Signs of fall

It's early fall and some farmers have already started bringing in their rice and vegetables. Here is a multi-lane road with one lane taken up for perhaps 500 metres with rice.

This seems to be early. Most of the fields are still unharvested. And yet, this is not the only place that I passed rice spread out to dry. Closer to town, the entire bike lane is carpeted. I want to be sympathetic to the farmers and I know how tough their work is but I almost rode right through the rice out of spite. They couldn't leave a metre on the side for cyclists?


drying rice

I would normally worry about the car exhaust settling on the rice but I think the farmer considers that a trade-off for the pest control cars provide. I watched for a while as a flock of pigeons landed about two metres from the rice, walked up and just began to feed as a car chased them away briefly. They landed two metres away...

There were also many places with hot red peppers drying. That would be a more vibrant picture; strange that I would pick this one.

drying fish.

Even the fish were spread out to dry. Actually, life in the ocean is pretty tough for these little guys. I watched from shore as larger fish chased them to the surface and a mixed flock of gulls and terns picked them off on the surface. These in my hands, and a few hundred others, escaped in the wrong direction and beached themselves. I worked for a few minutes tossing several back in until the most relentless predator approached.

I guess this beaching is a common thing. You know how it is with Koreans and fresh fish. One guy appeared in rubber boots and a bag and collected a few hundred, I would guess.