For the Obon summer vacations I went to see my wife's family in Hiroshima. Although I've been there 4 or 5 times before, it was the first time that my visit coincided with the anniversary of the atomic bomb blast on August 6th and the 灯籠流し — lantern festival. To commemorate the victims, we float tens of thousands of lanterns representing the dead's souls on the river in front of the 原爆ドーム — the A-bomb dome.

Despite buying a nice Manfrotto tripod for the occasion, I'm a bit disappointed with my photos of the event... The conditions were not optimal, after queuing up for more than an hour to launch our lanterns on the river, I started shooting. But the unbearable heat (the high riverbanks blocking any wind and the hundreds of people crowding the launchpad and the bridge were not helping) as well as my wife and her friends clamoring for retreat towards a cold beer and plenty of wine at a nearby restaurants meant I took a mere 20 quick shots and left with my shirt completely soaked.