A Touch of Red… or Yellow
I set out thinking, maybe a few early bloomers are out already? But no—seems the cluster amaryllis (higanbana) are sticking to their calendar. Along the irrigation channels they’ll burst into red right around the equinox, but today, no chance of spotting that classic “a single red flower among endless green 『 万緑叢中 紅 一点 』 .” Instead, I found a wildflower along the roadside—something hibiscus-like. ＊Google Lens tells me it’s called Yanone-bontenka (also known as T akasago-fuyou ) in the mallow family. The bright orange-red of wild gourd fruit (karasuuri) was a nice consolation, though. Riding along the Okagaki-machi cycling path by the Shioiri River, the grass was growing like crazy from both sides. Down at Hatsu beach, someone had set up a white swing made from a surfboard, with “ ryocamping (glamping & hotel( ryokan ) stay)” tents pitched nearby. I thought about turning back, but… no, th...