Vol.1

The Secret is out!!

New Australian Residents

Vol.2

Golfer's Dream

Okay

Vol.3

2008/2009 Season is on

Pirateman Opening

Mochi

Vol.4

Toboggan Contest

A Day in Rusutsu

Vol.5

Enjoying Snow in Rusutsu

Skidooing

Vol.6

So different but both in Rusutsu!

Vol.7

Sakuranbo Gari

Jubee Marsh

Vol.8

A feeling for old Japan

Shimizu Tofu

Vol.9

Goshyoimoya

A Walk after the Rain

Sakuranbo Gari

　Have you ever tried Sakuranbo Gari? Oh, well! I suppose you don’t even know what it is when you hear the Japanese word. It’s picking up cherries. You pay an entrance fee (we paid 800 yen/person) and can pick cherries from the trees and eat for as long as you’d like. You can even spend the whole day there if you feel like it.

　Let me tell you the whole story from the very beginning. We started our trip in Rusutsu on a pretty cloudy morning and went to Lake Toya (to the side, which is closer

to Rusutsu). It took us only 15 min to get to the farm. It started raining, and we thought our fun will be spoilt by the weather. However, the cherry trees were covered with vinyl and the rain wouldn’t bother us. The lady at the parking lot provided us with umbrellas to get to the orchard and we started our cherry hunting.

　All the trees were covered with cherries but lower branches had less of them, which I am sure was the influence of the weekend (we were there on a Monday) and some Japanese guests. Any way, it wasn’t a problem for us to reach juicy cherries at all! And even if it had been, there were several step ladders to help us if we couldn’t reach the branches we wanted. We organized a mini cherry seed blowing contest to check who can blow them the farthest and who was the most accurate blower. Who was the winner you ask? Everyone! Because everyone enjoyed it immensely.

　We were also very lucky because they had cherry tomatoes and strawberries at the same farm, and picking them was also included in the price. We had a tomato ride after the cherries and everyone was very sorry we didn’t bring salt and pepper or salami or any other treat that goes well with tomatoes. Strawberries were the last to finish our terrific meal. We were told it’s the very end of the season, and the strawberries were not very good. I just hope that all the fruit I eat will taste that “not very good”!

　And here are what the participants of our farm invasion say.

"I hadn't realized how much more taste there would be when they were picked from the tree."

"We would definitely do it again."

"It was a fun thing to do as a family."

"It is a really pretty environment - and it's great for the kids to see where their food really comes from."

　That was a wonderful experience in spite of the weather, which actually wasn’t an obstacle at all. And I am looking forward to plums, prunes, grapes, apples, etc. gari!

Continued below.