It may be severely cold this winter.

On October 29, World Meteorological Organization (WMO) said that La Niña has developed and is expected to last into next year, affecting temperatures, precipitation and storm patterns in many parts of the world.

On November 10, Japan Meteorological Agency (press release) announced that La Niña has been continuing since the summer.

In the first place... What is La Niña?
La Niña means "girl" in Spanish, a phenomenon in which sea surface temperatures are lower than normal from the vicinity of the date line in the Pacific Equatorial region to the South American coast, and the condition lasts for about a year.

La Niña is thought to have various effects on the weather in Japan. It tends to be extremely hot in summer and cold in winter.

Today, November 7th is “Rittou”.

"Rittou" is one of the calendars based on the movement of the sun called twenty-four seasons, and represents the beginning of winter.
Twenty-four seasons were registered as UNESCO's Intangible Cultural Heritage in 2016.
Just like "Rittou", there are "Rissyun", "Rikka", and "Rissyuu", which represent the beginning of the season, and together these four days are called "Shiryuu", all of which represent the beginning of the season.
In addition, the day before "Shiryuu" is "Setsubun". Therefore, "Setsubun" is held four times a year.
It has been believed for a long time that "there is a disaster in Setsubun", so it is said that it is a happy thing to be able to safely celebrate the day of "Shiryuu".

In China, there is a proverb called "Lìdōng bǔ dōng, bǔ zuǐ kōng". It means that it is the best way to weather the cold winter by eating the harvested one in "Rittou" season.
Because it is the season when the difference of the temperature becomes easy to lose the physical condition which is intense, let's take care of the meal and get in shape, isn't it?
Not to mention the COVID-19 countermeasures, we have to be especially careful this year, such as cold measures and influenza measures at the turn of the season.