At a Glance: Falling In Japan

Posted on 10/30/2020 Last updated on 11/27/2020

No, this isn’t about the experience of losing your footing and crashing to the ground in Japan, although we’ve all been there at some point. It’s about that other most wonderful time of the year: autumn!

Japan, being in the northern hemisphere, experiences the autumn season between September 22nd and December 21st, with mid-late October and November being the peak autumnal time period. While this time of the year sees the days getting increasingly shorter and colder, it also sees an explosion of color in natural world and a variety of new tastes in the human one.

Many travelers agree that fall/autumn is one of the best times to visit Japan, with the weather less extreme than in summer or winter and generally less of a crowd than in the spring. What sort of things can you expect to see (and eat)? Here’s MUSUBI’s short primer on the joys of aki (秋).

Photo by Lyndon Li on Unsplash https://unsplash.com/photos/zrT1tjnxJKQ

The leaves changing to autumn colors (紅葉, kōyō) is to autumn what the sakura blooming are to spring. Viewing this event has been a popular activity in Japan for centuries, and nowadays draws spectators from all over gather in key locations at specific times during the last quarter of the year. The exact timing varies due to temperature, elevation, and latitude, with companies such as Japan Railways making forecasts in advance each year to accommodate the changing dates.

The “kōyō front” generally starts in late September in Hokkaido, and slowly moves down towards the southern Japanese islands until the end of November and into December. In cities like Tokyo and Kyoto, the best viewing times range from mid-October through early December, as many trees will maintain their colorful look before the leaves start to fall.

The best places to see kōyō in action include Daisetsuzan National Park (Hokkaido, Mount Nasu (Fukushima) Ueno Park (Tokyo) and Eikando Temple (Kyoto), but there are of course many more.

Traditionally a harvest season, autumn is also a great time to enjoy many seasonal foods in Japan. Autumn is even known as the “season of good appetite” (食欲の秋, shokuyoko no aki) and the best time of eating before the colder winter months.

Signature foods of the season include Matsutake（松茸), highly-prized mushrooms that can be prepared a variety of ways such as tempura seen above. Pacific saury（秋刀魚, sanma) is often served salted and grilled. The kanji in its name literally translates as “autumn knife fish”. Pumpkin （かぼちゃ, kabocha) is another; the gourd-like squash is a little different than the orange vegetable associated with the word in the west, but no less delicious. Japanese persimmon (柿, kaki) and sweet potato (さつま芋, satsuimo) are others. There’s never a shortage of interesting foods to eat in the fall!

Photo by IT-STUDIO on Pixabay

And that’s just the basics. There are also annual festivals and events, seasonal fashions, and much more. We’ll cover this and other seasonal specialties in Japan in the future here on MUSUBI. Until then, enjoy this wonderful season if you’re already here, or look forward to it the next time you’re in Japan!

For more information on how you can experience the wonders of autumn in Japan, read about the job of an ALT and how you can experience Japan for yourself!

Photo Credits:

Top photo: Masaaki Komori on Unsplash

1 – Lyndon Li on Unsplash

2 – IT-STUDIO on Pixabay

Previously-used photo: Jisaku Kaiseki Ryori by Chris 73 / Wikimedia Commons licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0 Unported license (cc by-SA 3.0). No changes or alterations were made.