Waku-Waku sweets

                                         (Cosmos field, now mostly dead, on my walk home from the eki)

Sadly, there are two stations I didn't photograph. I can't even remember their names for sure. Yotsuji, I think, for the second one. But that doesn't matter, they are small fries compared to today's eki. 

Shin-yamaguchi (Cue: angelic chorus)

 Shin-yamaguchi is one of Yamaguchi's three shinkazen stations, the one I'll use to get to the airport in Osaka. Actually, most prefectures have only one shinkazen station, but Yamaguchi has had the distinct honor of producing quiet a few of Japan's Prime Ministers, so it gets extra bullet trains. Even without them, though, Shin-yamaguchi is the hub of western Yamaguchi's transportation. And yes. The trains leave right on time. Be there or wait thirty minutes for the next one. 

                        So, I mentioned something about mochi, you know, that sweet rice pulp. It grows on you, really, it does. But it's like cookie dough, it tells you when you need to stop. Usually mochi comes stuffed with anko (sweet bean paste), or wrapped in leaves, or dusted with things, like black goma (that is, sesame, which, in this application, reminds me of peanut butter). There are deviations from this path. There are combinations of mochi and sweet potatoes (FYI: Japanese sweet potatoes are yellow, not orange), you can find mochi covered in chocolate, and I have even eaten mochi covered in nori, or seaweed ( my English ladies thought this was really strange, so no, I am not labeling it as another "Japanese thing" ).   Here's a picture of a box of assorted mochi that I got to sample from last Friday. 

From left to right and top to bottom: Custard, anko, chestnut, cream cheese (really good), edamame (soy bean, basically it tasted like anko), anko filling with a nori coat, the little balls are anko (I think), then sweet potato and something else (completely unlike any of the other mochai texture wise), a dusting of some traditional powder that I've forgotten the name to (probably a bean), and then a dusting of black goma. Feast your eyes on them, they have to bee eaten fresh.                      

                  If Japanese Mochi isn't your style, how about korean? The mochi itself is not sweet at all, but is is filled with a syrup. The taste was so bizarre, I can't describe it. Salty, sweet, waxy....and the texture. Not at all like the Japanese mochi(s)

(mochai? there are no plurals in Japanese), which can be either light, delicate, and soft or sticky and slightly grainy. Never, in my limited experience, waxy. Still, the korean mochi wasn't bad, not any worse than I thought mochi and anko to be when I got here in June. Come to think of it, my first run in with mochi was about two years ago in Japanese class when my sensei handed out some that she had made. I think she said she used her microwave, but I have long forgotten now. What I haven't forgotten are the vibrant neon pinks and greens she had dyed it, and the way it clung to every molecule of your skin. I was not impressed then, but I am now. 

         This is a little random, but I just looked down and realized my word verification thing is finally gone! I've been fighting that thing for months. Apparently, my letter recognition skills are right up there with a hacker's virus. But now it seems to have vanished.  Poof. How わくわく(wakuwaku).  That's right, this is a Japanese onomatopoeia, presumably the sound of a fast  beating heart. I love these words. This one means exciting, but I'm forever hearing new ones 

 ふわふわ (fuwafuwa) - Fluffy

ぴかぴか  (pikapika) - shiny, sparkles

かりかり (karikari) - crunchy

ぶくぶく (bukubuku) - bubble up, foam

These words represent a sound that goes with the idea they convey. For instance, bukbuku, which might translate as blup-blup, was used to in an attempt to tell me I should boil something. Karikari, crunch-crunch, was used in an explanation of how to brown the noodles for roof tile soba. Fuwafuwa summed up a baby's bear-like coat, you can hear it if you run your fingers on something soft. Listen hard! Pikapika has been the most used so far. Today my ladies used it on the tinsel decorations we have hung around the church. The gold and red  metallic  strands, with dangling stars of red and silver, are very pikapika. That being said, have a happy thanksgiving with those you are  ラブラブ with!

                            (Some toppings for roof tile soba,  the actual name of which still eludes me. Kawara, perhaps?)

＊ Yes, you have to go find a katakana chart and figure it out yourself. Think of it as the gift of discovery.