Photo with essay posted in August 2024

Thick columns filled with blessed lights were erected in front of the altar in the Wenfu Temple

Shoyoen is so beautifully restored that it is hard to believe it was built over 80 years ago

Lanterns were also hung under the arcade in the Sanfong Central Street near Sanfeng Temple, famous for its lanterns

Women were dancing with flagged sticks in their hands in the smoke created by the firecrackers

The red lanterns lined up in a row were like playing a mass game

The mother and the girl were descending the stairs in front of the Sanfong Temple in a friendly manner

The Jade Emperor was sitting between yellow lanterns, which are not seen in Japan

The lady at the breakfast store was grabbing freshly made, hot, hot Tangbao

At the end of a hanging lantern, a multi-armed Goddess of Mercy was enshrined

The escalators at the newly built Shibuya Sakura Stage were rattling

The gilded shrine pavilions of Ueno Toshogu shrine shine eerily under cloudy skies

The sacred camphor tree stretched straight up to the sky

While strolling around the ruins of the prewar Tokyo Bay fortress, robot soldier appeared out of nowhere

A procession for worldly benefits formed by the clear Mitarashi Pond

In contrast to the main shrine where there was a line, there was no one waiting in line at the temporary hall

The couple's walking figure was reflected in a puddle that had formed on the roadside

The building, with its eye-popping round windows looking down on you, is disturbing and would definitely be a den of evil if it were in a movie

The three torii gates of Tsurugaoka Hachimangu shrine, slightly warped toward the sky, look as if they are about to flap their wings into the sky

The Shinto priest reading the prayer had a grim expression on his face, as if he were facing difficulties

Glass cases line a dimly lit exhibition room, each containing a gilt bronze Buddha made in the Asuka period