Takaoka walk

I took a nice walk in Takaoka on the 28th of Dec.  The weather was great after a snow the night before.

This is Zuiryuji Temple, a national treasure.

Nio, one of the protectors at the gate of Zyiryuji.

A statue of Maeda Toshinaga, the lord of Takaoka that was enshrined at Zuiryuji.

JR Takaoka Station.  The temple was about 10 min. walk away.

A train is painted with a famous cartoon Ninja Hattori kun.

Taipei morning walk, etc.

I visited Taipei last week. Unfortunately, I could not run for I had a bit of a pain in my leg, but I could take a walk in Monday morning.

Boats at Dadaocheng Wharf.

There were recreational facilities at Dadaocheng Wharf.

A small Buddhist temple close from my hotel.

Presidential Election will be held next month. There were many campaign posters throughout the city.

These are robot figures by Taipei Railway Station.

This is the Christmas tree at the hotel I stayed.

Tokyo recent

December in Tokyo is usually cold.  The coldest we've experienced so far was 2 deg. Celsius and warmest was 16 in the city areas of Tokyo this year.  We expect it to get even colder from now.

This is Asukayama seen from my office earlier this month.

A picture from Chinzanso Garden.

Tokyo Station renovation is coming along well.

Tokyo Skytree structure is complete since earlier this year and it now stands at 634 m.  The planned grand open is next May.

Dongguan Run

Dongguan is a city where I visited earlier this week.  Unlike cold Tokyo, the weather was beautiful - around 20 degrees Celsius.  The hotel I stayed was about 1.5 hours drive away from Hong Kong Airport.

This is the gate to Mission Hills.

The view of the club house of Mission Hills Golf Club.

This is a different lake outside of the gate.  It was Sunday afternoon and many people were enjoying the sun and fishing.

By the lake, there were beautiful pink flower.  I don't know what kind of trees these are, but they were just gorgeous.

A big billboard was advertising the resort condominiums.

Run to Shibuya

On Sunday, I ran from my home to Shibuya. It was sunny and very beautiful autumn day.

At the train depot by Inokashira Line Fujimigaoka Station, an event for retiring of a 3000-series Keio trains was going on.   It must have been a big deal for there were many people.  I am not a train fan, but I found this.

About 2 more km to our final destination, we stopped to walk in Komazawano Park - close from Komaba-Todaimae Station. It was peaceful there.

Old buildings - I think they are waiting to be torn down on Dogenzaka - looking towards Shibuya station.

This is the start of Dogenzaka Street.  The building with a cylindrical shape is Shibuya 109.

We're finally made it to the big intersection by the station.  It was crowded as usual.

Here are the main members of Japan Women's National Football Team advertising deli products at a convenience store in Shibuya.  They are very popular since winning 2011 FIFA Women's World Cup Final this summer.

Naha Run and Walk

This week, I was in Naha, Okinawa for two days.  I could go for a couple of nice morning runs and an afternoon walk.  It was much warmer than Tokyo (but of course, not as warm as Indonesia).

Shintoshin (New City Center) Park was popular with joggers.

A huge Banyan tree at a park an old temple (Sogenji) used to stand until 1945.

Birds were standing around in a tide flat.

Fishing boats at a harbor.

Tomari Ohashi Bridge seen from the ferry terminal.

One of the two dragon figure ornaments of Tomari Harbor Bridge.

Bali Run

Last weekend, I was in Bali, Indonesia.  It was beautiful there.

I ran on the beach on Friday afternoon - the reflection of the skies on the beach was amazing.

Constructions were going on close from the resort area.

Coconuts and Bougainvillea were abundant in the area close from the hotel on Sunday.

A little outdoor shrine by the beach.

Amazing wood carving was displayed in front of a house close from our hotel.

Jakarta Run

I had a nice visit to Jakarta, Indonesia this week.

From Tokyo, it is about 7 hours flight to get there.

Thursday morning, I could go for a jog from my hotel - at 6:00 am it was already getting very warm!

Because it was the commuting time, there were many cars, motor bikes, and of course, commuters.

Some people take free rides on commuter trains - on the roof!

Here's a photo of an amazing traffic congestion due to so many commuters came out of a train causing auto traffic to stop.  The motor bikes were the first to get out of the mess.

The city is getting ready for SEA Games 2011. Banners were all over the place.

Here's a view of Senayan Sports Complex where the games will be played - as seen from the hotel I stayed.

Another view of the city from my hotel room - the golf course is under repair.

Jakarta is a very vibrant city and there will be a bright future for it, I am sure.

Autumn walk

On Friday, I had a nice walk in a park in Funabashi, Chiba.  It is now getting very cool in Japan.

There was a field of pink flowers of buckwheat.

There was a cherry tree with flowers - that is very rare for they usually bloom in spring.

There also were pretty cosmos flowers along a pond.

A bush of Firethorn.

At the cafeteria of a golf course close by was a chigiri-e tile picture of fireworks by Kiyoshi Yamashita.

Osaka walk and jog

Last week, I was in Osaka.  I took a walk in the evening of Thursday around Osaka Station.

Red whales at the entrance of HEP FIVE.  The stores were open late.

The tall building on the left is Hankyu Department Store and across the street, Hanshin Department Store.  The white little round light over Hanshin building is actually the moon.

Nest morning, I could go for a semi-long jog.  Three tall buildings are being built at the same time on the north side of the station.

Here's Shin-Osaka Station - approx. 4 km away from Osaka Station.  This is the terminal for Tokaido Shinkansen.  A new tall building addition was being built there.

A commuter train crosses a truss bridge over Yodo River.

There were many commuters back at Osaka Station.