4/8/08 Tokyo

Today we went to Kuniko’s favorite Soba restaurant which was also her Grandfather’s favorite. Soba is a type of noodle made of buckwheat. Up until now I always liked Soba but didn’t love it- today’s Soba changed all that for me. Like with most food its often the subtle things that make the difference. The texture of these soba noodles were different from other one’s I have had. We had different flavored ones today also- perilla and cherry blossom.

Then we headed to Kuniko’s university- Wasada as she had to meet with her advisors regarding her dissertation. Then we headed to see her holistic doctor called seitai which is extremely difficult to describe- it combines mind body medicine, movement, manual treatment and energy work.

From the seitai we went to Kuniko’s aunt and uncle’s house for dinner. Her uncle made okonomiyaki which is a Kansai speciality- he is from Nara. His recipe includes a lot of mountain yam (yamaimo) which is one of the few Japanese foods that I have a strong aversion to- it is very very slimy. Kuniko forewarned her aunt that I don’t like it, but her aunt thought that maybe because it was cooked I wouldn’t mind it. Under normal circumstances I would have just eaten it, however, Kuniko clearly stated that I should tell whether I liked it or not because if I said I liked it then I would get it every time we visit. Kuniko prefaced this with in any other Japanese household I am not to say I don’t like something. Her Aunt had a backup piece of salmon for me which she cooked perfectly.


Her Uncle drove us back to Kichijoji and on the on ramp to the highway they were conducting on the spot breathalizer testing which is something they do every spring. In Japan they recently instituted a policy in that fines the driver and the passengers a huge amount (something like 2000 USD per passenger) if in a car with someone who is driving under the influence. Her uncle passed with no problem.