Got this dish in our school lunch today. Took a bite to discover a flavor and texture I had never tasted before. I consulted our menu to see what it was, and discovered I was eating “kujira-niku”—whale meat.
I’d heard stories from my “sempai” (seniors) of the occasional whale meat school lunch, but was told that they’ve been phasing it out and it was really rare these days. I don’t really know if I should count myself as lucky or unlucky that I got this chance to eat it, but either way, I ate it.
For the curious: it’s not great. You can see the meat is really dark—almost black. It’s similar to beef, but with much less flavor. And it’s VERY tough. It took me quite a while to get through this small amount. The bottom line: once is more than enough times to try whale meat.
Wednesday Night: Root Beer is not a common item in Japan. I’ve got to drive for about 70 minutes to a specialty store with imported food goods to get this. Apparently there is some kind of common medicine here that tastes just like root beer because every time I introduce one of my Japanese friends to it, they make a sour face and say “It tastes like medicine!”
Anyways, this is the last can I’ve got since the last time I went to the store (about two months ago), and I’ve been saving it for the right night. I taught my last classes of the trimester today, so I think that was a good enough reason for me to go out and get a pizza, crack open this can of A&W, and watch the newest episode of “Louie.”
Random thing I remembered about my childhood while driving to work this morning:
When I was a kid, I didn’t understand the difference between lettuce and salad. Whenever we went to McDonald’s, I would ask for a cheeseburger with pickles and ketchup, and hold the salad.
Kyushoku: Vegetable and Beef Curry, Wieners, and Salad
Possibly the most stressful part of my day is waiting to see what our lunch will be. This is one of those days where I let out a quick “ohthankgod!” and relax.
Continuing with the theme of “sea creatures that we fry and eat whole,” yesterday we had fried shrimp for lunch—with eyes and legs and all. But we also got a sweet potato crepe to go with it! (in the plastic package in the middle)
It’s been a good while since I posted a picture of my school lunch, so here’s what I had today: a typical Japanese salad, some bite-size fried fish (the entire body), a bizarre miso-ramen concoction with corn and quail eggs, and, of course, rice.
About Me
My name is Lawrence Denes.After spending 5 years studying Japanese language, culture, literature, and history in St. Louis and Kyoto, I now live in Japan, in a town that most Japanese people have never even heard of, lost amid the rice fields and vending machines.
Please feel free to ask me anything, or send me an email.
