Smoking Ban in Kanagawa

It seems that the governor of Kanagawa is proposing a prefecture wide ban on smoking in public and state facilities and requiring separate smoking areas in restaurants and hotels. His original proposal was even more severe, completely banning smoking in public facilities and other places, including stores, restaurants, bars and pachinko parlors but I he gave up on that because of objections from local businesses. The Japan Times posted that the ordinance may not be approved because some members of the the assembly are taking a cautious stance on the health hazards presented by passive smoking. (Maybe they have relatives working for Japan Tobacco. Wink, wink.) Anyway. it’s good news for us Yokohama residents because even if it doesn’t go through this time the proposal is out there and it will surely make a comeback.

Source: Japan Times

S for Summer! S for Slurp!

Summer has come. People gravitate toward cold and light food naturally. Soba, the thin noodles made from buckwheat flour, is one of the most popular summertime foods in Japan, and a prime choice for a quick meal. Here is how to prepare cold soba at home.

What to buy:

• A package of dried soba. 100 to 120 grams serves a moderate eater.
• Men tsuyu (Dipping soup for noodles) Concentrated type, like the one shown in the photo below is recommended. The letters say “Noh-shuku 2-bai” meaning that you need to diluted it with the same amount of water as the soup. Mentsuyu is very handy. You can use it not only for soba or other kinds of cold noodles, but for making soup for hot noodles or cooking meat and vegetables.

How to prepare:

1. Bring generous amount of water to boil in a big pot. Put soba in and boil for 5 – 6 minutes or as instructed on the product package.
2. Take noodles out into a strainer (ideally bamboo strainer), rinse and cool it immediately under running water. Drain very well and put soba on a plate.
3. In a small bowl or a cup, put the same amount of mentsuyu and water. It’s ready to dip and slurp!

The traditional condiments such as chopped negi (spring onions) or wasabi add sharpness to the taste. For occasional luxury, you can get a few choices of tempura to put on the side of soba. More to learn.

Getting Sick in Japan

I came across this very useful web site for people who are unfortunate enough to get sick while in Japan and need to see a doctor or go to a hospital. Actually, many doctors in Japan speak English so it may not be a problem but just in case this website provides a bilingual questionnaire which you can fill out before you go to the doctor to speed up the process. It is available in several languages apart from English too. Just click on the language of your choice for a printable pdf file.