Explore everyday life in Japan
The cicada, and its loud, incessant mating call is a trademark of late summers in Japan.
Virtually anywhere you go, so long as there are a few trees nearby, you will encounter their ceaseless, high-pitched singing and will most likely be startled at least once or twice as one suddenly pops out of the low branches of a nearby tree and begins clumsily flying down the street bouncing off buildings and electrical poles. Or, you may find yourself surprised when you approach what appears to be a large, dead cicada lying on its back in the road or on a side walk, only to have it suddenly start flapping its wings and chaotically hoping around, desperately trying to right itself.
At the height of the afternoon heat, especially in city parks and rural areas, the noise that these bugs produce is remarkable, almost deafening, and something about the sound seems to make the days feel hotter. As the ringing fills your ears, you may feel yourself compelled to stop somewhere and eat a kaki-gori (Japanese snow cone) or duck into a nearby convenience store for a cheap ice cream bar.
This is an ongoing series that will explore various aspects of daily life in Japan. My hope is that this series will not only reveal to its followers, image by image, what Japan looks like, but that it will also inform its followers about unique Japanese items and various cultural and societal practices. If you are interested in getting regular updates about life in Japan, please consider following me at @boxcarblue. If you have any questions about life in Japan, please don’t hesitate to ask. I will do my best to answer all of your questions.