Otto's blog

Back to Japan, Back to Blogging

2月

6日

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I`m sorry for not blogging for 2 months. I was on holidays in Australia. I thought I might blog while I was Australia, but I didn`t really have time.

However I`m back in Japan now, so I will resume (= start again) blogging. Of course I have lots of pictures of my Australian holiday to show you, but first I want to thank Yuki, Kahori, Miho, Naoki & Naomichi (he looks like he has long hair in this photo, but it`s just shadow) for having a `Welcome Back` dinner for me on Saturday. We went to a new place in Ichinomiya called Neneya.

Thanks, guys - I really appreciate it!

White Day

3月

14日

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If you`re not Japanese, you probably don`t know about `White Day`. In Japan, girls often give chocolate to guys on Valentine`s Day, then guys can give chocolate or cookies/biscuits to girls on March 14, White Day.

I made these biscuits for my workmates. They`re called ANZAC biscuits. I`ll post the recipe soon.

Mizumanju Mission!

5月

14日

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Owen saw a shop selling mizumanju (a kind of traditional Japanese sweet) on TV and said he wanted to eat it. The shop on the show was in Ogaki, which is not so far from Ichinomiya, so on Sunday we went there by train.

I asked the lady at the tourist information office, "Where is the mizumanju shop?" and she answered, "There are lots!" Oh.

First we went to the one we saw on TV, bought some mizumanju, & ate it by the river nearby.

Next we visited Ogaki Castle, then we visited another mizumanju shop, where we had `mizumanjugori` - mizumanju with shaved ice. Yum yum!

After that we found ANOTHER mizumanju shop, so we bought & ate some more...

Finally we returned to the first shop & bought some mizumanju to take home for my wife. But we ate some of them on the train...

If you like mizumanju, I definitely recommend Ogaki!

Ichigo Daifuku

1月

30日

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Near my house there is a shop called Nodaya which makes & sells Ichigo Daifuku. This is basically a strawberry & some sweet bean paste inside mochi (rice cake). I`m not usually a big fan of Japanese sweets, but I like Ichigo Daifuku. I think everbody does!

I went there with Owen last weekend to buy some.

They don`t have a website, but you can see a map here:

http://naviaichi.com/0120-137280/

New Year Osechi

1月

3日

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Osechi is a special boxed arrangement of food which is traditionally eaten in Japan to celebrate the new year. Each dish has a special meaning, such as happiness, long-life, etc.

It looks great, doesn`t it?

But eating cold seafood and mysterious rubbery things is not so great. I only ate a little...

Do you like osechi?

Restaurant Bangkok, Ichinomiya

12月

21日

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On the weekend I visited a Thai restaurant in Ichinomiya called Restaurant Bangkok. It is the only one I know of in this area.

If, like me, you love Thai food, I recommend you check it out!

http://www.e-shops.jp/local/nsh/5537121305.html

Kiwi Fruit Find

12月

13日

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Not far from my house there is a big kiwi fruit tree, full of fruit. When I take Owen for a walk that way, I check to see if the fruit is ready, but it`s always been hard... until now. Finally they`re ripe [jukushiteiru]!

Because that tree is in an abandoned field [akichi] - well, it was abandoned while we were walking past on Saturday... - I thought it would be okay to taste one. YUM!

I also took a couple home. Tonight I had one chopped up in a pancake. YUM again!

Pumpkin pudding

9月

23日

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Thanks Makie for your delicious pumpkin pudding.

It reminded me of an unusual dessert I sometimes used to buy when I caught the long-distance, overnight train in Thailand. Ah... that brings back memories (=natsukashi).