Oden

11.29.07

Tonight Lauren made me a hearty dinner, which consisted of oden. For those of you who are not familiar with oden, I will attempt to explain it as best that I can. Oden is a traditional Japanese winter food that is basically made from processed fish. The fish is made into soft little "cakes" and soaked in a special soy broth. The cakes are soft and puffy. Around this time, most convenient stores carry oden pots of their own. If you're in a rush, and don't feel like eating a cold sandwich for lunch, you can stop in your local conbini (convenient store) and ask them to dish you up some of this tasty food. It's surprisingly very filling and is usually eaten along with rice.

But a funny thing happened while I was eating my oden tonight. I took one of the cakes out of the pot of broth and put it into my dry little dish. When I went to pick up the cake from my dish, a stream of soy broth squirted forth from the squishy, fishy perplexity that is oden. I was so surprised that I almost dropped my chopsticks. Lauren and I stopped talking very abruptly and laughed about it for a good five minutes. It was the silliest dinner, I've had in a long time.

Random Side Note: An anonymous reader (Mrs. Marge?) asked me to explain Japanese ryokans. Ryokans are traditional Japanese hotels. 1) Rather than sleeping on a western style bed, you lay on a futon on the tatami floor. 2) Rather than enjoying a continental breakfast, a traditional Japanese breakfast is served. This usually includes: tea, rice, fish, salad of some sort, and miso soup. 3) Rather than taking a shower in your room, there is a common bath for all of the hotel guests to enjoy. Yes, the men and women's quarters are separated.

You read that ryokans are referred to as "spas", and while this is somewhat true due to the last difference to western hotels that I mentioned above (see number 3), it is not entirely true. The large bath is basically a spa in itself; it is exactly the same set-up as a Japanese onsen or public bath. I guess you could equate it to a spa where you could also stay over night, but there is really no western equivalent to a Japanese ryokan; they are unique to Japan.

There are other differences between western hotels and ryokans. For example, many ryokans also have a curfew that the guests must adhere to; it's usually around 11pm. Usually, ryokans are smaller than hotels; they may even be attached to the owner's house much like a bed and breakfast. I stayed at a ryokan with only 5 rooms when I visited Nikko, and it was a great way to learn about traditional Japanese customs.