Sunset (ゆうやけ= yuuyake)

Yuuyake is sunset in Japanese.

Currently sitting at Nationals Park in Washington DC watching Mets v Nationals, Matt Harvey v Stephen Strasburg. After an absolutely brilliant day (a little on the hot side if sunscreen was not applied) it's cool and breezy now, with the sun going down behind the stadium, the walls blocking its descent. Sunset here is at 825pm and it's only May, leading me to believe that summers here are very very beautiful and very very long.

Possibly due to my (sloths) lifestyle, I've seen a lot more sunsets than sunrises in my life. One reason is just that sunrises are so darn early, whereas sunsets usually occur right smack dab in the waking hours. The only times I can really think of where I actively stayed up for the sunrise were : after a "lock in" at our local community center where everyone pulled an all nighter and everyone might as well stay up, and a few times at Grand Canyon and utah national parks, and I don't really remember those experiences that well. I also remember a few times in vegas gambling all night and see the sun come up on the night's exploits, being the final alarm (of many alarms that were overriden ill-advisedly) to quit, end the debauchery, and go home.

Makes me think about the best sunsets I've ever seen. I reserve the right to incorporate recency bias, cognitive dissonance, just being really happy that day, or any other sort! 

Sunsets, in another sense, are more significant than sunrises. Sunrises are important to satisfy the phrase "its ok. The sun will still come up tomorrow." There's more daytime most of the year, so for some (especially nocturnal animals) it's a welcome respite from the sun. It also is a symbol of a long day of work. A sense of possibilities for the night to come.

Without further ado, the best sunsets I've ever witnessed:

5.) Griffith Park sunsets, several times, especially from Griffith Observatory. I've done this sunset quite a few times, once to end the 2008 year (really beautiful to see the end year that way). Can see most of LA, from downtown to Century City to the faraway San Gabriel Mountains and on a clear day, even the Pacific Ocean.

4.) One of the best days of my life, the tail end of a volunteer trip in Eustis, FL spent with fellow volunteers during my college years at the University of Illinois. Something about watching the sunset after a long day of work and pondering the possibilities of life really got to me. That was when I wasn't even 20 years old yet, I had my whole life in front of me! Haha. But I do think sunsets our especially meaningful when they're unique experiences, and symbolic of bigger things, like the end of an era or the beginning of a new one.

3.) Sometimes the same sunset can be spread out over a long timespan. There's a particular one that I find myself in all the time, driving west from downtown Los Angeles going home on the 10 highway. Symbolic of a long day of work that's finally over, as well as actually good traffic (west on the 10 is like one of the few bright spots in LA). I consistently took that drive to the point of making it a pattern developed over the whole summer, and brings back memories of a consistent block of good times.

2.) Playing sports with friends back in the good ol' days of surburban Chicago back in my childhood, squeezing in the last few minutes of daylight on the baseball diamond, the basketball court, or the swimming pool before it got too dark to see the ball/ make our parents worry, just a carefree lifestyle of playing without limitations or anxiety about the future, and tons more energy than I have even nowadays....I was a pretty spirited young guy, even though I was overweight. I liked to "go extreme!" as my girlfriend says, and have as much fun as possible. The sunsets also marked the end of the day of sweat, possibly blood (minor scrapes) but mostly fun, of a wonderful day of frolicking well spent.

1.) Santorini Island- happened just last year, something about the island feature, the sun dropping off into the ocean and reflecting on the waves, and the sun slowly crawling along the cliffs, makes it world-renowned as one of the best sunsets in the world. So magnificent, in fact, observers who were dining on the island clapped after its conclusion, thoroughly enthralled at the feat during its entire length. It's like a classical musical performance where the audience doesn't even make a sound, and only claps when it's over.

But most importantly, the best sunsets are those that one can enjoy with a special person in one's life! Very romantic! Here's to more excellent sunsets in the years to come!

Fantasize on,

Robert Yan