Eat Seaweed. Check. Maybe repeat if starving!

On this Flag Day in the US, I chose a "Local Village & Culinary Experience" as my excursion. Some 30 or so of us boarded a bus at the pier and were off to Kuninao, a seaside village some half hour up the coast from Amami Oshima with a population of slightly more than 100 wonderful people. Our guide for this excursion was a young (to me at least) man from Perth, Australia who came to Japan for college, fell in love with the country and has now made it his forever home. Upon our arrival in Kuninao, we parked the bus several blocks from the event center because the narrow street thru the village was undergoing some repairs. This little village is not entirely "off the grid" as they have electricity, WIFI, television and other modern conveniences, but they are so very, very protective and appreciative of the wonders God put here. They put Nature first! The few street lights in the village are red in order to prevent misleading the sea turtles. Seems a few years back, absent a moon to guide them, the turtles mistakenly went toward the street lights and away from the water. Okay, can't have that so change the street lights to red and problem solved.

There are no traffic lights in town as there is not that much traffic. Although it did seem that all four or five cars in town chose to find it necessary to slowly creep around the neighborhood where we were walking. Curiosity, no doubt.

We learned later that we were the first such group to visit the village and enjoy the culinary experience. Upon arrival to the event center we were warmly welcomed by the owners in fluent Japanese of which we understood not a word, then a lovely young lady read the welcome in English. At that point, we were served our first culinary treat: a fresh plum picked from the nearby orchard, a glass of chilled plum juice and a bowl of boiled, I think, seaweed with some spice atop. The juice was delicious and the seaweed was somewhat tasty but I couldn't make a steady diet of it. After a bit of introduction to the area, we went on a stroll through the sacred pathways in the village connecting the ocean to the mountains. It is their belief that the spirits in the oceans and heavens visit the mountains periodically and pass thru these paths on their way. It is permissible for the living to walk on them, but they must never be obstructed by structures. Unfortunately I have forgotten the name of these trees but I do remember our guide telling us they were only found in this area and thus protected by law. They, like those towering trees in the national park in Chile are very slow growing, are most helpful to the environment, thus loved and protected here.

Upon return from our stroll thru the village, we were treated to a delicious plum shaved ice. Absolutely yummy. Next we were given instructions on how to assemble the ingredients provided into a most delicious dish called keihan. Something of a soup served over rice and eaten with chopsticks by those who could. Spoons were provided for the unskilled like me. As I mentioned previously, this was the first cruise ship excursion hosted by the owners of this meeting hall/restaurant. After the delicious keihan, we were served a nasty looking desert of rice and black sugar, possibly. I will not share the picture I took of the "treat" which I could not bring myself to try. Others ate it and survived, I was less daring.

I strongly suspect that our guide had at least a small interest in the endeavor as he was most eager to tell us of the local B&B's, diving possibilities, etc. for those of us wishing to make Kuninao a destination rather than an excursion. The primary revenue sources are now fishing and farming though I did not see enough flat surface absent trees on which to farm, but with an eye to capturing a bit of the tourist trade. My prayer is that an influx of tourist does not ruin the eco system they have so successfully guarded for more than a century. I asked how many of the children once grown stayed in Kuninao. Our guide estimated about half of them stayed here to fish or farm and some who left to attend the university to study nursing or other medical careers actually returned. That impressed me. Everywhere I've been in Japan I have found that the locals are very proud, very polite, very welcoming, and very interested in preserving their environment. Homelessness is practically non-existent. One guide in a larger city, when asked if they had a problem with homelessness replied, "Oh yes, there is one guy who sleeps in the park." One guy??? And that's a problem?

Our next stop was Shochu Distillery located about an hour's drive from Kuninao and somewhat larger. They at least had multiple traffic lights. I can't exactly say that a visit to a distillery is a new experience since I've visited the Pisco distillery in Chile and the Channel perfume distillery in Madagascar but this was a packaged tour. In route our guide had told us that the distillery had been owned an operated by the same family for four generations. Apparently in addition to Japanese, he also majored in marketing as he has a plan to increase their market share which has been slipping in recent years. That plan is to introduce sonic aging into the process. His theory is that various music connected to the aging barrels and played throughout the aging period will result in varying flavors of spirits. Sounds like an advertising ploy/gimmick to me but what do I know. I did not sample their existing spirits but some who did seemed to think it could stand some mellowing so how could it hurt to let it hear classical music for a year or so. When sonic aging becomes The Thing in the US, remember you heard it here first. Or maybe there really is such a thing?

Another delightful day in Japan. Off to Kagoshima tomorrow.

Today Is Someday! Try something new, you might like it, or not!