Travel to paradise

Today I am all excited - I am going to a place so remote and so exotic that I have never even dreamt of seeing it with my own eyes. I was originally planning to go there when I was in Japan at the beginning of the year but I had to delay this trip a bit. But now it is coming!

Yes, bags all packed and ready to go. But where was I going? Try to guess… The trip involved a trans-Pacific flight and a stopover in not one, but two cities in a certain gorgeous country where people speak a funky sort of English.

Any idea? No? Ok, here’s another hint. The country is also known as Middle Earth and even the flight was full of strange creatures.

Yes! New Zealand! But it was just the second stop of my trip, with Japan being the first. I flew there on a direct Air New Zealand flight.

It was a very full, but quiet flight. To be honest, I found it quite boring. Twelve hours of just eating, sleeping and watching movies. And then it was time to buckle up and prepare for landing.  We stopped in Christchurch first, where most of the passengers, mostly outdoorsy European hiker types, got off, and the rest of us then continued on to Auckland.

In Auckland I disembarked and prepared to spend the night. I didn’t explore the city, because I knew I would be stopping there again on my way back to Japan. The next morning, bright and early, I made my way to the Air New Zealand check-in counter at the International Airport in Auckland.

The line was long. Very long. Every passenger had extra luggage, bags and boxes of all shapes and sizes. Most of the passengers seemed to be families traveling back home for the holidays. And bringing back goods, lots of goods, that are hard to find in their home country. And there was I in the middle of it.

The lady sitting next to me on the plane asked if I was going to finish my in-flight meal, and when I said that no, I was full, she asked if she could have the rest of it. I felt bad so I shared my pack of granola bars with her. She seemed quite old and hungry. And the in-flight meal was a paid service.

Where was I going? Still no idea? Ok, another hint. The flight was relatively short – about 4 hours. Go ahead, grab that world map and draw a circle with Auckland at its center. I’ll wait.

Yes, all those tiny little specks in the ocean. The South Pacific Islands. One of them was my final destination. 

Nothing but ocean in all directions. Soon we were handed our immigration forms. The forms were full of warnings about bringing fruits, nuts and vegetables into the country. And dirty hiking boots. I quickly made sure that my hooves were clean.

Now you know! The Kingdom of Tonga!

Yes! That was my exotic destination and I was really looking forward to seeing and experiencing the country firsthand. Or, firsthoof.

Getting of the plane we were welcomed by hot, humid tropical air. The line to the immigration booths was the longest I’ve ever seen. And probably the slowest moving as well. One of the passengers, seeing my impatience (I was really eager to see the capital city of Nuku’alofa), said: relax, take it easy. You’re on island time now.

Two hours later I finally left the airport and was very happy to see that my hired driver was patient enough to wait for me that long. Island time, he said and smiled. Yes, indeed. I could get used to it, no problem!

The next report will be from Nuku’alofa! 

Kaitenzushi

Any tale about Japanese food would not be complete without a visit to a belt sushi restaurant. This is one of those truly Japanese inventions, that although it's been making inroads in foreign countries, it's still a quintessential Japan-only experience. So, what is a belt sushi restaurant, exactly?

As the name suggests, it's a restaurant (a sushi restaurant to be precise) but unlike in a traditional place, where the food is brought to you by a waiter, or served directly by a sushi master, at a belt sushi restaurant, your sushi travels to you on a conveyor belt.

From that conveyor belt you can pick what you like (unless, of course, it happens to be somebody else's order, then hands off!) and on that conveyor belt your special order travels to you from the kitchen.

Because, of course, you are not limited to the selections moving on the belt. You can also place specific orders.

A few years ago this was done by an intercom at your table. Not very easy and not very convenient. These days you have automated touch screens at your disposal. And at my hosts' favorite kaitenzushi place, the screens are even multi-lingual. You can place your order in Chinese, Korean, Portuguese, English, and of course, Japanese.

But not every kaitenzushi place is that advanced. In many, the only language is Japanese. Luckily, all menu items are shown as photos, so even then you can be certain that what you are ordering is what you really want.

Most of the time, all plates have the same price, usually about 110 yen (give or take a few yen). So you know exactly how much your final bill will be.

And speaking about plates, they are color coded!!! Don't like wasabi? No problem! You can order your sushi without the hot green paste! At Sushiro (the restaurant I visited), the wasabi-free sushi is served on white plates. And different color plates are also used for special orders that are more expensive than the standard fare.

And what if you are not a big sushi fan? Is there something you can still eat at a kaitenzushi restaurant? Of course!!! The menus can be quite extensive! You can enjoy almost anything from fried chicken and french fries to udon soup and salads. And sweets and cakes for dessert! There is also hot matcha to drink.

Few people know it, but conveyor belt sushi restaurants have been around for a very long time. The belt sushi pioneer was Mr Yoshiaki Shiraishi, who opened the first such restaurant in 1958 in Osaka.

So when you visit a belt sushi restaurant, you not only can eat yummy, cheap sushi (but be sure to pick a popular and busy restaurant! that way you can be certain the fish they serve is fresh), but also experience a part of Japanese culinary history.

Enjoy!!! (and go easy on the wasabi!)

Utsunomiya Gyoza

I don't know about you, but spring makes me really hungry. My horsey body requires fresh nutrients and interesting flavors to fill the blah void of winter in my stomach. After recalling the fantastic taste of okonomiyaki last week, I have decided to take a longer way home from my stay in Thailand and to visit Japan once again. Japaneese food is amoung my favourite ones after all.

Regardless of what you might have heard or read, Japanese food is not really all that strange, or different. The chefs of Japan are masters at taking familiar European or Chinese flavors and making them into truly superior creations. So plenty of what you may eat in Japan will actually appear, or rather taste, somehow familiar, but at the same time - different. Sometimes better, sometimes odd, sometimes puzzling, but never bad, and never worse than the original.

Take a humble Chinese dumpling, for example. The master cooks of Japan turned it into one of nearly national obsessions - gyoza. And let me tell you, there is no better place in Japan to eat gyoza than the biggest city in Tochigi prefecture - Utsunomiya. Why? It's the self-proclaimed Japanese capital of gyoza. In addition to producing the most dumplings per capita, it's also the national champion in gyoza consumption. People here eat more gyoza than anywhere else in Japan. Though it's been a tough competition with the city of Hamamatsu - for a few years its inhabitants ate more dumplings than Utsunomiyans. The good folk of Utsunomiya did not take kindly to such a very serious humiliation, and finally in 2013 Utsunomiya became number 1 again. So not only do they produce boatloads of gyoza, they also eat more than anywhere else in Japan. And probably, anywhere else in the world. Don't believe me? Take a look at this menu.

And this is just the menu listing specials for one day only (Wednesday). That particular restaurant has a different dumpling menu for every day of the week. And how many dumpling varieties do they serve? I lost count at 60-something. Yep. Over 60 types of dumplings at just one, simple, everyday restaurant in a simple, everyday shopping center. Unbelievable? It is!

And how come the city is number one in gyoza consumption in Japan. Just take a look at this.

This is a very conservative (read: small) order for just two people (and one horse). One of these people was a woman, of rather small dimensions, if my horsey eyes can be trusted. And get this! Restaurant gyoza consumption is NOT counted towards the overall total in gyoza gluttony. ONLY dumplings purchased at stores and prepared and eaten at home are included in the final tally. So not only do these people eat like gyoza-hungry monster when they go out, they also eat like gyoza-hungry monsters when they cook at home.

Ok, ok, but what is this gyoza anyway? Think giant ravioli, or pierogis, but with savory filling only (though novelty sweet versions also exist, like choco-banana gyoza, for example) - meat, cabbage, vegetables, garlic. Lots and lots of garlic. I think nearly every culture has its own stick-to your-ribs type of dumpling. And in China and Japan, it's gyoza.

So, just how serious is this gyoza business in the city that calls itself the gyoza capital of Japan? Very serious. There are over 300 gyoza restaurants in Utsunomiya. And yes, you guessed it, they serve nothing but gyoza and rice. Deep-fried gyoza, skillet fried gyoza, steamed gyoza, gyoza in a soup, boiled gyoza, and who knows what else. On the east side of Utsunomiya station there is a small area with probably the highest concentration of gyoza restaurants in the whole country.

And the most famous of these restaurants is Min-Min. This is what you can expect at any Min-Min branch in Utsunomiya.
 

A long line of gyoza-hungry monsters waiting patiently in line to satisfy their dumpling cravings. Long lines are normal at top gyoza restaurants, be prepared to wait for up to an hour. But that's not all. Utsunomiyans are not only huge gyoza lovers. They are also a little bit crazy. They think gyoza is not only tasty, but beautiful as well. As beautiful as the Venus de Milo. Don't believe me? Take a look at this. Yep, it's the famous Gyoza of Utsunomiya, patterned after the (a lot more) famous Venus.

But wait, that's not all! They also have a special gyoza festival. It takes place during the first weekend in November and is treated with nearly religious importance and devotion.

But wait, that's still not all! They also have the Utsunomiya gyoza theme song and dance (performed here by the lovely cheerleaders of the local pro basketball team - Tochigi Brex). Hey, watch at your own risk. But don't blame me later if you develop a sudden craving for dumplings!

Time to eat now, not much left for me from the order that I have shown you above.

Okonomiyaki

I was really hungry all day long yesterday. It was one of those days when you just can't help but think "what's for dinner?" And suddenly, visions of exquisitely delicious food pop into your head and you're even more hungry. I'm sure you all know what I'm talking about. We all have such days. Well, mine was yesterday. And it was around 3PM when I finally realised what I wanted to eat for dinner! I wanted… I wanted… Okonomiyaki!

And as soon as I said, or rather, thought "okonomiyaki", I suddenly realized I missed Japan. Yes, okonomiyaki is a Japanese dish, and it's a perfect excuse to talk about Japan today! 

The first time I tried okonomiyaki was at a nondescript okonomiyaki-only joint somewhere in the boonies of the northern Kanto Plain. There was no mistaking it for anything else - it was a Japanese restaurant serving Japanese food.

The guests sat on the floor, but unlike at more traditional places, we didn't have to sit seiza. Under each table there was a special hole to put your legs in, so even though you sat on the floor, it was the same as sitting on a chair. Sounds very strange, but trust me, it's really comfortable.

In the middle of the table there is a hot griddle where the guests cook their own food. Yep, you cook your own food. Yep, at a restaurant. Sounds odd, but actually, it's a lot of fun. We chose the option of "tabehoudai" meaning "eat as much as you want" with the time limit of 2 hours. That meant within 2 hours we could order as much as we wanted, and eat until our clothes wouldn't fit anymore. And that is all fine and dandy, but what exactly did we eat? What is this "okonomiyaki" thing?

I've seen it called "Japanese pizza" or "Japanese pancake", but my hosts assured me that both of these descriptions are totally incorrect. Okonomiyaki simply means "fry what you want", and as long as you follow a few simple guidelines, you can indeed "fry what you want" for your okonomiyaki.

The main ingredient in okonomiyaki is cabbage, and to that cabbage you can add whatever you like - from pieces of chicken or seafood, to cheese and bacon. The only rule is that there are no rules! Sounds scary? It's not! It's delicious!

The batter to hold it all together is made from a mix of flour and potato starch, you add some water, an egg, mix it all together, and voila! You have your very own okonomiyaki. Fry on both sides, pour some sweet and tangy sauce on it, sprinkle some crushed seaweed, add some bonito flakes, and enjoy.

There are many regional varieties of okonomiyaki, but all have this in common - cabbage in the mix, pancake shaped, fried. And so we mixed and we fried and we ate until we could eat no more.

***

My hosts insisted that in addition to okonomiyaki, I also try monjayaki. Hmmm… how shall I say it? It was an interesting experience.

Monjayaki looks like something regurgitated by a very sick feline. You have to close your eyes in order to be able to put it in your mouth.

But once in your mouth? Bam! It's delicious! I don't know how the Japanese have managed to do this. How something that looks so vile can be so tasty. It really takes a lot of skill and imagination to be able to accomplish it.

So, are you hungry now? I know I am. Do you want to make okonomiyaki with me? Yes? Don't worry, it's really simple. Let's try to do it together! We will need:

• 1 tsp baking powder
• 1 egg (or 2, if you like eggs)
• a pinch of salt 
• water
• 1 T potato starch, or potato flour
• plain flour - as much as necessary

Mix everything, make sure it's not too runny or too thick. Add water and flour as needed. It should resemble pancake batter. To this batter you add:

• shredded cabbage - as much as you want, enough for the batter to hold it together
• anything else you want: shrimp, squid, chicken, meat, bacon (all cooked, of course), vegetables, cheese, kimchi, potatoes, and so on.

Mix everything carefully, make sure it's not too runny.

On a hot, oiled griddle form a pancake and fry on both sides until the batter is thoroughly cooked. Easy? Easy! To make it even easier, my hosts made for you this tutorial.

If you can't buy a ready-made okonomiyaki sauce, don't worry, you can make your own. Just mix 3 parts of ketchup with 1 part worcestershire sauce. Add 1 tsp of soy sauce for every 4 tablespoons of the mixture.

Ready? Let's eat! Itadakimasu!

P.S. Yes, yes, we guessed you would also dream of a guide for monjayaki. Here it comes. Enjoy!

Matsuri food

Japanese traditional events usually organized by a shrine or a temple, like the Daruma market I was telling you about last time, are typically referred to as "matsuri". This word translates into English as "festival", but, as you can easily imagine, this is not the type of festival we are used to in the West. In other words, it ain't no Glastonbury. And the only music you'll hear here will be of the traditional kind - usually taiko drumming, or an ohayashi orchestra.

But apart from all the drumming and worshipping of local gods, buying good luck charms and supporting your local community, you can't have a proper matsuri without matsuri food. And festival food is an institution in its own right.

Regardless of when a matsuri is being held, in winter or summer, some foods simply must be present. And no serious matsuri would be complete without a choco banana on a stick.

This is an ubiquitous matsuri sight - at least several different stands will have chocolate covered bananas, with or without sprinkles. Odd, considering that bananas are not native to Japan. And they are quite expensive to buy at a supermarket.

This shows you the first rule of matsuri food - it should be on a stick. And what can you stick on a stick? Apparently anything! From waffles to fish.

These waffles were delicious… yummy…. Candy on a stick? Yep, we got it.

Such candy can get quite interesting, depending on what type of festival it is being sold at. There is a fertility festival in Kawasaki city, held the first weekend of April, where the candy is in the shape, well, you know… reproductive organs, both male and female. Luckily, with the recent popularity of Nameko, they are frequently confused with mushroom-shaped lollipops.

You can also have a lot less risque stick-snacks, like for example this miso flavored manju.

Hmmm… which one should I choose? How about this one?

And what if you are really hungry and in the mood for a more substantial snack? No worries, any self-respecting matsuri will have you covered. How about takoyaki? "Tako" means octopus, "yaki" is fried. And this is exactly what it sounds like - bits of chopped octopus formed into a ball and fried. Delicious!!!

Ever since I tried okonomiyaki (I will tell you about that amazing adventure another time), I've been a huge fan of this "fry what you want" dish. At any matsuri you can find a simple version like this.

What amazed me the most was that even when cooking outside in sub-zero temperatures, the staff still managed to make every single okonomiyaki perfectly uniform and literally exactly the same. Only in Japan!

All this eating can make you really thirsty. At summer matsuris people usually drink copious amounts of beer. But in winter? In winter they have another, very traditional, drink.

It's called amazake, and even though there is "sake" in the name, this drink has little, or no alcohol at all. Like all sakes, it is also made from fermented rice. Personally, I am not a fan. The texture, smell and sweetness did not appeal to me at all. But it is believed to be a cure-all in Japan, good for everything from hangovers to stomach aches.

* * *

I really enjoyed my stay stay in Japan. Actually, the plan was to see (and to taste) even more but the month I have planned to spend here passed so quickly! It is time to go home now. But I have already agreed with my hosts that the next time that I come to Asia I will visit them again. So watch out for some new stories from Japan. And some more food for sure!

Annual Daruma Market

Do you remember when I have told you that daruma dolls are an important symbol of the New Year? I do not know if you have ever heard of them before but to be honest, until I came to Japan I had no idea what a daruma was. Luckily, recently my hosts took me to the annual daruma doll market at the Shorinzan temple in Takasaki so I was able to find out more about them.

Although it is called a "doll", it's not really a toy at all. Rather, it's a symbol of good luck, good fortune and perseverance. That's why a properly made daruma is a tumbler-doll. When you push it over, it will right itself up, similar to a Russian vanka-vstanka. If you talk to a Japanese person about darumas, you will most likely hear the phrase "nanakorobi yaoki", which is traditionally translated as "seven times down, eight times up". Now you see where the symbol of perseverance comes from - you should always get up, just like your daruma doll.

The origin of daruma is a bit complicated. Have you heard of the Zen school of Buddhism? That branch of Buddhism was founded by a guy known as Bodhidharma back in the 5th or 6th century. He was usually depicted as a wide-eyed barbarian with a massive beard. You can see the obvious similarities in the faces of daruma dolls, right?

But how had a long-dead, ill-tempered Buddhist monk become a Japanese symbol of good luck? It all started at the Shorinzan temple, also known as "Daruma-dera" (daruma temple) in Takasaki city, in what is now Gunma prefecture.

You see, the Japanese are a superstitious bunch and proud of it. And the belief in talismans and good luck charms is still going strong now, in the 21st century. So you can only imagine how important such magical charms were back in the ancient times. Every year you needed a new charm to keep you lucky and strong that year, and the priests at Shorinzan saw in this an amazing business opportunity.

And the business opportunity continues to this very day. Every year, on January 6th and 7th, the temple, known as the "daruma temple" all over Japan, holds the largest daruma market in the country. And because even to this day, the majority of Japanese daruma dolls are produced in the city of Takasaki (where the temple is located), you can easily imagine, that this market is a super big and super important event.

This year, it was estimated that around 400 000 people visited the market to buy new daruma dolls, and dispose of the old ones. And, of course, I was there, as well.

The market is held at night. Which in winter can be a very trying experience. We bundled up, parked the car about 2 km away from the temple (the area around the temple is closed to traffic during the market) and started a long walk in the freezing night.

Reaching the temple was only the first part of the journey. The second part was getting in line and patiently waiting your turn. Because the temple is located on a hill, the only way to get there is by a multitude of stone steps. And crowds, even as well-behaved as Japanese crowds, and steps don't mix. Luckily, the police were at hand very efficiently dividing the waiting masses into groups of about 100 people and letting them go up.

What could you do during the waiting time? Dispose of your old daruma doll! A special tent was set up along the road to the temple, where you could leave your old doll. Later, those old dolls will be burned in a special, ritual fire.

After about an hour of waiting, we finally got close to the temple gate.

You can just about see the steps leading up - that's our destination.  Don't lose your footing going up - there are about a hundred people marching along with you on those narrow, steep stone steps. If you slow down or slip, it's going to have quite unpleasant consequences.

After the first batch of steps, guess what you see? Yes! You got it! More steps. When we finally got to the main temple building we were out of breath and sweating.

First, we prayed. I've already learned how to pray the shinto way, but I had no idea how to do it Buddhist style.

Turns out I didn't need to worry. You just get up close to the collection box, toss some money, and wish for whatever's in your heart. Easy! With our spiritual duties completed, we could finally explore what the market had to offer.

And it offered darumas. More and more darumas.

And even more darumas!

Some of these darumas are ridiculously expensive, they can cost up to the equivalent of almost 400 dollars! Can you believe it? Spending 400 dollars on a good luck charm? I'd say you already have plenty of luck, if you can afford it.

So what was the difference between all the different darumas we saw? As I learned that night, different manufacturers have their own signature designs. The basic shape, of course, is the same. The difference is in the face.

And guess what? All those darumas as still made and painted by hand! You can also see that they are not painted completely - the eyes are left blank. The tradition is that you fill in one eye when you get your daruma and decide on a task you want to accomplish, and the other eye - when the task is completed.

All your purchases had to be wrapped properly, and some shops even had their own signature daruma bags.

After the evening filled with shopping and food, it was time to brave the steps again. This time it was easy - we were going down.

All this climbing has made me hungry. Luckily my hosts have told me it is time to investigate some Japanese festive food. I could not agree more!