The Day Before my Cruise
I had a full day to myself before boarding the Princess Cruise ship, Diamond Princess, so I visited Chinatown, the largest in Japan. It rained all day, a pleasant and light rain and I was impressed with the clean stores and inviting eateries. A young man enticed me into his restaurant, which offered 74 or more different items for one set price of 1680 yen, cash only. Rather than eat at a food stand, I decided to try the restaurant. I thought the size of the dishes would be much smaller but they were regular size. It was truly a feast: ramen, sticky rice, pork shumai, sweet bean filled sesame balls, eggplant, char siu, and a variety of vegetables.
I accidentally came across an outdoor mall in the neighborhood and was happy to find a Daiso, a discount store similar to the 99 Cent or Dollar Stores in the United States. I found a mini mortar and pestle set and a mini sushi making kit as well as puzzles, barrettes, horsehair paint brushes, and small handkerchiefs for my granddaughter. There was also a panda themed store where I purchased a snow globe with a panda riding a carousel horse.
I noticed familiar restaurants such as KFC, Yoshinoya, and McDonald’s. At McDonald’s, they did not offer an extensive menu, but the set prices seemed to include a side dish of corn. My cousin once told me that the Japanese love corn and always have a can of corn in the cupboard. You’ll find it used as a garnish on salads, served at restaurants as corn soup, and served as corn sushi at a kaitenzushi restaurant, or conveyor belt sushi. There is even an instant version in packets. Yup, they sure love corn.
