In any case, tomorrow my family and I will make a trip to the Morikami Museum and Gardens for their annual celebration of Obon. Usually this means lots of tasty Japanese treats, demonstrations on all things Obon related, and (my personal favorite) taiko drumming performances. Another important part of the festival is the Bon Odori, or Bon dance. I've actually never seen this in person, though apparently Morikami will have it this year. Each region in Japan has its own version and, while at one point the Odori may have had religious connotations (again, no real theological knowledge on this end), it is mostly just part of the entertainment nowadays. Apparently, some have even adopted more modern songs to dance to such as, say, the Pokemon Ondo?
That should get the otaku in you going. Although, I've got to confess I've never watched Pokemon, so this had very little meaning to me. Not a real otaku after all? Something that did make me, mmn, grimmace was this revamped version of a popular Kansai region song. I couldn't watch the whole thing.
On a completely unrelated note (but never fear, still plenty Japan-obsessed), I've been working on perfecting my tamagoyaki skills this week. Tamagoyaki (fried egg) is a kind of layered omelet that is a staple food in Japan. It's mixed with a little soy sauce and mirin, giving it a pleasantly salty sweetness. Makes a great snack or dish for one's obento. I'm still working on mine, but here's a pic of the one I made for lunch yesterday. I tried sprinkling little torn pieces of nori, the seaweed usually used in sushi rolls, in between the layers as it cooked for some extra flavor.
The nori was good, but I put too much salt in this version. Still have a ways to go before I reach perfection with my tamagoyaki. In case you're wondering, JustHungry has some very easy to follow instructions that you can access here. I swear, this is one of the best resources for Japanese cooking I've found online. Maki, the woman who runs JustHungry, also has a great bento site called JustBento, which you will notice I've added to the Otaku Resources section.
Okay, just one more thing and then I promise to stop. My sister has had a friend visiting from Wales and since what all reasonable Welshmen want to do when they're in Florida is go to Asian places (Am I right? Who's arguing?) we decided on a trip to Orlando to check out their selection of Asian grocery stores. (Seriously, the poor guy had no idea he'd be coming to Japan when he flew to the US. We even played him a little 'Rin in the car, to get him into the swing of things.) First stop was 1st Oriental Supermarket. Ah, it was so beautiful. So many Asian foods, snacks, vegetables! I was in such a state of ecstasy that I forgot all about calling my cousin to meet up with us like I'd promised until nearly three hours later. Felt bad about that. Probably the highlight of 1st is their sake selection, something I've been frustrated with since coming to Florida. Just look at this!
By the way, I used the photo of the back of me so you couldn't see the drool pouring down my face.
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