Monday, August 3, 2015

Summertime moments




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Goldfish are a popular theme throughout summer in Japan. I've had fun collecting adorable goldfish fans, fabrics, and even foods like this beautiful summertime wagashi. It's a traditional Japanese sweet made with boiled, sweetened beans and gelatin (usually seaweed to roots based). There are several wagashi shops near my neighborhood and I so excited to find both a goldfish and a hydrangea themed one in early July.


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Illuminated tanabata decorations at our local shrine, Akagi in Kagurazaka. It was beautiful to see the stars and paper crafts lit by lantern light.


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Also at Akagi Shrine, a live performance of traditional Chinese style transfer puppets. There were live instrumentalists playing music and a live narrator. It was a Japanese ghost story for summertime, when they traditionally liked to be scared to 'cool off'.....It was a really cool experience to see it done live, and the fact that it was a ghost story was the best icing on the cake for me.


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a cute train station out of Kyoto.


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Cute pink stairs near kappabashi


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we had a beautiful midsummer picnic in yoyogi park in June



love,
from Japan,
Kathryn

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