Every year, Markus and I travel somewhere and take a photo that will ultimately be our holiday card. This year, we traveled to Japan and I wanted to get a photo of us in front of Mt. Fuji. Usually, Markus and I just set up a tripod and take the photo ourselves, but this year, I didn’t want to risk it. Unfortunately that didn’t work out, but I’ll post more about that later. As a backup, I booked a photography session in Osaka with Manu Akamatsu and thank goodness I did. Markus and I had a great time with Manu and he took so many great photos of us, which I will post more of later.

It was hard to pick one photo, but we loved everything about this photo at Hozenji Temple. This temple can be found in the heart of Namba and is not too far from the popular Dotonbori area. The small temple dates back to 1637 and was actually a bit larger than it is today. Manu told us that people usually make a wish at the moss covered statue, Mizukake-Fudo, and then splash water on it. Apparently a woman did this 80 years ago and her wish came true. Markus and I both made wishes, so lets see if it comes true in 2020!

Happy holidays my dear readers. I hope you have a Happy Christmas and a Merry New Year!