2012-08-15

Zushi Beach

Visited this beach in the summer of 2012. Very few people where I was but the waves were a bit rough and overwhelming for enjoying time in the water. 


The wind created perfect conditions for sailing and windsurfing.


Splashes of water feel good on sunburnt skin, but kind of freak me out if the camera gets wet!


Some folks lay out a towel on this rocks to chill out and "worship" the sun once they dry off during low tide.


Wonder what a lone windsurfer is thinking at this time. Where he wants to go? How to get back to the beach?


Beautiful sunny day and extremely lucky that the cloud cover dissipated before reaching our end of the bay. 


Am sure these rock were once sharp and jagged. Amazing how water, wind, and ice and transform them into smooth rocks that look like molded putty!

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2012-08-01

Glass and Steel


The Yokohama Grand Inter-Continental Hotel is one of my favorite landmarks in the waterfront area of Yokohama. I'll probably never be able to stay in this hotel, but at least we can take pictures of it from outside!


The Yokohama Bay Hotel Tokyu is a little bit older and more affordable. Depending on the room, you get a wonderful view of the entire bay. By the same token, depending on the room, your "wonderful" view might be blocked by Yokohama Grand Inter-Continental Hotel.


With all the fireworks we had tonight, a full moon was also shining down upon us! A night of nights for sure!


Around the area, they have pieces of old equipment, pumps, etc., that were used when this area used to be an industrial dockyard. It's fun to see what countries these items came from and love to imagine how they were able to offload such huge and heavy items of the ships back in the days without hi-tech cranes!

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Nippon Maru


After getting something to snack on and something cold to drink, headed back to the train station on the way home. Tonight, the Japanese sail training ship, Nippon Maru, was on full display and lit up tonight.


Not only did the water reflect the surrounding skyscrapers, hotels, and the ship itself, but also the rainbow of colors coming from the Ferris wheel nearby.


The ship was built in 1930 and retired in 1984. Now, volunteers work to provide visitors to the ship educational programs about sea life on sailing vessel. There is a museum nearby that is also a big attraction for tourists and students.


The ship is moored in what remains of the original dockyards there were here in Minato Mirai before the city of Yokohama converted the dockyards into a waterfront park. 


My favorite picture of all. I like the old ship, the modern skyscrapers, and the colorful Ferris wheel in this shot.

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Fireworks Food


During and after the fireworks show, many small stalls were located nearby selling all kinds of western-style and Japanese-style snacks ranging from hot dogs to squid-on-a-stick.


Other stands sold beer, snow cones, and just anything you could think of to help one cool off in the hot, humid weather. I wonder how the folks living in the nearby condos feel about having a front-seat view to the fireworks and a front-seat view to the garbage left strewn all over the place the following morning? 


Yakitori is still one of my favorite foods since coming to Japan. It's still a bit pricey, so I only enjoy it on special occasions. 

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Moon Sail


Landmark Tower on the right and and Queen's Square office/shopping complex on the left (the three-tiered building). I love going to Queen's Square for Starbucks and Krispy Kreme! 


The Ferris wheel alternates with different colors and different times of night. My guess is with the red, they are maybe trying to emulate the fireworks display we just enjoyed. 


One of the more iconic hotels in Yokohama. The upper structure of the hotel is like the shape of a sail. Aesthetics meets functional design.


We were lucky to catch a full moon tonight. A nice way to top off a night of fireworks!

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Happy Birthday 2012


For the first time in many years, I actually took a day off on my birthday and went to see some fireworks.


This fireworks display is sponsored every year by the Kanagawa Shinbun newspaper publisher. 


Actual fireworks are shot of barges anchored in Tokyo Bay in the Port of Yokohama off the coast of Minato Mirai 21, Yokohama.


I wanted to take more pictures,  but had a hard time trying to use the camera in the dark. 

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2012-07-31

Kugenuma - Mt. Fuji


Went to the beach this afternoon after work. Was glad to see the beaches were still somewhat clean.


An added bonus was to be able to catch a clear view of Mt. Fuji. The grainy shot is a result of taking these shots with an iPhone 4S. Not the best camera for landscape shots. 

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