Autumn the harvest: Persimmon and Buckwheat Noodle 柿子和蕎麥麵

Persimmons have grown bigger and its color has changed from green to orange. After a few weeks they will become more reddish.

This still keeps a square shape.

 Persimmon leaves have turned red brilliantly. 

 From the late October and the early November,  you can enjoy buckwheat noodles (soba) made with new flour just harvested this autumn. The above serving style is called mori-soba. Noodles are put on a bamboo mat. Two spices on a small dish are sliced long green onion and wasabi. A cup of dipping sauce is under the dish.

This noodle is made by hand. A skillful artisan cut each noodle with a large knife. The flour contains fine ground-up husk. Its nutty flavor will give you a good appetite.

Climbing With Sweats 爬山锻炼身体

 Last weekend I climbed Mt. Teruishi, a low mountain 419 meters high. At the beginning, I  went up the stone steps slowly, while my thighs were being complained to my little adventure. These are the steps I went up.

 And these are to be climbed.

You sometimes have to climb a steep slope.

 

I held this root to stabilize my body.

I had a beautiful landscape in exchange for  sweats. The humidity was not high that day, I was able to see far under the blue autumn sky.

 

Most rocks on the top are this kind. I think these are limestones with stratification.

 I found this white stone. The mountain is called "Shining Stone Mt.". I imagine white stones gave old people an impression of shining.

 I found out a mushroom. Do you think this is edible?

 This big one is called "Horse Hoof Rock". The hollow shape in the center looks like it.

Golden-rayed Lilies in a castle ruin

 This kind of lily opens in the mid summer at cool places.

 People in my city established a society to preserve the Koyama castle ruin few years ago. They cut undergrowth and plant lilies every year.

 Members of the society have planted  a lily on mounds one by one. Some of them are senior citizens. It would be not easy for them to keep their balance and do this work on a slope.

 We admire the beauty of nature. On the other hand, it would be important to realize that the natural environment near to our residence has been kept by human efforts every year.

I dropped at an old farmer's house.

The wooden house did not use nails or metal parts to fix pillars and beams.　

"Raise High the Roof Beam, Carpenters!"

Old style Japanese houses are quite comfortable to stay on intense heat days in summer.

This house is now used as a public hall.

Suwa Akimiya Shrine 諏訪大社秋宮

After visiting Matsumoto Castle, I went to Suwa Akimiya. This is a mysterious place. Suwa shrine consists of four shrines. No one knows when the shrines were established originally. This is the entrance gate "torii". A long stone slope under big conifers welcomes visitors in the silent atmosphere.

Kaguraden is a building to play sacred music and dancing. The architecture is quite similar to that of Izumo taisha in western Japan、800km away from here. A myth recorded in early 8th century says a son of Izumo god escaped from his territory in Izumo and arrived at this area.　

This is a worship hall. Behind this building, there is one big conifer standing for years. The tree is the worship focus. Some rituals of Suwa shrine have kept ancient customs before the age of rice growing 3000 years ago. It is said that four shrines might have been established in the Neolithic era.

Matsumoto Castle

Matsumoto castle was constructed 400 years ago in Nagano, central Japan.

The frameworks were made of wood. The outer walls were plastered and black painted wood covered the plaster for preservation against the weather. 

This is the main gate called Black Gate restored in 1990.

After the new central government was established in 1868, many castles in Japan became no use and were sold or destroyed. After this beautiful castle was also sold at auction, wealthy citizens in Matsumoto were afraid of its taking down and bought it back. To stop the dilapidation, people in this city established a castle preservation society in 1901 and made big repairs for 12 years. The repairments saved the castle from collapse.

 This is the top structure of the main tower.

 Sunshine comes in from a gable.

 Insides are still kept in good condition.

 The right tower with a red railing was added in a peaceful time for the purpose of moon viewing.

 

In every direction, I enjoyed the variety of the beautiful constructions composed of the main and sub towers.

Wasabi Farm 辣根農場

Do you like Wasabi? When you eat Sushi or Sashimi in a Japanese restaurant, you will see green paste. As for sushi, it is pasted on the rice, under a slice of fresh fish. When you order sashimi, it is put on a small dish.
I visited Wasabi Farm in Nagano, central Japan.

Wasabi grows under the peculiar conditions. The temperature must be between 9 - 16℃. It was reported that roots of wasabi decayed in 3 hours at 20℃. It needs a lot of clear water and does not need any manure or fertilizer.

Originally wasabi grows at a damp area in a forest, does not like much sunshine. All the wasabi fields are covered with black mesh curtains in this season. 

All the workers in the farm would be very busy to keep the fields safe against sudden attacks of a strong wind and rain.

 All the water is supplied by the springs in the farm.

They are cleaning the field with a hoe to remove water weeds. The field must be kept with no soil, just sand and gravel.

I will deeply appreciate the workers growing wasabi when I have sushi or sashimi next time.

Persimmon 2 and Asparagus 柿子和蘆筍

The persimmon grows bigger and is becoming square. It will take four months for harvest. It is the rainy season now in my district. It will continue 40 days. Enough rains will grow plants healthy. When it is fine, the temperature will rise beyond 30℃ or 100F. Many people feel uncomfortable because of the high humidity.

The leaves are full of power. If you have visited Nara, an ancient capital, you might have tasted Kakinoha Sushi. The traditional sushi there is wrapped with a persimmon leaf. The sushi becomes more tasty by getting a good smell of this green leaf.

I found another asparagus today.

When it grows to 20 cm, I take it and boil with a pinch of salt. After boiling, I immediately cool it in the cold water to keep its wonderful color and taste.

Persimmon

The persimmon leaves are shining under the strong sunshine in May. This May is quite hot. Last Sunday the temperature of my city was 34.7℃. Persimmon trees are tough.

This is a young fruit just after blooming. It will be a tennis ball size in autumn. I love its red.

RARE CHANCE TO ENJOY FULL BLOOM

  Thanks to the sudden snowfall and cold weather, we were able to enjoy cherry blossoms longer this year. It is very very rare to have a snowfall after cherry blooming.

 One week after my first visit, canola flowers had opened.

This is a wonderful present from nature colored with white, yellow and green under the blue sky.