photo of the month from randy kato click the image for a larger view Hi, When I was selecting this month's photo there was no one thing that led me to this image. In fact, it was the other way around, this image made me think of a few other things. The most obvious was Manhattanhenge - a NYC phenomenon where on certain days of the year, the setting (or rising) sun is aligned perfectly with the city's cross streets. There is a Manhattanhenge photo that was a previous selection that you can find in the archive. But this one was taken in Istanbul, whose streets are not arranged in a grid, so this moment was just about being in the right place at the right time. Another was the idea of national pride - notice the Turkish flags and headbands. This made me think of the recent Olympics. In case you were wondering, Turkey had six athletes competing in Sochi. Finally, the "behind the scenes" story of this photo brought to mind other current events: anti-government protests. The reason these guys have armfuls of Turkish flags and headbands is that literally right behind me as I took this picture were tens of thousands of protestors streaming toward Taksim Square and Gezi Park, the epicenter of last year's protests in Istanbul. Yet, these guys who, like me, happened to be in the right place at the right time to witness a moment of beauty created by the alignment of the natural and man-made worlds, took the time to sit and appreciate it...and, like me, took a picture. If you click the photo to see it larger, take note of the name of the cafe down the street. Enjoy! Randy Photo of the Month archive