Buckets of Rain

Last summer we had a normal rainy season in Japan. From late June to early July it rained about every other day, enough to make some plans cancelled but not enough to detract us from doing things.

This year the amount of rain were getting is truly ridiculous. As I write its still coming down in buckets and has been consistently for about the past month. I remember it being nice on Saturday afternoon while we were working...and thats the only time I remember it being nice recently. Even on Saturday night it rained with such a ferocity that it started flooding and mudslides in parts of Nagano.

Its too bad because this is usually an excellent time of year in Japan...the time of summer festivals. Almost every small community in Japan has some sort of summer festival in late July or early August, which usually includes some combination or all of the following: fireworks, big lanterns, parades, dances, lots of girls in yukatas (summer kimonos), and lots of traditional Japanese summer food like yaki soba (fried noodles), okonomiyaki (japanese cabbage pancake) and takoyaki (fried octopus balls).

We wanted to go to a big festival at Nagoya Port last Monday but it rained so hard that we had to forget the idea. Its shocking because last year on that very same weekend I remember going to the festival and it being beautiful weather. I also remember going to Utsumi Beach that day in the afternoon and it being basically the hottest and most humid day of my life up to that point...40 degrees and sweltering humidity. Now its just wet and sweaty.

Hopefully the rain doesnt follow us to Cambodia and Thailand where its rainy season there too.