Japan Trip, Oct 2006 - Snacking in Osaka City(大阪市)

Here I am, still trying to get through the Japan trip in 2006. Pathetic, I know. So I've decided to quickly go through the Japan trip by grouping some of our culinary experiences.

The following is a summary of the snacks that we've had in Osaka City(大阪市):

(1) Tako-yaki (たこ焼き)

One of the first snack we've had in Osaka is Tako-yaki (たこ焼き).

Tako-yaki is "a popular Japanese dumpling made of batter, diced octopus, tempura scraps (tenkasu/天かす), pickled ginger, konnyaku (蒟蒻), and green onion, topped with okonomiyaki (お好み焼き) sauce, green laver (aonori), mayonnaise, and fish shavings (katsuobushi/鰹節)" (Source: wiki.org)

We walked past a stall with lots of people buying the snack, so we assume it would be good. Luckily, that tactic worked. The diced octopus was chunky and the dumpling were very tasty indeed.

(2) Okonomi-yaki (お好み焼き)

Ms YI also took us to an Okonomi-yaki (お好み焼き) place in Osaka. Okonomi-yaki is said to be orginated in Osaka. However, there are lots of regional variation of Okonomi-yaki. Literally, "Okonomi" means "what you like" and "yaki" means "grilled" or "cooked". So Okonomi-yaki put together would mean "cook what you like, the way you like it". (Source: wiki.org)

When we were looking through the menu, we were offered many choices. We could pick our ingredients (like create your own pizza) or pick a set 'design'. We decided to share so we picked a few random things from the menu. In Osaka, Okonomi-yaki are pan-fried batter cake. The basic batter is made of flour, grated yam, dashi, shredded cabbage and egg. You can also add things like seafood, cheese, onion and other vegetables. Just like a pizza, the 'cake' is topped with a sauce. It is very much like the Worchestershire sauce. I personally am not a big fan of the sauce, so I ask them to put very little sauce. It wasn't too bad in the end and it was certainly better than what I have tasted in Australia before. We ordered three portions but in the end we can only stretch ourselves to finishing two and a half portion. It is actually quite filling!

(3) Ramen (中華麺)

After we had the Tako-yaki, we turned around and saw an outdoor ramen shop. It looks quite good so we tried it as well!

Here is the person serving up a batch of ramen:




Ms YI and I having ramen

The ramen is very yummy. They call this the 'Chinese style ramen' (中華麺), but I must say there is nothing Chinese about the taste of it.

(4) Tofu-ryori (豆腐料理)

We visited a specialist tofu restaurant for 'afternoon tea'. It was a restaurant with a contemporary style. They served up a degustation menu, which contained many little dishes made with tofu.

We didn't take much photos, because it's difficult to get good photos of tofu anyway. Here is our only photo of the food:



There were a few special dishes though. One of them is a tofu jelly which is made with top quality soya bean in the 'real way'. It was really delicious!

(5) Blowfish/Fugu (河豚), horse sashimi (馬刺し) and random sashimi platter

OK. This is the special one.



There are a few things which we really want to try while we are in Japan. One of them was blowfish.

Blowfish, or pufferfish, is highly toxic and there is no antidote for the toxin. But it is considered a delicacy in Japan. Ms YI needed to do some furniture shopping so she wasn't with us at the very moment we tried the delicacy. We did get some comfort from her when she confirmed that she has tried it before. Apparently, it is something that she has eaten a fair few times before. I was told that most of the death associated with eating the fish usually involves unlicensed chef preparing the fish in the wrong way.

(For those who don't know, blowfish contains lethal amounts of the poison 'tetrodotoxin' in the internal organs, the skin and the testicles. In Japan, only licensed chefs can legally prepare and serve the fish to the public.)

So, SP and I, brave as we always are, ordered the fugu (blowfish) sashimi because it seems to be most adventurous. The fish is deliberately sliced very thinly so that the pattern of the serving plate can be seen through. It was chewy but it was essentially tasteless. SP thinks that it is an expensive tasteless bubblegum. To me, the fish wasn't that special but it's good that I've tried it now and that I have survived! :)

Another special dish that we ordered was the horse sashimi. It wasn't something on our must-try list, but we saw it on the menu, and decided to give it a go as well. The horse sashimi looks very much like beef sashimi, except it is served with ground ginger, fried garlic slices, some type of dried flower and soy source. That was actually the star dish of the meal. I guess both SP and I like meaty dishes and the horse sashimi was very tender. It is highly recommended!

We ordered the mixed sashimi platter to overcome my sashimi cravings. Having lived in London for the previous 6 months, I was totally deprived of good quality sashimi. The sashimi in Japan is definitely of top quality and the sashimi are sliced rather thickly. The added thickness increase the texture of the fish. Together with proper wasabi and sashimi soy sauce, it was perfect.

More on raw fish later. Now, I have to get the post out!

 

Snow in London

This morning, we woke up to this view:

This is our first experience of snow in London.

And to accompany the experience, we had delays on ALL London underground lines :P

Australia 221/5 vs England 144/9

England has yet to win a game!

Go Oz!

LEGO building LEGO

A LEGO manufacturing plant which produces LEGO cars!

England 291 & 131/9 vs Australia 393

O, Warney is going to bowl!!!! Hurrah!

Hurry up. Finish it off! I want to have a shower, but I am worried that the game may end before I am done! :P

Japan Trip, Oct 2006 - A pilgrimage to Mount Koya (高野山)

YI was kind enough to spend her 'honeymoon' with us. We met up 2 days after the wedding and spend some time in Osaka (more on that later).

After meeting my other friend in Osaka for tea and having our lunch, we headed to a remote monastery (or should I say monasteries?) on a lonely mountain south of Osaka.

After a 2 hours train-ride, we arrived at half-way point of the mountain (Gokurakubashi station/極楽橋駅). The train ride itself was also quite amazing as the area is really quite remote and the train was constantly moving upwards. We weren't able to see the peak of the mountain from where we were, and I knew I wasn't hiking up the mountain! Luckily, there is a funicular train that takes you up to the top. It was rainy outside, but the ride was rather nice. The scenery will be very beautiful if there were autumn leaves.

Nevermind that, we have arrived! Almost. When we got out from the station, we had to find our accommodation for the night. What's different about this night is that we were going to do some temple lodging (Shukubo/宿坊). Mt Koya is a mountain filled with monastries/temples and some of them are opened to visitors/pilgrams. 

A bit of history about the place:

It was first settled in 819 by a monk called Kukai/空海 (aka Kobo Daishi/弘法大師) and it is the headquarters of the Shingon (真言) sect of Japanese Buddium. There are over 100 temples on the mountains, and also a university dedicated to religious studies! According to the history books, there used to be around 1,000 temples on the mountain during the Edo (江戸) period.

A point worth mentioning is that Mount Koya usually serves as the first stop or the final stop on the 88 Temple Pilgrimage (八十八ヶ所巡り) on the island of Shikoku (四国). This Pilgrimage is Japan's most famous pilgrimage route. The circuit loops around the entire island of Shikoku through 88 temples plus an optional 20 temples, which were said to be founded or restored by the Kukai/空海.

Staying in one of the temples wasn't cheap exactly. In fact, it is around double of what we usually pay. Ms YI was concerned that I may not be accustomed to the regular rooms so we opted for the rooms on the 'middle' category. We waited for a bus and after a 10-minute ride, we finally arrived at Shojoshin-in (清浄心院).

Ms YI told me that the booker mentioned that it is very popular with westerners because it is more pretty.

We were impressed by the front yard. The Japanese garden was really pretty.

We entered and checked-in. The lady took us to our room. It was a total luxury! Imagine staying in a room painted with REAL gold and silver. The tatami (畳) was of superb quality. There were old paintings and calligraphy hanging on the wall. It could easier be the room of a wealthy man! Furthermore, there was all the modern convenience: a heater, hot water boiler and even a TV! We were impressed.

A bit of info on tatami:

Apparently, tatami are made in standard size, usually of 90cm by 180cm. Half mats (90cm by 90cm) are also made. (The 'standard' occasionally varies between the major regions.) However, the size of a room is usually measured by the number of tatami mats. So, the dimensions of the rooms in Japanese home are usually of multiples of 90cm. Usually, the rooms in Japan can fit at least four and a half tatami mats.

There are also rules concerning how the tatami mats should be laid. An inauspicious layout is said to bring bad fortune. According to Wiki, 'In homes, the mats must not be laid in a grid pattern, and in any layout there is never a point where the corners of three or four mats intersect.'

Anyway, back to business:

Ms YI and I in the living section of our room. Walls painted in real gold.

The bedroom section of the room. Walls painted in real gold. Three EXCELLENT futons (布団). All three of us had a really good sleep that night.

The meals are included in the price of the accommodation. This is a temple so the food is naturally vegetarian (shojin ryori/精進料理). Now... I was never that keen on vegetarian food. For those of you who know my eating preference, most of the things that I don't like eating are vegetables. So the hit rate is quite high. I was getting worried.

Nevertheless, dinner was served. Dinner was held in the room next to our bedroom, which in turn, is next to the living room. (So in fact, we had 3 rooms to ourselves!)

No gold or silver walls this time. Just some ancient paintings and some good food.


Photo with the food!



Above is a picture of our meal. It was exquisite and beautifully arranged. The meal was served green tea but we also ordered some 'trappist' sake.

The local speciality of Mt Koya is the Koya-dofu (高野豆腐) and Goma-dofu (胡麻豆腐). 

Koya-dofu is prepared by freeze-drying and then reconstituting tofu. The tofu has a long shelf life and it provides access to tofu during the harsh winter months.

Goma-dofu is not really tofu. It is made from white sesame seeds, water and potato starch. It was very smooth. It is served with a bit of soy and a tiny dab of wasabi. It was so smooth that it was even 'silkier' than drinking soy milk.

Apart from the tofu dishes, there were also a hot pot, soup, some konbu (昆布), tempura, beans, and many other vegetables which I don't remember anymore. In the end, I ate everything except the cucumber-like pickle! The food was so good and it was such a pleasant surprise!

After dinner, we thought we will give calligraphy a go. Even SP gave it a go! We were writing a very famous Buddish prayer (般若波羅密多心經) and was hoping to offer it to the Budda the next morning. I haven't written with a brush since primary school and my writing turned out rather badly. I hope the Budda won't mind. It's the thought that counts! :)


Ms YI is much better trained in this area. Here is the pro at work!


The result was beautiful writing!

We had to wake up at around 5:30am to prepare for the morning service the next morning so we called it an early night.

The morning services was attended by mainly Western visitors and it seemed to prove what the accommodation booker said (this temple is popular with Westerners). No one knew what to do. As we walked in, they thought we are Japanese and their eyes were fixed on us, trying to see what we do. We decided to sit (rather than kneel) on the bench with them. Then the monks start chanting mantras. The whole thing took about 30 minutes. We stayed behind and offered some incense.

Then, breakfast was served (sorry, no photos this time. The photographer was too sleepy, I think! hahaha). After the meal, the photographer went crazy and took lots of photos of the place:













We then packed up and signed-out of the temple. While we were waiting for the next bus back to the station, we took a walk around the mass cemetery. There are hundreds of thousands of graves on this mountain, which dates back to around 1,000 year ago! Some of the graves that we saw were finely built and decorated. I read that some members of the royal household were also buried here. One interesting aspect of the cemetery in Koyasan is that many Japanese companies set up 'corporate graves sites' here. In Japan, one's company is pretty much like a family and when an employee dies, he/she may be interred at the company's grave site.

The part of graveyard that we saw was on the entrance to the forest and it was ancient, probably containing some of the older graves.

Before we knew it, it was time to get to the bus stop and return to Osaka. It was a very memorable trip and I would definitely recommend you to do the trip. Both SP and I would like to return there should we get the chance to visit Japan again.

Japan Trip, Oct 2006 - Noodles in Kyoto (京都)

According to my knowledge, there are three major kinds of noodles in Japan: ramen (らーめん), soba (蕎麦) and udon (うどん).

When we were in Kyoto (京都), we had lots of ramen. I blame the LP guide :P

Day One, we went and looked for a noodle joint near the train station. As we were staying at around 10 minutes walk from the station. It seemed like a good idea. When we got there, we found that there were two noodle places side-by-side and they were equally popular! We went to the one we intended to visit.

The menu was very basic and we decided to order the following food:




The soup appears to be soy-based. The noodles was slightly thicker than normal. It is quite heavy but it makes a good hearty meal.

Photo at the shop front

Next morning, we decided to have some food before we leave Kyoto. The other noodle shop sprung to mind.

It was rather early for lunch and there were only a few older people having food and chatting.

We ordered the following:



The soup was salt-based, I believe. It has very strong pork flavour and it was very tasty. The noodles were slightly chewier.


I really enjoyed the food here. The gyoza was also good.


Photo at the shop front.

Something that we didn't get to try in Kyoto is their Tofu-based Ryori, such as yudofu (湯豆腐). The dishes are usually not very fancy, simply dressed with soy sauce and a couple of garnishes (e.g. chopped spring onions and grated ginger). This ensures that the tofu of excellent quality doesn't get 'spoiled' by strong flvaours.

Kyoto is famous for its tofu for a few reasons:
(1) Kyoto has a lot of underground springs and this soft water is particularly good for making tofu
(2) There are a lot of good quality soybeans grown across Kyoto. (Tofu is a soy-based product)
(3) There many great temples in Kyoto. Since the priests of the temples are generally vegeterian, they obtain their protein from tofu. As a result, they have mastered the making of tofu.

This sounds too good! I guess this gives me a reason to return to Japan for another trip! hahaha

Japan Trip, Oct 2006 - A big fat Japanese wedding

The main reason for me traveling to Japan was to attend my best friend's wedding.

Ms YI is my best friend from high school. We even shared a room in Year 11!

A Japanese wedding is certainly different from a Chinese or an Australian one. The customs and proceedings are quite different. Hopefully, I didn't do any silly things.

Here are some photos:


Ms YI wore a white kimono for the wedding ceremony. It was heavily embroidered and it was very very heavy.


She was also carrying a 'back pack'!


The bride followed her father in very slow footsteps to reach the groom. They met at the centre and they greeted each other with a bow. Then the fathers from both sides sign the papers. This is followed by the groom and bride's signature on the certificate.


When they are officially married, the 'veil' is lifted.


For the dinner banquet, the bride changed into a red silk kimono. It was really beautiful in person!


Then Ms YI changed into a white wedding gown. It was tailored-made and it is such a prettty gown!


After the dinner, we went outside for the cake and dessert. But before that, the bride popped a big balloon containing many little balloons. This is a great photo! There was this tiny little girl who was running around and collecting all the heart-shaped ballons for herself. At first, she was asking her mum to hold them. But there were too many so they got her a HUGE paper bag and it was filled with ballons in the end. It was quite funny.


The wedding cake was in the shape of a sailing boat because that's where they met - at the sailing club. It was so sweet!

One thing I've learnt is that the colour of black and white were considered ideal for wedding. Luckily, I was wearing a dark-coloured dress so the colour 'violation' wasn't as obvious! hahaha.

Here is a photo of the couple, another high school friend and us: