Walking along the Shogen heights

 The sidewalk along the northern, cliff-edge park in Shogen is lined with cherry trees. In the spring, when they are in blossom it is beautiful here, but at this time of year with the leaves all gone there is also a kind of austere beauty.

 This strange looking tree is cut back every year, but for some reason it was not trimmed this fall, so the summer growth of branches is still there.

 Most of the leaves are off the trees but this little one was still hanging in there and contrasted nicely with the gray around it.

 The buildings on the horizon are in downtown Sendai. The Shogen heights are tall enough that there is a good view of the city.

 The first floor of this building used to contain a mom-and-pop store but it has been converted into a long row of vending machines selling drinks and cigarettes.

 I must try to find out what the name of these plants are. The red berries and deep green leaves are so Christmasy.

This is someone's collection of bonzai. They are on a shelf beside the road. It is so nice to be in a place where things can be left out with little fear of them disappearing.