Three times daily

Going back to Japan now, just a short post about the interesting "alarm" system they have going here.

In Sadamitsu, a melody plays three times a day. It's a different melody each time. At 7am I wake up because of the unfamiliar music that is being played ALL over the town. I'm sure that everyone in every household can hear it. It's not overbearingly loud but at the same time, loud enough to interrupt sleep. I suppose its purpose is to wake people up in anticipation of the workday (yay work!). It also plays, without fail, on the weekends. I suppose to wake people up in anticipation of their days of rest (yay rest!).

At noon another melody plays, this time one that I recognize as "Edelweiss" (from that beloved and celebrated movie, which all people love, the Sound of Music *sarcasm sarcasm*). The purpose of this notification? To tell people that it's time to eat lunch maybe? Or perhaps just to herald the oncoming of midday. Or it could be both! Yes, I've solved that mystery!

The last, again unrecognizable, song plays at 5pm. I was told yesterday that this is because it's time to go home. I haven't noticed that this prompts a huge onslaught of traffic but my house is also on the top of a hill and nowhere near a main street anyway. Also, in a town of this size, there really is no rush hour. Traffic flow seems to remain the same no matter what time of day it is.

If anyone ever comes to visit me in Sadamitsu, you too can experience the wonders of the thrice daily melodic alarms. I wonder if this is a regional thing? Or if bigger cities have them too? Food for thought.