Japanese couple @ Nijo Castle (二条城)
A Japanese couple walks the paths near Honmaru on the Nijo Castle (Kyoto) grounds in summer yukata
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Posts tagged people
Koreans playing hanafuda
Korean hanafuda
I frequently see Koreans playing games with Japanese hanafuda cards. Alcohol is always involved, usually large amounts of soju. According to Wikipedia, “in South Korea, the cards are called Hwatu (화투)” and “the name literally translates as battle of flowers.” Two of the most common Hwatu games are Go-stop (고스톱) and Seotda (섯다). Again, according to Wiki, “Hwatu is very commonly played in South Korea during special holidays such as the Lunar New Years, and also during the Korean holiday of Chuseok (추석).” I haven’t seen it limited to these occasions. It is hard to not go for a hike, take a bike ride, or just walk past a park in the neighborhood without seeing a group of Koreans playing. If only I could speak Korean; I could join in…
Park talk
Old Korean ladies chatting in the park
With summer in Korea being as hot and humid as it is, it is not surprising to find these old ladies in the park every day. Perhaps they don’t have AC at home. Usually they are sleeping in this little pavilion in the park, but on this occasion they were actually conscious.
09年 新宿西早稲田の天祖神社のお神輿
天祖神社
In just over two weeks I will be back in Japan. I won’t get to visit my old stomping grounds near Waseda University until August, but when pics like the one above come up as my desktop image of the day I feel 懐かしい.
Tokyo Marathon 2013 results
Tokyo Marathon 2010 in the rain (Iidabashi, Tokyo, Japan)
Today’s Tokyo Marathon 2013 had Kazuhiro Maeda as the top Japanese finisher. Four of the top five finishers were from Kenya with the winner being Dennis Kipruto Kimetto.
I remember, very well, a wet morning three years ago when I was there. Click here for more photos and video from that day.
Setsubun (節分)
鬼は外! 福は内!
Today is Setsubun (節分) in Japan. This photo is from the Setsubun bean-throwing festivities at nearly 1,300 year-old Rinnoji (輪王寺) in Nikko. Before the bean throwing, a procession marched to the temple carrying flags, blowing horns, and performing other ritualistic behaviors (as snow fell on us all). This guy did a little sword work in front of the temple, perhaps exercising some demons in the process.