Chion-in Temple in Kyoto, Japan on New Year's Eve is home to an amazing New Year's Eve scene: 17 monks ring the largest bell in Japan 108 times.

Within our tradition we too ring the bell 108 times at the start of the New Year. Our bells are considerably smaller than the one seen in the video. Apparently the last cry (heard on the video) before the bell is actually struck goes something like, Ring Out!, or Sound!

We have started to NOT talk about the weather...it is THAT bad! And I will be away across the Pennines tomorrow. I hope to continue to post from my, as yet, undisclosed location.