Food in Japan

Hot noodle soup. Slurping is heard to my right and left. Yes finally! Slurping is not only allowed, it's expected. But have you ever tried slurping hot noodle soup before...I mean REALLY slurping? I challenge you to try it. It's much more difficult than it seems.
Attempting, but only able to make a faint sound, no one hears it. The noodles are long and it's impossible to get the complete semi slimy square noodle in your mouth by American ways. Following the others and taking the end of one noodle, I start to suck in trying to get the whole noodle in one breath. The noodle is over a foot long!!! And it doesn't take to much imagination to think it's a slug or other type of worm. But the taste is amazing.

Americans have dulled their sense of texture when it comes to food. We have soft and hard..sometimes chewy and I guess there's the occasional jelly or sticky substance (especially pertaining to candy). But when is the last time you ate something slimy on purpose? How about gooey or slippery? Here they are just everyday textures. The slimy raw egg mixed in with rice for breakfast and that gooey bite of the amazing white rice ball. There's slippery noodles and crunchy seaweed that turns chewy once placed in your mouth. A variety of new flavors and textures...

Japan

Japan. Yes it is also a oriental country and they eat rice here too, but that is where the similarities end. I would say its more similar to England in many regards. Driving on the left side of the road, it gets confusing which way to look when crossing the street. Heat. The Japanese do not like to be cold. It feels so amazing to be truly warm from the inside out!!

Hiroshima. This is where I am. Hiroshima. The airport has a small town feeling to it. The city is small in the eyes of the Japanese, but tragically famous. Hopefully a town that most of the world knows.

I stood where in a flash, death and a vast field of nothingness engulfed a city. I saw the river to which people plunged to cool their melting flesh. I read the horrific stories of children only half consumed by the heat and the torturous hours that followed before death. I listened to a survivor tell his story of that nightmare day. I hugged a woman who has forgiven and is not bitter, but can not erase the horror she saw. Hiroshima...now determined to be known as a city of peace.

I asked “How do you forgive?” The response back....”Time”.

More China!

Red. Red clothing, red cows, red lanterns. Looking around the crowded street, it was clear a holiday was near. The Chinese New Year was just weeks away and the festive feeling was all around. Over here the whole month of January is a holiday. Starting with days off as January begins, people are barely back to work mode when the second celebration arrives.

The year of the cow is seen in posters, balloons, cards, stuffed animals, candy....the list goes on and on. Imprinted in my mind, I will not forget the animal of 2009. Going to the grocery store, even they have gotten in the mood . Handing them your receipt at the exit, red cow envelopes are given in return. That is the common gift here, giving money to friends in red envelops instead of gifts. Influenced by commercialized products, I found myself adoring the cows and with a little bargaining I soon had a small token.

Voices calling out around me, I keep walking down the cracked road in search of the gardens. Chickens live to my left with feet tied. (Well all except one who was being plucked. He must have just taken his last breath a few minutes ago). Up ahead is a blue bin of turtles and another of ducks. The air is mixed with the smell of fish, oil and an unfamiliar scent. Square cooking grills with squid, eggplant, mushrooms, rice, tomatoes and a plethora of other food surrounds me as I turn the corner. Opps! I guess I picked the wrong street. But being intrigued I kept walking down the road full of food.

The buildings change as the road becomes more ethnically diverse. Wooden and tall with a clear oriental design. Immersed suddenly in English, French and maybe Dutch I was no longer the only foreigner. Following the crowds directions while ignoring the determined shouts from the vendors, I soon found myself in the famous gardens.

I love China!!! I am definitely in that stage of loving the new culture that surrounds me. So much to see and do and experience, but the best part is the people around me. Being apart of a “family” over here is such an honor. Eating with chopsticks and sharing a variety of dishes in the middle, I listen to the music of chatter I can't understand. Always trying to help me, I feel protected. I love their smiles and helping hands. Their willingness to teach me words and then repeat them over and over. Their hospitality shines through.

It is strange to be in a place where I can't even begin to read the signs and the variation of food is far from what we eat at home. Jellyfish, squid, seaweed and fish...the meal always contains part of the sea. I love the hot broths the meat rests in. It warms me up in this cold climate. Slurping is a compliment here and it's okay to put the bowl up to your mouth and just sweep in the food. YES!

I have to admit, sometimes the food looks so foreign! But most if it has such good flavor (even for someone who normally doesn't like seafood)! So sucking in a squid leg and chewing on an unfamiliar substance, I am glad that I like trying new things.

Dessert tonight was a special treat. I had shaved milk ice with mango and potatoes with warm caramel that hardens as it cools. Yum! I hope to have it again.