Black Tights Day, Hooray! 黒いタイツの日を万歳！

今日、黒いタイツの日になった！どこへ住んでも嬢にそう変わりはないと思う。秋が一番好きな服の季節だ。

At last, today is Black Tights Day! I'm sure women are the same wherever they live, there is always one day in Autumn when you know that you can start wearing black tights. You can go into Autumn clothes perhaps a couple of weeks earlier, but the first day of wearing black tights really marks the first day of Autumn.

Rice crop art

This is amazing! Some enterprising regions of Japan are creating artwork out of planting different varieties of rice... http://www.pinktentacle.com/2009/07/rice-paddy-art/.

And a JAL advert created the same way another year... and video as they decided they didn't like it after all... http://www.pinktentacle.com/2008/07/jal-logo-uprooted-from-rice-paddy-art/.

両親のねこ My parents' cats

I couldn't resist putting a couple of pictures of my parents' two cats on here. They're brothers, and getting on for 2 years old now. Aren't they sweet?!

They get on really well together, but play fight sometimes, just as brothers do!

月見 Moon Viewing

In Japan, it's traditional in the Autumn to enjoy the beauty of the moon on a clear night. Last night, the moon was particularly bright and beautiful. Actually it was best as I came home from work, because it was lower and bigger in the sky, but I didn't take the picture until later! Maybe I'll get another chance in the next couple of nights. in which case I'll update.

In Japan, McDonalds even sell a sell a special seasonal burger called a tsukimi burger (moon viewing burger). The version with cheese is one of my favourite burgers, the burger is made all the more special because you can only buy it for part of September!

Tsukimi is traditionally a time for celebrating the Autumn harvest. I hear that it's traditional to eat dango, which are delicious sweet dumplings made from rice flour, whilst watching the moon. I occasionally buy the 'skewered with sweetened soy sauce version' throughout the year from the supermarket.