J-Word Play: January/February ’11
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Book Discoveries: The Elegance of the Hedgehog
Translated from French to English, The Elegance of the Hedgehog is a powerful novel that brings two very extraordinary characters to life. Renee Michel is a concierge at an upper-class Parisian apartment complex. She constantly has to conceal her intelligence from the other tenants in her building for fear they may not appreciate her insights and philosophies – especially if they are coming from one of their apartment employees.
Ramentary: Waka Waka Wakayama
Hyogo has a ton of great food to offer, from fantastic Awaji onions to some truly succulent beef, but it doesn’t have a specific style of ramen as its own. Sapporo is king of miso, Fukuoka runs the tonkotsu game, and Kyoto boasts a thick, chicken based brew as the local choice. Shops all over Japan have variations on your typical shoyu or shio broths, with noodles varying in thickness, straightness, chewiness, color, and flavor.
Travel Japan: Beppu, Oita, Kyushu
Beppu is located on the coast of Beppu Bay. This is the place for onsens – natural water and steam comes out of the ground all over the city, and the water is full of natural minerals.
Book Discoveries: The Sirens of Titan
Kurt Vonnegut, Jr., by my own personal standards, is quite possibly the God of creativity and existential thought.….at least as far as putting it to literature goes. Lately, I’ve decided to ‘go back’ and read some of his classics. For those who haven’t yet already read Cat’s Cradle please do, as it will make your head spin in all the right ways. I am definitely one who has added “busy, busy, busy†to my list of appropriate responses of the question, “how are you?â€
J-Word Play: October ’10
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Callin’ All Politicos: A Tough Pill To Swallow
On August 30th of last year, Yukio Hatoyama and his Democratic Party of Japan (DPJ) were swept into power in a landmark election that saw dissatisfied Japanese voters turn out in droves to expel the former ruling Liberal Democrats (LDP) in favor of Hatoyama and his reformist pledges.
Kicchiri Kitchen: FISH!
I did not know how to cook fish before coming to Japan, mostly because fish in Michigan is either dreadfully expensive or of very poor quality. In Japan, things are obviously different. Sure, Greenpeace would have you believe we’re over fishing the oceans and will run out of fish sometime this century, but I believe in moderation.
Goukon — Japanese Speed Dating
My ambivalence towards the Japanese blind date, goukon (aka konpa), stems from participating in a few this past month. They are extremely unnatural and childish, and yet rather amusing after the fact. You are forced into a seating plan, usually a boy-girl pattern, so you can’t escape from a less-than-desirable person like you would at a bar back home.