Rice

One of the coolest things about living in Japan is watching the different stages of rice production as the seasons change. A few weeks ago, everyone was planting small rice seedlings into flooded rice fields. Now, the rice is about six inches tall and has thickened considerably so that all of the fields look as though they are covered in lush grass.

I've heard that most Japanese families consume so much rice throughout any given year that they prefer to grow their own rice so that they can avoid buying rice all year from the supermarket (5kg of rice $20--$30. Col and I go through this amount in about 3 weeks and, unlike many Japanese, we don't eat rice for breakfast. Supporting a family's rice habit requires one to grow rice or go bankrupt. Many families share a field with 2 or 3 other extended families.)