Unlike last year, I haven't been getting sick on a monthly basis. Unfortunately, I have gotten sick enough to require my first visit to a doctor in Japan. As one does, I went to the doctor that came recommended by a student. This doctor had the added benefit of having the most entertaining office sign in Kitakami:



Unless you're presenting with a dire emergency, the medical intake process in Japan is very DIY. The nurse handed me a digital thermometer along with the patient information sheet so that I could take and record my temperature. Once that was done, she pointed me to the self-service automatic blood pressure cuff. Much like the photo booth at the drivers' license center, the machine exhorted me to relax before pressing the button to activate it.

Communicating with the doctor was not as hard as I feared it would be, save for a misunderstanding about why needles were going to be involved. After doing a blood test and determining that I did not have pneumonia, the doctor sent me off with a prescription and a directive to fill it at the pharmacy across the street. Which I did, and encountered one of the more curious things about Japanese medicine: powdered medicine. I also got a couple of different kinds of medication in addition to the powder (although not as many as the six pills plus powder Matthew got for his recent illness). They weren't difficult to take and they worked, but given the side effects (anyone who's ever taken corticosteroids would understand), I think I might just skip the doctor in the future.

Fall colors aren't just on the big trees in the mountains — they're also on the bonsai that some people keep outside their homes.

Compared to other cities in Japan, Kitakami is relatively young. Consequently, there aren't many examples of traditional Japanese architecture around. This house is one of the few.



We're not sure whether this is actually an old house or a newer one built in the traditional style.

We attended an event for the local Okinawan joint on Saturday evening. As we were leaving, the owner's sister gave us a dragonfruit that she had grown and brought from Okinawa.



Dragonfruit tastes rather like kiwi, but less tart. They're as pretty on the inside as they are outside. Some are all pink with black seeds; others, like ours, have a thin layer of pink between the skin and white pulp with black seeds

On a misty autumn morning, spider webs are bejeweled with dew. There are many spiders that build large webs here, so the effect is quite spectacular.



The large, colorful spider makes a nice backdrop for the web; equally, the web makes a striking backdrop for the spider.



Even the spider's legs glitter with dewdrops.

Looking out over the Kitakami Poem Park on a beautiful October day.

On beautiful early autumn days like today, the dragonflies come out in swarms. Akatonbo is the generic name for any red-bodied dragonfly.

As the nights get cold and we brace for the approaching winter, here's a photo to remind us of spring and the approaching summer.

If I had to leave Japan knowing about only one new food, it would be takikomi gohan.



Takikomi gohan is rice cooked along with other stuff in water seasoned with soy sauce and other flavorings. It's also called gomoku gohan, five-ingredient rice, presumably because most recipes have five ingredients. This recipe calls for chicken, carrot, shiitake mushrooms, aburaage, and gobou (burdock root). It's one of our favorite fall dinners, alongside some homemade rice-bran pickles.