Even after living here for
three months, I’m still captivated by Kirishima’s beauty. There is so much green, and it’s
everywhere. The mountains I’m used to
are snow-capped and barren, which, I admit, are still very beautiful. Not here in Kirishima. Every bit of space on a mountain is covered
in thick green forest. I honestly can’t
believe how many trees can fit on every one.
The only mountains that aren’t tree-covered are the volcanoes. Sakurajima is definitely the most popular of
the three main volcanoes in this city.
It’s frequently active, and often greets those living around it with a
burp or two. In the summer, ash from
Sakurajima drifts over to the west towards Kagoshima City. In the winter, the ash floats over to the
east towards Kanoya. And then there is
the occasional burp that sends ash flying toward Kirishima, but that only
happened once that I’ve witnessed (indirectly, as I’m up in the mountains, but
my fellow ALTs live by the sea in Hayato and Kokubu).
There is another volcano to
the northeast of Kirishima, called Mt. Kirishima. I get a clear glimpse of it every time I
drive to Kirishima Junior High School.
There is a huge park with a long hiking route all around the
volcano. Most of it is closed off due to
an eruption that happened a couple years ago.
I’m waiting for it to be reopened so I can go hiking up there for a day.
A few weeks ago, the rice
fields were harvested, and now the fields are a beautiful golden yellow. That and the newly begun kouyou (changing of
leaves from green to yellow to red), and Makizono is starting to look like a
colourful mosaic. I’ve heard that kouyou
is most spectacular in Kyoto, and it will be at its height when I go there in
two weeks.
The weather has gotten a lot colder in the past
week and a half, and I found that I was not prepared for it in the least with
my plethora of tank tops and lighter clothing.
I just recently went shopping to battle the cold with new turtlenecks, a
cardigan and a vest. There is no heating
in any of my schools, and since it can be a bit pricy, I try to spare the use
of my heater in my apartment. Now is the
time of year when people dress in layers.
I go to school wearing a tank top, a long sleeved undershirt, a turtleneck,
a cardigan, thin under-pants (I mean pants that I wear under my work pants),
ankle socks, knee-high socks, and my work pants. And even then, I’m still cold. Maybe I should pig out on junk food and store
up some fat for the winter. |
| On the way to Kirishima JHS, with Mt. Kirishima in the background. |
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| Makizono looking northwest |
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| Makizono looking southwest. |
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