ICHIGO ICHIE
The moment we are experiencing now will never happen again. The art of making the most of every moment.-a Japanese philosophy
I have been touring the world by motorcycle. A Taiwanese friend I had met on a previous motorcycle trip I had taken in Morocco, had invited another rider and myself to join him on a private motorcycle ride he was arranging in Japan the next summer. We were the only 3 English speaking members of that ride so we hung out a lot together.
Of course I said yes and the next year I was off to Japan to a most amazing experience of culture, grace, serenity, food, people,…on, and on, and on…..!!! I arranged a private guide before I left to take me to places and encounter things that I had wanted to experience-Kyoto, bonsai gardens, bamboo forest, an onsen, a meeting with a Zen Buddhist monk, and a cooking class to mention a few. He didn’t disappoint me!!!
The cooking class turned out to be a private class with a Japanese TV cooking personality. She was a friend of my Japanese guide, Artie. My Japanese cooking instructor and I couldn’t communicate with words but we understood each other anyway. That moment or rather that 2 hours full of new flavors, cooking techniques, and ingredients I had never even heard of was amazing!
The next 10 days I toured with people I had never met prior to the trip other than my friend Alan. These were all his friends from Taiwan. We were 2 Taiwanese women riders, myself and 4 Taiwanese men riders and our Japanese guide. We all got along so well and became friends over this unique experience and passion for traveling by motorcycle.
If I had hesitated and not gone, not made the most of every moment, I would have missed this highlight of my life.
The food experiences varied from raw whale meat in one restaurant to beef tongue done a dozen different ways at another. I am a foodie so I sampled everything I could and set them in the grey cells for future reference. I have a category in my RootsinRecipes cookbook called, of course, Japan.
I bought things like kombu and soba noodles at specialty stores here at home and repeated the recipes I learned in my Japanese cooking class and also tried to duplicate those other foods that I had tasted along the way on the trip.
Every time I go into that cookbook category this trip pops into my mind!!! ICHIGO ICHIE
FOOD+FAMILY=LOVE
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