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A Trip to Japanese Vegetable Farm Namayasai, or, Why I Had a Shungiku Omelette for Breakfast this Morning
Did you know there's a dedicated Japanese vegetable farm right here in Sussex?
I spent a Saturday with the Brighton Japan Club at Namayasai, near Lewes. Namayasai a Japanese vegetable farm owned by Robin and Ikuko, from Devon and Japan respectively, and is a Natural Agriculture farm - a specific type of organic farming that uses no pesticides / herbicides / artificial fertilisers.
Hi! This post was originally published 10 March 2017
Did you know there's a dedicated Japanese vegetable farm right here in Sussex?
I spent last Saturday with the Brighton Japan Club at Namayasai, near Lewes. Namayasai a Japanese vegetable farm owned by Robin and Ikuko, from Devon and Japan respectively.
Namayasai is a Natural Agriculture farm - a specific type of organic farming that uses no pesticides / herbicides / artificial fertilisers.
Robin started by giving us a tour of the farm, showing us their rainwater collection system, lots and lots of interesting plants, and compost toilet (I resisted the temptation to take a picture of the compost toilet).
We had a go at eating nettles, identified a nashi pear plant from its buds, spotted some daikon (sadly a bit frosted on top - the non-frosted ones were protected under a sheet so no photos of them):
...and even found some rhubarb!
As well as outdoor crops, the farm has a huge greenhouse filled with Japanese herbs and leafy vegetables.
Tour over, we had a quick stop for cake, and then it was time to do some actual work!
We mixed the compost and Robin told us we were going to plant 113 trays of seeds. That sounded like quite a lot to me, but he seemed confident we would get it all done.
Robin showed us how to plant the seeds with chopsticks (well it is a Japanese farm...)
We planted mitsuba (also known as "Japanese parsley" but more like shiso), shungiku (edible chrysanthemum) and daikon, amongst other things. The daikon seeds were bright orange, which was cool / surprising.
I can't remember what these guys were planting but it looked significantly more fiddly than what I was doing:
When we'd finished planting (yep, all 100-and-something trays), Robin sent us home with bags and bags of vegetables.
I spent the next four days eating massive amounts of green veg, which made me extremely happy.
It was a lot of fun - massive thanks to Robin for having us, and Tom at the Brighton Japan Club for organising!
As well as locally, Namayasai supplies lots of famous Japanese restaurants in London, and Robin and Ikuko also run a vegetable box scheme with collection points around Sussex which I now have my eye on.
They have lots of info about the veg box, the farm itself and work/volunteer opportunities on their website - please do check it out!
Originally posted 10 March 2017
Updated 31st March 2020
Japanese guys don’t want your Valentine’s Day chocolate anyway
ハッピーバレンタインデー！ Happy Valentine's Day!
Valentine's Day in Japan is pretty different from the U.K. There's honmei choko (chocolate for someone you're into), giri choko (obligation chocolate), and even tomo choko (chocolate for friends)...
And a month later there's White Day to contend with…
ハッピーバレンタインデー！ Happy Valentine's Day!
Valentine's Day in Japan is pretty different from the U.K. There's honmei choko (chocolate for someone you're into), giri choko (obligation chocolate), and even tomo choko (chocolate for friends)...
And a month later there's White Day to contend with…
One survey revealed that 90% of Japanese men said they didn't care about getting Valentine's Day chocolate, and wished women wouldn't bother.
Click here to read an article I wrote for SoraNews24 on the subject.
(It's from a couple of years ago, but I think it's still super relevant... especially on Valentine's Day).
2017: A Round Up
I'll let you into a secret.
I wanted to write an end-of-year "round-up" post last year, but I didn't think I had enough to talk about.
This year there's too much! It's been a busy, brilliant year.
Here's what my students and I got up to in 2017.
I'll let you into a secret.
I wanted to write an end-of-year "round-up" post last year, but I didn't think I had enough to talk about.
This year there's too much! It's been a busy, brilliant year.
Here's what my students and I got up to in 2017.
I started the year off with a chilly trip to Namayasai, Sussex's very own organic Japanese vegetable farm.
↓ Photo by Shino. Daikon radish by Namayasai.
In March, students and I were invited to the Brighton & Hove Japanese Club Open Day.
We tried calligraphy, made kanji name badges, and ate a lot of Japanese sweets.
The first term of 2017 flew by. In the Easter break we had an impromptu school outing to Hove Park for hanami (cherry-blossoming viewing)...
...and to E-Kagen for noodles and Japanese beer.
May in Brighton brings the Brighton Festival and Fringe Festival. And this year there were a few Japanese events on!
We saw a show by the incredible Rakugo (traditional Japanese comic storytelling) performer Katsura Sunshine...
...and enjoyed the sunshine with a trip to the beach.
Students in my new Pre Intermediate class had an end-of-year visit from a special guest.
Haruna came to chat Japanese with students during the Free Talk section of class.
↓ Haruna-san, arigatou gozaimashita!
In July I also went to the Hyper Japan festival in London for the first time.
That was a frantic day full of shopping, different performances, and Japanese street food.
↓ Domo-kun (NHK mascot) and me at Hyper Japan.
Over the summer I also attended a number of brilliant workshops, as part of Ride the Wave, a business support programme run by the council and the Brighton & Hove Chamber of Commerce.
It was a great opportunity to meet like-minded small business owners!
↓ And I got to wear this red and white badge.
Students and I also went to the Japanese Summer Festival organised by Ohisama Ahaha, a Japanese kids group in Brighton and Hove.
We watched Japanese storytelling, made wishes for the Tanabata festival, and ate even more Japanese sweets.
Summer rolled by and I rolled off to Berlin on holiday.
This holiday is significant because its the first trip I've taken (since starting Step Up Japanese) where I put the "out of office" on and didn't check my emails while I was away.
Working hard is important, but we all need time off too.
Many of my students were off on holiday too, including Step Up Japanese student Daniel who spent the whole month of August in Japan. He documented his travels by taking over my Instagram with the hashtag #DanStepsUp.
In August we also had the first Step Up Japanese barbecue! Students brought lots of tasty food to share.
In October I attended the Language Show London for the first time, including language teaching seminars...
...and Japan Foundation events including a talk from Paralympic Gold Medallist (and fluent Japanese speaker!) Noel Thatcher.
In October half term we had the first Step Up Japanese Origami Night, a relaxed affair in one of my favourite pubs.
In November I went for Japanese Afternoon Tea at Portslade's Café an-an. This was a special event for World Vegan Day.
And before you know it, it's nearly the end of the year!
Students met for noodles and festive fun at the Christmas Party.
Like I said, it's been busy.
I'm really, really looking forward to see what 2018 brings!
Thank you so much to everyone who came to classes, took part in events, and supported me at Step Up Japanese this year.
良いお年を！
Have a good new year!
Afternoon Tea at Café an-an for World Vegan Day
I was a vegetarian for ten years…then, I moved to Japan. I lasted about two weeks as a vegetarian in Japan, before swiftly abandoning my principles in favour of late-night ramen and fish for breakfast.
That's not to say that being vegetarian - or even vegan - in Japan is impossible. It just wasn't for me. But did you know that lots of wagashi (Japanese sweets) are naturally vegan?
I hadn't really thought about it, until I learned that Cafe an-an in Portslade was running an Afternoon Tea event for World Vegan Day on 1st November.
Here are some pictures of the tasty food I managed to take on the day - before I ate it all.
2021 update: Cafe an-an has moved! Now at 94 Boundary Rd, Hove BN3 4EF. Make sure to pop in and chat some Japanese with Noriko-san while you buy your sweets. She's always very welcoming! The cafe’s opening hours are changeable, so check their Facebook or Instagram before making a trip.
I was a vegetarian for ten years…then, I moved to Japan. I lasted about two weeks as a vegetarian in Japan, before swiftly abandoning my principles in favour of late-night ramen and fish for breakfast.
That's not to say that being vegetarian - or even vegan - in Japan is impossible. It just wasn't for me.
But did you know that lots of wagashi (Japanese sweets) are naturally vegan?
I hadn't really thought about it, until I learned that Cafe an-an in Portslade was running an Afternoon Tea event for World Vegan Day on 1st November.
Here are some pictures of the tasty food I managed to take on the day - before I ate it all.
I got there super early, partly because I got the bus, and partly because I was trying to run on "Japan time", i.e., if you're not early, you're late.
Cafe an-an is run by the lovely Noriko-san, who you can see selling Japanese sweets at lots of events around Brighton.
I meant to get a picture with Noriko too, but she was very busy cooking! Next time...
Anyway, we arrived and were presented with this cute handwritten menu.
Today's reading practice for you! ↓
We started the Afternoon Tea with a little soy milk and pumpkin soup. Then chestnut rice, nasu dengaku (glazed aubergine), and ganmodoki (tofu fritters) with lotus root.
You can see from the picture how small the aubergine is. It's a proper tiny Japanese one - sweet and delicious.
I haven't had aubergine that good in a long time...
Next, the sweet bit!Tsukimi dango ("moon-viewing dumplings"), and steamed chestnut yōkan (a jellied sweet made with agar) - that's the purple triangle below.
And pumpkin kintsuba - that's the orange slice that looks a bit like a piece of brie.
Kintsuba is another type of Japanese sweet, popular with people who like their sweets a bit less sweet.
The last little course was i-no-ko mochi ("baby boar rice cake"). Tasty, and of course it doesn't contain any boar...baby or otherwise.
And lastly, we had an awesome little maple leaf shaped sweet. Isn't it pretty?
Finally, my little rabbit manjuu (steamed bun) filled with anko (red bean paste).
He was almost too cute to eat, but I ate him head first.
I felt pretty sorry for the cute bunny. But at least he's vegan! Unlike me...
2021 update: Café an-an has moved! Now at 94 Boundary Rd, Hove BN3 4EF. Make sure to pop in and chat some Japanese with Noriko-san while you buy your sweets. She's always very welcoming! The cafe’s opening hours are changeable, so check their Facebook or Instagram before making a trip.
First published November 2017. Updated August 2021.
Like many people in the UK, I studied French in school. I liked French. I thought it was really fun to speak another language, to talk with people, and to try and listen to what was going on in a new country. (Still do!)
When I was 14 we went on a school exchange to the city of Reims, in northeastern France. I was paired with a boy, which I’m sure some 14-year-olds would find very exciting but which I found unbearably awkward. He was very sweet and we completely ignored each other.
That was nearly 20 years ago, and I didn’t learn or use any more French until, at some point in lockdown, I decided on a whim to take some one-to-one lessons with online teachers. Here are some things I learned about French, about language learning, and about myself.