06/22/08 Sunday: Rainy

I have just experienced my first week in Japan, and it has been absolutely amazing. First of week class was kind of intense, given that I forgot like 80% of the Japanese that I learned. However, the classese were a lot more relaxed than I thought they'd be. The senseis were actually pretty lenient when we forgot our vocabularies and grammatical structures. On weekdays, I didn't get to do much because after class, I would go home, take a nap, wake up, eat dinner, then do my homework and review for next day's class. On Wednesday though, I, along with Ben and Yu-han, to Harajuku. I swear I saw girls who dressed up in cartoon characters! I thought they were working, except they weren't. That's just the way they dressed. That was...interesting. On a random note, Japanese signs are hilarious.

Apparently, groping happens a lot on Japanese subways, so here is a sign that warns against groping.
















And isn't this the cutest no smoking sign ever?
















This week, I'm going to focus on one of the most popular foods in Japan: Ramen. First I would just like to say that Japanese ramen is sooooooooooooooo outrageously delicious. Mmmmm, just writing about it makes me salivate. Ramen was first introduced to Japan during the Meiji era (1868–1912) from China. The men, or noodles, is made from four basic ingredients: wheat flour, salt, water, and kansui, which is essentially a type of alkaline mineral water. The ramen soup is generally made from stock based on chicken or pork, combined with a variety of ingredients such as kombu (kelp), katsuobushi (skipjack tuna flakes), niboshi (dried baby sardines), beef bones, shiitake, and onions, and then flavored with the likes of salt, miso, or soy sauce. There are generally four kinds of ramen (mainly based on their soups): Shio (salt) ramen, tonkotsu (pork bone) ramen, shoyu (soy sauce) ramen, and miso ramen.

There are a couple of characteristics about ramen that are worth mentioning here. First, most of the Japanese ramen restaurants that I've gone to were relatively small and cozy. The chief makes the ramen right in front of you. This creates a great ambiance because it feels like the chief is catering his cooking to you. Second, ramen is considered a kind of fast food in Japan. Most people who are pressed for time can enjoy a delicious meal in a short amount of time. Its fast food without the fast food taste :). And third, the service is great. If you want extra meat in your ramen, or do not want your ramen to be too salty, they'll gladly and politely make the ramen to your liking. I'll end this post with some pictures of the delicious ramens I've had.































Mata,
Hans Liang