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Monday, July 13, 2015

Damp stillness before the burst of summer at Kurondo Pond

Hello, Friends! How have you been enjoying or surviving your summer or winter?  Extreme heatwaves and heavy rain storms seem to be happening with increasing regularity worldwide.  I've learned about the record-breaking heat wave in India and Pakistan, Europe, and northwestern America so far.  Take care of yourself to avoid heatstroke or dehydration, and stay cool.

Here in Japan, the rainy season has been cooler than usual from June to early July but weather turned to steamy hot a couple of days ago.  It feels like being in a sauna.  I hope the long-term weather-forecast is right that after the rainy season, we'll have cooler summer due to El Nino.




Kurondo Pond is located on the rolling hills in the north of Ikoma City, Nara pref. The Area around Kurondo Pond is a popular campground in summer, and is often used for hiking and family excursions in the spring and fall. People enjoy B-B-Q in the camping site and/or rowing a rental boat in the pond.



“Kurondo” seems to have derived from the theory that the pond was made as part of the villa garden by the powerful family who worked as a “kurodo”, or a chamberlain, under Saga Emperor (786-842). His Reign was 809-823.



It was a muggy cloudy weekday during the rainy season.  
Irises, one of floral symbols of the rainy season, were almost withered except a few of late bloomers.




Nature looked immersed in the lethargic air of that season.




People were sparse and some people were leisurely dropping their lines.


I felt a little sleepy in the damp stillness, maybe like this cat.



The mountains surrounding Kurond Pond are part of “Kongo-Ikoma” quasi national park.  You can enjoy walking, bird watching on the hiking trails, while basking in the lush green of the forest.



The pond is waiting for the bright summer to come.



Thank you for your visit.
With almost no computer time for the time being from tomorrow,
I'd like to catch up in August.