Things to do in snow country during summer: enjoy local watermelon!

I'll be honest, before I moved out to rural Japan I didn't know much about agriculture. I grew up in the city in my home country, and couldn't have told you what crops grew in what regions, or what times of year certain things grew best.

Here in snow country, I get a first-row seat to a lot of it. We have rice fields surrounding us, and a short five minute or so drive away is a prime watermelon growing area!

Yairo watermelons are some of the best, sweetest watermelons I've ever had the joy of tasting, and if you are looking for a reason to visit here in summer I would say this is a big one! Most local supermarkets and farmer's markets stock them at this time of year, but if you aren't local there are ways to order them online!