More and more of us are paying attention to aesthetics, cleanliness and beauty. This is normal for a group of business owners, especially those of us within the Smith’s School of English Franchise system, people who are successful and enjoy very much what they do and the service they offer. Soon after the beautiful cherry blossoms disappeared in my neighborhood, the azaleas are already starting making themselves known. Azaleas are in full bloom now and, although the typhoon had an impact, the leaves are still quite beautiful and the colors vibrant. This picture was taken just before the typhoon and shows how dense the growth has been.
Very soon we will see ‘ajisai’, the hydrangea coming out everywhere. Hydrangea are a common wild flower that grows in bunches looking roughly like a half-sphere. I call them the ‘brain flower’ and can often appear very blue to pink and some combinations in between. You’re wondering how did this guy come to know anything about flowers in season?? Well my dear wife is an expert and she is indeed very keen to make sure every little detail about them does not go unnoticed or unmentioned. If she gets the sense I have not paid attention, the details will get repeated until I have memorized them! In fairness, as I get older, I can appreciate more and more the importance of these little things, as I am sure many of the senior ladies at my school in Kotoen long have.
A good way to experience flowers is to make a day trip up to Mount Rokko in Kobe. There are a wide variety of flower gardens around, both tropical and alpine and a continuous line of blooms can be seen just by walking around. When the hydrangea are in full bloom, expect groups of ladies crowding around like they do at cherry blossom season!
Enjoy!
Martin Werner Zander, Partner in the Smith’s School of English Company
マーティン・ワーナー・ザンダー
Owner, Smith’s School in Kotoen
Hi Martin,
The flowers in Japan are very attractive but as I suffer from hay fever since living in Japan I tend to shy away from buying them for my school
Ken Smith’s School of English Koenji