Contest of meals served in expressway parking areas

Contest of meals served in expressway parking areas

OSAKA, Japan - A meal served in the Mekari Parking Area on the Kanmon Expressway in Kitakyushu, Fukuoka Prefecture, southwestern Japan, is shown in Osaka on Dec. 10, 2014. It was a runner-up in the second contest held for dishes offered in expressway parking areas in western Japan.

Kyushu shrine conducts 1,300-year-old seaweed-offering event

Kyushu shrine conducts 1,300-year-old seaweed-offering event

KITAKYUSHU, Japan - Two priests (L) at Mekari Shrine in Kitakyushu reap wakame seaweed while one priest bears a torch in the early morning at ebb tide of Jan. 26, or Jan. 1 by the lunar calendar, before offering it at the shrine. About 100 people watched the 1,300-year-old annual event held in hopes of safe navigation and a good haul.

Kyushu shrine conducts 1,300-year-old seaweed-offering event

Kyushu shrine conducts 1,300-year-old seaweed-offering event

KITAKYUSHU, Japan - Two priests (L) at Mekari Shrine in Kitakyushu reap wakame seaweed while one priest bears a torch in the early morning at ebb tide of Jan. 26, or Jan. 1 by the lunar calendar, before offering it at the shrine. About 100 people watched the 1,300-year-old annual event held in hopes of safe navigation and a good haul. (Kyodo)

Mekari Shrine,Moji

Mekari Shrine,Moji

This photo captures the torii gate and stone lanterns of Kou-Hachiman Shrine and the salt field behind. This site underwent a land reclamation project later, after the port development project. Although the torii gate no longer exists, the stone lanterns were moved to another location within the precincts. As all the stone lanterns at the shrine were made in 1884 and the reclamation was conducted after 1889, this photo was probably taken between those periods.==Date:unknown, Place:Moji, Photo:unknown, (Credit:Nagasaki University Library/Kyodo News Images) [Cabinet Number58‐2‐0]

Mekari Shrine,Moji

Mekari Shrine,Moji

Wafukari Shrine is located in Moji, Kitakyushu City. It is situated at the tip of an island in Kyushu facing the Kanmon Strait. The ritual of offering seaweed taken at dawn on New Year's day of the lunar calendar has been designated as an intangible ethnic cultural asset. Photo by Ogawa Kazuma.==Date:unknown, Place:Moji, Photo:Ogawa Kazumasa, (Credit:Nagasaki University Library/Kyodo News Images) [Cabinet Number25‐47‐0]

Mekari Shrine,Moji

Mekari Shrine,Moji

Mekari Shrine,Moji==Date:unknown, Place:Moji, Photo:unknown, (Credit:Nagasaki University Library/Kyodo News Images)