"Rice, rice, baby..."

Hooray for having yet another good Japanese cultural experience!

I enjoyed working in a rice field yesterday along with lots of other folks, and learning about harvesting rice.

We went to a special field in Aomori prefecture, where they plant different colors of rice to make pictures. Check it out...

So cool!

I learned that usually harvesting is done by machine, so it was special for Japanese people, too, to participate in manual harvesting as it was done in the past. There were lots of people waiting around for the event to start...

The rice harvesting "professionals" in their official uniform -- bright floral suit, rubber boots, gloves, and hat with white scarf wrapped around it. :)

When we first arrived, we were greeted by city officials, had a brief orientation, then headed to the field. Here's a video, which I think is the best way to get a feel for what the day was like...

And now here are some pictures...

My firstborn "baby" -- what a little bundle of joy. :)

These little ladies in the bright suits worked like machines! They meant business.

Foreigners (plus Kohei), unite!

Work it, Liz!

After chopping down the stocks and bundling them together, the last step was to tie them to a post to dry.

Harriet and Stephanie at work.

After spending a couple of hours out in the field, we ate lunch. You guessed it...rice balls! Only appropriate since I really did have a ball harvesting rice. :)

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Click here to read my latest entry in "Keep Shining." (about another outdoor activity I did over the weekend)