Discoveries from around the archipelago
Autumn is in the air in Japan. Typhoon season has been pretty wet this year, I heard, but cool temperatures and clear skies are starting to make their appearance. The first foliage reports from japan-guide are out and Hokkaido has started off the season with brilliant colors. Last year, looking to vary things a bit... Continue Reading →
Courtney cooks up a tasty shiso salad in this month's Washoku Wednesday column! Shiso, or perilla, is an herb that is often used in Japanese cuisine but isn’t well known in the western world. There are two varieties, green and (red) purple, but the uses are very different. Green is added to dishes, salads and more.... Continue Reading →
Back in the Edo Period (1603-1868), the city of Edo (now called Tokyo) became the de facto capital of Japan. While Kyoto remained the cultural capital, the administration of the Tokugawa Shiogun operated out of Edo. Tokugawa Ieyasu, the first shogun, had already unified much of Japan; his descendants strengthened the ties between the various... Continue Reading →
Back in my university years, one of my roommates convinced me one summer that we should enroll in a yoga class. At that time, yoga was not the massive lifestyle craze that it's since become and I'd never personally taken the plunge. Our instructor was a 6 foot tall man with a soothing voice and... Continue Reading →
I've mentioned it before, but libraries are one of my favorite places. So of course, one of the first places I went in southern California was the library closest to my house. Sticking out at the end of one o the shelves was a title I had never actually come across before - Yuki and the... Continue Reading →
A friend of a friend recently contacted me and mentioned she was coming to Japan. She had never been before and wanted to know "What can I expect?" Life has been busy but i wanted to honor her request so I sat down and quickly typed out the following thoughts. It's based mostly on my... Continue Reading →
Just this past weekend, I braved the heat and made a pilgrimage to Kyoto for a solo adventure. I'm not really a fan of traveling Japan in the summertime but I never turn down the chance to get in a chance to visit one of my favorite cities in the world. Having so much time... Continue Reading →
Food blogger Courtney has a great tutorial for us this week on a key ingredient in Japanese cuisine! EDIT: And an apology to both Courtney and all the UJ readers ... somehow, I thought TODAY was Wednesday. But hey - you get your food post a day early this month! 🙂 Again, I am amazed that... Continue Reading →
I've been known to make sushi at home on occasion but, given how affordable it is here in Japan, I've gotten too used to having others do all the work while I, ahem, eat the spoils. 🙂 But when a friend of mine arranged a group cooking class at Arigato Japan this past weekend, I... Continue Reading →
