Packing for the 2013 Japan Trip

I've only been to Japan once, but I learned much. As I pack now, I think about the odds and ends that came in handy.

The Luggage

The more hotels, the more lugging of the luggage. Lugging wheelie luggage on flat sidewalks isn't so bad, and lugging on escalators is do-able.

But then there are the endless subway stairs of doom, and you can't always count on the green power ranger to help you.

My plan: 1 small suitcase, 1 "carry-on" size bag. They are stackable. Enough capacity for Lottsa $hopping Loot, and a minimum of clothes.

Hand Washing Paraphernalia

 


Some bathrooms, especially train stations, might not have soap. Or anything with which to dry your hands. And possibly no toilet paper. I think the logistics of keeping a stocked bathroom might be a little impractical when it's constantly in use by a super dense population.
I never encountered a no-TP zone last time, but it doesn't hurt to grab those little packs of tissues the girls hand out on street corners.

We brought hand sanitizer last time. That got some use. But I like the clean feel of really washing my hands. This time, I'm going to look for paper soap:

Packs of tiny soapy papers. Hopefully not too hard to find. Also, it might be nice to dry my hands like a human, and not like a crazy flailing bear. The solution: the half towel.

I think they may also be considered "towel handkerchief". Anyway, kinda handy to keep in your bag for this purpose.

Coin Purse

Seems like I was accumulating coins like crazy last time. I think our guides even mentioned this, and I made do with a zipper compartment in my purse. Since Y100's and Y500's are like $1's and $5's, not to mention you are getting a crapload of small change, it seems like a good idea to have a decent coin purse. Or 2.

Hiragana Times

Nani

The Hiragana Times is a Japanese magazine written for English speakers interested in all the goodness Japan has to offer. There’s articles on things like canned food bars... (Yep, served straight from the can.)

 Real Escaping Game (Decipher codes! Find hidden objects! Escape!)

 Bonseki (It’s just as cool as bonsai, but with rocks! Don’t look at me that way…)

These articles have alternating English and furigana-laced Japanese paragraphs, so you can follow along in the language of choice (or necessity). There are a few nifty articles in the middle that break all the sentences and words down into hiragana/romanji/English. They are “multi-level texts”. Those are pretty awesome for those of us who are crazy enough about Japan to attempt the language. They’re a little advanced, but the editor’s personal stories are almost my speed. 

Doshite

This is Japan presented straight from the Japanese. The Hiragana Times  writers play tour guide for us, showing us the crazy stuff, the trends, food, fashion, nature, history, and a bag of chips. It has something for everyone, even your cat. Bonus for language learners- extra audio files for a little extra yens. And it’s really cool to get something mailed to you from Japan every month.

Zannen

As a subscriber, and not just a bottom-feeding past articles/Facebook previews reader, I am entitled to “premium subscriber privileges” plus the audio. Originally there were online archives, books, and other exciting extras for us, but it seemed like around the time I started up, they changed the site. Also,  “there will be a new ID and password sent to [me] every month,” to access the features. But I have yet to get more than the initial email. And now I’m locked out. Where is the audio? I have no idea. I don’t care enough to complain more than once.

Doko

Check out www.hiraganatimes.com and if you like what you see, you’ll probably like the magazine. If you’re a Japan local, you’re in luck because it’s way cheaper and it’s easy to buy right off the newsstand. $100 a year for a non-Japan subscription.  Digital is way cheaper at $60 a year. I may try that next time around.

Miso Soup

What do Japanese people eat? Sushi? Maybe on special occasions. Miso soup? Hells yes, and lots of it.

 So, I want to do it right. It’s pretty easy. Take dashi. Mix with miso paste. Then add the fix’ns and you’re good. So, dashi is the broth. Here’s the way to do homemade.

First, the seaweed. There are a million, billion types of seaweed. The one we want is kombu. It’s the big, stiff ones.

Yeah, and they have white stuff on the surface. Salt and etc.- apparently you want this. Some recipes say wipe the kombu with a wet cloth first. I didn’t do that. Also, I cut mine in half since I was just doing a small pot of miso. 

Nestle it in a pot of water (probably a couple cups here) and let the seaweedy goodness leach out. No heat. Just sit and wait like 30 minutes or an hour or till you remember you were going to make miso soup in time for lunch, not dinner. Then you heat it up.

Just don’t leave yet. Apparently if you leave the kombu in and it starts to boil, it tastes a little funky. Avoid the funk and chopstick-grap it out when it gets in that pre-boil bubble stage.

Now you have some very light yellow-green broth. Now what? Now we add “bonito flakes” aka katsuobushi. The pink fish flakes you get at the oriental market. I’ve heard you are wiser to buy the single serving pack set and not the big bag, but follow your heart there. They make good cat treats if nothing else.

Your pot is boiling, right? Now you want to dump in the katsuobushi. Do it now!

Then let it boil 2 minutes or so.

Good job! Now strain out the katsuobushi. You now have dashi! Yay!

So now you want to add the miso paste, but let it return to a boil first. I think I used a tablespoon or a little bit more.

 

After the miso melts in and the soup is boiling for another minute or 2, add the fix’ns.

Wakame is another kind of seaweed. It’s all little dried up bits. These turn into silky pieces you are more familiar with in miso soup. I always overestimate. This is a fatal flaw.

Dump them in, add tofu too. Also, I forgot to add green onion. Arg! The anguish!

So here it is. Oh man, it’s seaweed soup. Way too much wakame. Next time…it will be better!