Fu Chanpuru Recipe
Food & Drink 
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Posted by Benjamin Martin, a JET from 2008-2013 in Okinawa, publisher of the blog MoreThingsJapanese.com and author of the award-winning YA fantasy series Samurai Awakening (Tuttle).
After nearly five years living in Okinawa, my favorite food is still Fu Chanpuru. While it might sound like part of a martial art, Fu is actually wheat gluten (so steer clear gluten intolerant people… sorry! you’re missing out). In Okinawa, you can buy Fu in packages, either in long roles, or in more compact forms. Fu is baked and dry, so you will have to hydrate it before use.
Ingredients
- 72g Fu- gluten
- 1 carrot cut into thin slices
- 1 large onion
- 1 packet mushrooms
- 1 bell pepper, sliced
- 1/2 small cabbage
- 170g meat (sausage, pork, etc)
- 3 eggs
- 3tbsn soy sauce
- 1tbsn garlic powder +extra
- 1tsp salt
- 2 packets dashi
- 3 small chingensai plants, cleaned and chopped (optional)
- water
- 2tbsn Extra Virgin Olive Oil
Visit MoreThingsJapanese.com for the full recipe.
Kitcher’s Café, a new series by Lana Kitcher (Yamanashi-ken, 2010-12) is an assortment of articles, topics and commentary written for the JET Alumni community. Lana currently serves as the Business Development Associate at Bridges to Japan, a New York-based cross-cultural consulting firm founded by JET alum Jennifer Jakubowski (Hokkaido, 1995-97).
As I sat in my empty Yamanashi apartment, one year ago this month, a flood of feelings rushed over me. I had come full-circle, able to cram everything into two suitcases again with anxious yet excited feelings of leaving home for something unfamiliar. I had a bundle of memorabilia set aside to take with me, and pictures of the last days that I had with my students, coworkers and friends. I knew it was going to be hard to say goodbye and turn the page to the next exciting chapter of my life, but I didn’t think that it was going to feel so daunting. This was the first time in my life that the next steps were utterly unplanned and unpredictable. After high school I knew I was going to college, during college I knew I wanted to work for the JET Program… but now that the JET Program was over, the next year was a completely blank slate. I was going to have to return to my hometown temporarily to figure it out, and that idea to me was terrifying.
LRK ©2013
Many of the JETs that are in Japan right now are clearing out their desks, packing up their apartments, attending farewell parties, and being brought to tears by the students and coworkers that shared many moments with them this past year (or five). Where once was an unfamiliar, foreign and strange place, has become normal life. Do they realize that many of them are about to leave Japan, bound for an even stranger land – the one that they once called home?
As many of us have experienced, returning to your home country after any amount of time living abroad is more challenging than it may seem at first. They try to warn us about reverse culture shock, but we convince ourselves that “I will be different,” and “It won’t happen to me, I already know what to expect.” Some people really don’t experience any strange or frustrating feelings when returning home, but for individuals like myself, the first year back may be a challenging and rocky road.
As JET alumni, what do you wish someone had told you during your final days in Japan? What are some of the words of wisdom that you wish you had known before coming back? How can we help these transitioning JET participants, soon to join the alumni community? My advice to them would be this: Read More
WIT Life #243: Effect of Internet on Japanese elections
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WIT Life is a periodic series written by professional Writer/Interpreter/Translator Stacy Smith (Kumamoto-ken CIR, 2000-03). She starts her day by watching Fujisankei’s newscast in Japanese, and here she shares some of the interesting tidbits and trends along with her own observations.
This past Sunday’s election for the Upper House of Japan’s Parliament provided an overwhelming victory to PM Abe’s Liberal Democratic Party. As the New York Times noted, “His conservative coalition now seems assured a working parliamentary majority through 2016, which would end the trend of weak revolving-door governments, which saw six successive prime ministers over the past six years.”
The results also seem to be a vote of confidence for Abenomics, the Prime Minister’s economic plan comprised of the three arrows of monetary easing, fiscal stimulus and pro-growth strategy. While these reforms seem to have been beneficial so far, there are voices of concern regarding Abe’s nationalistic views and their impact on Asian neighbors.
Another interesting aspect of the election was how it was affected by the introduction of Read More
Let’s Talk Japan, Episode 13 – Traditional Japanese Garden Design
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Let’s Talk Japan is a twice monthly, interview format podcast covering a wide range of Japan-related topics. Host Nick Harling (Mie-ken, 2001-03) lived in Japan from 2001 until 2005, including two great years as a JET Program participant in Mie-Ken. He practices law in Washington, D.C., and lives with his wife who patiently listens to him talk about Japan . . . a lot.
This episode of the Let’s Talk Japan podcast was recorded at the North Carolina Arboretum in Asheville, North Carolina. Well-known in the region’s gardening circles, Masashi Oshita, or “Mike” as he is known locally, is a master of traditional Japanese garden design. Together, Nick and Oshita-san discuss what makes Japanese gardens unique, the challenges of creating a Japanese garden outside of Japan, and how traditional Japanese garden design elements can in incorporated into everyday life.Enjoy!
Nick
If you have not already done so, be sure to “Like” the podcast on Facebook, and follow the podcast on Twitter @letstalkjapan. Additionally, please consider leaving a positive rating and/or review in iTunes.
JET alum helps produce “The Birth of Sake” documentary
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Tara Hohenberger, who first fell in love with saké and the Japanese culinary world as an ALT in Nara (2001-2003) wrote to us about a film project she is helping produce. The documentary The Birth of Saké profiles the production seasons and lives of the workers at Tedorigawa, a fifth-generation, family-owned sake brewery in Ishikawa, Japan. Tedorigawa has been producing some of the world’s top award winning sakés since 1870 and still utilizes very traditional brewing methods.
Tara is working on the project with filmmaker Erik Shirai, who was a cinematographer on The Travel Channel’s No Reservations’ with Anthony Bourdain. The crew was first invited to the brewery in August of 2012 and was intrigued by the intense and relatively unknown process (even within Japan) of traditional saké making. Led by Brewmaster Teruyuki Yamamoto, the team of brewers is made up mostly of migrant farmers who grow rice in the summers and return to the brewery in late October to begin an intense six-month period of saké production. They will live under the same roof and eat three meals a day together. At the most intense time, when they brew the ultra-premium Daiginjyo variety they will barely have time to sleep.
In January 2013, they returned to Ishikawa and were granted permission to spend several weeks living amongst the workers at the brewery. It allowed them a rare window into a cast of vibrant and dynamic characters and fueled their interest in painting a deeper portrait of the people behind the product. Shirai’s film captures this little understood world with his signature lush visual aesthetics in the stillness of winter in northern Japan.
On July 9, they launched a Kickstarter campaign running through September 2, 2013, to complete the project. They hope to raise $50,000, which will allow a visit to film the Brewmaster in his hometown of Noto, Japan to illustrate the contrast of the intense life he leads inside the brewery for six months a year, with that of his land, his rice fields, his wife, children and his grandchildren. The film will also capture the critical moment when the workers return to the brewery to begin the production cycle again. Funding will also cover editing, musical composition, licensing, equipment rentals and other post-production costs.
You can view the trailer on The Birth of Saké’s Kickstarter page at
http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/1802764272/the-birth-of-sake
The filmmakers greatly appreciate your help in spreading the word about the film. Follow them at facebook.com/birthofsake + on Twitter: @iamwhatieatTV
WIT Life #242: End of Japan Cuts 2013
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WIT Life is a periodic series written by professional Writer/Interpreter/Translator Stacy Smith (Kumamoto-ken CIR, 2000-03). She starts her day by watching Fujisankei’s newscast in Japanese, and here she shares some of the interesting tidbits and trends along with her own observations.
Author with the venerable Tatsuya Nakadai at a recent screening of Ran
Yesterday Japan Cuts 2013 came to a successful close, with a jam-packed schedule of four films in a row. I only caught the middle two, Japan’s Tragedy and Dearest, both of which deal with the theme of death (like the earlier screened I’M FLASH, and they all do this deftly in their own unique ways). Japan’s Tragedy stars the amazing Tatsuya Nakadai, an 80-year old actor who I had the honor to interpret for at an event last month at the Museum of the Modern Image when his film Ran (directed by Akira Kurosawa) was featured and he participated in a Q&A following the film.
Nakadai’s downtrodden character in Japan’s Tragedy is in direct contrast to his genkiness in real life. The father he plays has recently lost his wife and has also been diagnosed with lung cancer on the morning of 3/11. After going through one operation he decides that he doesn’t want any more treatment, and furthermore that he will board himself up in his room and die beside the altar for his late wife. His son who is living with him since leaving his wife and daughter, as well as his job, is surviving on his father’s pension and taking care of him. Unsure of how to react to his father’s pronouncement, he initially tries to Read More
JQ Magazine: Citizens of the Bay Area, Film Buffs, and Lovers of All Things Japanese, Lend Me Your Ears!
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Catch the U.S. premiere of Evangelion 3.0: You Can (Not) Redo as part of NEW PEOPLE’s fifth annual J-POP Summit beginning July 27. (© khara. Licensed by FUNimation Productions, Ltd. All Rights Reserved.)
By Preston Hatfield (Yamanashi-ken, 2009-10) for JQ magazine. Preston received a BA in English literature with an emphasis in creative writing and a minor in Japanese at the University of California, Davis. After spending an amazing year on JET in Yamanashi, he spent a year writing and interning with book publishing companies in New York. He currently lives in Marin County, where he continues to cover local Japan-related stories for JQ, and teaches English as a second language at an international school in San Francisco.
Mark your calendars for the weekend of July 27 when NEW PEOPLE and the San Francisco Japantown Merchants Association kick off the fifth annual J-POP Summit. With a special thematic focus on the kawaii phenomenon, this extravaganza promises to be bigger and better than the last one (not unlike the stages of an RPG boss fight).
“Each year we strive to present a comprehensive cross-section of the latest in hot J-POP trends across fashion, film, art, music, anime/manga and pop culture that are happening in Japan NOW!” says event publicist Erik Jansen, who has been promoting the event since the beginning.
The weekend at NEW PEOPLE and Union Square promises a spectacular showcase of live music. In addition to performances by iconic pop star Kyary Pamyu Pamyu and LoVendoR, the new band featuring former Morning Musume star Reina Tanaka, you’ll also have the chance to hear Kylee, an American-born teenage singer whose stock has been rising steadily in the pop music scene. In case you’re worried if all that cutesy music is going to turn your brain to pudding, rest assured that a punk rock show by the Akabane Vulgars and Daichi’s beat boxing and vocal mix mastery will sculpt it back to its normal Jell-O consistency.
And if music isn’t your thing? “We always receive a wide variety of attendees, from ages 7 to 75 and from across all walks of life,” Jansen promises, and this year there will also be an array of other events, including a Harajuku-inspired fashion show, a Pop Gourmet food festival, a sake tasting hosted by the Japanese Consul General of San Francisco, a rebooted edition of the Real Escape Game, the Vocaloid Dance Contest and a full lineup of special guests including guest of honor Katsuya Terada, one of Japan’s greatest illustrators, who will be doing freehand drawings and signing autographs to promote his new art book at the Kinokuniya bookstore.
Justin’s Japan: Japan Society Serves Up Summer Film Festival
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Click image to read story
By JQ magazine editor Justin Tedaldi (CIR Kobe-shi, 2001-02) for Shukan NY Seikatsu. Visit his Examiner.com Japanese culture page here for related stories.
Summer’s here, and that means a new season of JAPAN CUTS: The New York Festival of Contemporary Japanese Cinema, running at Japan Society from July 11-21.
Now in its seventh year, JAPAN CUTS offers 25 titles, all of which are a mix of New York, U.S. and International premieres. Highlights include the smash-hit samurai blockbuster Rurouni Kenshin, the multi-Japan Academy Prize-winning The Kirishima Thing, and the latest horror film from Takashi Miike, Lesson of the Evil.
“In contrast with the past few years, the selection of titles for JAPAN CUTS is much leaner, and more focused on art house productions and film oddities, though there is still a number of ‘mainstream’ crowd-pleasers in the lineup,” says Japan Society’s chief film programmer Samuel Jamier. “Rather than a ‘best-of’ list, this year’s crop brings a block of dark matter, and provides an unblinking look at the dark side of Japan.”
Co-presented with the New York Asian Film Festival (which itself is now in its 12th year), JAPAN CUTS has attracted over 30,000 filmgoers and presented over 150 feature films—many never before seen in the U.S.—as well as a number of panels, post-screening parties, and exclusive Q&As with filmmakers and actors. Past guests have included Koji Yakusho, Masami Nagasawa, and Sora Aoi.
For a complete listing of films and appearances, visit www.japansociety.org/japan-cuts-2013.
WIT Life #241: The Ravine of Goodbye
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WIT Life is a periodic series written by professional Writer/Interpreter/Translator Stacy Smith (Kumamoto-ken CIR, 2000-03). She starts her day by watching Fujisankei’s newscast in Japanese, and here she shares some of the interesting tidbits and trends along with her own observations.
Last night’s Japan Cuts feature film was Tatsushi Omori’s The Ravine of Goodbye, which just received the Special Jury Prize at the Moscow International Film Festival. This movie is based on the book by Shuichi Yoshida (who also wrote the chilling Villain, later made into a 2010 movie), and depicts the life of a couple whose next door neighbor’s young son was found murdered. As the police begin their investigation and reporters start gathering facts for their stories, it becomes revealed that the husband was involved in a gruesome gang rape when he was a college student. As more information is found, the deeper layers are peeled back to reveal the truth of the incident’s aftermath.
There were several scenes that were left a bit vague and I had some unanswered questions while watching, though I have a hunch they could be cleared up by reading the original source material. I thought the movie was really engaging in the first half, but later on as the truth was being uncovered things seemed to slow down almost uncomfortably. I found Omori’s work reminiscent of the recent Sundance miniseries “Top of the Lake,” both theme and pacing wise. Although much of Ravine was disturbing, it is without a doubt a polarizing film that will lead to much discussion, as I heard many disparate reactions from viewers exiting the theater. And for that alone, perhaps it is worth seeing.
WIT Life #240: Japan Cuts 2013: Week 2
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WIT Life is a periodic series written by professional Writer/Interpreter/Translator Stacy Smith (Kumamoto-ken CIR, 2000-03). She starts her day by watching Fujisankei’s newscast in Japanese, and here she shares some of the interesting tidbits and trends along with her own observations.
The amazing lineup at Japan Society’s Japan Cuts 2013 continues, and last night I had the chance to catch two films with the themes of loneliness and love. The first movie was I Have to Buy New Shoes, which is set in Paris and features a three-day romance between the main characters Aoi and Sen. The film’s title comes from their initial encounter, in which Aoi tripping over Sen’s passport causes the heel to come off her shoe and his passport to be ripped. She is a longtime resident of France, and he is visiting for the first time with his sister (who has abandoned him to find her boyfriend who is living there). Reminiscent of Celine and Jesse from Richard Linklater’s Before trilogy, Aoi and Sen fall into an easy rhythm as they find themselves spending all their moments together.
But with Sen’s departure three days away, there is a deadline to their relationship. Over this short period of time, they become close enough to confide in each other about Read More
I’ll Make It Myself!: Baudrillard and the Food Truck: Dragon Fest 2013
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L.M. Zoller (CIR Ishikawa-ken, Anamizu, 2009-11) is the editor of The Ishikawa JET Kitchen: Cooking in Japan Without a Fight. Ze also writes I’ll Make It Myself!, a blog about food culture in Japan and the US; curates The Rice Cooker Chronicles, a series of essays by JETs and JET alumni on the theme of cooking/eating and being alone in Japan; and admins The JET Alumni Culinary Group on LinkedIn.
New Rice Cooker Chronicles submissions always welcome. Just e-mail it to jetwit [at] jetwit.com.
One of the aspects I hadn’t anticipated as much regarding my culture shock expectations was adjusting to Americanized- and fusion Japanese food, especially for foods that I encountered for the first time in Japan. This isn’t to say that American-Japanese food isn’t delicious–quite the contrary–but it can be a bit alarming at times to see sushi rolls cooked tempura-style (why?) or cilantro in your temaki (YES). If nothing else, it serves as a reminder of my relative inexperience with the Japanese home cooking when I left to study abroad in university and the problematic nature of the idea of a food’s authenticity.
Dragon Fest is an annual celebration of pan-Asian cultures held in Seattle’s International District.
Job: Relationship Manager, Vice President (fluent in Japanese) (Boston, MA)
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Thanks to Boston-based JET alum Brian Chiappinelli (who works in the asset management field) for sharing this JET-relevant asset management job listing. Posted by Kim ‘Kay’ Monroe (Miyazaki-shi, 1995 -97). Click here to join the JETwit Jobs Google Group and receive job listings even sooner by email.
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Position: Relationship Manager, Vice President (fluent in Japanese)
Posted by: Eaton Vance Corp.
Type: N/A
Location: Boston, MA
Salary: N/A
Start Date: N/A
Overview:
Eaton Vance Corp. is one of the oldest investment management firms in the United States, with a history dating to 1924. Eaton Vance and its affiliates offer individuals and institutions a broad array of investment strategies and wealth management solutions. The Company’s long record of providing exemplary service and attractive returns through a variety of market conditions has made Eaton Vance the investment manager of choice for many of today’s most discerning investors.
Basic Purpose:
Responsible for all aspects of assigned existing client and distribution partner relationships with significant focus in Japan as well as Korea and other locales in Asia (and potentially Australia) working in team based model with new business development, consultant relations and other relationship management professionals. Fluency in Japanese and English and ability to cover part of the Japanese time zone is a requirement. While the primary investment focus of this role will be on floating rate loans it is expected that this individual will have the knowledge to represent other focus investment strategies in client, prospect and consultant meetings as well participate in other speaking events such as conferences and industry events in region. Focus will be on developing detailed client plan to ensure revenue retention and expansion of relationship through cross-selling and ensuring that all day-to-day service, investment related and ad-hoc needs are met. Develops internal partnerships within EV and affiliate organizations to add value to client relationships and further enhance and grow firm presence in assigned region. Read More
Job: NYC PR Firm Seeks Fluent Japanese-Speaking Assistant Account Executive
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Thanks to Lucy Siegel who is the owner of Bridge NY, a small PR firm based in NYC for passing on this jet-relevant listing. Posted by Kim ‘Kay’ Monroe (Miyazaki-shi, 1995 -97). Click here to join the JETwit Jobs Google Group and receive job listings even sooner by email.
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**Note: If you apply, please mention you learned of the posting via JetWit – Thanks**
Position: Japanese-Speaking Assistant Account Executive
Posted by: Bridge Global Strategies
Type: N/A
Location: New York, NY
Salary: N/A
Start Date: N/A
Overview:
Seeking a recent college graduate with about a year of public relations experience or a new college graduate who has had an internship in PR AND speaks Japanese to join our staff full-time as Assistant Account Executive. While perfection in Japanese is not necessary, the individual we hire must be able to speak, read and write Japanese well enough to communicate with our Japanese clients.
This is an entry-level professional position with great potential for growth. It involves writing in both English and Japanese, media pitching, media list building, event planning and coordination and developing media reports and activity reports for clients. Read More
Job: The Japan Foundation – Associate Program Officer, Japanese Studies (NY)
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Thanks to JET alum Grant Tompkins for passing on this jet-relevant listing. Posted by Kim ‘Kay’ Monroe (Miyazaki-shi, 1995 -97). Click here to join the JETwit Jobs Google Group and receive job listings even sooner by email.
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Position: Associate Program Officer, Japanese Studies
Posted by: The Japan Foundation
Type: N/A
Location: New York, NY
Salary: Competitive salary, commensurate with experience, and full benefits
Start Date: September 25, 2013 (or as soon as possible thereafter)
Overview:
Established by the Japanese government in 1972, the mission of The Japan Foundation is to promote international cultural exchange and mutual understanding between Japan and other nations.
The Japan Foundation’s activities consist of three major programs:
1) Arts & Cultural Exchange;
2) Japanese-Language Education Overseas;
3) Japanese Studies and Intellectual Exchange, including The Center for Global Partnership (CGP). Read More
Job: Adjunct Instructor, English As a Second Language (Hoboken, NJ)
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Via Indeed.com. Posted by Kim ‘Kay’ Monroe (Miyazaki-shi, 1995 -97). Click here to join the JETwit Jobs Google Group and receive job listings even sooner by email.
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Position: Adjunct Instructor, English As a Second Language
Posted by: Stevens Institute of Technology
Type: N/A
Location: Hoboken, NJ
Salary: N/A
Start Date: N/A
Overview:
Qualified candidates should have a master’s degree in Applied Linguistics, TESOL, or a related field with ESL certification and, at least, 1 -2 years of teaching experience at the collegiate level.
Job Description:
The College of Arts & Letters of Stevens Institute of Technology has multiple adjunct openings in our English Language and Communication (ESL) department for the following courses:
- English Communication I
- English Communication II
- English Communication III
See the Stevens Course Catalog for full description.
http://www.stevens.edu/catalog/
The English Language and Communication program is designed to improve English language proficiency, with specific focus on academic writing, presentations, and pronunciation. Qualified candidates should have a master’s degree in Applied Linguistics, TESOL, or a related field with ESL certification and, at least, 1 -2 years of teaching experience at the collegiate level. Read More
