a mixed plate of Japanese American news and culture
I recently had the fortune to be invited to a whole hog dinner at Town restaurant (3435 Waialae Ave. in Honolulu). What’s a whole hog dinner anyway? Well, taking a step back, one of the regulars of our informal wine group won a silent auction benefiting the culinary program at Leeward Community College. The item [...]
To many people, Japanese food is a special and exotic treat — that often consists solely of sushi or ramen. A new tour aims to demystify the dishes, and teach those who may be otherwise hesitant about them. Since 2004, Lisa Rogovin has taken locals on culinary tours around the Bay Area. Her knowledge of [...]
Editor’s Note: This is the first of a two-part series. I left Damascus by again taking a shared SUV for $20 to Amman, Jordan that takes about three hours, not including the time it takes to clear passport. It took about two hours to clear passport control for both Syria and Jordan, but it would [...]
Editor’s Note: This is the second of a two-part series. I treated my couch surfer host to dinner at Al Khawali restaurant, which is located in an old house with a lovely courtyard in Old Town. The food was delicious and reasonable. Supposedly, Sen. John Kerry once had dinner here. When I was first planning [...]
Since the tragic earthquake and tsunami that devastated Japan’s Tohoku region more than eight months ago, Japan has seen substantial decreases in foreign tourism. Many areas directly affected by the disaster are also experiencing decreased domestic and foreign sales of local food products amid concerns for radiation safety. The Consulate General of Japan in San [...]
Editor’s Note: This is the first of a two-part series. There are so many “hot spots” around the world that tourists are frightened to visit, such as Afghanistan, North Korea, Iran, Iraq and even Israel. Visas are also not easy for Americans to obtain. While all of these countries have unique sites of special interest [...]
The holiday season is officially here, so of course, that means that it’s time to start shopping. The crowds at the malls, the lines at the post office and of course, the craze of Black Friday — we’ve all been there before. Want to avoid the stress? Get a head start on the holiday shopping [...]
Sometimes we find it without even lookin’, sometimes it keeps knockin’ at our door without us knowin’, but sometimes we do find it and it changes our very core… OK, maybe not so grandiose. It may be as simple as makin’ that first Bolognese sauce or startin’ that first exercise routine or simply makin’ us [...]
Editor’s Note: This is the second of a two-part series. It was time to move on to the capital, Oslo, voted as the most expensive city in the world in 2010. I had purchased advance airfare tickets and found a low price from Bergen to Oslo, but at the last minute discovered that the flight [...]
Editor’s Note: This is the first of a two-part series. A friend in Oslo told me that the word Norway meant heading toward the north from Sweden and the name stuck to the entire country. Norway is similar to Sweden in many ways. They share the same Scandinavian heritage and their languages are similar enough [...]
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