Hanami Part 2

This past Saturday we had our church Hanami Party. We went to Shukugawa, a park considered the best place in kansai to view cherry blossoms. There were so many people there and some of the spreads looked amazing.





I wasn't the most intrepid photographer.





Here is our humble branch Hanami. We had a tarp but no carpeting, bentos but no grill and water but no beer or sake.

Sakura!!

Thursday's weather was beautiful and these are photos from our neighborhood.

Hanami Part 1

On April 7th we went to our first Hanami Party. Hanami means flower watching, specifically cherry blossoms.
The way it works is you go with a group, sit under cherry trees, eat until you are stuffed, and drink until you're rosy cheeked. We went with a large group from RIKEN. Can you see Craig? Unfortunately, this spring has been cold and the cherry blossoms have been slow to bloom. Part 2 is happening this Saturday and, from what I've heard, the trees will be in full bloom. There will be more pictures.
This is The Awesome Naoko showing off some tiny taiyaki. Usually they're the size of your hand so these were quite the novelty. If you remember, I posted an unwrapping video of one we ate in Tokyo.

Spring Showers in Kobe

We've been having crazy spring weather. Some days it is sunny and warm, then it will pour rain and be cold. The trains have been delayed for hours because of the wind. On one particularly mercurial Saturday we decided to stay local and check out a famous Shinto Shrine. The place was originally built in the 1600s on a battleground and a very famous warrior was enshrined there.

After the shrine we headed down to the water and enjoyed a brief sun break. When it started to pour we headed to Mosaic, a giant mall on the water. Below is a picture of a menu from a restaurant where you can eat with your dog. No joke, you and your dog sit at the table and enjoy lunch. You can see the dog menu on the lower right.