The story behind the image:

“Late this past July I attended the Obon Lantern Festival at Yasukuni Shrine in Tokyo.  The lanterns were impressive as were the performances of obon dances and taiko drumming, which never fails to stop me in my tracks.

The stroll up the wide walkway to the shrine itself was lined on either side with food vendors. Happy yukata-clad (summer kimono) festival goers were enjoying yakiniku (bite-sized skewered and grilled beef), yakitori (chicken), takoyaki (octopus encased in batter), yakisoba (grilled noodles) and a variety of every other imaginable Japanese street food.

Of course there was a beer garden, and at the entrance was a stand selling these fish which were skewered and being carefully tended to around a very hot charcoal fire.  I can’t tell you what type of fish they were but they taster great with a cold glass of beer on a humid summer night in Tokyo! “

This and other great images of Japan can be found in The Nihon Sun Japan Photo Gallery.