Nature at its finest.

Living in Japan has taught me a lot of things - a couple of things I've learned and want to continue no matter where I go from here on out is: 「手間を惜しまない」and「旬を大事にする」- stuff like this always sound terribly tacky when you try to translate them, so the general ideas are "not trying to take shortcuts" and "valuing the seasons (many times by eating fruits/veggies in season)."

I must admit, it does look pretty grotesque.

So one day, I suddenly received a call from a dear friend saying that she was nearby my place, and had something she wanted to give me. It turned out to be this...takenoko, or a bamboo shoot. She'd gone bamboo shoot hunting around her hometown of Katsuura, and brought back one for me because we'd recently discussed how awesome takenoko taste.

And I really appreciated the gesture - I mean, I do love just about anything with takenoko in it, but I'd only gotten it in it's original, fresh-out-the-ground form once before, and it had been a disaster when I tried to cook with it (what I wound up with was something that tasted like stewed newspaper.)

But it was in my possession...and I couldn't let it go to waste, so armed with the power of Google search, I decided to try again.

Pre-cooking the bamboo shoot!

The basics of pre-cooking takenoko, clockwise from left to right. You cut it up, boil it in...I used the water left over from washing rice in order to help remove the bitterness of the takenoko...and voila! Store it in a container filled with water for up to 3 days, until you're ready to cook with it.

Products of labor = yumminess! (Also, this is my fancy lunch container that keeps my lunch warm for up to 5 hours)

One of my coworkers suggested maybe I had previously failed cooking takenoko before I chose a rather unique recipe - basically I think it was takenoko cooked in gochujang. Soooo I decided to take the more traditional route, and used the takenoko to make two more common dishes - 炊き込みご飯 (rice steamed together with takenoko and carrots) and 若竹煮 (wakame and takenoko boiled in dashi, soy sauce, and a couple of other things).

End result = awesome! It wasn't disastrous at all...in fact it was really, really good. I lived off of the takenoko for that entire week - because honestly one of that size is a pretty good amount for someone living alone.

I wonder if they sell fresh takenoko back in the States too...?

Grand Opening of the Shisui Premium Outlets!

Opening day!

Last Friday, April 19, the spanking new Shisui Premium Outlets (酒々井プレミアムアウトレット) opened up just 10 minutes away from Narita Airport. After going to the grand opening of Mitsui Outlet Park Kisarazu last April, my fashion-forward buddy and I decided it would only be fair if we went to Shisui on opening day too.

Random trivia: "Shisui" was listed as one of the most difficult place names to read in the Suumo journal!

More celebrity sightings!

The outlets were all over the news this week!

The short haired girl blinking in the center of this photo is Maiko Sota, the お天気お姉さん (= term for young female meteorologists on news shows) for Mezamashi Saturday on Fuji TV (channel 8 for anyone in the Kanto region!). I didn't get to catch Saturday morning's show, but there is always a segment where Maiko checks out tourist attractions throughout Japan, which I assume is what they were shooting.

We saw another reporter-looking chick as we were leaving - I didn't recognize her, but a ton of people were crowded around trying to snap a photo.

Long-awaited California Pizza Kitchen

I must admit...my actual main goal for the day was to eat at California Pizza Kitchen. I loved CPK back in the States, and when I was studying in Tokyo I was ecstatic that there was a location near-ish my dorm in Kawasaki. But because of the inconvenient distance, I had only been back once during my 5 years working in Chiba.

I was slightly confused when we got into CPK at the outlets and it was...semi-fast food?! You order at the counter, and then they bring the food to your seats. The menu was probably 1/4 of what I remembered it to be (although I must note that they've created a "Sweet Eel Pizza" especially for this location - combining Narita's specialty unagi (sweet eel) and one of Chiba's symbols - nanohana!). I had the original BBQ chicken pizza (pictured above) which was as amaaaazing as expected.

After a bit of research...the Kawasaki location closed down last year?! I wonder if CPK is changed their strategy to a more casual dining experience. If you look on the CPK Japan website, there are currently only 2 locations in Japan now: Shisui and Sano.

In any case...I am excited one of these two locations is just 30 minutes from where I live!

Airport runway theme in the food court

Flight info displayed on the giant monitor setup in the food court

There are all sorts of extras in store for visitors, like apparently drivers who exit through the also newly opened Shisui IC (btw, isn't on Google maps yet, as my friend and I found out when we tried to use our Maps app to get there! luckily there are lots of signs along the way) by 10:30am every day until May 6...I think? will receive a 500 yen coupon for the outlets.

One thing that was pointed out amongst all the hype on the news - and something I've wondered about as well - was the fact that the niche for outlets is already played out in the Kanto region. Shisui is apparently the 10th outlet facility in the Tokyo Metropolitan area (4th in Chiba alone - talk about outlet central!).

But! The Shisui Premium Outlets is particularly targeting visitors from abroad, traveling to/from Narita Airport. For instance, free wi-fi is available to visitors from abroad - all you have to do is show your passport at the Information Desk, located at the center of the complex. Shisui is also apparently the first outlet mall in Japan to have currency exchange services available on-site. I love that they have flight information available in the food court - they are really serious about making the outlets the pre-flight stopover!

Wanna go to the outlets? Here are a couple of shortcut links for your perusal:
Getting to the Shisui Premium Outlets: http://www.premiumoutlets.co.jp/en/shisui/access/
List of shops here: http://www.premiumoutlets.co.jp/en/shisui/brands/index.html?mode=keyword_en&keyword_en=ALL

Under the stars.

My time left here ticks away, but there are still so many places I haven't gone - or don't even know to visit! One good example is today's subject, the Chiba City Museum of Science (千葉市科学館).
 

Special elevator for the Museum of Science.

This adventure began with a random conversation at lunch. A couple of my former coworkers wanted to plan more time to hang out - but for once, something other than just grabbing a bite to eat together. After some thought, one of them thought - how about a trip to the planetarium? It was perfect because the other two of us had never gone before, and I'd been wanted to go to a planetarium for aaaages. So off we went!

Strange cardboard creatures...perhaps the museum mascots?

After a quick dinner (and actually, I skipped dinner because I had come straight from FOODEX/World Sushi Cup), we timed it so that we could watch the final planetarium show of the day. If you take a look at the schedule, they've got a pretty diverse program, and showings are almost once every hour from 10am to 7pm! Cool stuff.

We happened to go to the showing for 星空散歩 (I suppose I could translate that to something like "starry night stroll"), which was just awesome. I'll describe it in more detail below.

More random contraptions in the lobby area.

Like going to see a movie in Japan, you buy your tickets, then hang out in the lobby until you hear the announcement to enter the theater. The museum exhibits close down at 7pm, but the planetarium is open until 8pm.

Planetarium ticket! You can tell how long I've been uh, saving this post...

Of course, photography/video isn't allowed inside the planetarium - but I wish I could show you! It was incredible. My favorite part of the show was when they "dim" the sky down so that you can see the nightscape of the area immediately around Qiball (for instance, the guide/narrator pointed out the Chiba Prefectural Offices where I work, Tokyo far in the distance, and other landmarks). Then, streetlights are magically "blown out" and until you are surrounded by countless stars, and learn about a number of constellations.

I don't wanna spoil it for you (if that's possible) so I'll stop here...but if you like stars, you will definitely want to check this out! I could watch this show again and again.

 Qiball during the day!

My excuse for taking forever to post this is that I was waiting for a chance to walk by during the day, so I could get a picture of Qiball. The round thing you can kinda see inside the building is the planetarium.

To be honest, I don't think I've been to a planetarium since...elementary school! You know, those days when you learned about the solar system and memorized the planets with "My Very Excellent Mother Just Served Us Nine Pizzas"? (Ah...the days when Pluto was still a planet.)

P.S.: The post title comes from a very fantastic song of the same name by Morning Parade!

Super bass.

Quick update! This weekend I went to see the Narita Taiko Festival (成田太鼓祭り). To be honest, I didn't get to see as much taiko drumming as I did last year, but I still had a fantastic time nonetheless. Much of my duration at the festival was spent fooling around with friends - but perhaps that's what festivals are for in the first place!

Anyway, here's a mini photo overview of my trip to the taiko festival:

Fantastic weather really drew out the crowds.

千年夜舞台, or torchlit drum performance Saturday evening.

Celebrity spotting!

The photo's a bit blurry, but the two guys in the navy blue hoodies are none other than the comedian duo Taka and Toshi! There were a bunch of other TV talents there as well (that I'd seen on TV before but can't name them because they aren't as popular), because I'm pretty sure they were recording a variety show. I didn't feel starstruck or anything, but it was cool to come across some celebs!

Lunch Adventures: Rokuro Cafe & Gallery.

Today I'm here to share a recent favorite lunch spot: the lovely Rokuro Cafe & Gallery!

Tucked in amongst the row of shops. You'll find it right next to the Windsor Tennis Shop.

I'd tried to come here before, but my first attempt ended in failure because the cafe was totally full. Because my area is chock full of government offices, there aren't so many places to eat until you go closer to Chiba Station...which would cut down on precious lunch time. So for popular places like Rokuro, the key is to...run, and try to secure your seats ASAP.

Mmmmmm. Happiness = beef stew.

So my first "real" (as in successful) visit to Rokuro was during the winter season. Somehow some of the ladies and I got onto the topic of beef stew - maybe because it was freezing and we were discussing foods that help warm you up?

In any case, one of the ladies suggested two nearby restaurants that had great beef stew. One of course was Rokuro, the other one I can't remember at all - perhaps because Rokuro was that much better. :)

Cheese curry toast lunch set!

Since then, I've been to Rokuro quite a few times. One day I was in a curry-ish mood, so I ordered this! Think soup bread bowls...except an entire half of a loaf of bread. Seriously. I am sorry that the photo doesn't do it justice. (Perhaps that's a sign I should go back for another round so I can take a better photo...)

When I first tried to dig in, I was really confused because they had only given me a fork to eat with. I asked for a spoon, and then the waitress kindly explained that the inside of the bread "bowl" (cube?) was still quite in tact, so you just stab your fork in, and you'll pull out a delightful combination of fluffy bread and curry. It was like fondue without the dipping part?!

In the words of Arnold Schwarzenegger... I'll be back.

Apparently, Rokuro has recently started to serve dinner! So I've got a new mission...checking out Rokuro in the evening/at night. 

On a final random note...Rokuro is also a "gallery" because the cafe is located on the 1st floor, and I think there may be a gallery space on the 3rd floor. But handmade pottery is displayed all over the cafe area, and all of the dishes they serve with are unique and adorable. I was particularly attracted to this ashtray (pictured at the top of the above photo). It's almost a waste to use it as an ashtray!