While traveling I have found that meteorology really has very little do with whether or not I will have a good experience. Of course, it would be great if every day was temperate with clear skies and sunshine, but that’s not realistic nor does it necessarily make for good photography.

The only time I usually pay attention to the weather when travelling is while packing for the journey. Truthfully, however, I have found this to be somewhat of a crap shoot simply because invariably the forecast is wrong.

And so it was in Japan. We visited at the end of September 2010. I was expecting early fall weather … you know, temperate. And that’s what had been forecasted. But the gurus of meteorology got it wrong. My packing, therefore, was almost completely off and inadequate for the heat and humidity we were to experience during our two-week sojourn.

I did my best to make the most of these circumstances, trying not to be derailed by my frustration at having to wear the same few suitable articles of clothing the entire trip. (Is anything, while travelling, more infuriating than lugging around a suitcase full of clothes you can’t wear?)

I am not a clothes horse, but I do like to present myself well in public no matter where I am, so I can get a bit out of sorts when my efforts to be prepared have been thwarted.

Why not go shopping, you ask? Excellent question. The simple answer is that in Japan I, at 5ft 8in tall with an hourglass figure, could be considered a big woman. Sadly it was pointless to even think about shoring up my few summer togs in a country where the garments are made almost exclusively for the petite.

So, I worked with what I had and distracted myself from my wardrobe discomfiture by focusing on the camera.

These images of the Torii gate at the Meiji Jingu Shrine in Tokyo, were captured during heavy rains on a hot and humid day. It actually didn’t matter to me that it was raining. This natural element simply added an even more intimate and sacred aspect to the experience of being embraced by the forest.

I love the way the umbrellas in the first image seem to add a feeling of animation to the tourists walking through the gate.

Had the sun been shining I could not have captured this.

The fun part was figuring out how to handle an umbrella and a camera at the same time to the effective use of both.

Thanks for visiting …

Dorothy 🙂

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