The heat is finally rising back up into the sun as the coolness sinks down onto Earth. The wind is picking up slightly as it creates a nice breeze for us to enjoy. Those nice bright green leaves are slowly transitioning into crispy yellow, orange, and red colors. The streets and sidewalks are slowly being covered up with colorful leaves. The nice smell of pumpkin and spices is beginning to fill the air around Karakura. People across the city have been waiting for autumn to come and it's finally here. If you don’t love the autumn season, then what is your favorite season?
As summer goes and autumn comes that means activities will be coming around. If you don’t know what to do, no worries I have you covered. With the hot temperatures slowly cooling down, what about a nice nature hike without sweating from the heat? We’ve had very hot temperatures this year with summer along with heat advisories during all of this we couldn’t really enjoy nature. However, with autumn now here you can enjoy Mother Nature without worrying about the heat! Taking a nice nature hike in the parks or forests can be a great activity to enjoy autumn. You could even add a nice picnic to it.
Another fun activity could be pumpkin carving or decorating! Halloween will be around the corner before we know it, but pumpkins don’t have to be just for that holiday. You can express your love for autumn by gathering pumpkins to put on your property. Don’t feel like carving your pumpkin and getting all messy? That’s alright you can take paint and decorate your pumpkin in an artistic manner. This is a great activity to do with friends and family!
Want some sweet treats to enjoy? One of my favorite treats to enjoy in the autumn season is pumpkin chocolate chip cookies. They’re very moist, soft, and savory. Some other sweet treats can be pumpkin pie, pumpkin doughnuts, pumpkin lattes and so much more. What’s your favorite autumn treat?
During the autumn season, Japan offers many seasonal foods during this time. Down below will show a few dishes and foods.
Nabemono, or nabe for short, is a wonderful dish during this time because of how hot it can be. Nabe is commonly known as a hot pot. It can have vegetables, meats, and even seafood cooked in a dashi broth. The types of vegetables that can be in the dish are carrots, nappa cabbage, daikon radish, leeks, and onions. The protein in the Nabe is usually cut into small pieces. Nabe is considered a comfort food
Oden is one of the most common and traditional dishes in Japan. The dish is an assortment of different vegetables and proteins that are simmered in low heat with a light amount of dashi broth. Some classic items in the Oden dish are daikon or white radish, fish cakes, tofu, eggs, konnyaku or konjac jam. Some fancier Oden dishes might include seafood such as squid and or octopus. Some Oden dishes may have kelp strips to enhance a more flavor of the dish. Some people use condiments with the dish. This can include karashi mustard, miso paste, and togarashi pepper powder for some extra spice.
A sweet treat in Japan during the autumn season is satsumaimo, or known as sweet potatoes, it's a classic symbol for autumn and winter. Usually, the sweet potatoes will be roasted, also called yakiimo, which is popular during this time. The sweet potatoes can also turn into daigaku-imo, also known as Candied Sweet Potatoes these are deep fried and dipped into caramelized sugar syrup.
Matsutake Mushrooms begin growing in the autumn-fall season which makes them great autumn-winter food. They are also referred to as pine mushrooms since they grow in pine forests across Japan and Asia. These mushrooms are rare which explains how expensive they can be. Some meals with these mushrooms can include grilling them with soy sauce, some steaming rice, or adding them to soups.
Another great dish is Sanma, also known as Pacific Saury. During the autumn season, the sanma fish become more fatty which gives them a richer taste. The most popular way to enjoy the sanma is by grilling and salting the fish along with a side of miso soup and rice.
A great beverage to enjoy during the season is Hojicha a unique kind of green tea. Although it's the same green tea the only difference is that it's been roasted. The leaves are roasted in a porcelain pot over hot charcoal. Which results in the leaves turning into a reddish-brown color, and making the tea have a golden color. This beverage has a nutty, roasted flavor and is naturally sweet. During the roasting process, all caffeine has been removed, which makes this beverage to be more common during the evening.
With autumn arriving this means a new season and with a new season, some people are affected with SAD also known as seasonal affective disorder. Symptoms may include feeling down, lack of energy, loss of interest in usual activities, oversleeping, and weight gain. This disorder is only temporary and usually affects people in the late fall. There really isn’t any cause for this disorder but research has shown that the change of chemicals in the brain might cause it. This disorder is also very common and the duration of this is usually medium-term which means it will be resolved in a few months. As it does have the term seasonal in it.
Enjoy this year's season of autumn Karakura!
This is Oda Watanabe with Karakura News.
Have an idea for a report? Feel free to drop your idea off at the News Station or give us a call at 020-980-4487. Make sure to follow us on Onrain @KANews
