The Yoshino You Know

I made an unscheduled trip to Yoshino this morning. One of the most famous cherry blossom spots in Japan, it's only 45 minutes south of me by train but I procrastinated going the past couple springs. This morning I put on a pink shirt and thought, what the hell, I'll go right now.

It was kind of silly to go on a Sunday. I've been off for about a month so I could have gone on a week day. Instead, I chose to go when all the trains were packed with people.

Yet there were lots of quiet, peaceful spots, despite the crowds.

Someone broke a cup:

I bought no souvenirs, just some sakura mochi and a bottle of sake. The former are good and tart, the latter I'll drink to-night while enjoying the natural splendour of Skyrim.

X Sonnet #1832

To crash molasses, grapes were smashed with plums.
Detective roofs descend on guilty floors.
The graves of teeth were black in pregnant gums.
Another mouth awaits through talking doors.
Unending springs for steam could not be crossed.
The mammoth corpse provoked a pack of wolves.
A jacket's colour cooked the penguin lost.
A lover's judgement ran on wooden hooves.
Angelic dogs discoursed on tasty gin.
Disturbing strings would cut guitars to bone.
A final whistle changed to tranquil tin.
Contentment buzzed for ears across the phone.
A cherry glamour broke between the chips.
No movie's just a set of little clips.

The Last Blossoms

I took this picture at Shin-Osaka Station this morning. I was in Osaka for a meeting, in a part of northern Osaka called Ibaraki, one station north of Shin-Osaka by Rapid Express.

Here's a street in Ibaraki from an elevated platform.

The meeting involved a whole room full of foreign English teachers like myself. It was strange being in a room with so many native English speakers. The majority of the teachers seem to be either Australian or Filipino but there were a few Brits and Yanks. There were also a few whose first language isn't English. Japan is even more desperate for English teachers now due to Covid.

The cherry blossoms are famously short lived. I noticed some trees were already starting to turn green when I left.

Twitter Sonnet #1569

The easy eyes were rolling tens or twelves.
We counted more than cash to crack the scales.
The heavy tree was thick with Keebler Elves.
The violent sea was choked with screaming whales.
With heavy hair the climber gripped the snow.
From mountain heights connexions froze the frame.
Discussions turned around the things we know.
The wind and rain revealed a second name.
Dessert attacked before the dinner rose.
A field of cake was easy not for sweets.
A candy button pressed the guarded rows.
Assume the kitchen salts the larder meats.
Across the city, green consumes the pink.
The flames await beyond the falling brink.

“Caroline Laughs and It's Raining All Day . . .”

It's cherry blossom season here in Japan so I went around town to-day with some friends to journey through the ephemeral clouds of pink.

One of my friends took a picture of me taking pictures. This was by a river in Gose.

I took some macro shots:

It was rainy and a bit chilly.

This was by a river in Asuka:

We also visited Abe-Monjuin Temple in Sakurai.

This stone tomb on the grounds dates from the 7th century:

These flowers are for the Year of the Tiger. Can you tell?

Twitter Sonnet #1568

Revolving plates were laden last with leeks.
The ham was burned to pull the juices out.
The heavy wolf had taxed the penguin beaks.
Insightful steam emerged from Jeffries' spout.
The message turned the pigeon back to ponds.
Reverting trees to paper caused a deal.
To cast a book, we turn a page to wands.
The picture text could make the sentence real.
The yarn's a waving line between the beats.
To summon beasts, extend the film a day.
The grill accepts a vast array of meats.
There's something else the fat would like to say.
The atmosphere was pink and flowed to earth.
A petal cloud engulfed the stony berth.