Eating jajamen and gyutan in Morioka!

  

What I ate at my first meal in Morioka

 

What I had for my final meal in Morioka

 

In my previous blog entry, I wrote about having had Akita jidori in Kakunodate and possibly also Morioka.  While in the capital city of Iwate Prefecture, I also had a dish that's associated with it -- and food associated with the capital city of the neighboring prefecture of Miyagi!    

 

Here's the thing: Morioka is famed for three very different noodle dishes -- but since eating one of them (wanko soba) seems more like a challenge than pleasure and another (reimen) sounds too much like Korean naengmyeong (AKA naengmyun), which I've eaten loads of (in South Korea and elsewhere), I elected to pass up on eating those two noodle dishes while in Morioka.  Instead, the one specialty noodle dish I decided I wanted to try while there was jajamen: which may sound like another Korean noodle dish, jajangmyeon, -- that itself is considered to be a Chinese dish by Koreans! -- but actually is quite different from it.

 

Among other things, whereas jajangmyeon consists of noodles in black bean sauce (and chunks of beef and radish or potato), jajamen is topped with niku-miso and thin slices of cucumber and negi (Japanese leek), and served at the place I ate it at with a slice of pickled radish and some minced ginger.  And then there's the fact that jajamen is a two-phase dish!  For after you've eaten the bulk of what you're first presented with, you give the bowl back to a staffer at the eatery that you have the dish at (which tend to be specialist eateries for jajamen!); whereupon they'll fill your bowl up with hot water, you crack a raw egg into it and turn the concoction into something akin to egg drop soup that you then are expected to drain for the complete jajamen experience!  

 

While a modest dish (that's meatless), I enjoyed it quite a bit.  And, in all honesty, if I lived in Morioka, I could see myself having it monthly, if not more often.  But here's the thing: I think that it's one of those regional dishes (like Funabashi's sauce ramen, which I'd never have heard of if not for Funassyi!) that's next to impossible to find outside its home region/city/town!  Which, really, is too bad!

 

Still, I also have to admit that in the (relatively) short time that I was in Morioka, I didn't eat it again.  Because, well, there were other things I wanted to eat -- including the regional specialty of Sendai: gyutan (grilled ox tongue); which, funnily enough, I didn't have when I visited that city back in 2019 (because, then, I fixated more on the area's seafood)!

To be fair, I didn't expressly seek out gyutan while in Morioka either.  But while scouting out places to eat for my final meal in the city, I passed a place serving up gyutan that had such great smells wafting out of it that I decided that was what I wanted to eat there and then!

And so hungry was I that I went for a deluxe option that consisted of gyutan served on a hot plate and covered in a sauce that appeared to be a blend of tomatoes and garlic and was very yummy indeed; a (smaller) dish of conventionally grilled ox tongue; a bowl of mugi gohan (barley rice); and a bowl of clear oxtail soup.  Happily, I was able to do it all justice and polish off the lot!  Oh, and all this was nicely washed down with a bottle of nicely crisp and refreshing Kawatabi Cold IPA, produced by the Kibou no Oka brewery in Iwanuma, over in the neighboring prefecture of Miyagi! :)

Eating jidori in both Kakunodate and Morioka!

  

Oyakodon lunch set in Kakunodate

 

Bonjiri -- my favorite yakitori cut -- in Morioka

 

A friend and I were talking about dining strategies while in Japan.  He and his wife appear to be fans of Tabelog and target restaurants that have high scores on that crowd-sourced restaurant rating site.  I told him that I tend to be far more casual in how I decide where to eat while I'm in the Land of the Rising Sun; having few "must eat at" restaurants on my list and, instead, going for "want to eat" items based on what I've learnt that a region, city/town or prefecture is famous for.

 

In the past, I've done such as searched out specialist crab restaurants in Hokkaido, okonomiyaki in Hiroshima and sauce ramen in Funabashi.  And I targeted trying Hinai Jidori in the short time (i.e., less than a day) that I'd be spending in Akita Prefecture.

 

On a visit to Nagoya back in 2018, I had been introduced to jidori -- the chicken equivalent of craft beer (jibiru) vis a vis regular beer or craft ,micro-brew sake (jisake) vis a vis industrial-scale brewed sake.  And, truly, it was a relevation how much tastier and juicier the Cochin chicken I had there was than, well pretty much any other chicken I previously had in my life!  Like, say, Jeju black pig vis a vis normal pork.  Or, well, prime wagyu (like the Hida-gyu I had in Takayama) to regular beef!  

 

So when searching for a place to have lunch soon after I got to Kakunodate from Tazawako, despite the Heavens having opened shortly after I arrived in that historic Akita Prefecture town, I made sure to keep an eye out for places that served Hinai Jidori.  And after having found one, I actually went ahead and waited in line for about half an hour (much of it outdoors in the rain; albeit under an umbrella) for the privilege of eating an oyakodon (mother and child -- i.e., chicken and egg!) lunch set at a popular eatery where I was seated in the more traditional section where one was seated at a low table set on tatami flooring!

 

If truth be told, that seating arrangement was less comfortable than I'd like.  But it sure was nice to get out of the rain for a bit!  Also, the food was delicious -- though I must admit that I'm not sure if it was because I was ravenous at that point or because Hinai Jidori really is so much yummier than regular chicken!  At the same time though, the portions were quite a bit more generous than I expected or was used to -- and I must admit to struggling towards the end to finish it all; though, for the record, yes, I was indeed able to do that, albeit with a significant amount of effort!

 

And although I didn't plan for it to be so, it turned out that my dinner back in Morioka that evening also featured some more jidori: this time, in the form of yakitori sticks of chicken skin, liver and -- my favorite yakitori order, which is easily found in Japan but less so in Hong Kong -- bonjiri (Pope's Nose, aka chicken tail, aka chicken butt!)!  I must admit though that I'm unsure if the jidori in question was Iwate jidori or Akita's.  (It didn't help that the restaurant in question didn't have an English menu!)  Still, I do know though that it tasted good -- and hit the spot before I headed back to the hotel and hit the metaphorical hay after one of the earliest starts to the day I've had in a while! ;b    

Fun times at my favourite (sake) bar in Tokyo/Japan/the world! :)

  

A brand of sake I've drank far more in Japan than Hong Kong

 

A Taste of Autumn is the name of this dish! :)

Some eleven years ago now, I went to a specialist sake bar for the first time in my life.  Sasagin was recommended to me by a friend then living in Hong Kong who had previously lived in Tokyo.  And despite not being a sake lover then, I went with another friend -- who was a Tokyo resident -- when visiting the Japanese capital city -- and had such a great night there that it's become a "must go to" for me on every subsequent visit to Tokyo since!

For one thing, the sake on offer there is very good indeed (with brands like Juyondai, Eiko Fuji, Tengumai, Hiraizumi and Kankiku (AKA Kangiku) among the offerings I enjoyed on this recent Japan trip).  For another, the food there's pretty tasty too.  (Among the dishes I had there on this visit: a refreshing persimmon and spinash salad with a creamy tofu dressing; healthy tasting simmered seasonal vegetables; other seasonal items, including cod shirako, chestnut, gingko nuts and sweet potatoes; and fried cheese dumplings!)  

 

And then there's the convivial "feel" of the place; particularly if one sits at the counter -- where other customers are likely to strike up a conversation with you, a total stranger, as well as being nearer to where Narita-san, the owner, holds court -- rather than at individual tables -- though that's perfectly fine too if you're happy to hang out with friends you already know (as opposed to make new ones!). 

 

On this recent Japan trip, I ended up going to Sasagin not just once but twice!  The first time was on the evening of my first full day back in Tokyo for some four and half years -- and I ended up drinking six glasses of sake (the majority of which were the Sasagin standard size of 150 ml)!  Amazingly, I managed to make it back to my hotel room afterwards, and didn't have a hangover the next morning.  I think it's because I drank all that over the course of some four hours and had plenty to eat as well as drink while there!

 

The next time I walked into Sasagin, Narita-san and the wait staff greeted me with big grins on their face.  I think it's partly because they were surprised that I had remembered that I had made a reservation for another evening there in the middle of that first evening of carousing there!  But it also felt like we were now old friends!  (While I did feel that already about Narita-san, the wait staff had only just started working at Sasagin less than a year ago -- and, in the case of one of them, just a few weeks ago, in fact!)

 

Speaking of old friends: On my first night there on this trip, I had met up with a Japanese friend who used to live in Hong Kong.  And before the end of the night, I had made new friends there -- one of whom decided to join me there the second time I went to Sasagin on this trip! 

This new friend lives in the area and Sasagin is a "local" for her.  (Envy, envy!)  She's Japanese but went to school and university in England.  By the way, my Japanese friend who I met in Hong Kong had gone to university in Australia.  Also, Narita-san actually lived and worked for a time in England.  So there may be more internationally experienced Japanese around than may be realised!  Including by other Japanese!

By the way, after I was seated at the counter on my first visit this trip, I spoke to Narita-san in English straightaway -- and when Narita-san replied in English, hearing his doing so startled the (Japanese) customer seated a couple of seats away from me!  Even funnier was when my Japanese friend who had lived in Hong Kong came in.  

 

I think by that point, that customer figured out I was not Japanese.  But he also assumed that my friend (who speaks English with a very American accent -- despite having gone to university in Australia, not the US; something he ascribes to having watched lots of American TV shows as a kid in Japan!) was not Japanese too.  So when said friend then started speaking to Narita-san and the wait staff in (fluent) Japanese, that other customer looked at my friend in amazement and enquired: "Are YOU Japanese?"  And I think you could have knocked him down with a feather when he received an answer in the affirmative! 

 

For the record: on my second visit to Sasagin of this recent Japan trip, I had fewer glasses of sake than the first time: specifically, "just" four.  As I said to the folks at Sasagin, I felt calmer since this second time, only a few days had passed since my previous visit there -- in contrast to the previous time, where I had waited some four and half years to drink and dine there again!  (Thanks for that, Covid!)

Back to Japan for the first time in four years!

What I had first as part of my first meal in Japan in four years :)
 

Straw-smoked katsuo (bonito), served up with two different

sauces and assorted items to top it with :b

 

In between my previous blog post and this one, I've been away from Hong Kong as well as took some time off from being online.  I'm still catching up on what's been happening in Hong Kong while I've been away and since my return.  So instead of adding my say to that, here's going ahead and blogging instead about some of what I did while away from the number one place I love and visiting the number one country I most enjoy visiting.  For, yes, four years to the month after my previous visit to the Land of the Rising Sun, I made another trip to Japan! 

 

With so much having happened (in the world at large as well as to Hong Kong) in that time, I did have some pre-trip anxiety as well as excitement.  And because I worried that things there would have changed a lot over there (as well as here), I decided to start the trip of with the familiar: a couple of days in Tokyo, a city I've visited multiple times (the first time back in 1982 and most recently in May 2019).

 

Upon landing in Japan though, the anxiety melted away.  It helped that I passed through immigration controls both in Hong Kong as well as Tokyo smoothly, and the customs too.  The train ride into the city went smoothly too; ditto check in to my hotel.  It help me to relax too that I had booked in at the hotel that I've stayed the most times in when in Tokyo and that the surroundings were largely familiar -- with many shops and eateries that I knew still being around (though it's also true enough that there were boarded up fronts and empty lots where a few familiar establishments used to be -- including *sob* a favourite sushi place)!

 

If that sushi place had still been around, it would have been where I would have my first meal in Japan in four years.  Instead, I ended up opting for an izakaya in the area: one which I had never been to previously but, still, was familiar enough in terms of my knowing what to expect there -- including an otoshi (compulsory appetizer) to accompany my first glass of refreshing nama biru (draft beer) to start off and my being able to enjoy the Japanese equivalent of tapas-style dining.    

 

There was sashimi moriawase (assorted raw fish) on the menu but I opted for the straw-smoked katsuo, a photograph of which had been posted outside the establishment and enticed me to give this particular izakaya a try.  When the dish arrived at my table and I tasted the first generous chunk of the fish, I knew that I had made the right choice -- and, well, let's just say that it was a portend of what turned out to be yet another enjoyable, food feast-filled time in Japan!

 

Put another way: Japan, I missed you so -- and worried, among other things, that you might have changed (for the worse) and, also, that with each passing day, week, month and year of not visiting, I was over-hyping you up more and more.  But you delivered once again: not only in terms of delicious food and drinks, and interesting sights and experiences -- but, also, with the amazing omotenashi, courteous, gentle and friendly ways that many of your people have. Oh, and than there's things Funassyi... but that I'll talk about more in later posts (though I will state for now that OF COURSE I could not resist visiting Funassyi's hometown of Funabashi once more this time around)! :)     

Looking back at this past long holiday weekend

  

The nearest I got to the lantern displays at Victoria Park this year

 

...as I found the large crowd pretty offputting!

 

As those who read my October 1 blog post know, I did not go out at all all day, never mind that evening.  Instead, I celebrated World Sake Day this year by having quite a bit of sake at home, by myself, in the middle of the day -- something which made me so sleepy, if not super mellow, that I actually ended up in bed for much of the day!

 

Neither did I venture out the evening before -- although I did go out for part of the day to get prepared for an upcoming festival I'm very much looking forward to.  More specifically, I spent a good chunk of Saturday going about procuring tickets for this year's Hong Kong Asian Film Festival screenings.  And the ticketing system being expectedly awful (due in no small part for one month's worth of film festival screenings all going on sale at the same time!), I'd estimate that I ended up spending around 20 minutes queuing for tickets and travelling between screening venues to queue for tickets at their ticketing counters for each ticket I ended up getting!

 

A quick film diversion: Expectedly, a number of the Hong Kong titles that will screen at the fest feature among the list of nominees for Taiwan's Golden Horse Awards which just came out today.  And yes, they were among the films whose screenings sold out earliest.  Still, the film whose screenings appeared to sell out the quickest was actually Wim Wenders' Perfect Days, thanks to lead actor Koji Yakusho's popularity in Hong Kong and news that he will be coming over to grace this year's Hong Kong Asian Film Festival!  (And yes, I think it's safe to surmise that among the Hong Kong film fest crowd, Japanese films rule -- along with local Hong Kong offerings which truly have seen a renaissance in recent years!)

 

The one evening that I ventured out on this long weekend was Friday: the night of the Mid-Autumn (AKA Mooncake, AKA Lantern) Festival.  Until last year or the year before though, I didn't go to Victoria Park to view the lantern display there -- because I had seen the size of the crowd -- which undoubtedly was swelled by Mainland Chinese tourists here during Golden Week -- on previous nights and found them horrifying.  (I mean: Covid IS still around after all!  Just today, there's news of a new Covid surge in Singapore and I've also read in recent weeks of Japan experiencing a ninth Covid wave!) 

 

Neither did I end up going to view the Tai Hang Fire Dragon, which actually ventured out into the streets for the first time since 2019.  Ditto re the less well known Pok Fu Lam Fire Dragon which I still haven't caught sight of in real life -- but, hopefully will at some point!  Heck, I didn't even do any moon viewing -- even though this Harvest Moon was actually the last supermoon of the year!    

Instead, I went over on Friday evening to the flat of friends and had a mooncake party that involved our sampling a whole bunch of mooncakes (e.g., traditional lotus seed paste with double yolk, red bean paste with orange peel, trendy lava custard mooncakes, an Earl Grey tea mini-mooncake, a durian flavoured mini mooncake, Haagen Dazs ice cream mooncakes)!  And yes, it was a lot of fun!

So, yes, it's possible to have happy moments in Hong Kong still.  Except, of course, it's also impossible to completely forget that, these days, many Hong Kongers have loved ones and/or friends who are no longer in Hong Kong and/or are currently in jail for political reasons.  Including on Mid-Autumn Festival, which traditionally is a day where families gather and reunite, as well as October 1st, a date which previously would see protest marches take place -- something which I saw as a positive sign that Hong Kong was a free society despite it not having genuine universal suffrage, and during which I was happy to see familiar faces with whom I felt an emotional connection and solidarity. *Sigh* 

Looking ahead to some upcoming events without being inclined to celebrate all of them!

 

What's that blue inflatable object in Victoria Harbour?

 

On closer look, I'm guessing it's supposed to be a blue moon! :D

 

Some days ago, I read a post over on Bluesky (which I'm now also on!) from a man living in the USA complaining about how he's already seeing lots of Halloween decorations up in stores and such in his area.  I've already seen some here too in Hong Kong but, for the most part, their numbers (still) pale in comparison to the decorations for two other events that will take place before October 31st comes along.  

The first of these is variously known as the Mid-Autumn Festival, Lantern Festival and Mooncake Festival and is one of my favourite Chinese traditional festivals even though Hong Kong's temperatures whenever it comes along never strike me as autumnal, never mind mid-autumnal!  I do love mooncakes though, and also the lantern displays that are set up in locales such as Victoria Park.  An added bonus for this mid-autumn: the fire dragon will be parading through the streets of Tai Hang again for the first time since September 2019!

A few days after the Mid-Autumn Festival will come an anniversary that I'm not all that inclined to celebrate.  Some people and organizations are though -- or, at least, seek to look to be -- and have opted to bypass putting up lantern displays in favor of those involving the flags of the People's Republic of China (and sometimes -- but not always -- the flags of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region).  On even an aesthetic level alone, I tend to find this disappointing and, often, horrifying.

 

Maybe my mind's playing games on me but I can recall a time not so long ago when, even on October 1st, PRC flags weren't flying or hanging about in so many parts of Hong Kong.  In any case, as I told a few friends yesterday, I am planning to celebrate World Sake Day on that day since it also falls on October 1st, and -- let's face it -- I would be lying if I were to deny that I love sake far more than I love the People's Republic of China!

On the eve of Hong Kong enacting a ban on seafood (and sea salt and seaweed) from 10 Japanese prefectures

  

Akami (red tuna meat) from Nagasaki served with tororo 

(grated mountain yam), negi (Japanese leek) and wasabi

(Japanese horseradish) at the Sheung Wan branch of Sushi Masa 

 

It's official: The Hong Kong government is imposing "an indefinite ban on seafood imports from 10 Japanese prefectures starting on Thursday as the Fukushima power plant discharges treated waste water into the sea."  More specifically, the prohibition will cover " all live, chilled, frozen and dried sea products, sea salt and seaweed" from the prefectures of Fukushima, Tokyo, Chiba, Tochigi, Ibaraki, Gunma, Miyagi, Niigata, Nagano and Saitama.

 

"Secretary for Environment and Ecology Tse Chin-wan [also] said on Tuesday, adding that the government will monitor radiation levels to determinate how long the ban will last".  What's left unsaid though is how the four landlocked prefectures of Tochigi, Gunma, Nagano and Saitama would have those kinds of products -- and also why Niigata's seafood products are considered unsafe despite it being on the Sea of Japan side of Honshu Island: that is, the opposite side from where Fukushima is!

 

Of course, it's easy enough to accuse the Hong Kong government's decision to ban seafood imports from these 10 Japanese prefectures as being political rather than truly scientific.  But here's offering up some suggestions as to how they've come to target these particular prefectures (rather than others of Japan's 47 prefectures).

 

Firstly, as I previously noted, the 10 affected Japanese prefectures are the same ones that the (Mainland) Chinese government has also targeted.  But, as Environment minister Tse Chin-wan was quoted in a RTHK article as saying, Hong Kong "is taking a relatively conservative approach with the imports ban".  

On one level, I applaud this "conservative" approach -- in that I wouldn't like Hong Kong to be like Mainland China in banning all food products from the Fukushima, Tokyo, Chiba, Tochigi, Ibaraki, Gunma, Miyagi, Niigata, Nagano and Saitama.  And his especially if they also are banning drinks too as there are a number of really good sake breweries located in those prefectures!

However, after deciding to deviate from China in being more "conservative" and just specifying that they would be banning seafood products, the Hong Kong government should have more carefully looked at the list of prefectures affected rather than just follow China's lead in terms of which prefectures to ban products from!  This way, it wouldn't end up having egg on its face as a result of banning seafood products from landlocked prefectures and from Niigata too!

 

In addition, I have a feeling that the Chinese government first came up with this list of 10 prefectures in March 2011, when there were fears that radioactive waste from Fukushima was airborne as well as flowing into the ocean.  For if this were so, having Niigata and Nagano on the list makes more sense.

 

In any case, even though the ban is due to take effect tomorrow, it apparently remains unclear still to such as Martin Chan – a member of the board of directors of the Hong Kong Federation of Restaurants & Related Trades -- whether seafood coming from other Japanese regions – via Tokyo (one of the prefectures on the ban list) – are exempt from the prohibition.  For as Chan's pointed out, " 80 to 90 per cent of all exports from Japan to the world transit via Tokyo".  And as it so happens, Japan's (and the world's) largest seafood market, Toyosu, is located in Tokyo prefecture!

If seafood coming from other Japanese regions (even if they transit through Tokyo) is allowed to come into Hong Kong, then I think many restauranteurs and food purveyors here will thank goodness for small mercies.  At the same time though, I think many -- if not all -- of them would, given the choice, continue importing seafood, sea salt and seaweed from whichever part of Japan they've thus far been doing; with few, if any of them, seriously worrying about the impact of Fukushima wastewater on those items.

 

As has been reported (including in a recent piece in The Guardian), "the UN’s nuclear watchdog, the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), approved the discharge, saying that the radiological impact on people and the environment would be “negligible”.  [And s]ome experts point out that nuclear plants around the world use a similar process to dispose of wastewater containing low-level concentrations of tritium and other radionuclides."  As an example: "“Tritium has been released [by nuclear power plants] for decades with no evidential detrimental environmental or health effects,” said Tony Hooker, a nuclear expert from the University of Adelaide."

 

And for the record: "Tepco’s advanced liquid processing system removes most radioactive elements except for tritium, an isotope of hydrogen that is difficult to separate from water.  The water will be diluted to one 40th of the concentration permitted under Japanese safety standards before being pumped into the ocean over the next 30 to 40 years via an underwater tunnel 1km from the coast."      

 

On a personal note: as it so happens, I'm due to have an omakase meal this Friday at a high end sushi-ya here in Hong Kong.  It will be interesting to see how different it is from previous ones I've had at the same establishment: in terms of what is served (this not least because I'd been served tuna from Shiogama and Miyagi oysters there previously); and, also, if there will be more, fewer or the same number of diners there.    

Artistic, food and music matters that are (negatively) affected by politics

A highly prized (and ultra delicious) portion of sushi

whose otoro came from Shiogama

Last week was the first week in a long while when I didn't blog (much) at all about politics and instead, waxed lyrical about an old Hong Kong movie, a supermoon and beautiful Hong Kong sunsets.  Sadly, the first blog post of this new week is going to address matters affected by politics -- though they pertain too to art, food and music: the kind of subjects that, ideally, (also) would bring happiness and satisfaction into one's life rather than anger and frustration.

 

The first of these involves a locale in London rather than Hong Kong.  But what's been happening over at Brick Lane in the past 48 hours or so brings to mind what happened to the Lennon Walls in Hong Kong: involving the destruction of creative spaces by pro-Beijingers, a reaction to it by those who appreciate and wish to exercise free speech and expression, the authorities (specifically the city council in the case of Brick Lane) stepping in -- and the creative process happening again (hopefully without further destruction at Brick Lane -- something that sadly has not been the case in Hong Kong).    

 

The second involves Hong Kong's stated plan to ban seafood from 10 different Japanese prefectures after water used for cooling the Fukushima nuclear power station is released into the sea near it.  More specifically, despite more than one person having pointed out that the Hong Kong government is being hypocritical in its complaint about the Fukushima wastewater (and Beijing's too for that matter), it has not indicated that it will change its stated plan of action.  

 

And since it now looks like the Fukushima nuclear station will begin begin releasing its wastewater as soon as the end of this month, it means that Hong Kongers will soon stop being to enjoy delicacies such as Miyagi oysters and tuna from Shiogama.  Also, if the ban is also on products that involve inland water in their production -- as might be the case since the 10 Japanese prefectures on the list include landlocked ones! -- maybe even sake and beer?!  Now that would really seem unscientific!  And for the record: a number of the listed prefectures (including Nagano, Niigata and Ibaraki) are home to highly regarded sake breweries (such as those which brew Wataribune and Masumi sake!) while Saitama is home to the famous Coedo beer!

Adding to this troubling trifecta is the not unexpected -- but still upsetting -- news that the Hong Kong government has launched a bid to appeal against the High Court’s rejection of its attempt to ban pro-democracy protest anthem Glory to Hong Kong.  This not even two weeks after the High Court rejected its application for an injunction to block the dissemination online of popular pro-democracy anthem, Glory to Hong Kong.

 

Over on Twitter (yes, I still don't think of it as X!), Ming Pao's Alvin Lum noted that "Leave to appeal from the same judge is required before matter heads to the Court of Appeal".  Things being the way they are in Hong Kong, I wouldn't be surprised if the judge gives that "leave to appeal" -- and for his decision to be overturned at the Court of Appeal.  But I also have been pleasantly surprised by some pushbacks along the way.  

 

So, well, hope springs eternal.  Or as the proverbial "they" say: Expect the worst but hope for the best (or, at least, some good to happen at least every once in a while -- because, well, if one doesn't do that, than one might just want to give up, on the fight, Hong Kong and even life itself)! :S

The Wuhan coronavirus and other perceived Mainland Chinese threats to Hong Kong's health and wellbeing

The Pillar of Shame at the University of Hong Kong

 

We're living in a topsy turvy world where ideas once revered

are now not given much credence :(

 

Let's start off with the good news first: Hong Kong recorded zero new local Wuhan coronavirus cases for the second day in the row today; the first time this has happened since July 3rd-4th.  So I reckon it's pretty safe to say that our third coronavirus wave has truly subsided.  Further confirmation that this is so comes by way of the easing of certain social distancing measures.  This includes bars and restaurants being allowed to open until 2am (from the current 12 midnight) and operate at greater capacity, and public gazetted beaches being reopened.    

But even while the dine-in limit for restaurants will be raised to 6 (from the current four) this Friday, the public gathering will remain at four.  This has prompted jokes about how a legal party of six diners will become lawbreakers once they leave the restaurant they had been since they'd then constitute an illegal gathering on top of similar jokes cracked last week after the Hong Kong government announced that 30 person tour groups will be allowed even while four person gathering limits continue to be upheld.    

 

The cracks highlighting how ridiculous the government's decisions are elicit laughter from listeners but it's the kind of laughter that was recorded in Elenore Smith Bowen's Return to Laughter.  Specifically, "In an environment in which tragedy is genuine and frequent, laughter is essential to sanity...  It is often bitter and sometimes a little mad, for it is the laugh under the mask of tragedy, and also the laughter that masks tears."

 

Alternatively put: it is so very obvious to many Hong Kongers that the government is using the (threat of the) Wuhan coronavirus to suppress people and protest.  Thus it is that, as Renaud Haccart Tweeted back on September 15th: "As noted by other commentators, there’s a fair chance that group gathering rules will be the very last to go, as they provide the perfect cover for police to disrupt any public protest of any size or form and make arrests."

 

As things stand, the government appears to have gotten even to the hitherto highly trusted Professor Yuen Kwok-yung (of the University of Hong Kong's Department of Microbiology).  Either that or the strain has gotten to the good doctor as he's made pronouncements recently that have been greeted with suspicion and/or derision.  Take as an example his proposal that bar patrons use straws and wear masks while drinking.  (One reaction: "Does this man drink alcohol?  Or did he drink too much alcohol prior to coming up with this preposterous suggestion?!")  

 

In addition, there's his recent suggestion that tests be made mandatory for patients with mild symptoms associated with the Wuhan coronavirus (which provokes fears that it's going to pave the way for mandatory universal testing and the setting up of a "health code" a la Mainland China, along with DNA harvesting).  And on the same day as this proposal was reported on, the Hong Kong government has revealed plans to allow more Hongkongers to return from Mainland China without having to undergo quarantine from next month: i.e., effectively loosen health checks at the border!   

 

Whether they come into Hong Kong after undergoing quarantine or not, two people from Mainland China whose confirmed appointments and expected arrivals have already caused unease and dissent are the incoming vice president of research and vice president of academic development at the University of Hong Kong (HKU).  At a glance, it might be assumed that Hong Kongers (including pro-democratic councillors and civic groups, and HKU staff, alumni and current students) are exhibiting anti-Mainland Chinese sentiment but their opposition actually stems from fears that the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) -- not (just) Mainland Chinese individuals per se -- are assuming control of Hong Kong's premier university (this not least since one of the individuals concerned was previously reported to be a Chinese Communist Party member).

 

Fears that pro-Beijing parties will unduly benefit from a government proposal to let Hong Kongers living in Mainland China cast ballots remotely in the city’s elections also are behind Hong Kongers' (strong) opposition to it.  Especially since the government is not planning to extend voting rights to Hong Kongers living in other parts of the world (like, say, Britain, the USA, Australia or Canada), this does smack of official efforts to ensure that the pro-Beijing camp does not get a pasting in future elections the way that they did at last November's District Council elections.  

Remember: there was much talk about those elections having been allowed to go ahead because the governments (in Hong Kong and over in Beijing) and pro-Beijing camp mistakenly believed that "the silent majority" was on their side; whereas this year's Legislative Council election was not allowed to go ahead as scheduled because they now know full well that the majority of people living in Hong Kong are not pro-Beijing (as well as are super anti-Carrie Lam and her administration).  And lest it not be obvious: despite whatever the powers that be say, the Legislative Council election was not postponed because of the Wuhan coronavirus! 

 

Something else that should be patently clear: despite the Legislative Council electoral system already being rigged, the authorities actually have to rig it further to actually ensure a victory for their allies!  On the one hand, this points to a seriously sad state of affairs in, and for, Hong Kong.  On the other, it goes to show how strong the opposition to the Hong Kong government (and its Beijing overlords) is -- and that, in some ways, is pretty heartening since, among other things, those who passionately love Hong Kong really are in the majority in Hong Kong.     

A wonderfully memorable evening at Kichijoji's Bakawarai (Photo-essay)

I dreamnt last night that I was visiting Japan. I've had many dreams in the past few months of leaving Hong Kong and going elsewhere but until last night, all of the dreams had actually been not very pleasant in nature: seeing as they involved my having to flee a place I love (and have come to look upon as my actual as well as spiritual home).

In last night's dream though, I was visiting what's become a favorite country to visit because of -- in no particular order -- its fantastic food, libations, cultural attractions, and natural ones too, a certain Pear (Fairy), friendly people and old friends who I met in Hong Kong but since have returned to their Japanese homeland.  And even while it really saddens me that it's looking like the Wuhan coronavirus is going to prevent me from making even one trip to Japan this year, it's also true enough that I have plenty of great memories of the Land of the Rising Sun to tide me over a while -- some of which I haven't yet chronicled on my blog. So here's going ahead and resuming posting about some of them from my May 2019 trip to Tohoku and Tokyo!

After I saw a video by Simon and Martina about their favorite 

izakaya, I simply had to go there when I was in Tokyo!

 

Bakawarai's idiosyncratic way to welcome its customers

and mark reserved seats (And, if you're wondering, that's 

the name of the friend I went with on the egg ;b)

 

That egg's not just for show, by the way -- as it can get used as 

an ingredient in one of this Kichijoji izakaya's signature dishes!

 

An omelette that's picture worthy and really truly yummy!

 

I had plenty of seafood on this trip but this stewed fish head may well 

have been the single most delicious seafood dish I had on it! 

 

I love this Japanese whelk dish and pretty much always order it

whenever I see it on the menu (or, in this case, as the menu's 

only in Japanese, ordered by other customers!)

 

Yes, we had a lot of beer and sake that night... :b

 

My vote for this atmospheric izakaya's piece de resistance:

the cured bacon hanging above the counter from clothes pins :D

 

A couple of notes to conclude: Thanks to Morgan for two of the above photos; and something that made my visit to Bakawarai truly memorable was that Simon and Martina happened to go there for dinner that night!  (And yes, I did perk up my courage to go and talk to them, and thank them for this really great izakaya recommendation!)  Also, should there be any doubt, I really would love to visit Bakawarai again on a future trip to Tokyo.  Truly, it's one of those places that makes me wish I lived in the neighborhood -- though it'd actually be pretty dangerous if that were the case, as I could definitely imagine my going and drinking as well as eating a lot there on many nights each week! :)  

Sanctions for Hong Kong government officials, and merriment for regular Hong Kongers!

Rogue and revolutionary? ;b

After I finished writing up yesterday's blog post, I proceeded to check my messages and saw that I had been sent photos of bottles of champagne and celebratory emojis galore by friends.  A quick scroll through the news got me realizing why this was the case: namely, the American government's having slapped sanctions on super unpopular Hong Kong Chief Executive Carrie Lam and eleven other government officials in response to the crackdown on free speech and political freedoms in the city!

For the record: the twelve people concerned are Carrie Lam, Police Commissioner Chris Tang, his predecessor Stephen Lo, Justice Secretary Teresa Cheng, Security Secretary John Lee, Hong Kong and Macau Affairs Office director Xia Baolong, his deputy Zhang Xiaoming, Liaison Office chief Luo Huining, director of the new Office For Safeguarding National Security Zheng Yanxiong, the secretary general of the Committee For Safeguarding National Security and Chief Executive's Office head Eric Chan, and Secretary for Constitutional and Mainland Affairs Erick Tsang.  And should anyone be unclear as to why the American government has decided to impose sanctions on them, their crimes are detailed in a U.S. Department of the Treasury press release for all to see!

  

The call to impose sanctions on Carrie Lam and co have been made by a number of people for some time now.  But I think it's not something many folks actually believed would really happen.  And the fact that it has happened is a major indictment of how low the Hong Kong and those that rule over it has fallen in the eyes of the international community -- and yes, I'm expecting other governments (notably the British) to do the same thing now that the Americans have gotten the ball rolling.    

 

If truth be told, I'm not quite sure what practical effect this action can and will achieve -- beyond the escalation of laam chau (something which the authorities have long publicly said they don't want, yet seem to contribute so much to fuelling the flames).  At the same time though, I totally get where Hong Kong Hermit is coming from when he Tweeted last night that, at the very least, there's the satisfaction at seeing that "some absolutely wretched people are put onto an international naughty list, and it's top banter"!

Among other things, there's been much merriment had from seeing so many normally pretty private information about the sanctioned individuals (including home addresses, passport and identity card numbers!) put out in the open by the American government.  The reactions of former Chief Executive Leung Chun-ying and perenial aspirant Regina Ip to not being on the list have also caused much laughter along with those who have the dubious honor of being on the list.  And, as more than one wag has noted, the strong official government reactions to the imposition of the sanctions show that those who claim to scoff at it have, in fact, been pretty hurt by it.

Also, remember Carrie Lam stating that China's national security legislation for Hong Kong would "target only an extremely small minority"?  While I continue to doubt that she really thought that would be the case, I do get the feeling that she really didn't think -- or believe -- that she'd end up being targeted by the other side for her part in letting that piece of legislation be imposed on Hong Kong!   

A couple of Wuhan coronavirus-related notes before I end today's blog post: Firstly, Hong Kong reported 69 new cases today -- and while that number brought the total tally past the 4,000 mark, it's worth noting that today's figure is the lowest for the territory since July 21st (when 61 cases were reported).  And secondly, local medical experts were asked about the government’s announced plan to offer universal voluntary coronavirus tests and they expectedly turned out to be not too enthused about the idea.

The venerable Dr Yuen Kwok-yung was quoted as saying that if people are allowed to collect specimen at home themselves, they may hurt themselves and not get anything useful.  Another medical expert, Dr David Hui, pinpointed nose swabs as being difficult for people to perform themselves (as this testing scheme would have them do).  And a third medico, Dr Wong Lei-po, cited overseas example of children biting off and swallowing parts of the swab sticks when the tests were performed at home!  Talk about more good reasons to discourage people from carrying out these tests and participating in yet another not particularly well-thought-out government's scheme!