People dressed in Samurai costume and helmet march during the annual Himeji Castle Festival on August 3, 2013 in Himeji, Japan. The parade of Castle Queens is part of the traditional matsuri festival around the UNESCO world heritage Himeji Castle. (Photo by Buddhika Weerasinghe)...
A woman and her two dogs named Yoru (R) and Hinaka bath in the water at Takeno Beach on August 4, 2013 in Toyooka, Japan. This beach is open for dogs and their owners every summer between the months of June and September. (Photo by Buddhika Weerasinghe)...
Japanese Ground Self-Defense Force's 1st Airborne Brigade soldiers board a CH-47 helicopter for parachute drop training during their military drill at Higashifuji training field in Susono, west of Tokyo, July 8, 2013. Japan faces increasingly serious threats to its security from an assertive China and an unpredictable North Korea, a defence ministry report said on Tuesday, as ruling politicians call for the military to beef up its ability to respond to such threats. (Photo by Issei Kato/Reuters)...
The main feature of the Mitsuyama Taisai Festival, three 18 meters tall [mountains]. are displayed at the Itate Hyozu Shrine on March 31, 2013 in Himeji, Japan. The festival is held once in 20 years since 1593, Priests of Itate Hyozu Shrine welcome to all the gods across the country for top of the three mountains and treat with food seven days from today as to pray for peace and prosperity. (Photo by Buddhika Weerasinghe)...
A 20-year-old Japanese macaque monkey named Monday scratches her eyes while suffering an allergy to pollen from the cedar tree at Awajishima Monkey Centre on March 17, 2013 in Sumoto, Japan. Many monkeys are suffering the effects of hay fever at this time of the year, with the typical symptoms being the same as with humans. According to Awajishima Monkey center this year hay fever is higher than last year, the pollen season is from February to April. (Photo by Buddhika Weerasinghe)...
[A robot suit that can help the elderly or disabled get around was given its global safety certificate in Japan on February 27, 2013, paving the way for its worldwide roll-out]. Photo: Robot suit [Hybrid Assistive Limb (HAL)] worn by a man developed by University of Tsukuba is seen lifting a 30kg weight during 2005 International Robot Exhibition on November 30, 2005 in Tokyo, Japan. By wearing the power suit, it makes it easier to move and lift heavy things. (Photo by Koichi Kamoshida)...
A radiation monitor indicates 114.00 microsieverts per hour near the building housing the plant's No. 4 reactor, center, and an under construction foundation, right, which will store the reactor's melted fuel rods at Tokyo Electric Power Co.'s tsunami-crippled Fukushima Dai-ichi nuclear power plant in Okuma, Fukushima prefecture, Wednesday, March 6, 2013, ahead of the second anniversary of the March 11, 2011 tsunami and earthquake. Some 110,000 people living around the nuclear plant were evacuated after the massive March 11, 2011, earthquake and tsunami knocked out the...