May 5 , 2003 - page 2

bad, the snail just a little bitter when it came down to the last bite.

After that we headed to a famous restaurant for lunch. My host family advised me to try raw squid and raw octopus for lunch, and I blindly accepted. I admit that it was a bit unsettling to see the suckers on the octopus, but I actually liked it. For those of you wondering what raw octopus tastes like, the answer is “nothing”, it’s actually pretty bland. My experience with squid however was a bit different. As I chewed the squid it seemed to grow/expand. This was a new sensation

for me and I didn’t enjoy it. I offered the rest of my squid to my host dad and he laughed as he accepted it. Other than the raw squid, I’ve been very pleased with Japanese cuisine. I haven’t not gotten tired of having rice at every meal either, something that I thought might happen.

On the way home from Susa we stopped by another sea town, Hagi. Hagi is famous for its Hagi Yaki pottery and we visited the master artisan’s studio. The master was gracious enough to give us a live demonstration. I found this very interesting because at school I am taking the Hagi Yaki pottery course. The master was phenomenal, and definitely put me to shame. In fact, I don’t even know if you could call what I create pottery compared to his creations. I practiced my Japanese skills and had a short conversation with him and learned that he was a relative of my own pottery teacher.