TAKE YOUKO OUT FOR LUNCH
27.01.2025
We both had a good sleep last night and were up and about by 8.30am and it is really chilly. Shunan and Melbourne should be sister cities, summer one day, winter the next. Yesterday we had blue skies and warm weather, today, we have got almost 100% cloud cover and predictions of rain. Sounds a lot like Melbourne to me. However, the thought of a temperature of 38 degrees predicted in Melbourne the day we return from Japan, has me pondering our return.
We decided to take Youko out for lunch and she is quite happy to go to Tres, a bakery cafe. It is only a short drive from home, and the bakery part of the restaurant gets a lot of customers for their bread, cakes, buns and other goodies. See the photos and you will get the idea.
During lunch, Youko and I began reminiscing about our childhoods. Youko grew up in a farming family, where they grew rice along with a variety of vegetables. She told us how they also grew sweetcorn, tomatoes, and eggplants, and would often exchange these with their neighbors for other food. She also told us the only food she bought was meat.
Youko asked about my childhood and I told her about Maurie, my father, who was a keen and very productive vegetable gardener. We rarely had to buy veggies when we were young as Maurie provided all we needed. There was enough produce there for me to grab a radish or carrot straight out of the garden, give it a quick wash under the tap and eat it. Good memories.
One of the main reasons Mami and I wanted to move to the countryside was the idea of being self-sufficient. We dreamed of growing our own food, living a slower, more simple life, and being away from the hustle and bustle of city living. It felt like the perfect way to reconnect with nature and have more control over our everyday lives.
Mami had success with her vegie garden that had us successfully growing lettuce, carrots, snow peas, beetroot, spring onions and radishes. Minor successes with potatoes, onions, cucumbers and strawberries. We also harvested the plums off a very productive plum tree that was there when we purchased the property. Moving back to Melbourne was the right thing to do, for various reasons, but our time in Shelford was a really good experience. Mami is looking forward to starting a veggie garden as soon as we get back to Melbourne.
With lunch finished and the enjoyment of listening to Youko’s stories, Youko led us into the bakery section of the restaurant. She likes cakes and bread, usually flavoured with Japanese style fillings like red bean paste, matcha tea flavoured buns, purple potato tarts etc, etc. The list goes on with what I consider to be the worst possible desecration of cakes, buns and bread. I have tried them all at various stages and have yet to find anything I like.
I like bread with a good crust on it, which obviously you will not find in an Aussie supermarket, only in good bakeries. There are very few artisan bakeries in Japan. A loaf of bread here has the feel of a sponge. I think the light brown top of a Japanese loaf must be painted on because it has the same consistency of the rest of the loaf. Most sandwiches in Japan have the “crust” cut off and I have no idea why.
Anyway, after my rant on Japanese bread, I purchased a custard bun which is very good, (custard tastes a lot better than purple potato) Mami bought a chocolate flavoured bun and Youko bought a chestnut cake and we are all very happy with our purchases.
With just one week left in Japan, it’s hard to believe how quickly the time has passed. We don’t have any major travel plans, but we’re going to make the most of our remaining time by enjoying family moments. We’ll also start stocking up on food to bring back with us, so we can carry a piece of Japan home.
