Coming to a very seasonal country like Japan from San Diego, a city whose two seasons are “nice” and “slightly less nice,” has been rather interesting for me, and it took time for me to get into the rhythm of life here. Japan has four distinct seasons, though for some reason they think they’re the only country in the world to be so blessed, and a lot of Japanese cuisine centers around eating the foods you can only find during the current time of year. Of course, Japan has more than “four” seasons, since early spring with is frosty mornings and cherry blossoms is so different from the warmth and greenery of later spring, and the rainy period that lasts from June through July is nothing like the blazing heat and humidity of August. The month of September is “typhoon season,” and Japan is being hit by storms left and right, which sadly have claimed more than 100 lives so far. Right now Typhoon Roke (or as the Japanese call it, Typhoon number 15) is traveling up the length of the country, dumping tons of water on our heads as it advances.
September is typhoon season in Japan.