Sometimes it is nice to just get on your bike and ride.
We rode to one of Fukushima City’s rivers.
The Matsukawa River. Since “Kawa” means “River”, my son said, “That’s like saying Matsukawa Kawa.” (Pine River River)
Let’s get back on our bikes and ride.
This big sign says “Books” (Hon=本) and under that it says in smaller letters, “Video”. So we headed to this bookstore, only to enter and discover……that it is a dirty video shop! I told my son that it probably used to be a regular bookshop, but went out of business.
The day we went bicycling was a national holiday–Showa Day. So that’s probably why this flag is being displayed. You definitely don’t see flags on display in Japan as often as in America. To tell the truth, when I see a flag on display it makes me feel almost uncomfortable, like perhaps the person displaying the flag is ultra-right wing. I wonder if foreigners in America feel the same way when they see the American flag on display?
Interesting Buddha here right in the middle of the sidewalk on a busy street. They must have developed the area around it.
This is another day, another bicycle ride. We rode to the main river of Fukushima City, the Abukuma River.
There it is! The Abukuma! It runs from south to north in Fukushima Prefecture, exiting at the Pacific Ocean.
Here is an extremely easy Japanese song. It’s based on a famous Japanese poem, I think.