Tokyo's Ota wholesale market was the last place I expected to find myself at 6 a.m. on a torrentially rainy Friday in mid-June. As I weaved my way -- shoes sodden and hair frizzy -- through the crates of fresh fish and piles of potatoes, I will admit I questioned my life choices more than once.
Tea Leaves
How a $30 cherry helps boost rural Japan
Yamagata's luxury fruit market reflects economics and social dynamics of aging countryside
The Yamagata Benio, left, is Yamagata prefecture's largest cherry variety yet. It is seen here compared with its predecessor, the Beni Shuho variety, at an orchard in June. (Photo by Yuki Kohara)
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