Hello! This is my first BLOG so please bear with me. I have been living and working in Japan as an English teacher since August 2006. During that time I have taken hundreds of photos, but sadly have not done much to pass them onto friends and family....it is easier to travel and take the pictures than it is to compile them into a coherent monologue. So I will try this BLOG as a means of keeping you up to date of my activities, as well as reviewing events leading up to the present I feel worth passing on.

First, let's start with a few Cherry Blossom photo's. Japan just went through a SAKURA (Cherry Blossom) season, lasting about two weeks. The Japanese just go crazy over the pink blossoms....they are only around for such a short time period and are so beautiful that there is a big rush by millions of people to enjoy them. Hence, there are cherry trees all over the country.

For two weeks Japan is PINK!!.

It is a big deal here. Recently I saw on TV the national weather bureau chiefs publicly apologising for not predicting the correct dates for the blossoming this year...it was late by a couple of weeks, but that error meant lost money in towns hosting festivals, publishing pamphlets, cooking food, organising entertainment, etc.

I spent my last weekend in Himeji at their SAKURA Hanami (Cherry Blossom picnic) festival.
Himeji has a huge castle overlooking the city.

It is a real castle on the World Heritage list and still maintains its original structural integrity. It also has a beautiful garden surrounding it full of cherry trees.

Thousands of people showed up, families setting up picnics under cherry trees, having lunch, enjoying the views and festivities.

Besides the blossoms, we were entertained by Taiko drums, KOTO (Japanese stringed instrument) players and fan dancers.

Camera's were everywhere snapping away at the pink trees and mine was no exception.

Hope you enjoy them.