Pope Francis Meets Japanese Bishops - Vatican

Pope Francis Meets Japanese Bishops - Vatican

Pope Francis greets Japanese Cardinal Thomas Aquinas Manyo Maeda, Archbishop of Osaka, during a meeting with a group of Japanese bishops in visit ‘ad limina apostolorum’ in Rome, Vatican on April 12, 2024. A visit ad limina is the required visit of Catholic residential diocesan bishops to the tombs of the Apostles Peter and Paul, and to meet the pope to report on the state of their dioceses or prelatures. Photo by (EV) Vatican Media/ABACAPRESS.COM

New tram starts operating north of Tokyo

UTSUNOMIYA, Japan, Aug. 26 Kyodo - A light rail transit train carrying children and others runs through Utsunomiya in Tochigi Prefecture, north of Tokyo, after a ceremony commemorating the start of the service is held at JR Utsunomiya Station on Aug. 26, 2023. Japan's first new tram system in 75 years covers the 14.6-kilometer route between the station and the nearby town of Haga in 48 minutes.

Pine trees at Karasaki,Lake Biwa

Pine trees at Karasaki,Lake Biwa

The Karasaki pine tree in Sakamoto, Otsu City, Shiga Prefecture. Karasaki is a place lauded in poetry from the Manyo days. After the Muromachi era, it was chosen one of as one of the eight scenic spots in Omi by the Kanpaku (chief advisor to the emperor) Masaie Konoe, imitating the eight scenic spots of Lake Dotei in China. The pine with its branches hanging in an umbrella-like style has been prized from ancient times, and many torii (archways) stand around it. The present pine tree is several generations from the original tree which was destroyed in 1581.Men in clerical vestments and children stand on the stone wall. Boats are anchored in the fore, since the stone steps lead down to a pier on the lake.==Date:unknown, Place:Shiga, Photo:Kusakabe Kinbei, (Credit:Nagasaki University Library/Kyodo News Images) [Cabinet Number2‐24‐0]