It's a Big Deal

Fall in Japan is a big deal.  Just like many American's flock to the New England area to see the maples turn in October, the Japanese have their spots for Fall foliage viewing.  I think the consensus this year is that the colors aren't that vibrant.  It's been warm here for a lot longer than "normal", whatever that is any more.  I'll take the warmth, myself.  They definitely celebrate the turning of the leaves.  There are festivals and "illuminations" of the trees at night.  I haven't been able to see that yet, but I'm sure it's beautiful.  I have been back to Tokugawaen Garden recently and took some more photos.  

It was very tricky to get pictures without people in them.  The garden had a lot of activity that day. This mom was trying to get photos of her little girl in her kimono for a special occasion.  Last time I was there, a professional photographer was taking pictures of a beautiful young woman in her kimono, too.  I think it's a beautiful place for photographs. All the beautiful trees in this garden were Japanese Maples which are also a favorite in American gardens.  They are typically small trees with delicate, lacey leaves. If you do a Google search for Japanese maple you will see how many beautiful colors they come in and also find this wikipedia information.  They are wonderful in the typically sized American yard and provide a lot of unique interest. They are probably not happy in my Southern California area, however.  

Yesterday I went on a tour to see ginkgo trees in all their Fall glory.  A few dahlias and camellias joined in.  

These dahlias got a little help from editing to really shine. It was a gloomy day. Did you know that ginkgo trees have edible nuts? I had one and it seemed a cross between a nut and fruit to me. It had a pistachio nut type shell, but the actual nut was softer. If you've heard about the smell of ginkgo trees, you would have heard correctly. The area we went to was obviously an area where they "farm" the nuts as there were fields of trees. The smell was pretty awful. Evidently it is from the nuts. 

I found a couple of articles on ginkgo nuts, here and here.  From what I read, you need to handle them with gloves and eat them sparingly.  I hope you've enjoyed a little Fall color, especially if you already have snow on the ground!!