June is the time of successive rainy days known as "tsuyu" (rainy season).

It is humid and sticky, an unpleasant season, but this rain is a boon to crops such as rice and vegetables.

So, at this time of year, when the weather is bad and we don’t feel energetic, there are still famous flower spots within the prefecture to bring calm to the soul.

Those spots are the parks where hydrangeas and irises, flowers that look best in the rain, bloom.

In June, the regular "Hydrangea Festival" (ajisai matsuri) is held in Shimoda Park, in Shimoda City.

The flowers, which total 150,000 plants, and three million blooms, are truly overwhelming.

The beautiful blue and light pink flowers spill out along the walkways.

There are a number of events held during this time, and the place is bustling with people.

On the other hand, at the Kamo Japanese Iris Garden in Kakegawa City, the Japanese Iris, a flower that has been known in Japan for millennia, blooms.

Its great flowers, with large petals arranged in multiple layers, are a bewitching sight that suits the rain well.

In the Edo Period, samurai lived in the mansion that remains in the garden today.

The mansion provides you with a chance to take a look at old Japanese architecture.

A classic Japanese scene—the Japanese Iris garden and mansion surrounded by the local hills—spreads out before your very eyes.