Ginkgo Trees In Our Backyard (2004-12-14)
I went for a ride along the stream in our suburb last week, the first time since the end of summer. When I rode my bike past our neighborhood park, a big canvas of golden leaves gleaming in the midday sun caught my eye. I was totally surprised to find that all those trees were ginkgo trees. Since we just discovered the beauty of the many parks and paths near our home recently, I had no idea Autumn could be this pretty just a couple of minutes from our apartment. And the best part of the scenery is there's nobody around. It's not like Ichonamiki Street where you have to battle crowds and noise. In our park, there is quietness and tranquility.
I also found quite a few ginkgo nuts amid the tons of leaves on the
ground. I picked up a good many in just twenty minutes. The
meat of the nut is encased in a very hard shell covered by a soft
fruit-like layer which stinks to high heaven! They have the worst
offensive smell in anything that is edible, which makes me wonder who
was the very first brave person to eat ginkgo nuts? He/she would
have to be pretty desperate to go near such foul-smelling seeds, much
less trying to crack open one to eat the meat.
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