So, yeah, this thing again. I used to criticize people who made webcomics and failed to update them as promised. I now take those complaints back and apologize whole heartedly. I'm sorry. Really sorry. Like super duper sorry. So sorry that I would get down and-.
Enough, Matt. We get it.
Right. So, on with the blog.
For the last bit of this update, I want to talk about the rail system here in Japan. To me, a guy who's only experience of public transportation has been a few short circuits on the bus system up at Appalachian State, the Japanese train system can seem confusing and intimidating at first. Don't let it get the best of you. The Japanese put forth a lot of effort to help you, the foreigner, find your way around the country much like the rest of their populace. At the larger stations, there will be English translations of destinations, trains, the arrival times and where they will stop along the line. Some can get you where you need to go quickly, while others tend to go slow and hit every station along the line. Don't worry about missing the train (unless it's later than 11 o clock, you can worry then) as another one going to where you can to go showing up in another ten minutes. Transfers are likely for some of the longer trains but are not difficult to navigate. Other than that, my only advice is to discern what you can from the boards and platforms and not to be afraid to ask questions. I've had multiple Japanese people willingly help my friends and I along our merry way. For that I thank them and hope you have similar experiences to mine onboard the Japanese rails.Here's an oddity that maybe you never heard of. Hamburger steak. Seems like an oxymoron, eh? Not here in Japan. Not really much of a steak but certainly not lacking in terms of hamburger, the dish is one of Japan's more common meals. Akin to Salisbury Steak, it comes with the gravy and a side, usually rice. I love this meal, though I can't say as much of its cousin. Place it on top of your rice and you got yourself a lunch-slash-dinner combo that will last you up until the next time you feel hungry. The meat goes to pieces in your mouth as the sauce lingers wonderfully upon your tongue, even after you swallow. Doesn't sound much like a foreign dish, right? I don't think so either. Still it's something novel to me and so I'll pass on the experience to you.
Relatable to this meal is another flavorful rice and gravy match. It's called curry rice. Guess what's in it. It's a beef curry with a mixture of vegetables and, surprise, beef that coats half the plate. The other half is reserved for a stack of rice which you are to mix in with the curry. Again, its a beefy flavor but in a land where beef is high in demand but low in supply, I can't help but imagine the people would what they can to make a meal of it. It can come in variety of heats and spices and there are different flavors too if I understand it correctly. But so far, my only experience with curry rice has been at the schools cafeteria which is always the same. Beef, mild, cheap and good.
Omurice (Omelet rice) is another Japanese favorite. More often than not you'll run in to someone who knows how to make it and if not its a staple at cafes. It's basically just as it sounds. On omelet stacked on top of rice. Meat, mostly pork, is buried under the fried and flipped egg along with onions and plated over rice. A sauce is then poured on top of the concoction and is ready for you to consume. The sauce can vary, depending on what you decide. Typically, what is given is a ketchup based one but you can find others. I'm not one-hundred percent on what else there is but I am aware of a curry one. And you (unlikely) doubted me when I said curry was big here.
Now here's a real difference between Japan and what you're liable to find in North America. Horse sashimi. It's raw, it's real, it's here, so give it a shot. And don't give me that "poor horse" nonsense. It's meat and it can be tasty. I didn't really find it to be, but hey! that's me. I try to not let anything get in the way of you trying something new. Except for dog... or cat... I don't think I'll really go for those. Not that I've seen stores offering them. Just, putting that out there.
So far, that's all I've got on food.
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