Tsuyu, or the Japanese rainy season

Tsuyu is the Japanese rainy season. It begins about the middle of June and lasts about a month. When a rain front starts settleing over the middle to the western part of Japan, the weatherman declares that "Tsuyu," the rainy season has set in. During the Tsuyu, we have a lot of rain all over Japan except Hokkaido. Hokkaido is the only place that has no Tsuyu, and they June is the best season to enjoy the traveling around Hokkaido. I guess most Japanese people do not like wet skies and humid air, but the rain is needed by the farmers at rice-planting time. Plants grow a lot absorbing abundant water during the Tsuyu. When the weatherman declares the end of the Tsuyu, Japan enters hot summer season.

photo source: wikipedia ajisai

About NHK's "Trad Japan"

On Tuesday this week, I watched a NHK's TV program called "Trad Japan." This is the program where they introduce part of Japanese culture in English. We do have many language programs, but not this type. This is unique because they are trying to output what we have in this country.
They show us beautiful scenes of nature, paintings, culutural things, etc. I hope they will show us more of our modern part of life in Japan. Anyway, if you are interested in things Japanese, this is worth watching.