The Japanese summer is hot and humid. But Japanese people enjoy it with wisdom and ingenuity: by listening to the sound of wind, watching fireworks or dining on the river. Japanese noryo, or cooling down from the heat by using the five senses of vision, hearing, etc., is a way of enjoying summer in the manner of Japanese, who incorporate nature in their daily lives.

Enjoy "Cool" Sounds: furin

If you walk through residential areas of Japan in the sweltering summer heat, you will hear the ting-a-ling of tiny bells suspended from the eaves of houses. This is the sound of furin, or wind chimes, a timeless aspect of summer in Japan.

Furin is a small bell (just 5-10 cm in diameter), made of thin glass or metal and hung under the eaves. A long strip of paper hangs from a piece of thread, which is attached to the clapper of the bell. When the wind sways the paper, the clapper also swings and rings the bell. Even if you are indoors, you can "feel" the breeze outside when you hear the tinkling of the wind chime. This sense has been passed down from generation to generation as a way to savor summer’s gentle breezes.

Uchimizu, or sprinkling water in front of one’s house, is another old tradition. Water cools the ground or pavement as it evaporates. Uchimizu was devised by common people during the Edo period (1603-1867), and is still practiced by ordinary people in many residential areas of Tokyo, Kyoto and elsewhere today. The Japanese perceive these old traditions, uchimizu and furin, as very poetic.

Magnificent Fireworks

One of the most spectacular summer enjoyments in Japan is watching firework displays. Every year, major firework displays are held at some 230 locations across the country, most of them in summer. At some events, as many as 40,000 fireworks are launched during a two-hour display, watched by up to a million spectators.

Japanese fireworks are widely considered to be the most magnificent in the world. Certainly nowhere else can one see firework displays of such spectacular variety and intensity. Many feature not just one major crescendo, when many fireworks explode nearly simultaneously, over the course of several minutes, but numerous displays. And yet the grand finale at the end is typically even more spectacular. Sitting on beaches or riverbanks, families, friends and couples gather to enjoy these summer evenings and magnificent firework displays.

Bon-odori, or the Bon festival dance, is another timeless Japanese summer tradition. People, young and old, form a big circle in large open space and dance the evening away. At the center of the circle, there is a high wooden stage called a yagura. The dance area is lit with numerous lanterns and people dance to the sound of taiko, or traditional Japanese drums, and to the tune of folk songs. Originally, the dance was part of a ceremony to honor the spirits of ancestors, but today each community holds bon-odori for two or three evenings in summer to foster togetherness among the townsfolk. There are also many big bon-odori festivals held in bustling areas with many stalls selling sweets, shaved ice, masks of anime characters and other items, or operating kids’ games with prizes. Visiting these stalls with friends is a means of feeling cool, or noryo, for children.

Enjoy Cool Nature: Kawadoko & Yakatabune

Many people escape to the mountains or countryside during summer in search of pure nature — fresh air, the sound of small streams, the chirping of insects. Outdoor dining is also very popular. Along the Kibune River in the suburbs of Japan’s old imperial capital of Kyoto, Japanese restaurants build temporary decks above the river, called kawadoko or river floors. Holidaymakers from all over Japan flock to this area from May through September every year to enjoy wining and dining outside.

Guests can enjoy Kyoto cuisine with typical local ingredients such as ayu (sweetfish) and Kyoto vegetables. The clear stream underneath the kawadoko and the trees along the riverbank make you forget the summer heat.

Tokyo has its own form of summertime river amusement: yakatabune, or boats serving meals. Guests enjoy meals in Japanese-style rooms on these flat-bottom, roofed boats. Yakatabune originated in the Heian period (794-1185) as a way for noblemen to entertain themselves. Today it’s possible for anyone to book a dinner-time cruise aboard a yakatabune on Tokyo Bay or along the Sumida River, dining on tempura, deep fried on the spot, and sip sake (Japanese rice wine) while enjoying the view of the Tokyo cityscape at night. Its countless buildings lit by a flood of lights, as seen while cruising along the water, cooled by the sea breeze wafting in through the boat’s many windows.

Another very "cool" spot popular among young people is the terrace at a resort in Shimukappu Village in Hokkaido, Japan’s northernmost main island. When you look down from this platform, from a height of 1,088 meters above sea level, often all you see is "a sea of clouds," a world away from the heat below. You can see the sea of clouds only early in the morning, when weather conditions are just right. Despite the limitation, close to 2,000 people visit the platform on some days.

Subtle coolness ingeniously created, and coolness created by skillfully incorporating nature, the Japanese summer is full of the ingenuity of people who live with nature.

(August 2012)