FUGU ME!!

So I went to Ganryujima the other day, a place I had been wanting to go to for quite some time. It's a tiny island off the port city of Shiminoseki, famous throughout Japan and among martial arts enthusiasts the world over, though many don't know where it is. Luckily for me, it is not so far from where I live, taking about two hours by train and ferry to get there.

But why is it famous, and why did I want to go there? Glad you asked.

Unique indeed!

This is the book responsible for me wanting to visit Ganryujima, where the story's climactic scene takes place. I highly recommend this book to anyone interested in Japanese history or culture, or indeed anyone who has a lot of spare time as it runs for almost 1000 pages.

I don't know what this is. Emiko said it's the spot where they fought...


But I thought this was more likely to have been the spot.

Musashi strikes!

A replica of the boat in which Musashi came to the fight. I was just about to hop in for a photo when we heard a voice shouting. We turned around to see one of the old fellows that run the ferry riding along the footpath on an old beat up bicycle. He told us to hurry up because the last ferry for the day was about to leave. And so that was that.

It was almost dark when we got back to Shiminoseki harbour. We decided it was time for something to eat. But what does one eat when in Shiminoseki? Apparently one eats Fugu (blowfish) if one dares. Fugu, as you may have heard, is lethally poisonous if not prepared properly. That's why a Fugu chef is required to have a special licence. Even so, every year a handful of people die from eating ill-prepared Fugu.

Two test nibbles; didn't die.

Thus emboldened I went and ordered Fugu curry, while Emiko, not wholly satisfied with the already modest danger levels, ordered a Fugu sashi don, which is RAW Fugu on rice.

Well anyway the good news is we survived. The verdict? I wish I could say "Fugutastic", but the truth is it was "ma-ma desu". Not so very tasty. But at least we're still breathing.