The Wayfarer Blog

Well, the end of 2008, anyway.

This is only my second post of the month. (I actually wrote most of this a couple days ago, but was too busy to finish). As I have written before, the first half of December is always busy for me. Various minor things happened: classes ended for the year, I took a business trip to Gunma Prefecture, north of Tokyo, and I came back to the US to visit my family, for the first time in two years.

But nothing really amazing that I just had to share. And with the lack of regular computer access, it was a bit of a hassle. But with the new year, I will be sporting a brand new computer. I was going to get it in Japan, but since I can get a new custom-built Macbook with a Japanese keyboard (handy for quickly switching back between Japanese and English typing) for a lot cheaper in the US, I went for it. The only bad thing about ordering your computer is the wait. And with the holidays, that adds a bit of time to it. But I should be up and running soon.

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There is a lot more to Japanese food than sushi.

One thing I like to have, both at home or on the go, is a bowl of soba (buckwheat noodles). Not only is it delicious and satisfying, but it is also very healthy. Unlike other noodles or pasta, soba is high in vitamins, minerals, and protein, and is good for heart conditions and blood vessels. (There are a lot of Japanese articles about this, including medical research data, but I found an English article here.)

Wikipedia also has a good introduction to the various kinds of soba.

This was lunch yesterday. I often make soba at home, as it is drop-dead easy. But I was in a hurry, so I stopped at a restaurant inside Shinjuku Station. (At a couple soba shops, they practically know me by name…)