Rose Garden @ Suma Rikyu Park

I went to Suma rikyu Park 須磨離宮公園 the other day. I've been living quite near from here for almost 20 years, but I didn't even know there's such a huge and nice rose garden which is open to the public every year.

It was such a warm & sunny day, perfect weather for taking photos!

HAPPY MOTHER'S DAY!

Cherry blossoms in full bloom

At a nearby park. They are just now at their best in my place!

Giant Rubber Ducky in Osaka

Last Thursday was a day off and it was too sunny to stay inside, so I took a train ride to Nakanoshima (Osaka), to see the giant rubber ducky which was floating on the river in the midst of a big city from Oct.22nd until 30th.

?!???!?! 

Can you see that small yellow thing in this pic?

There it is!

Hello Canon EOS Kiss X5!

Today I got something I've really wanted for a long time - Yes, my own DSLR ( Cannon EOS Kiss X5 ) camera! I have put up some photos taken by a DSLR camera on this blog, but actually it was not my own camera, I was using my mother's one. Of course I'll keep using my old digital camera that I have used so far cause I love it, but as I start browsing great & more professional photos on my friends' blogs I got more fascinated by them, and they made me want to get one. Well, I admit it cost me a lot, but since I ordered it online it was actually quite a good deal for the latest one from Cannon. I'm still just a beginner and it has too many functions, so I guess it will take a long time until I get used to it (and I'm already sick of reading the instruction :-p ). Now that I have my own good camera, I'm going outside more and I'll fully enjoy this beautiful season in Japan. And of course, I'll put up more pics on this blog from now on.

Happy fall y'all,
Yuka

Okayama Korakuen Lightup night 2011

Some photos of this summer that I haven't posted yet on this blog.

Okayama Castle

My Recent Foto Gallery

Alriiiiight, so, it's been 2 months since I got an iPhone 4. I've been so addicted to my new phone that I can't think about backing to any normal Japanese mobiles. At first I found it pretty confusing to use it cause it was quite different from my former one, but I've already got used to it.Now I can connect the internet pretty smoothly anytime & anywhere, and also it always gives me the correct directions even when I get lost, which helps me a lot. 
And what I've been addicted to lately is editing photos with my iPhone. With some great photo applications, you can easily make photos artistic.Since I just found loads of photos that I've taken & edited with my iPhone so far in my hard disk, I'm gonna show you some of them in this post.Enjoy!

A market in Tsuruhashi / Osaka.

Best.Ramen.Ever.

At the park near my house.

A bunch of muscat that my grandma's neighbor sent us.

In the restaurant.

The Pumpkin's

A blue sky.

Taken w/ Canon EOS kiss x4 and edited by Tiltshift(iPhone application)

 A fall festival held at a shrine in my neighboring city on Oct 14. The performance was just amazing.

Beautiful sunset.

Don't judge things just by their appearances, just try it.

Cute monkeys!I love the idea!

And I love Chinese foods.

 So. Much.

Ohhhh, so many photos!!!!

Which one did you like the best? ;)

Fireworks!!

In Japan, it's the season of summer festivals right now. Since last weekend, a lot of firework festivals have been held in many places in Japan, and this season will last until around the middle of August. 

Personally I like seeing fireworks very much. Not only the fireworks itself, I also like the atmosphere of the festival. A lot of people wearing Yukata(a casual summer Kimono), the tasty smell of foods coming from the street stalls, and so on.  

I've already been to see fireworks at two places, one was last Saturday in Okayama,where my uni is, and the other was held last Sunday in my hometown, Kakogawa. Both places were so crowded with thousands of people, but since one of my friends had kept a good space for us in advance, we could view the fireworks from a pretty good position.

   

It's hard to take photos of fireworks...I took more than 100 photos, but 90% of them were completely blurred

    

   
I like this one :)
   

    
I heard this year's fireworks display was scaled down compared to the last year's, but still, it impressed me a lot.
   

    
There were so many stalls along the riverside. I got a skewer of grilled chicken and fried noodles, and had them watching the fireworks - Yum!!
   

The night view of Okayama Castle - Gorgeous, isn't it?

I also took a video! 

I've got one more fireworks display I am going to see, which is on next Saturday. I'm really looking forward to it!!

2009.10.10. Driving across Awaji & Kagawa

Last week I went for a drive to 淡路島Awaji island/Hyogo, and 香川Kagawa located on Shikoku island, with my family. Our weekend-small trip plans always come out of the blue and the destinations are decided just about 5 minutes before we leave our home, and usually, with no detailed plan.I like it though.

Click the pictures below to see the larger versions:)

This is 明石海峡大橋 Akashi-Kaikyo bridge, the world's longest bridge which links Kobe on the mainland of Honshu and Awaji island.The length of the bridge is about 4km. 

This one is 大鳴門橋 Onaruto-Bridge,connecting Awaji island with Shikoku island

Our route map:]

栗林公園 Ritsurin Garden / Kagawa (栗林 chestnut grove) 
 This garden is one of the most famous and most beautiful historical parks in Japan. This park contains a tea house, various  exhibits , as well as various folk art and craft items for sale.It generally takes one to two hours to walk to see through the park.There are various bridges,pine trees, footpaths and small hills which offer a beautiful view of the park and the surrounding scenery, most notably Mt. Shuin 紫雲山 at the western border of the park.

There are thousands of Koi in every small lake in the park.They were beautiful yet huge, which kinda scared me =s

A view from the hill in Ritsurin Garden. Beautiful, isn't it? 

A view of a beautiful Sunset from Awaji PA

A night view of Akashi-Kaikyo Bridge (called pearl-bridge)

It was such a beautiful, and  a perfect fall day for driving.We saw some small fall festivals being held to celebrate a good harvest on the way in Shikoku, which was quite interesting for me cause they were celebrating in their own local,traditional and unique ways.I've never experienced to grow things like grains, but from their performance, I could see how much having a good harvest supports their lives and how important it is to them.

It's officially getting colder. All the leaves in the University campus have been turning yellow, as if they were getting ready for winter. People enjoying reading and playing in the park makes me fell happy and relaxed. I just love this atmosphere and all the smells of fall. 

Would like to see more photos? Click here!

Today's proverb - Don't put all your eggs in the man.