thunderstorm went through Kyoto. It turned the garden outside into a little bit of a pond. A major weather alert was issued so I decided to forgoe the festival as over 50 mls of rain per hour was forecast.

Terrace Dining

Kyoto is very hot and humid in summer and because it is surrounded by mountains on three sides, it doesn't get much in the ways of a breeze. One of the ways the locals try to keep cool is called Kawadoko. This is outdoor eating done on a platform over the river. The place I went to for a Kawadoko lunch was in Takao in the hills of Kyoto.

Gion Festival floats on display

Some of the floats used in the Gion Festival are displayed on the street for several days after the first parade. At night they are lit up.

Back in Kyoto.

I'm now back in Kyoto and staying at one of my favourites,  Yoshi-ima. This time my room isn't in the main building but is in a detached building in the garden.

Beer Terrace in Kashihara

It's hot and humid and looking like rain, so I decided not to head of to some fireworks quite a distance from my hotel and sit in the hotels summer beer Terrace. Beer gardens are a big thing for summer over here and are basically an open area with BBQ food and drinks. Kashihara is not really on the foreign tourist map, although it has lots of historical sites. The Kashihara hotel where I'm staying does have one person on staff who is fluent in English as she is from Melbourne, Australia...

Imai-cho

Imai-cho is an district in Kashihara,  south of Nara, wher a lot of old buildings still remain. Nice to meander around in and found an interesting eclectic Cafe.

Universal Studios Japan.

Universal Studios have a theme park in Osaka and seems to have similar attractions as their Us counterpart with a few Japanese additions. They are currently running a Cool Japan summer event with three rides based on popular Japanese animations: Sailor Moon, Attack on Titan and Evangeline Vs Godzilla. I had an express pass which included all three. They were a lot of fun and what they call 4D rides, which means 3D glasses and chairs that move and spray air/water. The Harry Potter part of the park was impressive just due to the scale.

Kameoka

Back at Sumiya Kiho-an in Kameoka.  It's a bit off the usual tourist beat in the mountains east of Kyoto. The food here is magnificent and the staff friendly,.

Curry Rice for Lunch

Possibly Britain's best export to Japan is curry, which was introduced by the Royal Navy in the 19th century.
You can also get proper Indian Curry here but I prefer the Japanese variety.

Cormorant Fishing

Certain areas of Japan have been using Cormorants to catch fish for over 1000 years. Kyoto is one of the places where you can see it done. The fishing is done at night with fires to attract the fish. The birds seem happy enough fishing.

Gion Festival

Kyoto's month long Gion Matsuri or festival is one of Japan's major festivals. One of the main attractions is parades of large Yamaboko floats such as these. The actual festival dates back to 869.

Okinawan Performance

The Shibuya Beer Street festival also has some musical performances, like this folk dancing from Okinawa. The musical instrument the guys on stage are playing is the sanshin, which is similar but predates the Japanese Shamishan. The Sanshin's body is covered by snake skin while the Shamishan traditionally has a completely different animal skin.

Shibuya Stream

For quite a while during modern times the Shibuya River was hidden underground but during recent redevelopments in the area, it has been uncovered and made a focal point of the Shibuya Stream Are.

Fireworks in Yokohama

https://photos.app.goo.gl/XvpZWhnubdNg43VZ9

In Japan

Arrived safely in Japan. 20 degrees at 10 am at Narita Airport but quite humid. Now on the bus to Yokohama.

At the airport

At the airport waiting to board. Still about an hour and a half to go. I can see my plane out the window of the lounge.