Rice planting season is here again!

this year I got to have a brief push of the machine that plants the rice

GOLDEN WEEK 2008 (3rd May)

Winter is far gone and the rainy season is almost here and It's that time of the year again when Japan plants rice to keep stocks of their staple food high. Rice is eaten up to three times a day across the country although this is changing with western food products making up a considerable part of the Japanese diet.

I was out at Naomi's place to help out. The weather was hot and dry, much more pleasant than last year when it was humid and rain clouds threatened the planting activities.

I am doing 'uenaoshi' which is where you walk from one end of the rice paddy to the other checking if enough seedlings have been planted. (The machine isn't perfect!) It is aruduous work and that smile was only for the photo! Each person has 4 rows at a time to check. The general rule is to make sure 3 seedlings are planted.

I am evening out the muddy soil

Wisteria!

Sunday, 11th May 2008

After a couple of weeks with temperatures in the high twenties warm enough to take the chill out of your bones after the long winter, the weather took a change for the worse with the last 3 days being cloudy and dull. It was raining when I woke up yesterday, the temperature rising to a cold mere 12 degrees and it was still raining at midnight last night when I went to bed! This morning it was quite cloudy but at around 10am the sunlight poured through the clouds and the bright blue sky was at last visible again. Naomi and I decided to go to Sera Highland, a 50km drive away, where there are flower farms growing pretty much everything that can grow in Spring! The only snag is that each farm is separate and each costs about $7 to enter but the farms are huge and you can spend a couple of hours strolling around. Last year we visited the tulip farm so this time we went to the Wisteria Flower Farm which has nothing but wisteria! They have an array of purples, pinks and some whites on display and the flowers give off a very sweet scent that you can even get a whiff of from the car park! It was mother's day here in Japan today so there were a few families out enjoying the day. The weather stayed mostly fine and the mercury is going to drop to 6 degrees tonight! I can't wait for it to warm up again.

they almost look like grapes growing on a vine

the flowers look very different up close!

Giant Cherry Trees!

YOGAI-ZAKURA

要害桜
広島県庄原市東城町小奴可

The following write-up is my translation of the information board found on site.

This large cherry tree, a member of the ‘edohigan’ family in Japanese, is found on Kyushu, Shikoku and Honshu in Japan as well as in the southern part of the Korean Peninsula and central parts of China.

This cherry tree in particular was planted around 260 years ago on the site of what was the Kameyama Castle and known to the locals as ‘yogaizakura’. It has been well protected and cherished by the town folk ever since allowing it to grow into the giant it is today. Its trunk is 5.7 metres in girth and stands at a height of approximately 18 metres.

Yogaizakura is the largest of all the Hiroshima Prefecture designated cherry trees, noted for its magnificent features and beauty of its blossoms when it flowers in mid April each year. Yogaizakura is not only recognised for its size but also for the great significance its presence had with the locals and being deeply linked to their lives. From an academic point of view this tree is of great value.

CHIDORI BESHAKU YAMA-ZAKURA

千鳥別尺の山桜
広島県庄原市東城町千鳥

The following write-up is my translation of the information board found on site.

The yamazakura tree as it is called in Japanese can be found on Shikoku, Honshu and Kyushu as well as in the southern parts of the Korean peninsula. It is commonly found in Hiroshima Prefecture. The young leaves of the yamazakura tree are usually a reddish brown colour and shoot out as the tree flowers, however, on this tree the young leaves are hardly tinged with red at the time of flowering. The different varieties of the yamazakura are strikingly vast and many are known, however it is still unknown which variety this tree in particular belongs to.

There are very few large yamazakura trees and in Japan there are only a handful of yamazakura trees where the girth exceeds 4.5m. In 1990, there were only 8 national and 7 prefecture designated yamazakura trees and as far as it is known, this is the largest one. Its trunk is 4.6 metres in girth and stands at a height of approximately 25 metres. In spite of the fact that this tree is old, it is rare for the trunk to remain this healthy without it hollowing out.

One the southern side of the tree is a small shrine sacred to the koujin （荒神）god and although little is known about the purpose of this tree, it is thought that the tree was planted as a religious symbol and that the site was a common place shared and used by the local population and believers of kojinshinko （荒神信仰） for events.

Flowers of Spring

Saturday, 26th April (updated 29th April)

I have spent a little time this week at the schools gathering photos of the different flowers that are in bloom at the moment.

TULIPS

place of photography: Utsubori Primary School
撮影場・東城町内堀小学校

place of photography: Onuka Primary School

撮影場・東城町小奴可小学校

JAPANESE NANO - RAPE BLOSSOMS
place of photography: Onuka, Tojo
撮影場・小奴可

JAPANESE VIOLA - PANSY
place of photography: Utsubori Primary School
撮影場・東城町内堀小学校








JAPANESE SUISEN - DAFFODIL
place of photography: Chidori, Tojo Town
撮影場・東城町千鳥別尺

April and Spring...the beginning of a new year!

cherry blossoms, the break of winter into spring and a sign of new life. The mountains in the background will radiate with brilliant green colours in the weeks to come


Saturday, 12th April 2008 (updated 29th April)

Well it is that time of the year again, yes that's right, April - the kiddies at school moving up a year after a one week break, some teachers changing schools on the 1st with the day before being their last before transferring, some retiring, the launch of new products and services, the renewal of work contracts, various price increases, the abolition of the fuel tax and the introduction of the identification card to continue to be able to purchase cigarettes from vending machines and stop minors from staying up late to buy some ciggies. These are just a few of the significance of this particular month in Japan! But no April would be complete without the cherry trees blooming and showing off their terrific pink and purple colours!



a honey bee in action!

The last few weeks have seen more rain than usual but the sun came out this morning and the temperature rose making it a perfect day, for those who don't have work, to go do hanami or cherry blossom viewing in English. I went and took some photos after lunch around Tojo River a few minutes walk from where I live.


cherry blossoms and the beautiful new light green baby leaves slowly sprouting out. A man is sitting by the river catching fish


a shirasagi (White Heron) flying up above that I managed to capture on camera



the blue sky , white fluffy clouds, pink blossoms, green grass and a flowing river allow one to appreciate the beauty of nature


Tomorrow if it doesn't rain like it is forecast to, the cultural exchange association in Shobara is holding a cherry blossom viewing get together in a place called Kuchiwa about an hour or twos drive from where I live so check back on the site in a few days for more photos!

update: The cherry blossom viewing party went ahead as planned despite it drizzling for most of the day and being a little chilly. Many people - including Japanese, Indonesian, Malaysian, Filipino, Chinese, American, Canadian and Australian joined in the fun at the Hotarumi Park in Kuchiwa enjoying the yummy ethic food that people kindly brought in as well as a barbie!

Mt. Daisen

Mt Daisen, 1709m, the tallest mountain in western Japan

Friday, 21st March 2008
鳥取県と岡山県の県境にある展望台からの大山だ！

It was another beautiful clear day although the temperature was still a little low to go out in a t-shirt but was perfect for a drive out. I decided to go to Chiya Onsen (hot spring) in the neighbouring Okayama Prefecture, one that I have not been to yet. I must have gone past it because I entered a kilometre long tunnel and came out of it with the sign up above telling me I had just entered Tottori Prefecture! As soon as I noticed this mistake, I approached the bend ahead of me and was treated to this spectacular view from the lookout. The last time I went past Daisen, I couldn't even see it because of the poor weather and visibility so this was actually the first time for me to see this mountain that rises up steeply pretty much from the coastline of the Japan Sea.


The restaurant located at the outlook and the amazing view from my seat!


The restaurant, run by a quiet old lady offering value for money!

The Beautiful Coastline of the Japan Sea - HINOMISAKI - Shimane Prefecture

a peaceful place to relax under the shade overlooking the Japan Sea.


8th March 2008, HINOMISAKI, Shimane Prefecture
島根県出雲市日御碕

I headed 100km north from Tojo to Izumo City located approximately 30km west of Matsue City on the coast of the Japan Sea for the weekend to meet a friend. Izumo is well known for what is one of the largest and most sacred shrines Izumo Taisha. Thousands and thousands of people head to the shrine each year especially over the New Year period to perform Hatsumade - first visit to a shrine to pray for the year ahead. I have been to the shrine in the past so I decided to do a little sightseeing around the area. Naomi suggested going to Hinomisaki as we didn't go there the last time and that is what I decided to do. The weather was perfect, clear blue skies and a warm start to spring. The 8km stretch of road from Izumo Taisha weaves its way along the rocky coastline showing off its beauty. I stopped along the way to take it the warm sunshine and take a few photos as well as watch the fisherman fishing out on isolated rocks making me wonder how they actually got there without a boat!


the road along coastline heading towards HINOMISAKI.


At the end of the road there is a car park where the lighthouse which to my luck was full when I arrived. I drove around in circles waiting for someone to leave! The whole area is undergoing a beautification stage so the place isn't looking its best at the moment with road, footpath and drainage works going on. The lighthouse itself is an interesting structure. It is the only lighthouse to have been built from stone and has one of the strongest lens allowing its light to be seen 39km out to sea. It is also one of the few lighthouses that can be climbed by those who can endure the steep 160 steps up to the top! The view from the top is absolutely breathtaking, well worth it!


HINOMISAKI lighthouse


the view from the top of the lighthouse


the rock formations below the lighthouse