Gecko poo and banana cake

 Geckos everywhere (but they’re small & harmless)

After saying  good morning to my other wwoofer Akiro, I was told me to watch out for gecko poo especially as once they’ve done their business up on the rafters it then drops onto the dining table. Oh wow…

Making banana cake…

Anyway my first wwoofing job today was making 8 banana cakes for Tomoko san, Tomo sans wife. The cakes are for the small café (only 3 tables/chairs) that they run although Tomo san told me yesterday that they are starting to wind down the café and concentrate more on the apiary since customers rarely make it up here. Yes that’s how remote this place is!

Tomo told me yesterday that they are starting to wind down the café and concentrate more on the apiary since customers rarely make it up here. The house definitely has a free spirited, alternative feel and I like it. It feels calm and with Tomoko san’s steady pace you can’t help but slow down. This couple really are living the dream, its definately inspiring.

Anyway, my pride and joy, one of my own homemade banana cakes! (I made at least 8…)

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Carrot stalks- bad rabbit fodder or an edible delight?

Carrot stalks ready for prep..

Earlier I picked some carrots to put in the salad and as usual thought nothing of putting the carrot stalks into the compost bin. Within minutes Tomoko san had pulled them out and insisted they can be eaten as long as they’re organic and homegrown (supermarket carrots have probably been treated) She uses the stalks as a kind of topping for rice. Well this will be interesting, have I been wasting carrot stalks all this time?

So, I diligently washed the stalks and, as Tomoko san instructed, chopped finely.

Finely chop carrot stalks…

To cook, heat sesame oil, add 5 tablespoons of sake, then 5 of soy sauce, add finely chopped carrot stalks, then sprinkle with bonito (fish flakes). Stir fry for 5 minutes and serve.

et voila, stir fry carrot stalks….used for a rice topping

Admittedly I wasn’t won over neither was Akira san my co wwoofer. The bitterness was slightly overtaken with a fishy taste (probably the bonito flakes) Hmmm. I read that someone uses them as mulch for the garden, another feeds them to her rabbit (who doesn’t eat them) Anyone who has any other recipe ideas for carrot stalks pray tell me as I’m still open to being converted!

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Wwoofing in Okinawa; jungle hideaway and geckos out in force

 

Tomo san on the beach at Kouri island

Naha and a wonderful 78 degrees and warm sunshine hit me as I walked off the plane. Having suffered from near foot rot during my weekend in Kumamoto it was a welcome relief. Okinawa, Naha airport certainly gives you that holiday feeling, tropical water tanks in the welcome lounge, huge billboards advertising scuba trips and I saw at least 3 Japanese men in Hawaiian shirts…

I almost lulled myself into a “I’m on holiday” mode until I realised the bus was leaving for Nago in 5 minutes. About 1 hr 40 mins later the bus pulled into Nago, a less built up city than Naha where a Tomo san, my new wwoofing host (host code 2447) was there to meet me, a half pint sized man in his fifties (I guess) with a headscarf that made him like a baddy from Pirates of a Caribbean. He was so genki though (a very useful Japanese word for upbeat/friendly) and spoke ok English (huge relief having battled through my rubbish Japanese last week) It turns out he even lived near Bournemouth for a few months years ago studying English.

The beautiful beaches of Okinawa…

On the way to his house Tomo san took me on a detour via Kouri island, a beautiful unspoilt gem of a place surrounded by turquoise waters, washed up coral from the beach, white sands and best of all few people. Apparently the villagers had petitioned against hotel developments there and so the island maintains some rural charm. Instead of slick cafes on the beach, think tin hut type beach shacks. Fantastic.

Tomo san also explained that one of his bee hives was on Kouri island and his other hives are scattered around the Nago area. Why I asked. “Ah because my bee teacher has hives near my house.” Ok so it turns out that his neighbour taught him everything to know about apiculture and apparently bee hives have to be kept at least 2km apart sooo…. Tomo san has to find somewhere else to host his bees. Tomo san also told me that the other wwoofer had been bitten 4 times by bees in one inning because there was a hole in his trousers and the bees just went straight in. Eeek. I tried not to worry.

Before we left the main road Tomo san asked me if I needed to buy anything, a sure fire way to let someone know you’re leaving civilisation, in other words do you need any survival gear? Had I had more time to think I would have reeled off a list, Dars chocolate, milk, teabags,  mozzie repellent, red wine….alas we were already still driving so in that polite English way what did I say? No I have everything.

Within minutes as we ascended the road narrowed into a track, the jungle got more dense but oh so beautiful. Huge butterflies flying about as we drove alongside a small river and after a good half hour we reached the hamlet (yes apparently Tomo san has 12 neighbours although I’ve yet to see another house). No signal whatsoever on my mobile. Tomo san forgot to tell me only docomo works, agggh I was relying on that to email people to let them know I’m still alive.

One part of the house where I’m sleeping

Arrived at Tomo sans house, well “houses”, 3 small  buildings not far off being sophisticated barns with porches in between. My second wwoof host and the second to have built their own house! It just shows anything is possible with a bit of will power, oh and a carpenter ; )

I met Tomoko san, Tomo sans wife, a lovely lady who spoke little English but was very welcoming. I was given a quick tour of the garden, host to about 50 orange trees (not in season), papaya trees, herbs and a somewhat tired looking but bountiful vegetable  patch (will detail this another day).  After we sat down to a proper feast, prepared and served by my fellow wwoofer Akiro (my job from tomorrow), drank red wine and chatted in both English and Japanese.

 

My bedroom (a room in the “barn”)

Went to bed (futon on floor) slightly worrying as I watched an army of geckos crossing the walls inside the house and all I could hear was their mighty chorus joined by the frogs, mozzies and insects. I was certainly not alone, one flying insect landed right on my hand just as I was drifting off, at least it wasn’t a flying cockroach that I’d been warned about earlier…

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Okabe & Toshiko sans café & shop

Here are pictures of the wonderful café and shop run by both Toshiko san and Okabe san where I’m wwoofing right now.

The shop is full of the most amazing wooden toys and puzzles that Toshiko san slaves over making. Some of the larger toys take a day to make and the smaller take a few hours.

Check out the views from the café, you’d think you were in the Alps. I guess this is the first time I’ve spent quality time in the Japanese countryside and it feels so good.

Views from the cafe

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Down the (new) garden path

Beautiful day today and our last full day’s work. It is so peaceful and calming here I actually just want to stay forever. The only thing you can hear are the birds in the morning and the only thing you can see are these mighty Aso mountains that stretch across the horizon. I’m in heaven. Not forgetting Toshiko san’s wonderful cooking that with the combination of a bit of fresh air has done my skin the world of good.

Aso mountain range from a distance

So today’s task was to make a garden path. Talk about resourceful, we even made the stakes for the path from some old wood that was tossed out in a neighbours garden.  Of course the wood was lying spare from Okabe sans workshop. Again, the work carried out here is performed with the utmost precision but that’s the Japanese way, unlike us clunky Brits.

The path…ok it looks crap here

At lunch we sat in the sun sipping Toshiko sans homemade ume (plum) juice and homemade wagashi (Japanese sweet) after a feast of tempura udon.

Homemade wooden stakes for the garden path

Although its hard work and I probably won’t be able to lift a chopstick to my mouth tomorrow from aching so much, I can’t help thinking that life just can’t get any better right now!

Well deserved break on the terrace

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Making hinoki (cypresswood) chopsticks with Okabe san

Okabe san hard at work correcting my bad chopsticks…

Since I arrived I’ve been dying to find out more about Okabe san’s woodwork and today both the new wwoofer Masami san and myself were lucky enough to learn. Okabe san suggested we made some chopsticks and was kind enough to take an hour out of his hectic schedule (and I mean both of them don’t stop working so hard ALL day) I was so excited (waku waku in Japanese, useful word as I’m constantly in a state of waku waku)

Even better is that he gave us each some cypress wood, known as hinoki (檜), in Japanese. Not only does it smell absolutely divine but it’s a super expensive wood in Japan and only used for special buildings such as palaces, temples and castles. Osaka castle was re-built using cypress wood so we were really appreciative.

Toshiko san making wooden toys in the workshop

So I tried to film some of the process but it was difficult to keep up so resorted to photos most of the time.

He gave us some cypress to begin that already kind of looked like a rough chopstick so we had to firstly shave it down using a wood cutting tool trying to keep the tip of the chopstick more narrow that the head. Of course I cut mine down far too thin at the end so had to start again on one. In my defence though the lesson was all in Japanese!

Anyway, we then had to smooth the edges with sandpaper and round up the tips of the sticks. Next was varnishing. Do you know what, I thought making chopsticks would be so easy but no it was bloody hard work and took over an hour. 

 At least I can now appreciate why Okabe sans huge bench type chairs in the café are for sale at 100K yen (about £1000) Great fun making chopsticks and I’m going to use when dry for my dinner tomorrow night. Life is good!

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Nothing beats homemade soba…

My homemade soba (left) ready for eating

Today I was given the day off (cue jump for joy, my back gets a break!) so I decided to go back to the soba making workshop and learn to make soba. Soba for anyone who doesn’t know is a type of Japanese noodle made from buckwheat flour. Last summer I ate cold soba noodles like they’d gone out of fashion. Yep, COLD noodles. Fantastically refreshing in the cruel humidity of the Japanese summer. They come served on a bamboo draining tray (zaru or 笊) and you dip them into a small pot of tsuyu (dashi, soy sauce, mirin, radish and scallions) Oishieeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee so!

Holding my soba dough with pride! (baaaad photo)

According to my soba no sensei (aka noodle teacher), soba buckwheat is grown all around the mountains of Aso. Usually planted in August it’s ready for harvest by October so a quick turnaround. Despite “wheat” being in the name soba isn’t actually a wheat but a fruit of a broad leaf plant related to the rhubarb family. Gluten free dieters tuck in!

The buckwheat plants are harvested and dried, the fruits hulled and then ground into flour. Anyway enough of the process, you can watch my videos of my wonderful soba teacher helping me to make soba.

Start with buckwheat flour and water. Mix

Kneed  (in a complex way that I couldn’t get the hang of)

Make into the most perfect ball you’ve ever seen.

Roll out (in a complex way I couldn’t get the hang of)

Then wrap dough around the rolling pin and roll a few times.

Cut with a huge knife called a hocho (ditto)

Eat in their restaurant overlooking the mountains. FAB.

They tasted so good and the plus is that they’re healthy! High in potassium as well as a good fibre source and low in saturated fat. Problem was I ate mountains of the stuff, when in Rome..

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Goodbye bamboo, hello onsen

Towering bamboo

Knackering day. Not much to report apart from nearly dying trying to keep up with thestamina of Toshiko san as she hacked down half a bamboo forest with a big machete in order to get a nice view from the café. Wow, I thought English women were hardy! And before anyone gets on their high horse about chopping down CO2 busting trees, ok I exaggerated, it was a small, it just felt big.

I don’t know how but Toshiko san came away unscathed but I stumbled out of the forest covered with cuts and gashes up both arms. Must be a technique…or I’m just not good with a machete.

The evening came so fast. We decided to hit the local onsen (hot spring), a 10 minute walk away so what did we do? All pile in the car (note the Japanese are more like the Americans when it comes to getting from A to B) The onsen was new and there was only myself and Toshiko san in the female onsen. I’ve luckily reached that “comfort” level in Japan where I just don’t care who sees me naked (not a pretty sight these days) as long as I can relax. Much needed for my increasingly aching back!

Asashi beer can decorated with cherry blossom flowers

Another fantastic homemade dinner prepared by Toshiko san, this time fish caught from the local river by her father with the customary miso, rice and an aubergine/soy dish. All washed down with some Asashi beer covered in sakura (cherry blossom) petals since they’re in season right now. Only in Japan!!

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Stacking wood takes on a whole new meaning

 
Precision wood stacking…

After a Japanese breakfast that would test the limits of most Western stomachs (think floating fish heads in soup) I was ready my first wwoofer job; stacking logs. Easy right? Errr…not when the Japanese have anything to do with it. They are so methodical and precise about things that they make us Westerners feel like big clumsy oafs!

This simple task turned into a labyrinth type puzzle.  I wasn’t so much stacking but “placement”. Placing logs on top of each other to create perfectly straight lines with each stack separated by wood supports in between. I’m surprised Okabe san didn’t come out with a spirit level…

My log pile

Anyway after a few hours I was finished and given the nod from Okabe san. I felt like I was karate kid and he was my Mr Miyage! I can honestly say I never thought I’d be proud of a stack of wood.

Next job was varnishing the floors of the little wwoofer house that Okabe has just built and their veranda floors with this awful toxic smelling wood varnish. So much for organic living! 3 hours later I was done.

After a 6 hour day I was reminded how tough physical work is. I went for a walk to try and get my bearings a bit. This area, known as Aso minami san is so pretty, I almost felt as though I was in the Alps. I say “almost” because just as I had crossed through some fields lined with beautiful tulips a bloody great Mitsubushi building reared its ugly head right round the corner SHAME, it just wouldn’t be allowed in Europe! Anyway that’s Japan. Buildings are plonked anywhere theres a space.

On my walk I found a lovely looking onsen (hot spring) and a soba (type of noodle in Japan) making workshop. Made a mental note to go back another day since I have a week here. I also amazingly saw a cow.

First sighting of a Japanese cow in 13 months!

Yes amazing. It’s the first cow I’ve seen in Japan, allelujiah. You just don’t see them like you do in England! They’re mostly found in Hokkaido and I guess Kobe prefecture (kobe/wagy beef). Apparently Aso San cows are famously brown….thats as much I was able to understand when Toshiko san gave me an explanation later on.

Yummy looking sweetcorn hanging up outside a house

I also saw some wonderful looking sweetcorn just hanging up on the side of a barn, oishie ne?

Took some pics of the wonderful café whilst Okabe & Toshiko san were out. I found out that Okabe san uses Camphor wood (kusunoki) , a native tree to southern Japan (i.e here), China and Taiwan. Ah so that is what the gorgeous smell was outside all day! As well as being extracted to make incense, camphor wood is used for medicinal purposes and believe it or not was a key ingredient in smokeless gunpowder (very lucrative for the Japanese back in the day) Learn something every day ey!

I also learnt the name of the place I’m staying “mokobo na no hana” which literally means “woodcraft yellow flower”, the flowers refer to golden fields outside. I’ve yet to understand what they are. Will add to the list.

Later in the evening I helped Toshiko san make dinner. 

Tonight, guess what? Fish head soup (these little fish appear in everything dusk til dawn) OK they’re whole fish but only the size of my little finger and are called iriko. In Japan they are dried and put into so much food. You know we eat porky scratchings down the pub with a pint right? Well the Japanese equivalent is a mini bag of iriko and nuts mixed together.

Back to dinner, we also prepared tskumono (pickles), rice, beef & mushroom stir fry and this o suimono, a type of clear soup which literally means “thing to sip” and something I had yet to try. It didn’t look particularly appetising but tasted OK and my increasingly post winter hibernated body fat is sure to appreciate its health value.

God I really must stop writing essays every night….ok next ones I’ll keep to the point.

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Organic farming in Japan

So I’m sure I’ll learn a lot in 6 weeks but just having a quick read here are some facts about organic farming in Japan taken from the International Trade website:

1. A striking feature of Japanese agriculture is the shortage of farmland (yep I can vouch for that, haven’t seen a cow, horse or sheep in a whole year)
2. Approximately 11.64% of the total land area  is cultivated
3. There are currently 4.539 organic farms registered in Japan (4955 in the UK)
4. The Japanese hot and wet climate conditions, make it even more difficult to cultivate crops without chemical fertilizers.
5. According to IFOAM & FiBL (2006), the area under organic management in Japan is 29,150 hectares, which constitutes 0.56% of the total agricultural land (compared to 3.9% in the UK)
6. Certified organic produce from Japan includes: rice, green vegetables, green tea, sweet potato, taro, pumpkin, potatoes, citrus and other fruits.
7. Currently, consumer demand exceeds domestic supply and most organic products are imported.

I’ll obviously add all my experiences on the blog as and when!

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