Japanese Surgeon's Daily Life

Yawatahama City

　　We continued to drive in a blistering heat. It's been hot for more than 4 weeks. It looked like it was record-breaking, but my car had enough power to cool us. We enjoyed driving on the long-forgotten road. You would think that there would be a water shortage in such conditions, but we got a lot of rain in June and the mountains stored the water that we got in the rainy season. The orange trees were vividly green, which are the famous product of this area.
　　We got to Yawatahama city. This city is located to the south of Matsuyama city and has been known as a prosperous fishing harbor since long ago, but is now suffering from a declining population. My parents had worked near this city about 40 years ago and seemed to have frequently gone to the city. They often ate "Chanpon", a ramen-like noodle, in those days. To our surprise, the "Chanpon" shop was not closed and still operated at the same place. About 20 years ago, the bypass was constructed around the city and we hadn't entered the city since then. Today, we got into the city for the first time in about 20 years and found the shop. The shop was renovated but the atmosphere of the shop must have reminded my parents of the old days. As for me, the taste of the "Chanpon" was alive deep in my memory.

• (Vocabulary)
• fishing harbor 漁港
• fishery [C] 漁場 / [C] 養殖場 [同意] fish farm /[C] 漁業, 水産業
• prosperous 裕福な, (経済的に) 成功した, 繁栄している

 

Ole?

　　I found a new instant pan-fried noodles. I'll show you it below. "JFA" on the face stands for "Japan Football Association". You can see a soccer ball in the lower left corner. It is rooting for the Japanese national soccer team. The supporters who actually go to South Africa to cheer for their team might take this. By the way, I found the word "Ole" in the upper left corner. What does it mean? I looked it up in the dictionary, but I couldn't find it. It must be a Japanese-made English word. I suppose it means "Hurrah!"

• (Vocabulary)
• pan-fried noodles 焼きそば

Space Food

　　My daughter had a trip somewhere and brought a retort beef curry back for me some time ago. It was space food that I'll show you below. It was made by one of the leading Japanese food companies. The package says that JAXA (Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency) have something to do with this product. I imagine that JAXA helps the company develop the space foods.
　　I tasted it today. It was average. If I ate it in space, it might be delicious. The company seems to plan to develop about 100 items of Japanese space food. I'm afraid that all of those might be of the same quality. Anyway, has the era come that ordinary people could enjoy a space trip?

• (Vocabulary)
• retort food  レトルト食品
• the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) 宇宙航空研究開発機構
• 「宇宙空間」の意味ではspaceは数えられない名詞なので定冠詞theは付けない．単にspaceを用いる．

Bistro Baden

　　It's a curious naming of a small wine bar. "Bistro" is a French word and "Baden" is the name of the provinces of southwestern Germany. Freiburg City, where I had stayed for a week last month and now where my daughter is living, is located in the midst of the Baden area. I heard that Badish(adj. of Baden) wines were served at the bar. I took my friends out for dinner. The bar had a nice atomosphere and a large stock of German wines. I will be an eager repeater.

　　I'll show you the night view from the bar, and if you want to see the menu and other pictures, go to the following url that was edited by my friend.

http://zebo.la.coocan.jp/etc/2010/2010-05-15/main.html

(Vocabulary)

the provinces 《複数扱い》地方, 田舎

take sb ↔ out for sth　＜人＞を＜食事など＞に連れて行く

 

 

Yufka

　　The last meal in Freiburg was Yufka, the Turkish flatbread. Meat and a few kinds of vegetables were enveloped in this flatbread. It was nice and was my favorite. Additionally, there was a chinese fast food shop next to this Yufka shop, and the owner looked relaxed. I felt like trying the Chinese fast food in Germany, and ordered the dish on the first line of the menu that I showed you in the last picture. It was also nice. Suppe stands for soup. The dish was noodle soup with vegetables.

 

Lunch

　　Have you seen the dish in the first picture? It was escargot. I saw it for the first time. The plate is called escargotiere in French and is specially made for cooking escargot. As for the French dishes, foie gras and escargot are famous as unique cooking ingredients. I have wanted to try them for a long time and I ate escargot in a small restaurant in Riquewihr. It was just like scallops or clams and tasted good. Escargot is called snail in English. I had thought any escargot was all right for cooking as long as it was snails, but my idea was completely wrong. Edible snails are limited to two kinds and snails that grew up in vineyards are said to be best for cooking. I was in the midst of a vineyard at that time, and it meant that I was in a desirable location.
　　The last picture is of the main dish. I felt that it was really roughly made. Various kinds of meat were just put on a fistful of Sauerkraut in an offhand manner. I like Germany, but I'm not fond of this German traditional dish. It was totally at the other end of the spectrum of Japanese traditional dishes. If German people visited Japan and had an opportunity to see our traditional food, they would be surprised about the subtle work of cooks.

(Vocabulary)

escargot〈フランス語〉エスカルゴ

escargotiere〈フランス語〉エスカルゴ皿

foie gras〈フランス語〉〔ガチョウの肝臓〕フォアグラ

cooking ingredient 食材

scallop  ホタテガイ

clam 食用二枚貝

vineyard (ワイン製造のための) ブドウ園

snail [C] カタツムリ

edible  食用になる, 食べられる

desirable (フォーマル) 望ましい, 好ましい

Sauerkraut ザウアークラウト(塩漬けキャベツ)

in an offhand manner 無造作に

offhand 《[名]の前でのみ》 うっかりした, 思いつきの; そっけない, ぶっきらぼうな

It was only an offhand remark. それは単なる失言だった．

at the other end of the spectrum その対極にある

spectrum　《[C]通例単数形で》 (変動の) 範囲, 幅

a broad/wide spectrum (of something)  （＜…＞の）広い範囲

a wide spectrum of opinion 広範囲にわたる意見

subtle 巧みな, 手の込んだ; 繊細な

 

Alsace Wine Street

　　Alsace Province is located on the western border of France and noted as the production area for vintage wines. A road that runs north and south through the area along the Rhine river is called Alsace Wine Street. We set out for Riquewihr that lies about midway on the Alsace Street. To tell the truth, I wanted to see the scenery of the street last autumn, but I couldn't because of the last-minute cancellation of the sightseeing bus. So, the offer from Mr. D was really great. Pictures were taken through the windshield. Almost all of the things in the pictures are grape vines or terraces of vines. It was a magnificent view under the warm sunshine.
　　I almost forgot. I bought 10 bottles of jam in Colmar for my family and friends, which are shown in the last picture. I didn't know about them at that time, but Mr. D advised me to get them. This jam seemed to be famous world-wide. They were fine flavored and wonderful. I'd never eaten such tasty jam.

(Vocabulary)

vintage   (ワインが) 当たり年の, 極上の

north and south　〔日本語と語順が逆〕南北に

midway 中間点

windshield　《車》〈米〉フロントガラス

grape vine / vine ブドウの木

terraces of vines ブドウの木の段々畑

I almost forgot. 忘れるところだった。

 

 

 

French Bread

　　Once I entered Franch territory, I was urged to try genuine French bread. Luckily, a bakery was open and we had a bite there. The taste was really nice. When I got my bread, I talked in English. Yuri and Mr. D were chatting with a young girl at the counter in German. She looked more fluent in German than in English. According to what I heard later, the French kids in Alsace province seemed to learn German and French in compulsory education. I wished that I could talk in many languages.

(Vocabulary)

genuine/ real 本場の

Dry Sushi

　　We got back to downtown Freiburg and went to the huge shopping center that I wrote about in the former entry. Yuri didn't have a desk lamp and we looked for one, but in vain. We couldn't find what we needed, but found packs of assorted sushi there and tasted them. They were incredibly bad. The rice was dry and I could see the air space between the grains of rice. I couldn't believe it. The title has the Japanese words like Edogawa, Arakawa and Bento, and it meant that Japanese had something to do with them. German people might have thought that this was  sushi, but if so, I'm very sorry. I wish they could eat sushi in Japan or Vancouver. Sushi is really nice there.

(Vocabulary)

desk lamp / desk light  電気スタンド

grain of rice 米粒

Shelf in my Room

　　At first, look at the picture. A sandwich and a can of salmon on the shelf in the picture was my supper today. I bought them at the nearest supermarket which Yuri would frequently use from now. I wanted to buy something at this supermarket and there was no restaurant around the dormitory. Moreover, Yuri didn't have dinner, because the amount of lunch was too much for her stomach. I had to eat supper in solitude in my room.

(Vocabulary)

in solitude 寂しく、一人で

 

March 31st

　　This day was March 31st and April 2nd was Holy Friday, one of the national holidays in European countries. That meant I had only two days left for Yuri's essential procedures in Freiburg, but didn't finish any of them. We visited the city office again that had been closed the previous day and managed to complete Yuri's residential registration. Then, we met a Japanese whom I asked to help her live in Freiburg. He had lived in Freiburg for 10 years. I don't have permission to use his name, so I will call him Mr.D for now.

NORDSEE

　　"NORDSEE" is famous as a seafood restaurant in Germany. "Nordsee" also means the North Sea in German. So, it's the best name, I think, for a restaurant handling seafood. The North Sea is just in the north of Germany. By the way, this restaurant is located just in the center of the old city, "Alt Stadt" in Freiburg. We dropped in at this restaurant to check the taste of seafood from the North Sea, but as I imagined, there was no fresh seafood. I didn't tell them that I'd come from the land of sushi, but if Freiburgers think that this was fresh, it would be sad.

　　We didn't feel like eating what they call fresh fish and ordered heated and cooked ones that you can see in the following pictures.

Unfavorable Breakfast

　　I awoke at 4:00 in the morning due to jet lag. However, Yuri was in a deep sleep. It's always like this to my surprise, but Yuri can sleep well anytime and anywhere. This might be her special ability. Anyway, I spent the time writing e-mails and making preparations for today. The main job for today was to check into her dormitory where she'd live for one year, and buy her daily necessities. We had time until the appointment time, so we went out for a walk after breakfast, which wasn't good. The breakfast only consisted of animal protein and no vegetables. I was lost for words. It can't be good for the health. We stayed at this hotel last autumn and I remember that we got tired of eating the same breakfast every morning.

(Vocabulary)

make preparations  準備をする［整える］

Preparations are being made for the president's visit.  大統領の訪問に向けて準備が整えられている．

be lost for words  言葉に窮する［詰まる］

tired of (doing) sth  ＜…＞（すること）に飽きて, うんざりして

Döner Kebab

　　I had a regret that I had had during my last trip in Germany. It's the Döner Kebab which originates from Turkey. It looked nice to me, but I couldn't try to eat it. I hesitated to drop in at the stall, because I didn't know how to order it. It had lots of fillings and I didn't know the name of each one. Actually, I didn't need to be so tensed up, Yuri simply ordered by saying "Zwei(Two) Kebab". When I heard her saying so, I couldn't help laughing. It was very simple, but enough. Too much consideration is sometimes bad for me, and I think this hesitation might stonewall me from speaking foreign languages.

 

The Lunch

Hors d'oeuvre

German Potato Salad with smoked Salmon

ドイツ風ポテトサラダ　スモークサーモン添え

Green Tea Soba with Wasabi and Soba Sauce

茶蕎麦　山椒付き

Entree

Sliced Beef with green Pepper Sauce,

fried potato and Broccoli

牛肉薄切り　グリーンペッパーソース

ジャーマンポテトとブロッコリー添え

Dessert

Fresh Fruit

(Vocabulary)

Hors d'oeuvre   オードブル, 前菜

Entree  [C] アントレ (レストランの食事や正餐(せいさん)における主菜料理)

 

Eye Contact With The Pilot

　　I set off for Osaka at noon on ANA1636 from Matsuyama airport. The airplane was a DHC-8-Q400 made by Bombardier Aerospace. I had flown on this plane several times and I think it's suitable for short-range flights in a small country such as Japan. The place where it stopped in Osaka was a little away from the airport building and I got on the bus which was waiting for us just in front of the exit ladder. While the bus was waiting for the last passenger, I unintentionally saw the cockpit. At that time, I was eye to eye with the captain. His name was "Jason" or "Jake", though I didn't remember exactly, according to the chief purser's announcement before the flight. He greeted me politely in the Japanese way and gave me a good impression. Such a small incident makes my travel happier. I thought that I would use ANA again.

　　I am staying in a hotel near Kansai International Airport now. Tonight's dinner was sushi. Yuri will live in Germany for one year and I was afraid that she would miss Japanese food. Particularly, Freiburg, where she is going to stay, is located in the south of Germany, I mean, it's in the midst of mountains. I imagined that sushi wouldn't be good in Freiburg. When I visited Freiburg last time, I had my hands full with just staying, moving and coming back to Japan. So, this time, I'm going to try as many things as possible.

(Vocabulary)

set off 　出発する

exit ladder　〔船や飛行機の乗り降りに使うはしご〕

boarding ramp　（飛行機などの）

unintentionally  何気なく

be eye to eye  目と目が合う 

purser  船の事務長; 旅客機で客室乗務員のうち上級の者。

have one's hands full with ～のことで精いっぱいである 

 

Tonight's Meal

     The picture shows my midnight meal for tonight. I'm ready for medical emergencies now. To my surprise, this bread cost 120 yen, coming to 1.40 US$ converted at today's rate. Furthermore, my toaster cost only 20 US$. I'm worrying about having too inexpensive prices for goods. See also http://kumo.typepad.jp/weblog/2008/01/toaster-oven.html

(Vocabulary)

come to __$ converted at today's rate  今日のレートで換算して＿ドルになる

 

Roast Beef and vegetables

     In this blog, I haven't taken the topic of food so often. When I saw a TV cooking program, I became aware of not knowing fundamental words for cooking. I decided to write something about food dishes this time.

     Look at the picture. It's a plate of roast meat and vegetables. It is not roasted yet. Just raw ones. As you see in the second picture,  solid fuel is put under the plate and it is ignited just after the opening of the party. Needless to say, it's a very simple dish and it would be easy for the kitchen staff. The solid fuel is small and looks not so strong, but it was enough for roasting something on the plate. If you don't take care, you'll over-roast them.

     It is a device for eating something hot and keeping it hot. If you eat the traditional Kaiseki, all the dishes are served from the kitchen keeping a suitable temperature, or the chef prepares some dishes just in front of you. However, we skimped on the money at this party, so the dishes became time- and labor-saving ones.

     This plate is made from stone. I've seen people in the developing world use extremely hot stones for their cooking, boiling, roasting, steaming and so on. I thought stones might retain the heat efficiently.

(Vocabulary)

briquette fuel  (バーベキューなどに使う) 豆炭, 練炭

skimp on  (金・時間・物などを) けちる

cooking[cookery] program/show  料理番組

steam  蒸す

retain heat  保温性が高い

retain  〈性質・権利など〉 を保つ, 維持する, 〈熱･水分など〉 を保つ, 逃さない

The building is designed to retain heat. その建物は熱を逃さないように設計されている．

(Jan. 12th 2010)

  

Sea Bream

     The Japanese word for sea bream, tai, sounds similar to the Japanese adjective "mede-tai", which means "felicity", and what is more it is auspiciously red in color. This fish is often used in celebrations. This dish is slowly-boild sea bream with Japanese sake and soy sauce. This was very good, but I thought, while writing this entry, that people who can't use chopsticks would hardly taste it. It must be very difficult to eat with knives and forks. Anyway, it was nice to eat it slowly over Japanese sake, while picking through it.

(Vocabulary)

sea bream 鯛

felicity  = happiness

auspicious   幸先(さいさき)のよい, 吉兆の

(Jan. 10th 2010)

 

A Portion

     Do you see the three small bowls just in front of you? The left one was made from seaweed and the right one was made from boiled sweet vegetables. The center was a cooked rice cake, which is the symbol of happiness in Japan. In other words, these dishes meant a gift from sea and land.

     The symbolic Japanese cuisine is called "Kaiseki", which is artistic because each dish is served individually with a small amout of carefully prepared and beautifully arranged food. Kaiseki requires many attendants. As soon as each dish is prepared, it must be served to everyone, keeping hot dishes hot, cold ones cold. So that the attendants always have to observe the guests and inform the kitchen staff when every guest finishes the dish. The dishes are served at everyone's pace.

     By the way, our party was planned with low cost and lots of dishes were put on the individual table at once. You'll see the thin transparent sheet on the raw food dish for protection from the dust and keeping it cool with refrigerant.

     If served traditionally, the three dishes that I mentioned in the opening paragraph would be served individually at first with a small glass of plum wine as the appetizer.

(Vocabulary)

bowl   深鉢, わん, どんぶり, (料理用の) ボウル

plum wine  梅酒

refrigerant  保冷剤

(Jan. 10th 2010)