High Summer

 

The rainy season is officially over, though it went out with a bang a few days ago with a lightning storm that rocked the whole neighborhood. I unplugged my computer and hoped for the best, we had some pretty close hits. I've learned my lesson too, about trying to shoot lighting when the storm is right over your head. On a side note, the top three photos here are all panorama stitches, and I recommend clicking on them to get a larger view of all the details.

The weather has generally been clear and beautiful, but sticky and hot. Standing in front of a gaggle of elementary students doing activities and singing songs in a classroom with no A/C is not an experience I recommend.

However, now it is summer break, which stretches from late July to late August for me, though some have longer. It's not as epic as we used to get back in my Elementary School days, but it's certainly the longest employed time off I've had in forever. I just wish I had enough money to really travel and go somewhere new (like Korea!), but I'll be spending the month in Japan, hiking, hanging out, and entertaining guests.

Summer also brings with it fireworks, and ever town in the region is having their own display, so if you plan it right every weekend you can catch some fireworks somewhere in the area. Last weekend we had a show in Tamamura, and I made sure to catch at least part of the show, though traffic and a late start meant I only caught the last 15 minutes or so, but I wasn't too worried because there will be more where that came from. Tamamura was the first show of the summer, but far from the last!