PHOTO of the DAY (JAPAN) Dial up warning

[AsahinaKimi]

People harvest "recovery tomatoes" in Iwanuma, Miyagi Prefecture, on Aug. 20, 2011. Iwanuma was hit hard by the March 11 tsunami, which flooded local farmland with salt water. However, ocean microbes that also came in on the waves cleaned the vast majority of the salt out of the soil, allowing for planting and the Aug. 20 harvest. The desalination process was sped along by the addition of special fertilizers, and salt content dropped from 3.2 percent of the soil in the tomato fields to around 1 percent in just two to three weeks. (Mainichi)

Bonus Photos

A mother and child enjoy picking grapes at a vineyard in Kobe's Nishi Ward on Aug. 21, 2011. Many families are visiting the Iwaoka Kanko Budo-en vineyard as grapes have grown sweeter than usual years because of the early end of the rainy season this year. The admission is 1,000 yen for adults and 600 yen for children and the vineyard is open until around Sept. 5. For more information, call the vineyard (in Japanese) at: 078-935-3681. Meanwhile, the temperature in Osaka rose to 29.4 degrees Celsius on the morning of Aug. 23, which is average for this time of year. (Mainichi)



Japanese Kindergarteners


The disaster zone in Kesennuma, 100 days after a massive earthquake and tsunami




A dancer performs in front of a nursing home, which was destroyed by March 11's earthquake and tsunami, as he commemorates the tsunami victims during Japan's annual Buddhist ceremony Obon that welcomes back the spirits of the dead, in Ofunato, north of Japan, August 14, 2011. Ageing fishing towns in northeast Japan has long been a trove of performing folk arts that have brought its communities together, and tsunami survivors are now struggling to ensure that their treasured traditions do not die out. Picture taken August 14, 2011.



Shikaka Beach, Fukuoka, Japan.

Mainichi Ohatu~Something new everyday

[nadinbrzezinski]

1. great photo

[AsahinaKimi]

2. Thank you Nadin!!

:hug: YAY! hi hi!!

[nadinbrzezinski]

Oh you welcome

[nadinbrzezinski]

3. Oh you welcome

[Whisp]

4. great pics.

Japan is such a beautiful place, such beautiful people.

[AsahinaKimi]

5. Thank you!

very much! Agree!

[mike_c]

6. look at those curly leaves, though....

I'm surprised they managed to set fruit on those tomato vines-- those leaves look dessicated, presumably by salt in the root zone.

[AsahinaKimi]

7. That plus

Japan has had some very high temperatures during the summer. With the rainy season gone, temperatures have risen, making it a sweltering Summer. I have heard many of my friends in Japan tell me this was one of the worst summers ever, in regards to the heat. Their comments also, may be due to the cut backs in electricity by TEPCO.

[Scurrilous]

8. K & R

:thumbsup:

[AsahinaKimi]

9. Thanks for the boost!