Took a ten-day trip to Edinburgh, and shall catch up with a number of posts, dated approximately to the right dates.
First off, a number of sunsets from the high window in our friend’s apartment where we stayed.
Edinburgh Castle
Category Archives: Travel
Wandering a Shotengai
I love shotengai, or shopping arcades, in Japan. Here are a few shots from the one in Himeji leading from the station to the castle.
Visiting Sakamoto Ryoma Memorial
Visiting the statue of Sakamoto Ryoma at the memorial museum on the island of Shikoku, Japan, in April.
Ryoma is likely one of the most popular figures in Japanese history, with many a TV drama and movie about his life. Wikipedia.
Shikoku Turtle Museum
We visited this research center and museum on the island of Shikoku in Japan in April. Loggerhead turtles use the nearby beach for nesting, but unfortunately records of nests have dropped precipitously 
.
How to Distract Samurai Guarding a Castle
A few weeks ago, Yumi demonstrated how to distract the samurai at a castle wall in Japan while the ninja climb over. . . 
Yumi is an amazingly good sport. Not to mention an amazingly good travel organizer.
My Favorite Shot From April Japan Trip
One of my fave photos from Ritsurin Garden in Takamatsu. It was almost like they set up the shot for me .
A newly married couple posing for photos, and tourists in a poled boat passing in front.
I saw the composition shaping up from a distance, and took off running toward them to get the angle. Crazy foreigners :-).
Lovely Town of Uchiko on Shikoku Island, Japan
We had the historic town of Uchiko on Shikoku Island in Japan nearly to ourselves in mid-April — love traveling in low season!
There is also a lovely restored kabuki theater in this town, but that’ll wait for another post.
Now that’s a lovely mail box
Takamatsu Castle Ruins, Shikoku, Japan
A few photos from the Takamatsu Castle ruins a few weeks ago during our Japan travels.
The Ghost of Marugame Castle
Yumi playing the role of The Ghost of Marugame Castle, on Shikoku Island, Japan, a few weeks ago.
I’ve never heard of a Ghost of Marugame, but Yumi makes a pretty good one. . .
I am aware that some castle construction sites in Japan do have ghosts in the form of labourers who were tossed down into pits or well shafts as sacrifices, hundreds of years ago . . .
Dang, I thought I left the keys to the castle in here somewhere. . .
Koi at Ritsurin Garden in Takamatsu, Japan
Attempting the zoom-during-exposure technique despite the bright sunshine 🙂 Couldn’t quite stop down/slow down enough even at the lowest ISO, but still fun.