Opinions expressed in this photo are solely those of Moki, and do not necessarily reflect the opinions of Let's Sharing management.

At dinner the other night, a local friend brought a small piece of wasabi and a grater along. The grater surface is sharkskin.



He showed us how to grate the wasabi by gently rubbing the root in circles on the grater, then let the rest of us try. We ate it on sashimi of octopus, squid, and salmon. Oishikatta desu!

Sponge cakes with strawberries, whipped cream, and placards
Cheesecakes with gold dust for holiday snackers
Chocolate yule logs with Santas and sleighs
These are a few of the cakey displays . . .

Here in Japan, no Christmas is complete without a Christmas cake. Christmas cake is traditionally sponge cake with whipped cream and strawberries. It has morphed into far more extravagant things, like cheesecakes or chocolate cakes covered in ganache (melted chocolate mixed with cream, and sometimes liqueur). You can also get them decorated with white chocolate Mickey-head plaques or holiday wishes from Kitty-chan.

Grocery stores, conbini, and patisseries have had these glossy brochures out for about three weeks now, advertising their scrumptious holiday wares.

I have no idea what those "targets" are there for, but they sure make this tree look like some kind of monster from Doctor Who.

We've gotten varying stories on when the snow comes to Kitakami. Mostly, we'd been told the first snow is usually near the end of December, or not until January. But another local said it usually snows around the end of November or beginning of December. So we didn't really know what to expect.

Yesterday's forecast called for some snow flurries in the middle of the night. So, we were a little surprised that when we went out to meet some friends at 5pm, there was snow already falling, and by the time we returned home, there was even some on the ground.

This morning we awoke to six inches of snow on the ground, and big flakes still falling! Eventually the snow got much lighter and the sun came out, so we walked the dogs.

Chrysanthemums are in season now, and some people are very serious about cultivating them.



These ones are part of an array that runs the length of the house behind them. They're a welcome shot of color on a gray day like today.

On sunny days, everyone hangs their laundry out to dry and their futons out to air. We're no exception.



The kakebutons (like comforters) are very fat and fluffy because we've put both layers in the set together for the winter.

In America, manhole covers are a largely ignored part of the urban landscape. They are quite plain, bearing little more than a note of what utility it serves and a tread pattern so that pedestrians won't slip.

In Japan, though, each municipality has manhole cover designs that reflect local specialties, historical sites, or festivals. Whatever a town is famous for may end up on the manhole covers.

Here's one of Kitakami's designs:



And one from Hottoyuda, famous for its hot springs:



And one from Yokote, depicting Yokote Castle, a kamakura (snow hut), and cherry blossoms:

We've had some beautiful weather lately, perfect for taking the dogs on long walks. Whether truly clear or decorated with wispy clouds, there's something that makes the skies here special: no contrails. There have been a few days when planes are flying over (we aren't far from Iwate Hanamaki Airport) and the weather conditions create contrails, but it's very rare.

Behold, the kotatsu:



A kotatsu is a low table frame covered by a blanket, which the tabletop sits on. A heat source is located somewhere under the table; ours is electric, and is bolted to the frame. You sit with your legs (or more, if you like) under the blanket, which traps the heat. Like many houses in Japan, ours lacks central heat and much in the way of insulation, so we've stocked up on things like heaters in preparation for the winter. Frankly, even if we had heat, I'd want a kotatsu ― it's all fuzzy and cozy and warm.

I hesitate to put this in the "Strange Japan" category, because what it really deserves is an "Awesome Japan" category. I love the kotatsu!