Fall in Japan

O Autumn, laden with fruit, and stain’d

With the blood of the grape, pass not, but sit

Beneath my shady roof; there thou may’st rest,

And tune thy jolly voice to my fresh pipe,

And all the daughters of the year shall dance!

Sing now the lusty song of fruits and flowers.

The narrow bud opens her beauties to

The sun, and love runs in her thrilling veins;

Blossoms hang round the brows of Morning, and

Flourish down the bright cheek of modest Eve,

Till clust’ring Summer breaks forth into singing,

And feather’d clouds strew flowers round her head.

The spirits of the air live in the smells

Of fruit; and Joy, with pinions light, roves round

The gardens, or sits singing in the trees.

Thus sang the jolly Autumn as he sat,

Then rose, girded himself, and o’er the bleak

Hills fled from our sight; but left his golden load.

-To Autumn, William Blake, 1783

The colors, children!!!

-Professor John Frink, 1995

Back in November, I went out to Kamikatsu on a guided hike to see some of the fall colors. The fall colors here (kouyou or momiji) are looked at in a way I can only compare to how people treat the fall colors in New England.

When I lived in Massachusetts, I had no less than 40 people come up to me and asked:

“Have you seen the foliage?”

“Ooh, you should make sure to go see the foliage.”

“Make sure you take a trip to see the foliage.”

In Massachusetts, “the foliage” has almost the same level of importance as “the Red Sox” or “the Patriots,” and it is spoken of with the same level of decorum, righteousness, and honor.

Here, there is also a word specifically used to describe fall colors: “kouyou” or “momiji.” There is even a special term for going to see these colors: “Momijgari,” or autumn leaf viewing.

We drove up a massively steep hill to arrive at the beginning of the hike. It made me laugh as the guide unlocked a small section closing off the trailhead. By unlock, I mean he undid a rope tied in a knot preventing people from going up the trail.

Before you go off about how anyone should be able to use this trail and not have to pay for it, I agree in principle, but in small communities like Kamikatsu things like this actually help the community to survive. I have no problem supporting a local community, and neither should you, so let that be the end of it!

The trail was really cool because it was a miniature version of the Shikoku Pilgrimage, a multi site pilgrimage of 88 temples traversing around the island of Shikoku. The trail had markings for each of the temples, and it was cool to think about what it would be like to walk the 1,200 km journey that multiple people take every year.

The colors were certainly beautiful, especially at one point where we were able to scramble to the top of a large rock and look out into the valley.

After finishing the hike, we drove back down to have lunch. About halfway down the hill, we stopped at a tiered rice field that has been in existence for hundreds of years. Every year, there is a community harvest where a large number of people from the community help to harvest the rice together. I was invited to take part in this event next year, and hope that I can make that happen.

Lunch was fantastic. We stopped at this little restaurant that is built facing out over the valley, and it has floor to ceiling windows, making the view fantastic. We all enjoyed an udon set (a set is essentially like a value meal back in the states, and usually includes rice and a couple of sides), and reflected on how great it was to enjoy a beautiful fall day in Japan.