{"id":2118,"date":"2016-03-12T14:31:08","date_gmt":"2016-03-12T14:31:08","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.whataboutwatermelon.com\/?p=2118"},"modified":"2017-06-12T14:32:02","modified_gmt":"2017-06-12T14:32:02","slug":"second-slice-inside-look-japans-legendary-200-square-watermelon","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.whataboutwatermelon.com\/index.php\/2016\/03\/second-slice-inside-look-japans-legendary-200-square-watermelon\/","title":{"rendered":"SECOND SLICE: AN INSIDE LOOK AT JAPAN\u2019S LEGENDARY $200 SQUARE WATERMELON"},"content":{"rendered":"

Gifting fruit isn\u2019t necessarily traditional in the United States, but in different parts of the world, giving fruit is customary. This entry from 2014 explains how giving fruit \u2014 especially unusually-shaped fruit \u2014 is popular in Japan and should probably become a custom here in the United States!<\/p>\n

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Did you know that in Japan it\u2019s customary for people to give fruit as a gift? It\u2019s not uncommon for someone to present a neighbor with a simple orange or a small bunch of grapes. Yep, fruit is pretty much revered in Japan. Well, maybe not revered, <\/em>but they do take fruit pretty seriously, and that\u2019s a good thing.<\/p>\n

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Image courtesy of Wikipedia<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

They\u2019ve even got high-end \u201cfruit emporiums\u201d<\/a> where people can buy expensive, perfectly shaped fruits to give as gifts at special occasions like weddings, business meetings and hospital visits.<\/p>\n

One store sells apples for $21 each, strawberries for $69 a dozen and cherries for $159 per box, but the star product is the legendary square watermelon, which carries a price tag of more than $200. I\u2019ve talked in the past<\/a> about how the square watermelon are made \u2014 essentially, the watermelons are grown inside a special, square-shaped box \u2014 but the video below offers a closer look.<\/p>\n

The most incredible insight from the video: The super-expensive watermelons aren\u2019t intended for eating because most of them aren\u2019t even edible! That\u2019s because they\u2019re harvested before they\u2019re fully ripe. Instead, most proud owners of square watermelon simply keep them as a decorative accessory (they can be displayed for up to a year).<\/p>\n

I don\u2019t know about you, but there\u2019s no way I\u2019d be able to \u201cdisplay\u201d a watermelon for a year in my house. The longest I\u2019ve ever kept a watermelon on my countertop was 37 and a half hours before I cut that sucker open and devoured it.<\/p>\n