July 4, 2003
Sanuki Udon
Japan boast a diverse noodle culture. Among them, Soba and Udon (pronounced as "Oo-don") are the most famous ones. Soba is gray-coloured noodle made from buckwheat. As buckwheat grows in cold mountainous soil, it has been more commonly grown in Eastern Japan, such as Nagano where Winter Olympic game was held in 1998. In contrast, Udon is white-coloured noodle made from ordinary wheat. Wheat is farmed mainly in Western Japan (typically Sanuki area) where the Winter climate is dry and temper. As the result, Soba has been more popular in Tokyo, and Udon in Osaka.
Beside my office in downtown Osaka, I found a nice small Udon restaurant. Actually, it should be rather called an Udon bar, because only ten guest can sit on the bar at once to have quick meal. However, the quality of the noodle was supreme. I was suspicious when I saw a sign saying "Home Made Fresh Noodle" as the place was so small, but my suspicion turned into surprise when I confirmed a pasta machine in the kitchen which is totally open to the guest. The busy owner was cooking the noodle and then cooling it down in running water to achieve "Al Dente". Maybe it's a family operated place, and the service was so at home.
This was what I dreamed of during my stay in Sweden. It was so hard to find such a small but tasty place to eat out. Supreme food (though simple) at affordable price for ordinary people. Intereted in? Ask me for more detail....
July 5, 2003
Maelstrom
The maelstrom at Naruto. The narrow channel between Pacific and Setonaikai is known for one of the largest maelstro in the world. This was my third visit to this site but still I was excited with this natural phenomenon
The word maelstrom originally refurred to that occurs at the tip of the Lofoten island in Arctic Norway (strom means stream in Scandinavian languages). The Maelstrom there has been very famous and sometimes being exagerated to the size of 5km in diameter.
Last summer, I was crossing the original Maelstrom by boat. I still remember the rolling of the boat caused by the trend....
July 14, 2003
Enthusiasm
Hanshin Tigers. This local baseball team based at Koshi-yen Ball Park between Osaka and Kobe has been very popular, probablly because it is not a winning team in most of the seasons. However, this year is exceptional. People are now becoming sure of its championship after the last opportunity in 1985. And, short temperedness is the patent of Osaka natives. Now, people started to cerebrate the victory even the baseball season is still on half way!
July 18, 2003
Medical Checkup
I was called for anual medical checkup by the current employer. It was a little bit strange feeling to sit on the other side of the clinic. The picture above is a bus equipped with a X-ray equipment which is commonly used for these kind of purpose in Japan.