One of our favorite local activities is strawberry picking, or itchigo gari. It's a unique experience for us American because 1) strawberry season is December through May and 2) it's a finger-staining, chin dribbling, all-you-can-eat fest, all done within 30 minutes!
The strawberries however are so sweet and they taste just like a strawberry should, not like the strawberries you get in the grocery stores that are mostly sour or tasteless. We are even given a squirt of sweetened condensed milk in our trays to use as a dipping sauce for our strawberries. I must admit that a little extra sugar doesn't hurt the flavor but the berries don't really need it, they are sweet enough all on their own.
We've gone several times, always aware of how many strawberries can actually be eaten in 30 minutes. We know we never make it past 15 minutes, our trays full of the green, leafy discards, but we try anyway. Also, the attendents at the green houses are always on the lookout for those of us trying to sneek a few out of the building--no such luck! You have to eat all the strawberries on site, not ever bringing any out with you. Not too bad since you can purchase a small box at the main building. And they make a wicked good strawberry preserve too.
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