photo of the month from randy kato click the image for a larger view Hi, In today's climate of not knowing what's real or fake, what to believe or not, I've chosen this month's photo as it represents that in some ways. This is another shot from our honeymoon in Japan earlier this year, specifically this was from Kyoto. More specifically, it was taken at Fushimi Inari Taisha, an ancient Shinto shrine famous for its mountain paths through thousands of traditional gates. This may look like some thing, and of course that was my intent. But is it what it seems? Does it look like it could be from centuries ago? Or even something modern, yet traditionally Japanese? Just view it for a moment and appreciate it for what it looks like. OK, now in the interest of fact-checking, truth and transparency, here's the story... This apparently quiet, serene, sacred space, is anything but. It is overrun with tourists, ourselves included, and for good reason. It is incredibly enchanting, fascinating, and beautiful. However, this instant in time - 1/90 of a second - was one I had to wait quite a while for. Still, it was not perfect; you can see one of those tourists in there, thankfully in all black and fairly inconspicuous. Then there's our main subject. What we assume to be a Japanese lady in a kimono, is not. Yes, this person is wearing a kimono, but they are not Japanese (this I know). Where they are from, if they are even Asian, or if they are even female, I honestly don't know for sure. So now you know the facts. Does that change the way you see this image? Enjoy, Randy Photo of the Month archive