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I fell in love with Japan at the age of 3, after watching the Sesame Street special “Big Bird in Japan.” I wanted to visit from the time I saw that special, and got my wish four years later, when my family and I took a trip to Japan. I fell in love all over again, in the way only a 2nd grader can: completely.
At the time, I remember being surrounded by a vast array of colors, the bright lights of Osaka and Tokyo, people whose manners and etiquette made New Yorkers come across as cavemen. I was floored by the modernity when I first got to Japan. Even in the early 90s, Japan was a hub of technological achievement, especially epitomized for me in a smooth, seamless journey on the shinkansen (bullet train) from Osaka to Tokyo. In Nara, I was introduced to the ancient, as it resided alongside the modern. The Todai-ji temple was a glorious site to behold, with its pagoda architecture, giving it the appearance of having wings. Inside, it housed a 50 ft. massive bronze statue of the Buddha which, for someone who was still somewhat below 4 ft. at the time, was an unbelievable marvel. Marbled through modern Japan remained an ancient sense of etiquette, propriety, wisdom, and duty, which was clear in our interaction with the people.
In the years since then, I have kept my love affair with Japan alive, even though I haven’t gotten to set foot on Japanese soil since my first trip. I took two years of Japanese in high school, an Asian religions class in college that covered Zen Buddhism, and have devoted some of my spare time to learning more about the culture.
When I heard about the tsunami in Japan, my heart sank. Yes, Japan had been subject to many natural disasters in the past decade or two, from snowstorms to earthquakes, but none were remotely of the same magnitude as this. As pictures and news stories started to pour in, I began to see just how destructive it had been, and how far-reaching the effects were. Sleepy fishing villages were torn apart and turned upside down, while Tokyo was strewn with debris and rubble. Countless thousands were dead, with thousands more left homeless and alone. Ultra-modern Japan had been brought to its knees by nature. With the added threat of radiation leakage from damaged nuclear reactors, Japan faces a new threat that could have ramifications for decades, if not more.
In the face of disaster, whether at the hands of nature or man, the people are often thrown into chaos, and turn inconsolable, enraged, and sometimes violent. It is a normal reaction to suddenly abnormal and adverse circumstances. What struck me as unusual about Japan is how little of that there appears to be. Yes, there is grief and frustration, but paramount to those feelings was a resolute sense of duty, a duty to rebuild both cities and lives. The so-called “Fukushima 50″ have gained international attention for their extreme dedication to keeping the nuclear reactors at the Fukushima I Nuclear Plant from melting, while subjecting themselves to levels of ionizing radiation that are several orders of magnitude above what would otherwise be safe.
Perhaps this reaction isn’t entirely unusual. The Japanese people, after all, were on the losing end of World War II and the only country to become a victim of nuclear warfare that had horrific consequences for Hiroshima and Nagasaki. Yet, they were able to recover from that level of destruction through resolute determination, and so it would only make sense for them to put their collective energies solely towards the business of recovery and rebuilding. Duty and industriousness was something I got to see as a tourist in Japan, and are qualities that persist now. It is reflective of the hardy culture that has endured for centuries, through dynastic upheavals and wars, and will likely help them endure for many more centuries.
My thoughts and prayers are with the Japanese people.
I love sushi. Those who know me know that all too well. There is a reason I stopped just a little short of becoming a vegetarian. Yet people, probably the majority of people, are either weirded out by sushi or frightened of trying it in light of recent news stories.
Sushi was created, originally, as a preservation mechanism. Sushi as it’s known today was invented by Hanaya Yohei, who used freshly caught fish from the bays surrounding the city of Edo, and marinated them in a mixture of soy sauce and vinegar. Nigirizushi–sushi defined as a layer of fish on top of a small, pressed block of seasoned rice–originated in Tokyo. Other types of sushi include temaki (hand rolls) and makizushi (rolled sushi).
Here are the two arguments that deter people from trying sushi. The first is the all-encompassing “it’s raw fish” argument. The second is the mercury content. Should we be scared?
Sushi-grade fish has to be of a higher quality and freshness than other fish, obviously, and it takes a trained eye to know how to handle the fish. The argument among sushi critics is that raw fish means there is a high risk of bacterial contamination. Yes, that’s true, if it’s not handled well. The fish, as a matter of procedure, is flash frozen to kill most bacteria. Then during preparation, there are two modes of defense. The first is the vinegar. Vinegar is combined with rice to impart both flavor and a slight antimicrobial effect. The second is wasabi–a condiment often served with sushi–is a strong antibacterial agent. Here’s a journal article investigating its effects on Helicobacter pylori, a particulary nasty bacterium linked to stomach ulcers:
Ginger, often served in thin slices alongside sushi, is a great antimicrobial and antiparasitic as well.
The second concern, mercury, is a bit harder to tackle. The New York Times ran an article earlier in the year, revealing that sushi samples from several top notch sushi restaurants in Manhattan were found to have levels of mercury far greater than recommended, or expected:
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/01/23/dining/23sushi.html?scp=6&sq=sushi&st=cse
Here’s the thing. It’s just tuna sushi, for the most part, that happens to contain a high amount of methylmercury. Methylmercury is regular, old, elemental mercury (Hg) that, generally after being metabolized by oceanic bacteria (since a lot of mercury ends up washing out to sea), ends up with that methyl group. This methyl group makes it much more readily absorbed in organisms. The mercury content in organisms is also amplified as one goes up the food chain, not unlike say, DDT. Hence tuna, the top of its food chain (or near the top) once consumed by humans, delivers a high dose of methylmercury.
The issue, therefore, is not that all sushi has mercury but that certain types of fish do. Tuna is one culprit, as well as any other so-called predatory fish near the top of their respective food chains. So long as one doesn’t have tuna sushi all day, everyday, they’re in the clear. Maybe once every two weeks, max. Otherwise, other sushi is generally all right. The FDA does put out a list of fish and their respective mercury contents, it can’t hurt to use that as a guide if you are worried.
Oh and if you’re worried about pufferfish? I don’t think many restaurants, if any at all, serve it in the U.S. If you want to go out on a limb and try it, just be careful. The issue with pufferfish is tetrodotoxin which, while generally removed from properly prepared pufferfish, has the potential to kill within minutes. Yet the thrill, I guess, is in cheating death.
So why do I like sushi? Oddly enough I didn’t always like fish, mostly because fish smelled and tasted…well…fishy. Not the case with sushi. Assuming you don’t like fish as it’s normally prepared, this is a valid alternative. The omega-3 fatty acids in many types of fish make fish an ideal addition to one’s diet. Plus, at least for me, it got me more interested in fish in general, sushi or cooked.
To end off, I leave you with an informative and hilarious video a friend sent me a while back detailing traditional rituals when going out for sushi in Japan:
