MEMORIES

JAPAN Japan is one of the world’s leading industrial trade nations in the world. And the first Asian nation to develop a technologically advanced industrial economy. When compared to the united states Japan is very small yet larger than the United Kingdom, Germany, and all other European nations except Sweden, France and Spain. Japan is also ranked second in the number of Internet users number one is the United States Japan is followed by Germany. When people think about Japan they think slanted eyes and rice, but there is more. Japan is well known for there technological abilities and for there fine craftsmanship. Japan has come out with lots and lots of complex circuitry for use in extremely small computers . So in fact there is more to Japan you will find out how just much more Japan has to offer. Looking at the cultural side of Japan there are many beliefs and traditions that go along with Japan. The Japanese believe in CHADO also known as "The Way Of The Tea" . The Japanese people believe that CHADO can relive stress promote prosperity and bring health to those in need. They also believe that Soba a cultural dish health to those who are old. Soba had become a daily meal to the Japanese people it had become important to have it in your life. Also it helps keep people healthy because it is full of vitamins and is a natural food. This is one main reason many of the middle age people of Japan eat Soba. Since Soba has become so important in part of the Japanese culture there are even rituals which include Soba in the Japanese society. One of them is toshi-koshi-soba which you eat for the beginning of the year. "Toshi-koshi" means the passing of a year. As you can see Soba has affected the Japanese culture and is a very important part in the peoples lives. Also not many people know how Sushi got started Sushi originated as a way of preserving Funa -a type of fish. The fish was salted and allowed to mature on a bed of vinegar rice, after which the rice was discarded. Before long vinegar rice came to be eaten together with the fish. Thus the word sushi was derived: the marriage of vinegar rice with fish. Different combinations and ways of serving them evolved such as those on the following list. Nigiri-Zushi .......... The word sushi alone commonly refers to "nigiri- zushi", a hand shaped sushi commonly served at sushi restaurants. Nigiri-zushi is representative of Tokyo food. The reasons for this might relate to the fact that city (known as Edo prior to 1868) was rich in seafood of all kinds. Oshi-zushi .......... The rice merchants of Osaka - the financial capital of Japan, developed "oshi-zushi" or pressed sushi. For pressed sushi, vinegar rice is packed into a mold and covered with marinated fish. When unmolded, the resulting loaf of sushi is cut into bite-sized pieces. Maki-zushi ......... Maki-zushi is a "rolled sushi" with narrow strips of seafood and crisp vegetables or pickles layered on a bed of vinegar rice and spread on a sheet of nori or seaweed, thus calling it "Nori-maki zushi". Nori-maki is the most well known sushi in the U.S. because just about any ingredient can be rolled into the center without using any fresh raw fish "called sashimi". Chirashi-zushi ......... The easiest type of sushi, made in all Japanese kitchens is "chirashi-zushi" or scattered sushi. Chirashi-zushi is simply seafood, vegetables and other ingredients in or on vinegar rice. Chirashi-zushi without raw seafood often makes its appearance in lunch boxes. It's taken on picnics and often sold on railway station platforms. "Station lunches" are not exclusively chirashi-zushi but many are. Stations are known for their type of food as well as for their unique lunch containers in which they are sold. Maze-zushi ......... There are many other types of sushi that fall into the lunch or snack food category of maze-zushi or "mixed sushi". Several examples are Inari-zushi and Fukusa-zushi. Inari-zushi consists of deep fried bean curd pouches stuffed with mixed vinegar rice. Fukusa-zushi or "silk-square sushi" uses a square paper thin omelet to wrap the vinegar rice. The word "fukusa" meaning silk squares (silk fabric) are often used to wrap presents or precious articles in Japan. Sushi Rice - "Sushi-meshi" Whether it is hand-packed, mold pressed or rolled in seaweed, for sushi to be sushi there is one constant ingredient - vinegar rice. Vinegar rice is a little harder than plain boiled rice because the rice is cooked with a little less water. Many restaurants cook rice in hot water rather than cold to achieve this. Quick cooling while tossing is the real key to making good sushi and helps to produce the desired consistency and gives rice a nice shiny gloss. Tossing rice is traditionally done in a large wooden tub called "hangiri". The size of the tub allows to spread it in a thin layer and the wood absorbs the moisture from the hot rice and makes the rice cool even quicker and thus the grains are not mashed during tossing. You can use a large plastic shallow tub and a rice paddle for tossing. Avoid using metal since the vinegar reacts with it creating an unpleasant taste. As you can see sushi is an important dish in Japan which makes up most of there diet. Japan is also very much affected by art and romance they play a big role in japans community. Japan started it’s very own style of theater known as kabuki theater. Kabuki theater is popular for its use of masked characters and silent acting with the use of drums or composition pieces of classical music. Followed by slow movements that follow the same rhythm. This love for art and romance lead them to a love for knowledge and that is what put them in high standards when it comes to education

Here are some of my favorite links:

TIGGER'S SITE--HERE IS SOME MORE ABOUT THE WRITER

PRAISE THE LORD FOR HE IS ALL MIGHTY

IN ORDER TO SEE THE KINGDOME OF GOD YOU MUST FIRST BE BORN AGAIN