8.10.22
I write after riding back from Mitani Hoikuen in what feels like 106F according to the weather app, and thus, the only thing I can think about in the present is the presence of SUMMER. And so, today I bring to you my edition of HOT GIRL SUMMER - JAPAN EDITION because yes, this girl is sweating buckets, downing her iced barley tea, and is getting odd looks from her coworkers at the moment.
Summer food
What is a blog post without writing about food?
I’ve raved about the summer vegetables before, and I will rave about them once again here. They are literal gifts from the heavens. In Japan, the common summer vegetables are tomatoes, cucumbers, eggplants, okra, peppers, lettuce (though early June), kabocha (aka Japanese pumpkin), bitter melon, zucchini, and corn. However, there are other special vegetables such as uri and corinki which are in the gourd family.
Summer has been another very rich agricultural lesson as my preschoolers spend about 30 minutes every morning to water and harvest their own summer vegetable garden. Additionally, the classroom libraries display books pertaining to the season, so I’ve helped read many picture books that have taught me what goes into the production and use of summer veggies. It also helps that I’ve just gotten summer vegetables galore from my granny friends as well as their various pickled side dishes (Yuki’s mom makes the best cucumber tsukudani ever, and Ma-chan made me this incredible goya side dish that makes eating the typically undesirable bitter melon super enjoyable.)
I’ve also gotten my fill of the summer fruits, AND MAN I HAVE NEVER TASTED A PEACH AS SWEET AS THE ONES IN OKAYAMA. Okayama is actually known as the “peach prefecture”because one of its claims to fame within Japan is its excellent fruit production. And they take their fruits seriously…my discount supermarket is even selling a dozen peaches for about $40 a box. I’ve also gotten to have super sweet watermelon, though I haven’t gone wild like in past summers because there are no Costcos near me that provide $5 watermelons. They go for about $30 per fruit here. Alas. But it was once served as a lunch dessert at school, so I was super happy that day! The next summer fruit on Okayama’s list is its grapes, and apparently they are to die for. Grapes are actually the one fruit I stay away from, but from what I hear, Yakage’s muscat and pione grapes may become a big gamechanger.
Another element of summer food is the plethora of street foods found at local summer festivals. I had to work and sell croquettes at Yakage’s festival, which allowed me to see the various foods being sold alongside me. These include, but aren’t limited to: frankfurts (grilled hotdogs coated in a special brown sauce pierced on a stick), ikayaki (grilled squid on a stick), takoyaki (Japan’s infamous octopus balls), ringoame (caramelized apple candies), yakisoba (teppan-grilled noodles), grilled soy sauce/butter corn, kakigori (shaved ice…my favorite), frozen chocolate banana, yakitori (grilled chicken meats), french fries, and bakudan candy (translated to bomb candy, an ice dessert only found in Okayama!)
I was also super lucky because my former students recognized and greeted me even though I was behind the counter…my heart was about to explode with joy by the end of the night because I saw so many of my kiddos who I already dearly miss.
farmer tending to crops
shiba break
tomatoooo
matsuri sky!
grilled matsuri ika!
kingyo sukui = goldfish scoop
Summer sunflowers
Along with the summer produce, the summer floral scene is absolutely stunning as well. My bike rides are dotted with so many spots of blues, bright pinks, whites, reds, and the most brilliant yellows. Hydrangeas, hibiscuses, morning glories, bellflowers, and of course the tall, proud sunflowers make up the vivid array. My favorite flower is the sunflower, so my bike rides may be taking a tad longer than usual due to all the times I need to stop and photograph yet another stunning sunflower. It’s especially spectacular when it’s a sky with the forget-me-not blue and the cotton candy summer clouds.
Summer heat protection
James and Manki were not lying when–in February, mind you–they were describing the summer weather with absolute dread. Most of my days are in the high 90s and are recorded as feeling like 106F weather due to the high UV index. PLUS the humidity makes the air feel like I am the titan Atlas holding the world on my shoulders. Yes, this is a very dramatic metaphor. But I’m telling you, I swim outside and my completely drenched backside shows it. And so, I’ve been learning how Yakage wards off the heat to survive the season myself:
- Practicing uchimizu sprinkling water on the streets
- Wearing super baggy, airy clothes…Japanese people have mastered the skill of looking so stylish with shirts/pants that are essentially just deflated balloons.
- Drinking gallons upon gallons of Aquarius or Pocari Sweat (and no, it’s not actual sweat, but it’s just the Gatorade/sports drink of Japan)
- Wearing a straw wide-brimmed hat for even a one minute bike ride
- Eating ice cream bars or watermelon or kakigori on the daily
- Drinking Ma-chan's pickled plum seltzer at midnight
- Wearing arm gloves
- Having a sun umbrella at all times
- Eating cooooold somen noodles or a coooold bowl of tofu and tomatoes or some hiyashi chuuka (cooold ramen)
- Carrying portable personal electric fans everywhere you go
- Carrying fusuma (paper fans ) everywhere you go
- Wearing clothes that have body fans embedded in its fabric
- Wearing electric neck fans
- Carrying mint/cool down body wipes with you at all times
- Getting sprayed down by 4-5 year old during the preschool water play times
- Melting in the heat not alone, but together, by saying “ATTSUINEEEEE” to everyone you see
But with this heat comes unbELIEVABLE sky scenes. For as much as Yakage's summer heat and humidity makes me a sweaty mess, Yakag'e summer skies truly takes my breath away. Look to see for yourself!
