Today was extremely hot and sunny, but around 6:00 p.m., there was a fierce thunderstorm and heavy rain. However, the rain stopped completely around 8:00 p.m., just before the start of the Gozan no Okuribi bonfire ceremony in Kyoto.

As in the previous year, the rooftop of the Tomiya Textile Building in Nishijin was opened exclusively to invited guests, and we headed there with our friends Ishii and Shoko.

In addition, Professor Furuta, who is both an eel appraiser and a physicist, finished a week of heavy work in Osaka and rushed to the Gozan no Okuribi despite suffering from back pain.

As light rain falls intermittently, the letters and patterns on the mountain are lit up, and the spirits of many ancestors are sent to the other world, crossing the damp sky. Watching the large, beautiful bonfires on the mountain calms my heart. I feel the spirit of Japan and the end of summer approaching.