Sunny morning, bamboo and sakura

It has been so gloomy and cold and wet, that I didn't even notice the trees but the cherry blossoms burst into bloom in this morning's sun.

I actually worked with my sister-in-law in the bamboo thicket for two hours - we dug $200 worth of bamboo shoots! We took the shoots to a different market, one which processes them before selling, where they offer a higher price per kg. We didn't even need to sort them, just dump them into a bin and weigh the whole lot. The only problem was that the market was quite far away but the drive turned out to be nothing short of spectacular! The dramatic hills and the frequent cherry trees in full bloom made the drive pleasant, in spite of being stuck with my sister-in-law. Cherry blossoms have that effect. (We took route 218 in the direction of Takachiho, passing the shrine with 3, 333 steps and the old stone bridge.)