As I mentioned the other day, we visited the Nanzen Temple, and on the way, stopped by to see the area where I took the Vine and Bamboo pictures that I posted last fall. It seems that the vine had come back to life, so this is the summer version of the picture.

Just like last time, I've included links to desktop-background versions in various sizes, both widescreen and standard.

The vine emerges from behind the fence in its middle, with the part growing above the center apparently new growth. I find it mildly interesting that the new growth would [...]

Taking a pause from mossy temple pictures for a moment, I'll return to our trip to Hokkaido (northern-most island in Japan) last month, and the picturesque countryside of Biei. (Previous posts on Biei: one, two, three).

More random shots from the mostly-overcast days of our visit....

I wasn't the only one to enjoy the views...

I spent the most enjoyable day today playing tour guide to some friends from The States, and although it's not as if I'm lacking pictures from Kyoto, of course I brought my camera along. We visited Kibune, drove through the mountains (seeing this village and these rice paddies), and then headed over to the Arashiyama area of Kyoto to take a look around. (While there, we stopped by Giouji knowing that it would be closed for the evening, just so they could scout its location for a later visit.)

My guests were Lawrence Solum, his sister Alex, and their [...]

When I was at the Giouji Temple (祇王寺) the other day (intro - gates and walls), I overheard a taxi driver tell his customers that there were 18 different types of moss at the temple. I believe it, and they seemed to be mixed and matched all over.

They had a little display showing the types of moss to be found on the grounds. The names are in Japanese (and seem to be native Japanese, rather than phonetic representations of the Latin names).