Shopping

Ok, there are certainly other Japanese foods that I miss besides Sushi. Since my semester started I began thinking as to what I can take for lunch. I am not a fan of campus food, which besides being pretty low quality is also pretty expensive. Well, most students either don't have other options or simply are too lazy to go anywhere else.

After giving it some thought, I remembered about Onigiri, Japanese rice balls with a fish filling. Usually wrapped in Nori (dry seaweed). They are small, and give a lot of energy, and with the right ingredients they don't seem too difficult to make. But, I guess I'll know for sure when I try.

Shopping for ingredients was a little more complicated...it was quite rare for me to go grocery shopping in Japan and when I did go it was usually to buy instant noodles and beverages since they were a lot cheaper at a grocery store then at a convenience store or vending machine. So, shopping for the right ingredients took some research, luckily the internet is a great resource and there is a nice Oriental grocery store near by. It did take me a while to find Japanese rice. The place was full of rice bags including Indian Rice, Chinese Rice, but no sign of Japanese Rice which is a must for onigiri. I eventually asked the shop clerk about it since it would be pretty surprising that if they didn't have it. Turns out it was in a rather hidden corner in Ziploc bags...figures.

I did buy some afternoon milk tea that I really liked in Japan. It was rather disappointing, while it was the same brand as in Japan, it tasted watered down and too sweet.