Otaru: Street Strolling and Blowing

Other than the picturesque Canal District, Otaru has a street lined with shops transformed from warehouses. This street is called Ironai Odori. The buildings themselves are really beautiful and unique enough for me to take a series of photos.

This street is also a great place to shop for local food, souvenirs and handicrafts of Otaru.

Apart from shopping, there are art galleries along the street for those who fancy art appreciation.

There is even a workshop which teaches glassware making called K's Blowing. A glass-blowing lesson will set you back around ¥2,000, but you can bring back the masterpiece that you have made through the lesson.

Wordless Wednesday – Faces on the Street

Location: Takeshita Dori, Harajuku, Tokyo, Japan
Date taken: August 10^th, 2008
Camera equipment: Nikon D300 + Micro-Nikkor 105mm f/2.8D

Portraiture of a Cricket

When we were at Jambusan hunting for some exotic bugs, we spotted this very beautiful cricket. Its body is almost translucent, emanating the rainbow colours when illuminated.

I like to see this creature from this angle, as it looks quite dumb, probably due to the over-illumination from our flash guns onto its eyes! Probably it was too overwhelmed by being the celebrity of the day.