Where has the rainy season gone?

 The end of the 梅雨 Apricot Rains was announced officially on June 27 in Kansai region.

 Rainy season usually ends in mid-July when seasonal rain front is pushed northward
 by a strong Pacific high-pressure system. 

The temperature has hit 35 C or higher since the late June when temperatures 

are typically milder at between 25C and 30C.

I’ve loved the relatively cool weather during the Apricot Rains before the arrival of 

full force of summer. 

There are so many nice things during the season.

Rain-making post - nice things during the rainy season

Nice things during the rainy season, 2017

and all the posts labelled "rainy season"

Hydrangeas are the floral symbol of the Apricot Rains.

Hydrangeas thrive along a brook in the Nagai Botanical Garden, Osaka City.

Agapanthus

It was a hot and humid day.

I tried to be in the shade as much as possible.

Umbrella Sky suspended on a path is a popular insta-worthy spot.

These umbrellas would have served mostly as parasols during the short-lived, 

dry rainy season.

The ethereal sound of the wind bell brings out the coolness.

I love blue Hydrangeas.

Vibrant red Common coral-tree flowers and violet-colored Jacaranda shine in the summer sun.

Photographic summary of the botanical garden.

At home, the cake named Hydrangea reminded me of the Hydrangea garden.

Hydrangea Garden and a cake "Hydrangea"

Linked to Mosaic Monday

A glimpse into Expo 2025

Hearing from my daughter that her family had a great time at the Expo 2025 

at Yumeshima Island, Osaka,

I made up my mind suddenly to visit there just to see what it is like.

 I registered for an Expo ID, bought a week-day ticket, reserved admission date and time,

and I was there the next day May 8th.

The white big circle in the map below is the Grand Ring, which  is a representative symbol 

of the Expo Osaka and is the largest architectural structure in the world.

The central zones of the venue with overseas pavilions is enclosed within the Grand Ring

 as the notion of the world as one.

Though Japan Pavilion itselfl is outside the Ring, other Japanese pavilions are inside the Ring.

Expo 2025 Official Site

The Grand Ring is a vast circular structure with a circumference of 2 kilometers.

The Skywalk, the pathway on the roof, is two-tired, rising 12 to 20 meters high.

It is made of local woods, from hinoki cypress to sugi cedar.

Under the Ring is shaded and very cool with comfortable breeze from the sea.

It is the fusion of cutting-edge and traditional Japanese carpentry nuki-joints techniques 
seen in Japanese shrines and temples. 

Metal reinforcements are added for anti-earthquake measures.

Nuki is Japanese style of joint connection.

The Forest of Tranquility located at the center of the Expo site symbolizes  

humans' coexistence and harmony with nature.

It is a relaxing place amid the hustle and bustle of the site.

There are many fantastic buildings I've never seen before.

The unique, distinctive, experimental architecture is possible

because the temporal pavilions are not subject to the building standard code.

Some pavilions including Portugal, Commons-D, The US, France, Ireland, 

Canada, and Germany Pavilions

Autonomous  trash box robots patrol about 2-kilometer Grand Ring 

except on rainy days and extremely crowded days.

Visitors can dispose of trash as they pass by.

I walked along the Ring looking over the pavilions and the sea as well as skywatching.

A large globe "Earth at Night" with a diameter of 1 meter is Wajima-nuri lacquerware which is 

characterized by the delicate beauty of its jet black and gold coloring. 

The globe is a symbol of reconstruction, having miraculously remained undamaged in the Noto Earthquake January 1st, 2024.

Wajima Museum of Urushi Art

The sun is setting over the Rokko Mountains.

I'll return in the late September as  I could reserve admission to Italy Pavilion.

Linked to Mosaic Monday

Sky-dyed flowers and fresh greenery

The sky-dyed Nemophila always remind me of a poem by KANEKO Misuzu.

空色の花/Sora iro no hana/ Sky-Blue Flowers 

Listen close, you little flowers,

Color of the blue, blue sky.

Around here there used to be

A pretty black-eyed girl,

Always looking at the sky

Like I was just doing now.

Dawn to dusk the blue sky

Shining in her eyes,

They turned one day to little flowers

That even now watch the sky.

If what I say is right, why,

Flowers, you must know

More about the real true sky

Than wise professors do.

I’m always looking at the sky

And thinking lots and lots

But what’s real and true I don’t know.

I bet you see it all and do.

Wise flowers don’t say a thing,

Just keep looking at the sky.

Those blue eyes, sky-dyed,

Still aren’t tired of watching

(Translated by D.P.Dutcher)

Another post about Nemophila; The blue sea of Nemophila by the Sea of Osaka (2019)

With Sakura season behind us, new spring leaves have bursted into life.

Leaving the blue sea of Nemophila, I walked through the fresh greenery 

of Nagai Botanical Garden, Osaka City.

Green leaves are sparkling on the water.

Sakura Front has already moved to the northernmost Hokkaido.

There are only remnants of late-blooming multiple-petaled Yae-zakura in Kansai region.

We are in the middle of the "Golden Week", four national holidays and weekends

 from the end of April to the beginning of May. 

Today, May 4th, is Greenery Day and tomorrow is Children's Day.

It's so refreshing and calming to be basking in the shades of green and mild sunshine.

Linked to Mosaic Monday