After the rain

When I passed through the shrine gate, I felt a faint scent. I looked around to find a fragrant olive tree. Though most of its flowers had already faded, their scent seemed to become stronger after the rain.

The eve of Matsue Drum Parade Festival

Matsue "Dou-gyoretsu", Drum Parade Festival, will be held tomorrow. As the eve event, Large floats, on which "Dou" (a kind of Japanese drum) were placed, appeared at the plaza in front of Matsue Castle. Visitors tried to play the "Dou" following neighborhood old men's example.

Cosmos festival

While I was absobed in taking pictures of cosmos in East Sanbe Flower Valley, a bee cut in between my camera and cosmos.

Nakaumi sightseeing cruise

I enjoyed the sightseeing cruise from Matsue to Sakaiminato via Nakaumi. Nakaumi is a blackish lake and one of the Ramsar sites in Japan. The bridge in the above photo is "Eshima Oohashi" (the Big bridge of Eshima). According to the guide, there are dolfins near this bridge. Just after the boat passed under the bridge, I could see a tail fin for a moment.

Matsue Castle Grand Tea Ceremony

"Dai-cha-kai", the grand tea ceremony was held at Matsue Castle. In Japanese tea ceremony, green powdered tea and seasonal "wagashi" (Japanese confectionery) are served. So I was very surprised to see the tea ceremony performed by the Houen school, where black tea and a bite-sized cake were served. According to the tea master of the Houen School, the color of the served black tea was compared to the sunset of Lake Shinji.