SPRING ON VACATION
It was a sweltering day in May when I found this recipe. May, I repeat, for those of you who missed that word. This year, it seemed that spring had decided to take an extra long vacation and leave the climate duties to her companion summer. It was still May when we had our first over 30℃ (which is 86 degrees in fahrenheit) day in Tokyo, and it's been like this ever since. Although I love summer and I would say without hesitation that it is my favourite season, I also do enjoy the mild and beautiful days of spring and autumn — the best time of year to wear trench coats and other fashion items that are harder to incorporate during the harsher seasons. And though I shamelessly play favourites, the best part of living in Tokyo is that you are able to experience the change of seasons fully; the pale pink cherry blossoms when the earth comes back to life and everything starts to turn green again, the rainy season when you see hydrangeas and the pops of colourful umbrellas everywhere, the sweltering summer days when people enjoy the fireworks wearing "yukatas", the crisp autumn days when the leaves turn red and golden and there are no clouds against the bright blue skies, the cool evenings when you hear crickets chirping, the cold days when people all bundled up walk briskly and the fairy lights glimmer in the city, and finally the freezing and bleak days when people gather and have "nabe parties" and there are a few days of snow. I wanted the full experience this year too, and I wanted those pleasant spring days back, even if just to have a few more weeks to look forward to summer. But we are getting a little off track.
