Chika

In the Japanese language, “Hyaku monogatari” literally means 100 stories. But these are not just any type of stories, they are scary ghost or demon stories.  Hyaku monogatari is a style of storytelling or story-sharing for a group of people.  You start with 100 candles lit, and blow one candle out each time someone finishes telling a story.  A ghost or demon is supposed to appear by the time all the candles are blown out.  I’ve never tried it myself; and I don’t know anyone who has.  Would you? 😉

The tradition of sharing scary ghost/demon stories in summer came about because people feel a chill when they are scared, so on hot humid summer nights we try to cool down by talking and listening scary ghost stories.  Therefore, hyaku monogatari is known as a summer activity.

Painting is from 百鬼夜行!「Ao」のイラスト

“Obon” is a Japanese observance honoring ancestors and friends that have passed away.  Obon is usually held August 13^th through 16^th, but some areas in Japan may hold it earlier.   We believe the spirits of the dead will visit us during obon and offer prayers for their peace.  Some people display eggplants and cucumbers, and they are called shōryō-uma (精霊馬).   The cucumber horse is to carry the spirits on their way to come here quickly and the eggplant cow is to carry them back slowly and leisurely.  We often burn small amount of hemp stalk, called mukae-bi (迎え火), on a tray on the 13^th to welcome spirits to our homes.  There are different obon ceremonies to send the spirits off on the 16^th depending on the area.  In Kyoto, they hold a ceremony called Daimonji yaki (大文字焼き) where they burn a big fire that is shaped like this: “大” on a mountainside.  In other places people celebrate tōrō nagashi (灯篭流し) which is a ceremony where they release floating lanterns into a river or ocean to bid the spirits good-by, and okuri-bi (送り火), is another ceremony of burning hemp stalk on a tray.

“Umi no ie” [literally “House of the Sea”] is a Japanese public bathhouse with a restaurant on the beach.  You can purchase food & drinks, take a shower, and even safely store your luggage here while you go swimming.  It costs about $5 ~ $15 to take a shower and check your bags.  An umi no ie is usually a temporary bathhouse only open in the summer; built right before the summer break starts and taken down once the season ends.

As you can see in the photo, Japanese people take off their shoes to enter an umi no ie.

The rainy season in Japan lasts about 4~6 weeks, and normally ends in June in Okinawa (South of Japan) and around July 20^th in Tokyo.  As soon as the rainy season ends it truly feels like summer; hot & humid.  All the beaches get really popular and remain crowded until the middle of August.

The rainy season is very important for rice.  A young rice plant takes in a lot of water, so rain is essential when rice seedlings are transplanted onto a rice field.  Good quality of healthy rice can grow with plenty of rain.

Sankayō is a name of a flower that lives in the mountain in Japan & Sakhalin Oblast.  It blooms from May through July.  The flower is normally white, but it turns clear like ice when it gets wet in the rain.  Its scientific name is Diphylleia Grayi, and there is no name in English.

Traditional Japanese scenes (shrines, temples, old style houses, streets, gardens etc.) look particularly lovely in the rain.  This is good because it rains often in Japan at certain times of year.  Tourists typically prefer to visit during the dry and sunny days, but I still enjoy cloudy skies, and the look and sound of rain on the glistening streets and buildings.

Traditional Japanese scenes (shrines, temples, old style houses, streets, gardens etc.) look particularly lovely in the rain.  This is good because it rains often in Japan at certain times of year.  Tourists typically prefer to visit during the dry and sunny days, but I still enjoy cloudy skies, and the look and sound of rain on the glistening streets and buildings.

From young to old, most people in Japan use an umbrella in even a light rain. There are lots of umbrella shops throughout Japan, and many different styles of colorful umbrellas.

In a section of Tokyo called Horikiri there is a famous garden of irises (堀切菖蒲園).   The flowers in this garden were pictured in ukiyo-e as one of One Hundred Famous Views of Edo (produced in 1857 by Hiroshige Utagawa).    We hold an iris festival there for about three weeks in June (during a rainy season).  You can see 200 different varieties of iris, or 6000 iris plants in this garden.